First day of testing after over 3 years of building. Here's the highlights of the trip and some comments on what needs to happen next...
Tidied up the truck Wednesday only to notice the battery wasn't charging. Took the truck to Autozone and they concurred I needed a new alternator. Had to extend the notch in the front of the frame where the steering rack goes in order to pull the alternator without lifting the engine. Autozone overnighted a new alternator and I had it in by 1pm. Truck still only read 12 volts. At this point, I started troubleshooting wires more carefully and discovered this. Apparently newer vehicles fuse the connections into the battery and this is the lead directly from the alternator. We never bench tested the alternator but hindsight is 20/20. I now have a new alternator with a lifetime warranty. Called around and a Ford Dealership on the way to the strip had the part on hand for $28 so I picked it up enroute and swapped it out.
Truck loaded up and ready to go. It's that time of year where afternoon thunderstorms are not uncommon, but it was a 120 mile drive to the track and they had been dry all day.
Here's the truck as it sits. Only noticeable differences from afar are the wheels and the sponsor banner (Auto Mafia Racing). They are killing it, especially in the 3.7 Cyclone game. They are pulling 600hp out of those engines with bolt-ons! My goal is to keep the truck as unassuming looking as possible.
This is best pass of 14.88 at 80.96mph at 6200ft DA. Highlighted 3 main issues:
1- Truck not shifting from 3-4 just past the 1/8th mile mark. I suspect I underserviced the transmission based on the symptoms. Will address ASAP.
2- Truck shifting at low RPM. 1-2 shift was at 6k, 2-3 at 5700. Those are too low for this engine and will be addressed. Switching tuners for the next go around as the support from the current tuner has been slow and not very customer oriented.
3- Stock converter has to go. My best launch I'm only able to get 1500 RPM before overcoming the brakes. I should easily shave half a second or more from a more appropriate converter. -.03 RT 2.25 60ft 6.10 330ft 9.32 1/8th 76.21 1/8th ET 14.88 1/4 80.96 1/4 ET
All in all I am very happy with it making it back home in one piece with no mechanical failures. I have those few issues to address but they are not terrible and are a natural part of the learning and progression that come with a build like this. Hopefully I'll get it to the track in the next couple weeks for the next TnT.
While parking the trailer this morning, discovered two of my trailer tires had tread missing, and the pic below is one example of that. Granted the tires are 9 years old, but the roads here are also notoriously shitty and have lots of potholes and other car-destroy features. The trailer now has 4 new tires to ensure many more happy trips to the track!
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