Cooler ambients perhaps?

Or use a less restrictive screen and close the shutters some at very high speed where the aero matters most?

 

Tell you what, you build an enduro car with shutters and we'll see which solution works best.

 

Hey, I'm just throwing out food for thought for everyone, I'm not saying you should do it!

 

one thing to remember is - December at Thunderhill is most likely going to be 20F-50F

 

true. but that don't apply to race car as much.

for a street car, it is started up cold a minimum of 14 times a week (going and leaving work), 700 times a year.
for a race car, it is started up cold may be 30 times a year tops (that would be a lot, average racer races 10 days a year). imo, for a race car, most wear happens at high revving at optimal temp.

 

50*F? You wish.

The last time I did a Thunderhill event in December:

-The car, which sat on an open trailer all night, was frosted over from front to back. The low was ~25*F IIRC.
-I tried pouring a cup of water on the windshield to de-ice it - this is known as a "terrible idea" to anyone from the east coast, but in California it's how we defrost windshields. Apparently Thunderhill is on the east coast, because the water I poured onto the windshield IMMEDIATELY froze.
-The driver's side door lock had nearly seized - luckily the passenger side worked, but it still took some effort to unlock the door from the inside.
-We arrived at the track at 7:30am - the trunk would not open until shortly before 9am (frozen shut).
-I have a photo of the car sitting on pit lane, waiting for its first session, with ice on both sides of the windshield left over from the ice scraper.

 

Now you're just getting technical lol and I was just giving input to "Track's" question. I'd pick 195 if you can keep it there, I've read somewhere where it will wear less at 195 than 180. I have mine at 180 w/ 180tstat since I don't have a reroute yet, and the supposed drawback of a re-route-less setup is Cyl 3 and 4 run 20* hotter.

 

For 24h race when the ambient temps change you always have the pit stops where the team can change small things.
Tearoffs and other simple stuff (strips of tape to add/remove) works, servo motors and delicate mechanics don't
Even a simple cable pulling on a spring loaded shutter can jam when you really want it to work.

 

I don't have a reroute, and my car runs 190-195* on track. I am pretty sure this setup is working optimally for my setup. But I am more curious about how people determine 180 over 195? Its not like there is a magical meter which tells you wear. But yea, I picked the 180* because with the stock one, I was sticking around 205-210, so I figured dropping it some to assist my oil would be good until I get an oil cooler.

Never really anticipated the coil months, but no big deal, i can seal off part of the radiator if it runs reallly cold at RA. Doubtful though.

 

aka K.I.S.S.

 

Hey what do light plane shutters look like? They need to be reliable and freeze proof, right?

 

Questions for u engineers ? Most of the teams are from socal. We don't know what snow look like. Are there any particular issue with low temp on car parts ? Will regular wiper be enough ? Will say any parts become brittle ?

 

I'm only a software engineer, but have lived in reasonably cold regions. To change my DD from "summer" to "winter" mode, I change the tires and make sure I have 0* washer fluid. That's it, and is sufficient down to about -10* where gearbox fluid is a bit stiff first thing in the morning.

For racing, I would consider tire choice carefully considering the temperatures.

Plastics are a bit more brittle when working with them, but I generally try to avoid working with them in the cold. Working with 28 y/o plastics in my MB is just as much of a pain. If you have the option of a mostly enclosed (3-4 sided) work area, get a heater of some sort for both your sake and the parts.

 

i would say about the only thing would be to get premium wiper blades rated for cold climates. oh yeah, and sorry jason, but gotta say what everybody's thinkin' "**** yo shuttas fool!"

 

There is some stuff, not sure if its sold in cali *shrug* who knows. called window de-icer. they make it in spray cans, great for opening doors that are frozen shut, and for your windshield washer bottle, it'll get any ice off. I haven't used it much myself, so you may want to try it before committing to it, ie see if it smears on the window. what not.

But its certainly a good idea to try

 

just dont put HOT water on the windshield. or as they say "your future former windshield"

 

Lexan

 

in that case you can consider it the removal process.

 

Windshield is quick release already. Car also has monster custom built defroster. Pretty sure we won't have issues with windshield frosting.

 

More details on defroster? I'm still looking into option to make my gutted car driveable in rainy/winter conditions.