vettereddie

I'm currently enrolled in a systems engineering masters program, expecting to graduate December 2009. The last class is a self-paced student project. This project goes through the systems engineering process from concept to the completion of an A-spec, defining system requirements and functional decomposition.

In the past, students have done things like home medical monitoring stations, but the professors were encouraging us to also consider hobbies.

I drive an xB so I do not have firsthand knowledge of the tC, though I will draw on club members who do have them for input. I am doing an engine build on the 1NZ and adding a turbo, so once I understand the differences between the 1NZ and 2AZ I should be able to analyse things from a technical standpoint.

What I would be proposing is a full modification kit to convert the tC from stock to track-ready, similar to a commercial package from Rousch or Stillen for Mustangs (I'm sure there are other companies for BMW, Chevy, and Nissan). Please keep in mind that this is an academic exercise and I will not actually be producing these. Any shop that would like to use this effort as the basis for a kit is more than welcome though your input to the process would be encouraged. This kit would cover all aspects, from power generation, transfer, handling, braking, aero, fuel, cooling, etc. in order to maximize the design to user requirements.

What I need from the drivers is what your user needs would be. I will be making up a questionaire for individual interviews and would like to focus those questions to your relevent needs. Do I have any volunteers for an interview?

THansenite

Just a few things I can think of off the top of my head.

Needs:
-Coilovers
-Sway bars
-Harness bar or cage (depending on type of racing)
-Racing seats
-Engine upgrades (this really depends on the racing series)

Wants:
-Wider, lightweight rims with appropriate tires
-Stripped interior
-Replacement for glass roof (top heavy is bad in racing)

blown_xa

hey man ill pm ya in the next couple of days

engifineer

I would be happy to give you some input. And even better, I have autox'd 2 years on trd springs and rear swayt and will be on Tein SS-Ps this season when it starts, so I will have a couple of different setups to go off of.

I can tell you that enabling people to lower the car further without destroying suspension geometry and increasing roll couple is a big want of many autox'r and track guys. Currently lowering it more than 1.4" from stock starts hurting handling rather than helping. Custom spindles, ball joint mounts, thinner subframe bushings in the rear, etc will all help that.

Feel free to email me at engifineer@gmail.com and look up rick (raamaudio) on yoursciontc.com or on here for more info. Rick has pretty much created a purpose built track tC already and has run into all of this.

vettereddie

Thanks Justin, I'll probably be sending you guys some message traffic as well since you're local and run time attack.

Just so you guys know, the other topics I'm looking at are:
- Offboard automated wire analyzer for Navy aircraft field maintenance and repair applications
- On-board wire health monitoring system for Navy aircraft
- Disabled mobility conversion for gen1 or gen2 xB
- My own car, objective is a NCCA compliant show vehicle that can transport a disabled passenger in a motorized chair. This project may not meet course requirements since it is not for multiple vehicle production, rather a one-off.

Thanks for the comments so far, though I guess I should have specified what inputs I'm looking for.

I'm not looking for a parts list or physical implementation at this point other than required safety gear needed to run, which would be a constraint in addition to a requirement. What I'm asking for are what are the areas of improvement you feel are needed to make the tC track-worthy, and what would your threshold / objective parameters be for that.

Obviously suspension plays a big part, my question is why? I'll start off with my thoughts.

The basic need seems to be the following:
- Increased lateral stability and control (can someone give me a target skidpad G number, maybe what you can get now and what might be achievable?)

This will in turn generate a function for the system - > maintain road surface contact without slippage under ??? g's of lateral force

The final physical implementation of this would be the wider, lower stance, stiffer suspension and tire selection. I'm also thinking it will derive an aero component to produce a downward force for traction control.

other top level needs I am thinking of are:
- Increased acceleration
- Increased top speed
- Improved deceleration performance
- Improved feedback from road surface
- Reduced delay from steering input to vehicle course change

Is fuel consumption an issue? Do you make pit stops in Auto-X /time attack or is a race fuel cell sufficient for the entire race?