Furthermore, a two-belt system is safer. With a single belt, power steering dies the instant the belt takes a powder, which JR finds overly interesting when headed for the barriers sideways at 100 mph 2 feet from another car.
After fitting the two-belt, 8-rib system, it too proved not enough, so Eric redesigned it for 10 ribs on the blower belt while retaining the 8-rib accessory belt. Also, the blower belt gained manual and spring tensioners.
You'd think that would cure any belt problem, but it hasn't. At press time, Eric was working on a cog beltdrive for the supercharger, and no doubt wondering what sort of headaches turbocharging might offer.
If all this belt throwing makes you wonder what's going on, the answer seems to be the drift car's unusual need for tons of sustained rpm, interspersed with jabbing on-off-on throttle movements. These generate huge back-and-forth loads throughout the powertrain as the steep gearing and heavy car weight are slammed fore and aft by the equally titanic engine power. This means the big, heavy supercharger impeller and crankshaft are beating the stuffing out of the blower belt, raising its temperature. Eric says the belt overheats at 180 degrees, and when that happens, it can no longer take the loads and fails.
Mechanically brutal, this drifting.
Another drifting concern is engine overheating. Again, all that showy, tire-smoking rpm is somewhat to blame. Couple the big horsepower-meaning heat-and the slow average speed, and you have a recipe calling for a Kenworth radiator supported by a Cessna-sized fan. My job during my ride was to eyeball the Auto Meter digital water temp, which did a fair impersonation of a space shuttle launch once the fun began in the tightly wound infield. Tellingly, slowly circulating the banked Pikes Peak oval for just a minute cooled the water rapidly, meaning there simply isn't enough airflow through the big Griffin radiator while drifting.
Eric plans on larger heat exchangers and a high-quality Evans water pump, but is also looking into innovative air management-mainly scoops and ducting-because some of the problem is the relative wind is at a considerable angle to the grille and radiator while the car is crossed up. And since it spends nearly all its time sideways and turning 7,000 to 8,000 rpm, a glancing airflow on the radiator is something he has to change. We couldn't help but think sealing the engine compartment and fitting a 100hp sucker fan might aid both cooling and handling, but we kept our school-boy engineering solutions to ourselves. This isn't a Lotus, after all.
Eric said the challenge with the rest of the drivetrain was finding a clutch and transmission that would shift at 8,500 rpm. This took more than three months of research, but ended with a carefully engineered selection of clutch material, design, and hydraulic throwout bearing, as well as a G-Force transmission. Because the base car was an automatic, XMP discovered an '04 Mustang Cobra manual-transmission pedal assembly bolts right in, although some spacing on the mounting studs is required. And as an eyebrow-raising curiosity, did you know the '05 Mustang uses a polycarbonate brake pedal? Plastic!
Behind the G-Force is a custom single-piece driveshaft instead of the '05's standard two-piece unit. It bolts to a well-modified 8.8-inch rear axle sporting an Auburn electric locker turning 4.10 gears, prototype Superior axles, welded axle tubes, and a TA axle girdle. Furthermore, the Tein rear suspension is entirely Heim-jointed for maximum responsiveness.
No-excuses brakes are drifting necessities. Massive stopping torque is instantly needed when trimming speed in competition, not to mention when trying to stop the craziness if things get out of hand. Eric said he wanted a system designed around a six-piston caliper, and originally approached Baer Brakes as it is now making its own such monoblock caliper. But Baer was already heavily subscribed prior to SEMA and couldn't squeeze into Eric's tight deadline. Project Mu then filled the gap, making a one-off, six-piston, 14-inch rotor system on short notice. It delivered an exciting all-aluminum monoblock caliper, cyro'd rotors-the works, says Eric. A Wilwood proportioning valve and the usual odds and ends finalized the system.
One braking component still on the to-do list is the e-brake. At deadline it was the stock cable system, but a hydraulic replacement will likely appear shortly. The fluid mechanics allow less effort and more control over this vital drifting tool.
No points whatsoever for divining that all this rides on Falken tires. The RT625 Azenis measure 255/40R18s in front and 275/35R18s in back. Rear tires last around two runs from what we can figure. It's a drifting industry standard, as is the odd fact that junk tires do not work in drifting, even if the tires are going up in smoke 80 percent of the time. There are still many crucial moments when traction is vital, and the tires must provide good feedback to the driver. It goes without saying that you aren't going anywhere in drifting without a tire sponsor, unless your last name is Gates and you have a family fortune to disperse.
If the exterior is looking a bit hotted-up, that's the 3D Carbon bodywork earning its keep. The huge front grille openings and equally generous hood cutouts help cool the wailing Four-Valve. Expect to see some extra scoops as the overheating issue is tamed.
It's too bad everyone can't snag some Recaro seat time with JR. The semi-stripped race-car interior got us in the track mood, but like the rest of the car, with its color-coordinated anodizing and metal polishing, the presentation is high-grade throughout. And the action? Way cool. JR has some motocrossing in his background and thinks of the clutch as a major accessory, as a two-stroke dirt rider would. At high speeds he e-brakes the Mustang sideways, and he often uses the steering wheel to "feint" the car sideways rally style; but whenever possible at low and medium speeds, he "clutch kicks" the machine into the traction netherworld. That means a cat-quick stab in and out of the clutch pedal while holding the power down. This powertrain brutality gives a snappier, judge-pleasing rotation than the feint or braking methods.
And after a couple of laps looking out the door windows, passengers would be just as effusive for their ride as JR is. "It's the best sounding car ever," he says. "It gets my adrenalin flowing and in the mood to rock and roll. It holds a ton of angle... [and is] stable at deep angles and high speed."
Put another way, this graybeard was flashing hardcore hand signs out the window-a rather memorable second time, for all that.