Punisher Bass
He who drives a Buick
Final Gear Racing storms back onto the track for 2011.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/FGR_PR_logo.jpg
It's a new year and that means it's time for a new Final Gear Racing thread. We started last season by going back to the drawing board, which meant not only a new car but new drivers as well. This season we plan to come out of the gate swinging.
When you last saw us, the Final Gear Racing GTP was holding 3rd place with a good chance to finish in the top 10, and then it decided to see if it could pass an E30 BMW using only 3 wheels. The results of that little experiment can be seen below.
But before I get to the new stuff, here is a brief recap for anyone unfamiliar with us and our history.
The 24 Hours Of LeMons is an American endurance racing series where cars costing no more than $500 go around the track for up to 24 hours straight. Basically you and a couple of your crazy and/or brain damaged friends take a car that has no right being on a race track, throw a roll cage in it, and then you pray it holds together while you beat the piss out of it for a weekend. The reason for doing this? So you can win $1,500 in nickles.
Yes I'm serious, we've been chasing that carrot since 2007.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_1.jpg
Around this time last year we had just purchased and begun prep work on our 4th LeMons car, a 1997 Pontiac GTP. To say it was a complete nightmare would be an understatement. What was left of the paint was in horrible shape, the interior leaked like a sieve, the engine misfired and spewed more oil than the Deepwater Horizon. But the good news didn't end there, a previous owner had ripped out the mufflers so they could tow their boat, through some unknown shenanigans the car was registered as an 03 Subaru wagon, and we later found out it was a Katrina car.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Oil_Leak.JPG
In other words, it was perfect for LeMons.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_2.JPG
However, things were not all bad. Under the hood is one of the best engines GM ever produced, the nigh unkillable 3800 V6. Ours is the supercharged version cranking out 240hp and 280lb ft of torque in stock form. Backing it up is the 4T65E-HD transmission, a heavy duty 4 speed automatic. The car also features disc brakes at all four corners and a suspension that's easily upgradeable. When you put all that together in a package that weighed around 3,400lbs from the factory, you end up with a really good starting point for a LeMons car.
The interior was stripped out and unnecessary items like windows and the AC compressor were removed. Once the roll cage was installed we estimated the car's weight to be between 3,000 and 3,100lbs. We also upgraded the front brakes going from 11 inch rotors with single piston calipers to 12 inch rotors and dual piston calipers, stopping is not a problem for this car. A heavy duty transmission cooler was also added to help keep things nice and happy.
https://pic.armedcats.net/q/qu/quiky/2010/06/06/DSC00159.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Brakes.JPG
With all that done, it was time to take it to its first shakedown race. We entered the Capitol Offense race at Summit Point in June where we battled 80 other cars and intense heat to place 43rd. A full writeup of the race can be found here.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2010/07/20/24HLeMonsTeam.jpg
The next race was the South Fall 2010 event at Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP) at the end of September. The car was doing well in 3rd place until the previously mentioned wheel incident happened. We finished 59th after repairs had knocked us back to 83rd. A full writeup of this race can be found here in three parts. Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2010/10/06/IMG_8366_-_Copy.jpg
And all that brings me to today. After enjoying some time off, it was decided that the GTP needed to go under the wrench for some serious repairs and upgrades. I'll go over each area of the car and cover what has changed since the last race and what is on our to-do list.
Cooling system.
As I said before, we removed the AC compressor and most of the AC system to save weight and help free up horsepower, but we did not remove the condenser because it's a major pain in the ass to get to. You have to remove the ?dog bones? that tie the engine to the core support, the radiator fans, and then the radiator itself before you get to the condenser. Since the engine is already out of the way, more on that in a second, we plan to finally yank it. With it gone the radiator should see better air flow and we should see a drop in engine temps.
We had wanted to stuff a bigger radiator from a 9C1 Impala in its place, but lack of funds means it will have to wait for another time.
Engine.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Engine_1.jpg
The 3800 was removed so it could be torn down, inspected, and rebuilt if necessary. After it was reduced to just a shortblock, we were stunned by just how well the internals looked. The cylinder walls appeared to be brand new and markings on the main caps indicate the block took a trip to the machine shop sometime in the past. The heads were also inspected before being treated to a mild pocket job to help the engine breathe in and out better. The supercharger was also disassembled so all bearings and seals could be replaced.
After this was all done, the engine was buttoned back up with fresh gaskets and bolts.
Before.
https://pic.armedcats.net/q/qu/quiky/2010/12/26/DSC01658.jpg
And after.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Engine_3.jpg
Exhaust system.
You've no doubt noticed the shiny new headers in the above picture. The reason for them is because while we were in the middle of the engine work, it was discovered that both exhaust manifolds were cracked. Rather than spend the money on a new set of restrictive OEM manifolds, we decided to get a set of Chinese knockoff headers from eBay for dirt cheap. They're probably made from something that will give us 4 different kinds of cancer once they heat up, but you can't beat them for the price.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Engine_2.jpg
Rather than bolt the new headers to the old, damaged, and very restrictive OEM exhaust system we currently have, we plan to rip it all out and just straight pipe it. That means removing the catalytic converter, U bend, second O2 sensor, and resonator. This will not only free up a nice amount of horsepower, but it will also make the car sound downright evil.
Transmission.
The 4T65E-HD was cleaned and freshened up with new clutch packs.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/23/LeMons_2011_Trans.JPG
Brakes.
After the last CMP race, we knew this area would need some attention. Since we do not want another wheel trying a solo racing career, we will be installing new ARP wheel studs which are much stronger the OEM ones were. We would also like to replace our old OEM rubber brake hoses with new braided stainless steel ones, but while they're exempt from the budget, their cost is still a factor.
We had planned to do two or maybe even three races this year, but CMP has turned out to be our first and only race this year. Below you see the GTP with it's new E30 Killer theme which replaced the old Trans Prix theme we had for 2010.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/24/09_lemons_south_11_rgb.jpg 1: LeMons South Spring 2011 ? Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP), Kershaw SC May 21st ? 22nd.
You can read the full recap of this race in three parts. Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/06/01/Tech_1.JPG
About a month later we finally got around to pulling the blown engine and got a real idea of how bad the damage was. We destroyed a couple pistons, a rod, punched a hole in the block, and cracked it in three places, we also had some fire damage to the power steering system and some of the wiring harness. All this will need to be fixed or replaced before the GTP is ready to race again, which probably won't happen till sometime next year.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/08/19/GTP_Engine_Block.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/FGR_PR_logo.jpg
It's a new year and that means it's time for a new Final Gear Racing thread. We started last season by going back to the drawing board, which meant not only a new car but new drivers as well. This season we plan to come out of the gate swinging.
When you last saw us, the Final Gear Racing GTP was holding 3rd place with a good chance to finish in the top 10, and then it decided to see if it could pass an E30 BMW using only 3 wheels. The results of that little experiment can be seen below.
But before I get to the new stuff, here is a brief recap for anyone unfamiliar with us and our history.
The 24 Hours Of LeMons is an American endurance racing series where cars costing no more than $500 go around the track for up to 24 hours straight. Basically you and a couple of your crazy and/or brain damaged friends take a car that has no right being on a race track, throw a roll cage in it, and then you pray it holds together while you beat the piss out of it for a weekend. The reason for doing this? So you can win $1,500 in nickles.
Yes I'm serious, we've been chasing that carrot since 2007.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_1.jpg
Around this time last year we had just purchased and begun prep work on our 4th LeMons car, a 1997 Pontiac GTP. To say it was a complete nightmare would be an understatement. What was left of the paint was in horrible shape, the interior leaked like a sieve, the engine misfired and spewed more oil than the Deepwater Horizon. But the good news didn't end there, a previous owner had ripped out the mufflers so they could tow their boat, through some unknown shenanigans the car was registered as an 03 Subaru wagon, and we later found out it was a Katrina car.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Oil_Leak.JPG
In other words, it was perfect for LeMons.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_2.JPG
However, things were not all bad. Under the hood is one of the best engines GM ever produced, the nigh unkillable 3800 V6. Ours is the supercharged version cranking out 240hp and 280lb ft of torque in stock form. Backing it up is the 4T65E-HD transmission, a heavy duty 4 speed automatic. The car also features disc brakes at all four corners and a suspension that's easily upgradeable. When you put all that together in a package that weighed around 3,400lbs from the factory, you end up with a really good starting point for a LeMons car.
The interior was stripped out and unnecessary items like windows and the AC compressor were removed. Once the roll cage was installed we estimated the car's weight to be between 3,000 and 3,100lbs. We also upgraded the front brakes going from 11 inch rotors with single piston calipers to 12 inch rotors and dual piston calipers, stopping is not a problem for this car. A heavy duty transmission cooler was also added to help keep things nice and happy.
https://pic.armedcats.net/q/qu/quiky/2010/06/06/DSC00159.jpg
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Brakes.JPG
With all that done, it was time to take it to its first shakedown race. We entered the Capitol Offense race at Summit Point in June where we battled 80 other cars and intense heat to place 43rd. A full writeup of the race can be found here.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2010/07/20/24HLeMonsTeam.jpg
The next race was the South Fall 2010 event at Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP) at the end of September. The car was doing well in 3rd place until the previously mentioned wheel incident happened. We finished 59th after repairs had knocked us back to 83rd. A full writeup of this race can be found here in three parts. Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2010/10/06/IMG_8366_-_Copy.jpg
And all that brings me to today. After enjoying some time off, it was decided that the GTP needed to go under the wrench for some serious repairs and upgrades. I'll go over each area of the car and cover what has changed since the last race and what is on our to-do list.
Cooling system.
As I said before, we removed the AC compressor and most of the AC system to save weight and help free up horsepower, but we did not remove the condenser because it's a major pain in the ass to get to. You have to remove the ?dog bones? that tie the engine to the core support, the radiator fans, and then the radiator itself before you get to the condenser. Since the engine is already out of the way, more on that in a second, we plan to finally yank it. With it gone the radiator should see better air flow and we should see a drop in engine temps.
We had wanted to stuff a bigger radiator from a 9C1 Impala in its place, but lack of funds means it will have to wait for another time.
Engine.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Engine_1.jpg
The 3800 was removed so it could be torn down, inspected, and rebuilt if necessary. After it was reduced to just a shortblock, we were stunned by just how well the internals looked. The cylinder walls appeared to be brand new and markings on the main caps indicate the block took a trip to the machine shop sometime in the past. The heads were also inspected before being treated to a mild pocket job to help the engine breathe in and out better. The supercharger was also disassembled so all bearings and seals could be replaced.
After this was all done, the engine was buttoned back up with fresh gaskets and bolts.
Before.
https://pic.armedcats.net/q/qu/quiky/2010/12/26/DSC01658.jpg
And after.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Engine_3.jpg
Exhaust system.
You've no doubt noticed the shiny new headers in the above picture. The reason for them is because while we were in the middle of the engine work, it was discovered that both exhaust manifolds were cracked. Rather than spend the money on a new set of restrictive OEM manifolds, we decided to get a set of Chinese knockoff headers from eBay for dirt cheap. They're probably made from something that will give us 4 different kinds of cancer once they heat up, but you can't beat them for the price.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/22/LeMons_2011_Engine_2.jpg
Rather than bolt the new headers to the old, damaged, and very restrictive OEM exhaust system we currently have, we plan to rip it all out and just straight pipe it. That means removing the catalytic converter, U bend, second O2 sensor, and resonator. This will not only free up a nice amount of horsepower, but it will also make the car sound downright evil.
Transmission.
The 4T65E-HD was cleaned and freshened up with new clutch packs.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/23/LeMons_2011_Trans.JPG
Brakes.
After the last CMP race, we knew this area would need some attention. Since we do not want another wheel trying a solo racing career, we will be installing new ARP wheel studs which are much stronger the OEM ones were. We would also like to replace our old OEM rubber brake hoses with new braided stainless steel ones, but while they're exempt from the budget, their cost is still a factor.
We had planned to do two or maybe even three races this year, but CMP has turned out to be our first and only race this year. Below you see the GTP with it's new E30 Killer theme which replaced the old Trans Prix theme we had for 2010.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/03/24/09_lemons_south_11_rgb.jpg 1: LeMons South Spring 2011 ? Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP), Kershaw SC May 21st ? 22nd.
You can read the full recap of this race in three parts. Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/06/01/Tech_1.JPG
About a month later we finally got around to pulling the blown engine and got a real idea of how bad the damage was. We destroyed a couple pistons, a rod, punched a hole in the block, and cracked it in three places, we also had some fire damage to the power steering system and some of the wiring harness. All this will need to be fixed or replaced before the GTP is ready to race again, which probably won't happen till sometime next year.
https://pic.armedcats.net/p/pu/punisherbass/2011/08/19/GTP_Engine_Block.jpg
Last edited:
@ 3-time-loser patch
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