Tub Maintenance

[Charles Warner]

The thread in the Wanted section regarding carbon tubs and their ability to last got me thinking. How many Ralt RT-4/5 drivers out there have not re-epoxied their engine legs in the last two years? This should be done at least every two years and the 10/32 bolts should be converted to 1-4/28. They should be examined every year at least and after any sort of impact. Without doing this the car will become a flexi flier and you will be chasing setup all over the map. Plus, if the epoxy holding the engine legs tight lets go (not an uncommon situation) damage to the tub can occur and possibly loss of control.

It isn't a difficult job although it involves removing the engine and gearbox - which should be done every year anyway - and removing the legs, cleaning the epoxied areas well, changing the bolts if applicable, and reinstalling the legs, making sure the engine bay is square. Should take no more than a day total. The legs will need several days to set and then another day to reinstall the engine/gearbox.

If anyone needs further info they can drop me a line at fattogatto@msn.com

[Allan Davies]

Charles, thanks for the reminder. And it's not just Ralts...my Anson SA 4 had similar issues. Fortunately J.D. McDermott from Front Range Motorsports caught it and re-epoxied the mounting points as you described and it's now a much more solid-feeling car.

There's a lot of maintenance to be done on these cars, for sure, but they're tremendously satisfying to drive.

Any other maintenance tips are always welcome.

Best regards,

Allan