London to Capetown Rally 2012.

P

pmac

Well-Known Forum User
I know there are less than 5 people on here interested in rallying so just for you here are a couple of pics from the Pre start assembly today at Brooklands.
I went along to check the cars out and see they had fitted all the bits I supplied in more or less the correct place;)

Both cars had "dramas" just before the event but all had been rectified and they both looked good.
They are two very different cars in many respects.
 

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having prepped cars that finished peking to paris, the nile trial, london to casablanca etc i just cannot see the point of carrying 4 spare wheels and the associated extra weight. maximum we ever carried was 2 with a tubeless plug repair kit some patches and some inner tubes.the 240 i'm just finishing to do new york to alaska will only carry 1 as there are far more important spares to carry in limited space!
 
amocrace said:
having prepped cars that finished peking to paris, the nile trial, london to casablanca etc i just cannot see the point of carrying 4 spare wheels and the associated extra weight. maximum we ever carried was 2 with a tubeless plug repair kit some patches and some inner tubes.the 240 i'm just finishing to do new york to alaska will only carry 1 as there are far more important spares to carry in limited space!
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Yep. my thoughts entirely.. :thumbs:
 
amocrace said:
as there are far more important spares to carry in limited space!
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What are you going to carry on the roof - the wheels ? Leaving the interior for........?

Do tell us WELL BEFORE the event when, where etc !

I've got two people near Beaune who'd love to have seen and met the drivers and cars but there's no notice of where they're passing through/stopping today !:(
 
Pete, the 38 car appears to have come from your back garden - is that correct?

Good luck to both of them.

With spares I think you have to either go on past experiences or listen to others i.e. if you take what you THINK you might need you'll take everything.

When I was rallying it was always the exhausts and radiators that caused the problems.

When I started track days I used to take along a mechanical fuel pump, distributor, drive shaft etc. I soon realised that for track work these cars are pretty reliable as long as you give them a thorough check beforehand.
 
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Interesting pictures Sean - I looked at the Datsun team website too. The car is not good looking with all that gear on but it does appear to be well prepared.

It must be a bit claustrophobic in there with the windscreen half covered, the rear window covered and a lightpod on the bonnet.
 
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Hate to disagree with you, Rob, but it looks more like a Cartoon Car from Wacky Races.....

Hard to believe that a professional preparation Company turned out something like that.
The Fuel Consumption and the wind roar alone would drive you nuts.

Still, as the Owner lives in Monaco, I suppose that the fuel costs aren't too important.
 
Hi Duncan
totally agree with you.on all these long distance events fuel consumption can be critical. triple carbs is going to decrease low end drivability.if you run a compression ratio to suit you will run into serious problems when running on parafin or one star minus that is all that will be available in some parts. wonder how high the centre of gravity is now? surely better to get weight down as low as poss and if required put a roof rack on and soft luggage bags on roof.
why fit an alloy rad then blank half the grill opening with a number plate?
having said all that best of luck to both Datsun Z crews
 
Looks like it has the left rear Overfender fitted on the right front, the right rear fitted on the left front, the right front fitted on the left rear and the left front fitted on the right rear...

And why use welting between Overfenders and body? Not necessary ( it's not a Volkswagen Beetle ), and the factory certainly never used it.

Bizarre.
 
Could the tyres on the roof be a different set for different route conditions, rather then spares? Do agree though it does look like wacky races and how would this affect the integrity of the shell should the car overturn?
 
rallymanDP said:
Hate to disagree with you, Rob, but it looks more like a Cartoon Car from Wacky Races.....
You are not disagreeing, I said it was not good looking - 'Wacky Races' is quite a good description. However I said I thought it was well prepared - I looked at the website showing the build-up of the car. I'm assuming you mean that a well prepared car wouldn't carry all that gear on/in it.

It'll be interesting to see how it gets on.
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I think the umbrella storage is a nice touch but it will probably get damaged quite early on in the rally.
Someone should advise him to put it inside the car.
 
I know it's not the same car - the roof-line gives it away ! I figured that since there are two Zs, the spotlight should fall equally.........

pmac said:
Its a very modest car in all respects but IMO has been nicely prepared.:)
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And only be coincidence that it once rusted, sorry, rested in a known back garden..........:rolleyes:.
 
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