Keeping up with your race car maintenance is critical, and brakes should be at the top of your list. I take a look at my rotors and pads after every event, and keep track of my maintenance in a notebook so I can spot trends over time. These front brake rotors are two seasons old (ten weekends), and have been through two [...]

Most Vintage racing organizations require D.O.T. (Dept. of Transportation) approved racing tires to be used. DOT approved tires are treaded instead of being slicks, and are therefore street legal. The reasons for the rule are twofold: 1) these tires keep to the theme of vintage production car racing by imitating what was used “back in the day”, and 2) [...]

Every racer needs a transponder to compete on the track these days, and AMB seems to be the transponder of choice by most organizations. Problem is, they aren’t cheap! The $450 expense is equal to entry fees plus race gas for most weekends. So what are you gonna do when your rechargeable unit stops charging, [...]

After fifteen years of trailering my race cars and bikes with open trailers, it was finally within my budget to get an enclosed trailer. The additional security and weather protection will be greatly enjoyed, and the Sunday night unloadings can now be delayed a day or two as neccesary. However, you must truly be ready for the extra [...]

For most of us racers, the months of December and January are our off-season (except for you Arizona guys). Unfortunately for some, the off-season goes from October to April. So what do we do while the tracks are covered in rain and snow, drink beer and watch football? Not a bad idea, but it won’t help out with [...]

After a long race weekend, the Wagon deserved a little servicing. I put almost four hours of race pace on it, that must be equivalent to at least a few thousand freeway miles, so My Lil’ Red Wagon got the Platinum Service. Motor/trans/diff oils changed, catch cans emptied, steering/brakes/wheels/tires inspected, bolts checked all around (yep, I found a couple [...]

Datsun used several different sized differentials in their independent-rear-suspensioned sports cars. The 510 sedans used the R160, the early Z’s used the R180, and the later Z’s used the R200. There are also several other variations out there (R190, R230, LSDs, Ks, clip-ins, bolt-ins, etc). The diff name refers to the size of the ring gear [...]