VIR with Trackdaze,March 2011. Right before the kink in the front straight,the oil filter gasket blows out,dumping about four quarts of oil on the rear tires.
@NeckPeck Car was basically totaled.10 hours on a frame machine got it back straight.It's almost completely back together.Will be back at VIR next weekend.
Interesting. I have an H2B swap running the 4.4FD gearbox. I have external reservoir BC's and Hoosier 205's all around. Man I would love to swap keys lol.
2:55 I'm so happy that you are ok and that your car was able to get back on the track again, but please do not remove your harness after a wreck, unless the car is on fire! Someone else can have the same unscheduled off track excursion as you and you'll be flung around the car like a rag doll if they hit you.
I like to watch these to try to figure out the exact moment the mistake happened. After a while seeing your driving I was sure someone else was going to cause the accident. I looked away for a half second and there was broken glass and smoke. Re-watched thinking the porche must have hit you, but no. Re-watched again to see how the car's weight would have shifted, but still couldn't figure it out. Finally read about the oil leak. Jeez that's some tough luck.
I was doing the same exact thing, I also like to watch these videos trying to figure out when the mistake happens and why, the only thing I thought of was either something in the suspension just snapped, or he drove over maybe a patch of sand or something, but after rewatching it I didn't see anything on the track, then I read the description afterwards and that just sucks it was an oil leak, glad the driver was okay and the car was revived
Wow, that's a sobering video ... both your accomplished performance up to the failure, and the suddenness of the accident. If there's one place I don't want to wipe out, it's at the end of the straight. Thanks for posting, it's damn good viewing, and a great caution for us all.
@@seangadapee4666 It's in the description. The oil filter gasket failed and oil was spewed and made it's way to the rear tires causing the spin out. I don't know if there is a way to prevent this type of accident, maybe preventative maintenance. Don't wait till your filter is leaking. Maybe be it was seeping oil slowly. I can see now that oil leaks are no joke. This can is not even turbo when the pressure from the turbo makes oil spew out. Edit: Just as I finished this comment I see the OP explain that he did not put enough oil on the oil filter gasket. You need to take some oil and wet the oil filter gasket lip before installing the oil filter. He also did not have the OEM size. He switched back to the OEM size but still mentioned that the majority of the problem was not lubricating the o filter o-ring sufficiently.
@xxxH22VTECxxx It's a Wix 51344,which has the same mounting specs as the OEM filter,but the body is quite a bit bigger,so it has more filter media.I've 99.9% narrowed it down to not putting enough oil on the o-ring when I installed the filter,which caused the gasket to bunch up and then blow out under high pressure. I've since switched back to the OEM size filter(Wix 51334)and I now safety wire the filter for extra insurance.
Glad to see the driver was OK. That was definitely a harsh crash, and unlucky it happened where it did. A bit before the kink and he would have spun into the grass on the outside. After and he would have just spun down the track. This is another example showing why, if you are serious about driving on the track, and are getting really fast, you should invest in safety equipment. At least a rollbar (full cage would be best), harnesses, and Hans.
There was no saving that while making a pass, checking mirrors, merging back into your line, and a turn coming up....I'm sorry this happened to you but at least no one else crashed into you during the accident.
I was at VIR a month ago for Oktoberfest. I did HPDE 1. No way to save that especial when turning into the straightway kink. BOTH FEET IN! Glad you are OK. With 4th gear tached just before my brake zone I was hitting ~125 mph in my 1991 318is. Not as fast you but just as butt puckering. Cheers!
I honestly think the oil filter gasket had bunched up just a little from me not putting enough oil on it when installing it.After a few laps of 80+psi oil pressure it finally blew out the stretched/damaged part.I really don't think a properly installed filter with a properly seated gasket would have ever done this. I've since made sure to put a liberal amount of oil on the gasket when installing filters,and purely overkill,but I now safety wire the filter to the block.
Actually caught the Armco pretty hard.Hood was C/F,so it just sort of shattered at the front.Pushed the whole front clip over 3"-4".Spent several hours on a frame machine,and had to replace hood,fenders,bumper,bumper support and windshield.
I know that the video is 5 years old. I drag race a 850 awhp Subaru STI. I respect all cars and drivers if they act professional. Hope you are still racing and living the dream. Screw those haters. Most people talking crap will never see a track or drag strip. Wish you the best!
@@hagerz I haven't seen any of the crap, hopefully most of it has been removed. It took me a lot of reading to get to the bottom of why it happened, I was completely taken by surprise as he'd been driving really well and I could see no reason for the back to just decide to overtake the front apparently out of the blue. A liberal coating of oil on the rear wheels will do that every time and I doubt anyone is going to be able to escape the consequences, only luck will save the dents.
Was the car repairable? It only seemed to clip the Armco, even though the airbag deployed, the hood didn't buckle in front of the windshield or anything like that, although it is unibody unfortunately.
Every time I watch it, wild. I own an EK (or EJ6 lol) hatchback with a little more power. This really shows how things can go from totally normal to totally f'ed in a fraction of a second. That's one quick EG! I would love to know more about your setup. I'm trying to get my car dialed, but I have so much adjustability I don't really know what I'm doing with the alignment.
I actually had a frame shop straighten the frame spars,and I then put new ,bumper,fenders,hood,and radiator on the car.I've done about ten events with the car since this happened.
Yes you did have the right to pass the 911. You did an excellent job of running the course while following a great line. I didn't read too far through the comments before I made made post so I didn't know you had an oil problem. At first it looked like you may have been a little to the right where that dip is in the track. Depending on speed and vehicle setup etc faded from left to right is best right there when possible. It can give you a good bounce and I thought maybe you hit it while trying
There was absolutely NO way of saving that. Mario Andretti wouldn't have pulled that out. That being said start the video near the crash not 3 minutes in.
@mchandler2112 No,the door was fine.Where I stopped is somewhat blind coming around the kink.There was a black flag,but I was worried cars going over 100MPH might be caught off guard by my location.No reason to get out of the car until the safety truck came(so I knew the track was secured),unless it was on fire.
As I understand it was an engine failure, and oil spin. Rather sobering. What a place to wreck. He was lucky. My guess he was going 125-130. Something to keep in mind as his lines were good through that section. kellypf
Happened to one of my friend, oil leaked (not just a little leak)right after the first start after the oil change, he would have noticed when changing the oil.
Oh man:( that seemed like a very tuned civic! I was shocked to see how back the wreck was..I hate when people talk shit about civics..this civic wasnt shit if it was passing a BMW m5
Shangri La Racing Airbags are now gone. At that time the car still got driven on the street some, so I had wanted to keep them. The oil Filter was a Wix - generally a high quality brand. Sadly, I now really think it all came down to me not lubricating the filter gasket enough, and it bunched up as it was tightened.
