Alfa Romeo Forums banner

Roxanne - budget milano/75 track car

481K views 2K replies 108 participants last post by  nizam 
#1 ·
This thread is for discussing Roxanne - a budget milano/75 track car based on a running $750 Platinum.

Colin, Jin, and I worked like crazy to get it in a track worthy condition for Buttonwillow in May. We focused on the essentials, such as ball joints, bushings, safety, etc, but the car was generally stock, and I ran it as it was. Whatever we could quickly throw out the window, went out. So, only a driver's seat... I had a set of 17x7 intended for the 3.7 and some Hoosiers in 205/40-17. That was the tire-wheel combo I ran.

Find below a couple of pics Anthony took.

Jes
 

Attachments

See less See more
2
#229 ·
No, didn't do that. Before doing so I willl probably un-bolt one and weigh it :rolleyes: Though, I think I'm at a point of diminishing return... Does anyone have a good idea of the weight of the undercoating? I'm guessing 25-40 lbs. Not sure it is worth the time, mess, stuff in your face, etc...
Jes
 
#231 · (Edited)
Mount of steering wheel and quick release

Too busy at work - didn't get anything done this week until tonight. I mounted the Momo steering wheel on a quick release. Now the steering wheel comes off with the push of a button and pulling the ring/sleeve - very nice. So, the quick release is supposed to mount to a Momo or Sparco hub, and then the other "end" has bolt pattern for Momo and Sparco steering wheels. However, since this is a budget race car I decided to try avoid having to buy a Momo or Sparco hub. A quick inspection provided a solution. Drill the 4 "rivets" holding the stock steering to the Alfa hub and pull the steering wheel. Mount the quick release directly to the Alfa hub by drilling a matching bolt pattern. Worked perfectly, see pics.

1. Drilled the 4 "rivets".
2. The stock steering wheel is out.
3. Holding the quick release on the Alfa hub to guide drilling.
4. Quick spray paint of Alfa hub with new bolt pattern.
5. Quick release mounted to Alfa hub.

More pics below.

Jes
 

Attachments

#232 ·
Finishing quick release

More pics...

1. Mounting the other part of the quick release to the steering wheel.
2. Different angle.
3. Snap steering wheel onto column.
4. Different angle.

This is a really nice inexpensive quick release - paid $80 for it, and it works perfectly with a little bit of work on the Alfa hub. The steering wheel comes on-and-off in a couple of secs.

Jes
 

Attachments

#233 · (Edited)
Rear wheel bearing replacement

So, back to maintenance like work on Roxanne. On the way back from WSR last time out I noticed a familiar humming and decided it wouldn't hurt the reliability to do all wheel bearings. I will do the front ones when I do some changes to the suspension. This weekend the rear wheel bearings were one the menu. Usually, it is not that bad a job, unless things act up... :rolleyes:
First out, the 36 mm nuts on the hubs were pretty stuck, a 3 feet bar nor my impact air gun didn't do much... Colin brought his more powerful air gun and it did the trick. The right side was pretty uneventful from there on and I took some pics along the way. Of "special" tools I used a sliding hammer for the hubs and the FIAT wheel bearing tool for bearing removal and install. Some step-by-step pics below - pretty ordinary but parhaps some will find it useful the first time doing this job.

1. Starting point.
2. Pull cutter pin and cap, and there is the 36 mm hub nut.
3. After the impact gun it is time to pull the hub apart - an old wheel with the nut of the sliding hammer works perfectly instead of factory tool :D
4. Hub apart.
5. Outer part of wheel bearing usually stays on outer hub part and leaves wheel bearing apart - time to remove the retaining ring...

Jes
 

Attachments

#234 ·
more...

The retaining ring on this side came out in 5 min max. Tapped it with a hammer and punch. Note that the driver's side retaining ring is reversed threaded!!!!!!!!! The passenger side is regular threaded.

1. Pull the old bearing.
2. Close-up of outer half of bearing on outer hub part. I pulled it with a generic 3-arm puller.
3. Clean empty Dedion hub housing before installing new bearing.
4. Press in new bearing.
5. New bearing pressed in.

Jes
 

Attachments

#235 ·
Final three...

1. New retaining ring in - stake at marks.
2. Hub nut back on.
3. Cap and cutter pin, back in - all done :)

Not bad.

Though, the passenger side acted up. The retaining ring was completely stock. Tapping it was of no use. I made a tool that fits perfectly in the shallow cuts, yet with a 4 foot bat attached the retaining ring would not give... Colin stopped by and helped destroy the ring - only way to get it out! Though, be real careful with the threads in the Dedion housing... It came out with no practical damage to the threads, and the new bearing was out in and hub assembly re-installed. Rear wheel bearings all done, though the passenger side was a bugger... be prepared...

Oh, I should mention that the driver's side bearing had some noise. The passenger side had noticeable play. So, I think both were towards the end of their lifespan - not a luxury replacement. The new ones are certainly a bit better - no noise, no play :)

Jes
 

Attachments

#236 · (Edited)
CF light weight side mirror

At the end of a long weekend - playtime... Added the light weight CF side mirrors - featherlight compared to the stock units and with convex glass for excellent field of view. These are the same brand as Colin put on his GTV6, though a different model.

Jes
 

Attachments

#239 · (Edited)
#240 ·
Does it rattle while driving?

The Verde ones are crap. They vibrate and to stop the vibration of the mirrors, you have to put strip of sponges in the gap between the housing and the mirrors. The platinum ones are 100 times better but they don't look as cool.
 
#241 · (Edited)
75evo said:
Does it rattle while driving?

The Verde ones are crap. They vibrate and to stop the vibration of the mirrors, you have to put strip of sponges in the gap between the housing and the mirrors. The platinum ones are 100 times better but they don't look as cool.
I already had a chance to test mine. Even at Cal Speedway's high speed, no rattle or vibration. I think it works better than stock. The convex mirror significantly reduces the blind spot. I hated GTV6's stock mirror location. It was very tough to see with my helmet on. Although smaller, once I got used to them, I was able to see cars behind me much better. Keeping them behind me is another story ;) .

Colin
 
#242 ·
Here are some close-ups of the left side side mirror. The problem I had with the platinum mirror (besides being heavy) was that I could not adjust them out far enough for optimal field of vision for wheel-2-wheel racing. These CF mirrors are adjustable in any direction and degree and feature convex glass as pointed out by Colin.

Jes
 

Attachments

#243 ·
75evo said:
Does it rattle while driving?

The Verde ones are crap. They vibrate and to stop the vibration of the mirrors, you have to put strip of sponges in the gap between the housing and the mirrors. The platinum ones are 100 times better but they don't look as cool.
It's interesting that you find the platinum mirros ugly. I want to put gold mirrors on my Verde b/c i don't think the rounded Verde mirrors mesh with the boxy milano at all. I think the gold mirroros are great!

Jes,

I was led to believe this was your budget race car. I can't wait to see you do a full blown Alfa track beast!

And if this is your idea of a budget track car, mine must be a pile of dirt!
 
#244 ·
Of course, everything is relative, but IMO $4k (or thereabout - not counting my time) is still very inexpensive for a sorted race car you don't need to spend 1/2 your track time under during the events. I prefer to come prepared and be able to focus on the driving - that comes with a price! So, budget is within those terms.
Jes
 
#245 ·
AR4me said:
Of course, everything is relative, but IMO $4k (or thereabout - not counting my time) is still very inexpensive for a sorted race car you don't need to spend 1/2 your track time under during the events. I prefer to come prepared and be able to focus on the driving - that comes with a price! So, budget is within those terms.
Jes
100% agree.
 
#247 ·
AR4me said:
very inexpensive for a sorted race car you don't need to spend 1/2 your track time under during the events
Were you looking at me when you said that, Jes? :eek:
 
#249 ·
Nah, myself. Been there, trying to make a defect coolant system last through a weekend - was not much fun missing half the track time.

Graham, you take the price for persistence at WSR this spring! I was very impressed and happy your efforts paid off.

That brought it up to a $500 value.
That's better than Roxanne (in my wife's eyes) :rolleyes: - my wife is ready to give Roxanne away for free :eek: But nah, Roxanne is staying.

Jes
 
#250 ·
Body work...

Since my 4 year old wanted to go play with the neighbor's daughter I figured I go play by myself in the garage. So, I took a look at a dent in the front left fender and went to work with body filler and sanding, filler and sanding, filler and sanding, filler and sanding, ...

Kind of fun, but man, that stuff got to be bad for your health :eek:

Jes
 

Attachments

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top