Photography by Anthony Mair
As we were just about drop this Static, Billy Johnson in the FX Motorports NSX just grabbed the Super Lap Battle RWD Unlimited category championship. Billy was barely edged out for the overall win by the Sierra Sierra EVO. So what does it take dominate the RWD time attack classes? Lets find out.
No single secret recipe has been discovered on how to create a championship race car or team. Many have come and go thinking the more money you throw at it, the faster the car will go. Not the case in time attack or touring car. What it does take to create a champion is dedication, hard work, and planning. Having a large budget does help though. A famous racing quote from yestryear is “The fastest way to become a millioniare in racing is to first start as a billioniare.”
The FXMD NSX started life as a very competent flagship supercar from Honda. When initially introduced in the states, it was the first U.S. factory issue vehicle with a powerplant that had variable valve timing and lift control. This was a technology that Honda developed to dominate Formula One in the 80’s. If anyone debates that motorsports doesn’t improve the development of factory vehicles, this is a case in point that it does.
The FXMD team had one goal in mind when they began developing the NSX. Dominate time attack. First thing’s first, the chassis was stripped down to bare essentials. Once bare, a custom fab’d roll cage was installed as well as a Safecraft Halon system, Sparco safety equipment, Simpson parachute and window nets to complete the safety solution. The number one key to a successful race program is making the sure the driver will walk away from a disaster. Making sure the driver is confident in the vehicle’s safety systems will make him comfortable pushing the car’s limit.
Under the chassis, the NSX recieved a complete solid metal monoball bearing conversion. The bearings replace every rubber connection in the suspension to bring deflection down to nearly zero. This is a very important factor as the result keeps suspension geometry correct even under the highest loads set on the links by the massive slick tires. The most expensive dampers in the world can’t produce a reliable handling vehicle if the links are susceptible to twisting and binding. These bearings are often an overlooked variable in the prep of a car. They make the single largest change in a vehicle’s handling characteristics following the actual rubber gripping the ground. The KW remote reservoir dampers mounted upstream work flawlessly due to them.
Inside the C30 mill under the decklid, the Darton MID sleeves were bored to 93mm and stuffed with CP Pistons snd BC rods with a BC forged crackshaft orchestrating the rotation. Up top Portflows’very own, Tom Fujita went to work cleaning up the ports and dropped in Portflow springs, Ti retainers, and SS valves. The crankshaft turns custom designed bumpsticks that FXMD developed for the powerband they desired.
Once the exhaust gases exit the chambers, they’re ushered through FXMD exhaust manifolds and pressured through a Tialsport GT ball bearing turbocharger built to FXMD’s specifications (no they won’t tell us the turbo’s actual profile. I guess they have to keep a few secrets). Once the gases are pushed through the turbo, the air charge flows into the STMPO aftercooler and engine. A MoTeC M48 PRO handles fire and fuel timing duties.
The exterior of the NSX has been extensively reworked to create the necessary downforce and house the massive 280/18 front and 300/18 rear Yokohama A005 slicks. AutoKonexion created a complete aero kit inspired by the bodywork found on the GT500 NSX found in the JGTC series. A Uehara undertray up front and diffuser in the rear are used to keep the underside slick and maintain negative air pressure creating additonal downforce. Dali Racing’s “Big Ass” touring is used out back to keep the rear wheels planted. Yes, that is the name of the wing. Other notables include the AutoKonexion carbon fixed headlights, Uehara radiator ducting, and front splitter sytstem.
The interesting part of any vehicle build is making it seemlessly work together. With so many moving parts, its difficult to get the “magic” setup. The only way to get the most out of your setup is to test, test, and test some more while always taking notes along the way.
The FXMD team spent countless hours datalogging each change to create the NSX they have today. Through hard work and dedication, they were able to create a car that Billy Johnson can beat the daylights out of the competition in.
Links
FX Motorsports Development Facebook
A few months ago, we decided to hold a contest on our Facebook page to see what our readers were driving. Sometimes when you’re busy building and maintaining websites and businesses, it’s very easy to lose site of who your readers are and what they are into. So we ran a simple contest: post a pic of your car, and we’ll choose a car to use as our default avatar. Well, after a couple dozen submissions in just a few days, we stumbled on Navin’s Hatchi.
April 10th, 2010 marked the return of the Formula DRIFT Series to the Streets of Long Beach. What is normally a bustling epicenter of business and nightlife, downtown Long Beach, is tuned into a motorsport haven for the senses every year. The debut of the FD season in Long Beach has shown once again, that the competition for drifting’s top title has done nothing but intensify, bad economy or not. Our video highlight coverage is nothing short of a major street fight between some of the top names in the new 2010 Formula DRIFT Series. Enjoy.
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