Jobs to do list

Having had a quick inspection of the grass track car tonight after our first race meeting, I can add a further couple of racing driver excuses to explain my poor performance. Firstly the nearside rear brake was binding on, which would cause drag and slow us down. Secondly, the nearside front brake pads have almost no friction material left, meaning they overheat the moment you use them and are somewhat ineffective. I have freed off the sticky brake and taken off the handbrake cable for now to stop it sticking again. (A chock off wood will suffice in the meantime - no MOT standards in autograss racing) i will be replacing it once I've freed it off or renewed it though, as I think a handbrake might give a little advantage at times in those corners - keep the revs up and flick the back end round with the handbrake. 

My shopping wish list now includes 4 x M&S tyres, brake pads, brake shoes and a handbrake cable, or work to free of the existing cable. That is the essential list. We are on a tight budget for the year though, with just £133.61 left to pay for entry fees and fuel for the remainder of the year, plus any repairs. A decent set of four tyres will eat up almost all of that, although I might settle for two up front and leave the road tyres on the back. 

Tyres of course make all the difference - being on road tyres last Sunday meant we were at a real disadvantage. Standard fitting is 155/70R13, but I think I can get M&S or proper Autograss tyres in 175/65 R13 size, which will give a 5% advantage in the gearing as well as better grip. That should put us up 1 or two places in the finish order I reckon.

On the if we can still afford it list we have a new nearside CV joint and boot, as it is worn out, but still works. It is only worn out to MOT standard, so I will probably run with it until it fails completely then stick a second hand driveshaft in it. I have a source for these things now, so it should be cheap enough. 

On a positive note I have fitted a large Caravan/towing mirror inside the car, so we can now see who is about to overtake us and position our car accordingly to block them, not that that is the sporting thing to do of course, no. (I was just taken the racing line, Mr Stewards-Enquiry, honest!) It will be nice to see other cars though, it don't half make you jump when they suddenly appear besides you, particularly if like me, you have been road driving for 30 years and are used to having mirrors.