Copy

Donnington GP Race Circuit

BARC Dunlop Mini Challenge

March 2023 - first race of the season
After the winter break we are back with the Mini Miglia. We have polished the Mig and fitted a fresh set of tyres !

Last year we had some Vbox recording issues, which transpired to be totally self inflicted but now resolved - so will have a full season of action to feed onto Youtube.
Thursday saw a practice session at Donnington and in true British fashion the heavens opened,  nevertheless Nick put in some good laps and got back into the swing of things, very happy with the setup of the car
Qualifying .... We had the car set up and on slicks for the start and then light rain came making for a very damp track, this was accompanied by a couple of red flags and made for a frustrating qualifying session with Nick positioning the Mig in 20h place on the grid.

Race 1 - Bringing the Mig onto the track it seemed the temperature was rising but then it dropped - bonnet off and everything checked with the engine seeming ok and not hot, so the assumption was, an intermittently faulty temperature sender. 
The race started Nick was doing well and our Swiftune power plant was stronger than ever, a superb build by Nick and the boys.

But then, temperature started to rise again, then went down - no pinking, no power loss, Nick was of the mind it was a faulty temperature sender as it went up and down, but then it rose again even higher until - not a good noise came from the engine, cutting the ignition straight away Nick pulled off the track. Race 1 over :(
Now this is where Nick Swift excels - he came over took off the head and found it had indeed over heated, one of the exhaust valves had got so hot it was welded into the guide and had just kissed the piston, luckily causing no damage. Nick Swift had to remove both guide and valve due to the damage, replacing the guide in the paddock with nothing but his wits and a series-7 de-atomizer  ! Head back on, everything bolted back together and our engine, back to racing health.
The over heating transpired to be caused by a faulty plug on the water pump loom which saw the pump switching on and off randomly until finally it stayed off.
We can't thank Nick Swift /Swiftune enough for this epic level of service !
Race 2 - Nick started in 25th position due to yesterday's DNF however our Swifutne engine was pulling beautifully as usual and it powered Nick right up to 12th by the end of the race ! A well enjoyed session at Donnington with a good result.
Unfortunately, our prediction the Vbox was fixed turned out to be wrong and we have no footage of the second race :( 

It just goes to show that racing is never easy, its a constant battle for all involved to get the Mini's to the end of each race but we do have a fantastic team and an engine builder that goes above and beyond !
Sponsored by our favourite Mini guys - Playmini also Pink Construction  www.pinkconstruction.biz  and Sanwa Trading - Japans leading Mini specialist www.sanwa-trd.co.jp
Big thanks again to Bill Sollis, Steve Lyons-Davis, and of course Nick Swift from Swiftune Engineeing.....
 

In car video footage is available on our YouTube channel, playmini1959 with many other videos.

Links below for video from this weekend and some 360 degree in car video footage

why not visit our home page with car build details, race results and much more.... www.historicminiracing.co.uk 
Engine and gearbox supplied and built by Swiftune Engineering
Car setup by Bill Sollis
 

Historic Mini Racing
Playmini Ltd
Historic Mini Racing on Facebook
Historic Mini Racing on Instagram
Historic Mini Racing Home Page
Copyright © 2024 PLAYMINI LTD, All rights reserved.


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp