Eunos Chump

After spending the weekend procrastinating about whether to buy the Megasquirt now or do it as a winter project, I just ordered the lot first thing Monday. Should be here next week. I've booked another couple of track days through Mazda on Track , so I've got until early June to make it work, and make sure it's reliable.

Driving to work this morning, I had a comedy electrical problem that took me back to my days of piloting Morris Marinas. When I switched on the headlamps, the wipers and washers came on too - and wouldn't go off. I stopped and pulled the lead from the wiper motor, which made the near-side headlamp pod drop but stopped the washers too. I ignored it and drove on, t wasn't on fire I guessed it was OK. Investigating this evening, I discovered the washer tube and wire wrapped around the headlamp pod linkage, where it had eventually shorted out. Patching in a new section of wire wasn't difficult, but changing the blown wiper fuse certainly was - it's up behind the dash on the drivers side! It's all cabled-tied down now so it shouldn't happen again.

I love this car... and this circuit. This was the first time on track with the suspension modifications and turbo, and it just worked superbly. The handling was absolutely sublime . Paddock Hill is considerably more daunting than it looks on the TV, it's almost rollercoaster-style steep and I guessed that if I was going to fall off the track, this would be the spot. I was wrong though, eventually I was 4-wheel drifting through it, and it was the following harmless-looking bend where I almost binned it, with a bit too much lurid oversteer and a ham-fisted correction. This modified M3 was very quick, until it had a big crash at that same corner and closed the track for nearly 30 minutes. Nobody was hurt but the car was wrecked and is unlikely to see a road again. I had some excellent laps chasing a couple of fellow Nutzers in turbo MX5s. I learnt a lot by following their lines, and was soon driving around Graham Hill bend on the throttle ( dabs of oppo being required), 4-wheel drif...

I've got a track day (or more accurately, a track evening ) at Brands Hatch tomorrow. It'll be the first time on track with the turbo and (hopefully) sorted suspension. Brakes may remain the weak link though, probably won't be able to go too crazy. Looks like it may rain - I'm considering painting my tow hooks bright yellow for easy recovery from the kitty litter, just in case! There are jobs to do first, most pressing being the removal of the speed limiter... though leaving it would provide a sound excuse for being rubbish, I suppose. There will be no Hillman Imp. I visited Adrian a couple of weeks back and he took me out in it, and I don't remember being that scared in a car for some time - and this with 39.5bhp. He does race one though and is a triple championship winner, which he never mentions. I had a drive too (at sane speeds), and it was very engaging and just tanked around corners once I overcame my instincts and just floored it when entering bends. But ...

I have a lot in common with B A Baracus: I like milk I don't like flying (well, I do but I hate airports) I have stupid hair I'm a touch husky I've not been on the telly for ages (don't you remember? I was in the audience of TMWRNJ . Bloke in the yellow shirt?) Now I have something else: micro-electronics skillz! Check out the flashing LED device above, which took me less than a fortnight to build. If I ever find myself at the controls of a crippled 747, or am held hostage by shotgun-toting lumberjacks (it's a constant worry), I'll simply pull this out and bring the situation to a satisfactory conclusion, somehow. I've got an LED torch kit to build too, just imagine how powerful I'll be when that's added to my arsenal. There is a reason for this - I'm about to order a Megasquirt kit. I've got one of those magnifying geek lamp things and everything, I need a lab coat to complete the look. I had a new roof put on the Mazda last week, barg...