An update on car maintenance from Kevin Seidl

[dalyduo]

After the recent Lime Rock regional there was a lot of concern expressed here about the condition of the cars. I asked COO Kevin Seidl if he could provide some context for us to understand the problem and how they were dealing with it. Kevin and his team responded comprehensively with the data and explanations below.

I'd like to thank Kevin and his team for putting this together and sharing it with us. It gives us a much better sense of what is being done and how soon we'll start seeing meaningful change.

There are two Excel files and one Word file you'll need to download to review.
__________________________________________________ ____________

Pat

Attached please find a fairly detailed response to many of the issues that have surfaced.

In this document we have briefly tried to address:

1) Technician Turnover - a clear indicator of Technician Morale. We will show you where we are today versus the same period a year ago.

2) Race Did Not Finish - DNF Mechanicals ... that are increasing in Formula Races but declining in Cup Car Races. On the Formula Car, we will show you what component failures year to date are increasing and what we are doing to drive these numbers back.

3) Parts On Order or arriving. This list is not exhaustive but I tried to limit what is addressed to meaningful changes in terms of quality and safety. Significant changes are coming.

4) Fleet Refurbishment Schedule in Road Atlanta

[oldredracer]

Great to see all the good stuff in the pipeline. Perhaps a little levity injected into a serious subject would help??????

Automotive Repair Advertisement in 1928 (sent on a penny postcard)

[GregS]

Borla Exhaust

Completed 6 June 2011

We use Borla?

ok
nm
looks like that sheet is a combo of mx and rt

ETA Cars To Be Rebuilt

what does that mean?

[GregS]

" Most of SBRS Parts are long lead time parts requiring more than 4 months to receive and assemble parts following payment.
"

this stinks
why so long?

[dalyduo]

We do on the MX-5's. The noise restrictions were an issue at Laguna and LRP. Borla sponsored new more efficient yet quieter exhaust systems for the MX-5's. They were in use at LRP when we were there... You didn't notice the less strident tone?

I believe there are new exhausts coming for the open wheel cars as well that will be quieter and look correct while losing the need for that Rube Goldberg tire warming creation on the Laguna fleet.

Originally Posted by GregS

We use Borla?

I'm guessing that's Estimated Time of Arrival for cars to be in Atlanta for repairs or rebuilds.

Originally Posted by GregS

ETA Cars To Be Rebuilt
what does that mean?

Some from Europe, some from China, some from US. All over the map. The other component is when the refinancing took longer than expected some orders were held back. When the financing came through and those orders were put through the parts inventories were low and that's where we are now... Nursing low inventories for parts that have been ordered and should be arriving close to Kevin's projections.

Originally Posted by GregS

Most of SBRS Parts are long lead time parts requiring more than 4 months to receive and assemble parts following payment.

This stinks
why so long?

[GregS]

Originally Posted by dalyduo

We do on the MX-5's. The noise restrictions were an issue at Laguna and LRP. Borla sponsored new more efficient yet quieter exhaust systems for the MX-5's. They were in use at LRP when we were there... You didn't notice the less strident tone?

i thought something was wrong - i just didnt know what.

[GregS]

Originally Posted by oldredracer

Great to see all the good stuff in the pipeline. Perhaps a little levity injected into a serious subject would help??????

so awesome

[Rosso]

I know that they are replacing quite a few gearboxes. One of my neighbors who vintage races a Formula Ford recently purchased one of the school car 4 speeds (Hewland?). He said they had something like 26 of them for sale. School cars all getting 5 speeds finally?

[dalyduo]

There are no more school cars. All the school car frames have been converted to the 5 speed sequential boxes and the current winged car configuration of the series racers. All open wheel SBRS race cars are now the same.

Originally Posted by Rosso

I know that they are replacing quite a few gearboxes. One of my neighbors who vintage races a Formula Ford recently purchased one of the school car 4 speeds (Hewland?). He said they had something like 26 of them for sale. School cars all getting 5 speeds finally?

[dalyduo]

Wanted to relay to everyone Kevin's updates this week on car maintenance going into the Atlanta race weekend.

On Tuesday July 12th Kevin reported:

Prior To Road America and during my last write up, we acknowledged an emerging spindle problem…

We sent an Engineer to Road America.. It happened again…

We are inspecting existing inventory of spindles with Magnaflux and Xray. Completed.

All RTS are getting newly inspected Spindles installed for July’s Race in Road Atlanta. At the time of this email 14/41 cars are completed.

All RTs will have all existing spindles pulled off and x-rayed at this time as a one time precaution.

New Spindles are being quoted to replace on the entire fleet later this year.

__________________________________________________ ___________

I asked about A-arms and the new bodywork shipment and on Thursday July 14th Kevin responded:

1) New A Arms are coming in now but we will not have them on the cars by next week. We do expect the change over to occur in the next two weeks for all cars in the fleet.

2) The new Fiberglass Shipment has finally arrived in Miami. It is getting shipped to Road Atlanta and we expect to have in Atlanta within 2 week as well.

3) At one time (two weeks ago) we had 28 cars down from crash damage (including the two major crashes at Road America). We have reduced this number in half to 14 as new parts are arriving. These additional 14 cars are taking stress off the system allowing other cars To get a Full National prep. Currently 41 Formula Cars in Atlanta are getting a full National Prep For the Road Atlanta Race Next week.

4) Penske Shocks are getting installed on The Cup Cars for the Race At Road Atlanta.

5) All Cup Cars have the new Borla Exhaust system installed.

__________________________________________________ _____________

This morning Kevin relayed word that the container with the new fiberglass bodywork should be arriving from Miami next Wed. July 20th.

Again thanks to Kevin and his team for the updates and their continuing efforts to keep the cars in safe fighting trim.

[Slowhands]

Thanks for following up, Pat. Refurbishment along these lines has been on the agenda since Feb 2010, I guess the refinancing has finally made it possible. The pipeline sure is long, though. I'm sorry the bodywork and A-arms won't be available for Atlanta, but it's a relief to see parts finally arriving and making it onto the fleet, and knowing the rest won't be far behind. I'm sure the MX5 Cup drivers are pleased the new shocks are going on right away. Should really upgrade their handling experience. I'll be interested to see what they think, maybe check one out myself.

[cdh]

Thanks for the info DD

[knightrider]

Thanks for the update Pat. Good to have you as a liason so we know what is going on. HOPEFULLY - NO MORE BROKEN SPINDLES!!!

[Michael Edwards]

Very helpful info and thread. Thanks to Pat and Skip team for posting and keeping updated.
mje

[dalyduo]

Kevin reports the fiberglass shipment did, in fact, arrive today in Atlanta.

[Slowhands]

Well the fiberglass will be nice, but current issues remain more than skin deep. Knight Rider had 2 mechanicals and I had a third. And the next car felt like it might have one soon.

[dalyduo]

Knowing how you and David drive this doesn't surprise me.
But seriously folks... I would imagine the cars are still being tested and brought into the window for this weekend. What sort of mechanicals are you talking about?

Originally Posted by Slowhands

Well the fiberglass will be nice, but current issues remain more than skin deep. Knight Rider had 2 mechanicals and I had a third. And the next car felt like it might have one soon.

[Slowhands]

Originally Posted by dalyduo

Knowing how you and David drive this doesn't surprise me.
But seriously folks... I would imagine the cars are still being tested and brought into the window for this weekend. What sort of mechanicals are you talking about?

Can you believe it, the testers took mine and David's word for it when we told them that the big round rubber things were not going round and round anymore and we guesstimated that the cars were roughly 120+ mph out of the window, both of them, almost exactly the same, within 1 mph. But we certainly wanted them in the window. So they called the tow truck guys, who were really cool and all, but we couldn't find a window big enough to fit the cars into low enough to the ground. The media center ones were too high up.

Oh, BTW, another one today right in front of me, this time with whole lots of blue smokey stuff coming out of the...block, I think they call it. Don't think we're gonna find a window big enough for that one, either.

[dalyduo]

So if I'm reading you correctly you done blowed up one car, David done blowed up another and someone else blowed up a third car? What are you guys using... C-4?

OK comedy aside... What kind of mechanicals are we talking about? Since presumably spindles and A-arms are holding up and the new bodywork won't get out of it's trailer for this race weekend... What are the car issues?

Originally Posted by Slowhands

Can you believe it, the testers took mine and David's word for it when we told them that the big round rubber things were not going round and round anymore and we guesstimated that the cars were roughly 120+ mph out of the window, both of them, almost exactly the same, within 1 mph. But we certainly wanted them in the window. So they called the tow truck guys, who were really cool and all, but we couldn't find a window big enough to fit the cars into low enough to the ground. The media center ones were too high up.

Oh, BTW, another one today right in front of me, this time with whole lots of blue smokey stuff coming out of the...block, I think they call it. Don't think we're gonna find a window big enough for that one, either.

[dalyduo]

The first car with new bodywork was assembled in pit road today at Lime Rock.

[GregS]

Originally Posted by dalyduo

The first car with new bodywork was assembled in pit road today at Lime Rock.

it looked great and was fast