The Great Race starts in 8 days. But, this week was really the last week I had to work on the car, since we will have to get from Florida to Rhode Island (drop kids off at grandmas, put the car on the Auto Train, etc.), and that will take a few days. Here is a rundown of what I was able to get done this week.

MONDAY:

Installed Speaker Grills. The week started with me focused on installing a new stereo. Julie off-handedly mentioned last week that maybe a radio would be nice on the 1,700-mile drive home. The car has an old stereo, but, it doesn’t work. It took that as my opportunity to buy a new stereo. I quickly ordered a new head unit, and speakers, and began installing the system. But, it quickly became a distraction from other things I needed to get done on the car.

On Monday, after messing around with the new speakers for about 3 hours, I decided to abandon installing the new stereo, and just put in the grills over the door speaker holes. I knew I was neglecting more important things that needed to get done. If I don’t get back to the stereo this week, we will just put a boom box speaker on the back seat and run it off of my phone.

 

Fitted Driver’s Side DynaPad. On to more important things. I pulled the insulation out of the floor boards last week because I suspected I would find a little rust. And I did. While it was just surface rust, I am glad I caught it now. I took care of that, and ordered two sheets of DynaPad. I will do a full video and article about the process of taking all of the factory stuff out and replacing with DynaPad later. For now, here is the short-story.

I really like DynaPad. I used it in a 914 I restored a few years ago. The company makes two primary products: DynaMat and DynaPad. Most people are more familiar with DynaMat. It is a tar-like thin sheet that sticks to the floor boards, inside of doors, etc. While it has a sound-deadening property, it is really more for eliminating vibrations in the metal. DynaPad is primarily for sound deadening. It is made up of two sheets of dense foam sandwiching a tar-like sheet in the middle.

It works well for keeping road noice, etc. out. It also happens to be about the same thickness as the original Porsche insulation. This allows it to fit under the carpet on the sides, in the corners, and under the foot kickboards. I cut it to fit with scissors, and then laid it in the floorboard. If the interior gets wet, I can pull it out and dry the metal underneath.

One of the two sheets of the DynaPad that I ordered came in Sunday (thanks Amazon). So I cut it to fit the driver’s side floor board on Monday.

 

Rally Speedo Installation. I have been putting off the installation of the Timewise rally speedometer I ordered a couple months ago. I really don’t know what I am doing. There is a pickup probe that has to be mounted somewhere on the suspension, and then magnets glued to the wheels, and a bunch of very specific, technical things to learn in terms of calibrating it, that I haven’t wanted to deal with. But, in the time, speed, distance rally world, apparently these speedometers are not really an option. They are a must-have. So I know I can’t put it off any longer.

I found a bracket I needed at Home Depot to mount the rally speedo pickup probe on the suspension. The bracket had to be shortened and redrilled. But, I think it will work. Finding a bracket that might work is a big step forward.

Spare Parts. I ordered a spare Pertronix Ignitor II ignition and coil. It took me forever to find one that could be shipped and arrive in time for the rally. I finally was able to order one on Amazon, of all places. Go figure.

Great Race Stickers. I got the package of stickers the race organizers sent me a couple weeks ago. A sticker for each side of the car. I had planned to put them on the car this week. But, I really don’t want them on there for 3 weeks. I believe Charlie was repainted using single-stage paint at some point, and I am afraid the stickers will peal the paint. I am going to wait to put them on until right before the rally inspection. I am also planning to wax the car right before sticking them on and hopefully that will help them come off after the event.

 

Started Oil Change. I started an oil change. I say “started” because I quickly realized that I don’t have the sump gaskets I thought I had. I have some that will work. However, I think I am going to find a slightly different type. But, at least it got started.

TUESDAY:

Finished Oil Change. I got the gaskets I needed, only to find that I had the wrong oil filter. I was able to get the correct one, and finally, finished the oil change.

 

Spare Parts. I picked up a spare set of inner and outer front wheel bearings. Just in case.

Passenger DynaPad. The second piece of DynaPad arrived, so I got it cut to fit the passenger side. It fits nicely. I was able to get all of the foot boards back in over the new insulation.

 

Rally Speedo Installation. I found a way to snake the rally speedo wire into the inside of the car without drilling any holes. I was fearful I would have to drill a hole in the firewall, which I really didn’t want to do. But, I won’t. So I guess the speedo install is coming along, if slowly.

WEDNESDAY:

Interior back together. I got all the DynaPad installed. I also painted the bottom pans of the seats. I figured that, while I was there, I might as well clean them up and paint them. Then I got the seats and carpet installed.

 

Spare parts. Curil-T arrived (thanks Amazon). This sealant is amazing. The engines in these cars leak. Period. And Curil-T helps, a lot. In a pinch, I may need it on the trip. So I am glad I found some and got it in my tool box.

THURSDAY:

Seat Belts. I got the seat belts put back in. Now I just need to clean the seats.

 

Spare parts. The spare Pertronix ignition and coil I ordered arrived today. I decided at the last minute to carry a spare with us on the rally. I looked everywhere Monday for someone that had the ignition and could ship it to arrive this week. I even called Pertronix themselves. No luck. Nobody could get it to us this week. Until I checked Amazon. Sure enough they had it and were able to get it here in three days. Go figure.

 

Rally Speedometer. Thursday was speedo day. I have put off installing it for weeks. But, I had to get it installed. I knew I would run into a lot of little issues while putting it in. And I did. But, I think I have them all figured out.

I mounted the bracket I made from a piece of L-bracket I got from Home Depot. The probe pickup has to pass within 3/8 to 5/8 of an inch from the magnets mounted on the wheels. But, the pickup is threaded so that really helps in mounting it at the correct distance from the magnets.

To mount the bracket I loosened the rotor backing plate and was able to get the three screws in and tight. Once the pickup bracket was mounted, I JB Welded the two magnets to the wheel. 180 degrees apart, and within 3/8 to 5/8 of an inch of the pickup. You can see the magnet “glued” to the wheel in the picture below. I set the distance at 1/2 inch (it looks larger than 1/2″ in the picture. But, it is spot on at 1/2″).

To get the wire into the car without drilling any new holes, I sent the rally speedo cable through the hole in the firewall for the regular speedo cable, which was large enough to accommodate both. Then it runs under the carpet on the passenger side to the front floor board.

I still need to run power and ground to it. You can’t just ground it next to the gauge, and run the power wire to the battery. They both have to be connected at about the same location. Something about creating an “antenna” if you ground it feet away from where the power is connected. It is beyond my understanding electronics. But, I am getting there.

I’m also still working on how to mount the gauge in the car. The guy that makes the rally speedo says some of the racers just set it on top of the dash and use a bungee cord to hold it down. We will see what I come up with.

 

FRIDAY:

Speedo Installation. Just in case the two magnets I JB Welded to the inside of the right rear wheel threw the tire/wheel balance off, I took it and had it rebalanced. Happily, it did not affect the balance. So if I need to put magnets on a different wheel (if I get a flat tire on this wheel), during the rally, I can do that without having to rebalance the wheels. One less thing to worry about.

 

I ran the power and ground from the front trunk into the cabin of the car. Surprise. The wires were not long enough. Not even close. Rather than cut them and splice in a new piece I am going to get a 3 foot extension from the guy that makes the speedo. I won’t be able to get that until we get to Rhode Island next week. But, at least the gauge is in the car. I just have to figure out how to mount it now.

 

That’s it. The car is finished. Well sorta. We have what we have, and I hope everything keeps working for the rally. It is just a matter of packing now. Wish us luck.