new year new adventure

[a100]

Hi all well I went and did it I bought that FF off e-bay, 84 spartan, sight on seen, pretty dumb but who cares, anyway would like to know, what type of sale slip should I look for.
and is there anyway to find out if this car might have been stolen and sold to some dumb ass like me.
and how do i find history on a car like this. let the fun begin..........

[D.T. Benner]

To bad you joined this forum AFTER you bought a car! This is a wealth of information and advice waiting for a "newbie" as for paperwork on a used Formula Car any kind of a bill of sale will be better than nothing as long as it acuratly describes the car. You may choose to insure the car for theft or damage that is NOT racing related. With a bill of sale you would stand a better chance of recovering your loss than a simple statement that "I payed X for it".Welcome to what some of us have found to be a life changing adventure!

[Allen_W]

a100,
The other thing you should try to get from the seller of the car is the log book that gives the history of the car's competition.
Allen

[Darren Brown]

Hi ,

One other thing to check is that the log book number matches the number that should be stamped on the main hoop somewhere. You may have to move some body work, and look all around with a flashlight to find the number, but look for it. Also you will want to find the homologation papers if you are going to race SCCA. Getting replacement homologation papers and log books through the SCCA is not the easiest thing to do.

As far as your question about it being stolen. If there is a fresh grind make on the main hoop and there is no log book numbers to be seen, that would not be a good sign.

Don't call your self a dumb ass, Most people outside of racing think we are all dumb ass's spending thousands of dollars to win a $300 set of tires and a $5 dollar trophy.

Good luck
Darren Brown

[Rick Kirchner]

Don't be afraid to walk away if it looks fishy. If it is the seller will probably not give you bad feedback. I sort of walked away from a car that I won the auction on - the seller sold it to someone else even after I showed up to look it over in person and make arrangements for the pickup a couple of days later. E-bay hassled me at first but then backed off once I gave them my story.

[Ian Lenhart]

Try to get as much as you can out of the owner.

-Ask about any helpful hints he or she might have (for example: My brother once bought a roller FF with a FC clutch and shaft which required an 1/8" thick washer between the frame and the bellhousing to get the proper distance so the shaft did not load the crankshaft. Did the previous owner let him in on this knowledge - of course not. My brother wasted several hours trying to figure out why his motor was seized). Ask if there is any odd ball engineering or tips to save a bunch of headaches.
-Any setup paperwork?
-Receipts? Ask if he has any contacts for Spartan parts in the US or UK?
-Double check to make sure you have all the spares and that he is not forgeting about anything? (I always laugh when people post classifieds for spares for a car they just sold).
-Once again: get the log book and the Homologation papers.
-make sure you fit in the car. The Spartan is really tight between the down forward tubes off the main hoop (over your shoulders) so you will need to get you butt through those bars sideways and then slide down into the seat. Not the easiest car to get in and out of. You may want to consider a fab shop putting new bars with a little outward bend to them to make it easier to get in and out of the car.
-Make sure the owner is aware and ready to start the car when you get there and that you want him to have it cold before you get there to see if it starts OK or not. (Note: if the car hasn't been started for a long period of time, request that he pulls the plugs and build up oil pressure using the starter before firing it up.

Hope this helps.

Welcome to formula ford.

Ian

[a100]

hi got the car home, what along haul! ever thing was on the up and up! The owner was really a
nice guy. Money does that! Anyway the cars in pretty good shape. The car sat for 5 yrs He owed the car for 8 yrs.
he said he bought the car in phoenix az. not much in spares but 10 sets of gears.
seams like it got hit hard in the left rear way back when. the repair looks good and sound. The engine built by sterling. streling is stamped all over it. changed the oil and fresh gas some tinkering and she fired right up, sounds good . now time for home work!
anybody out there own one of these? . the car is red and looks like it has always been red.
the pointy nose is an add-on. looking at it thru the hole in the bottom of it u can see the original blunt nose. car made in march of 84. does need some good grenral maint. loose
rivets hose replacement, changing fluids, etc. a good book would help or I'll write my own.
any info would help

[Garey Guzman]

If you live in "Canyon Country" in SoCal, I'm about 15 minutes south of you in Granada Hills. Although I've never had a Spartan (or even seen one for that matter), I've been racing FF for 4 years and I'll be happy to share my limited knowledge.

I saw that you asked about Willow Springs gears - are you going to race there soon or just test? If you don't have an SCCA license yet, Cal Club has a Super School at the Streets of Willow Feb 25-26. I will be on the big track for the National race that weekend. I will also be at California Speedway for the Reg/Nat later this month (27-29th). Feel free to come by, ask questions or get your hands dirty!

Feel free to contact me. My email address is in my profile. Just click on my name to the left.

[D.T. Benner]

Sterling engines was the name of a northern California engine builder named Ken Castignino. Ken passed away about 7-8 years ago. He was a truly nice guy who loved working with club racers and he checked out way to soon. His engines were always well built if not the top power National winners HP.

[Purple Frog]

It was in January 2002 that we had a new member to Apexspeed who also went out and bought a racecar without much prior knowledge.

His name: Carnut169

He posted what? 20 questions a day? More?

So, a100, the moral to the story? Welcome aboard. Post away. And in a few years you'll be helping other newbies.

[Todd Rhoades]

If the car was sitting for 5 years then I would take a good look at all the seals that are on the car to make sure their still good..Shocks,Brake Masters,Clutch,Brake calipers ets...I would also drain all fluids with car..water, brake fluid, oil, gearbox fluid (also main case) and replace with new. Check the carb and make sure you have no gumming or varnish in bowl as well as checking the floats. You have a change in flywheel wgt fron when the engine was rebuilt also..Do you want to have flywheel lght?..Race cars do not like to sit for long periods of time...Welcome to FF...your going to have alot of fun..Good Luck let us know if you need any help..Todd

[James Hakewill]

Oh, and if it's not obvious, after 5 years the tires will be junk - they might look nice but will have the grip of polished rocks.

A useful book related to formula car preparation:
Hands-On Race Car Engineer - John H. Glimmerveen

And the old favorites:
Prepare to Win - Carroll Smith
Carroll Smith's Nuts, Bolts and Plumbing Handbook

Cheers,
James

[a100]

thanks guys, all ur tips are being writen down in a book of my own, I have the car on blocks and will be going over it with a fine tooth comb, there are quite a few loose or popped pop rivets and some some what worn or loose susppension points around the shock attach points in the rear.
I will be replacing the hoses and fluids etc. there were some overhaul kits for the brake ,and clutch master cylinders and a complete cluth slave cylinder.
I have access to a complete sheetmetal shop, weld shop, and machine shop at work. and all the guys there are very helpful in the G-Job part of work.
What I need is a line on parts and specs, on chassis torques rotor thickness brake pads small stuff etc. and as the need arises i'll ask more thanks for ur support.......John
oh ya some printer ink would also help because Ive been taken lots of detail pics

[Dave SanF 50]

Be sure to call Pegasus and request one ol their catalogs. Lots of good stuff.
1-800-688-6946
pegasusAutoRacing.com

When you replace worn rod ends in the suspension, don't go cheap (like OSH).
dave
I also recommend Smith's "Drive to Win"

[Rick Kirchner]

Stuff you ought to get your hands on soon:

The Smith books

Jake's book

The online GCR if you're going the SCCA route

catalogs from Pegasus, Taylor, Averill, Truechoice, Aircraft Spruce, Torino, Baker Precision, Coast Fabrication, and Racer Parts Wholesale - there are lots more but those will cover just about everything as a reference.

Stop by Luky's on Burbank Bvld and Industrial Liquidators down in Hawthorne, and J&J aircraft surplus in Ontario to get a look at the stuff they have that might be helpful and cheap.

Send me your E-mail and I'll send you a rather extensive file full of racecar links.

One of the things I do is collect pictures of peoples race cars. Just about every pic posted on this site that has any detail goes into a folder. Then, when I need to engineer a fix, I look at how it's been done elsewhere, on a lot of different chassis.

[Joefisherff]

What's Torino RicK? That's the only one I'm not familiar with. Thx

[Garey Guzman]

He may be talking about Torino Motorsports in Orange County. They were the biggest Earl's dealer when I worked at Earl's many years ago (Carroll Smith consulted at Earl's so I got a lot of good info in return for minor maintanence of his home computers!). It's been over 5 years but I think it's Mike Torino and he sold all kinds of race stuff. He was also the first person I heard with F1 engines as the "Phone on hold" music!

[Rick Kirchner]

Yup - Torino Motorsports in Orange County. Not a discount dealer, but reasonable. I've never had a fitting he couldn't source or find an adapter for. I've also been amazed at his ability to get stuff to me next day using regular UPS. He must be at the very end of his UPS driver's route!

[D.T. Benner]

a100. Email me your Snail Mail address and I will send you a 1985 Sterling Engines catalog. It has engine info and specs and exploded views of the engine and Carb. The prices will give you a grin or 2. Darrell dvbenner@yahoo.com