vortex
17-04-2010, 11:49 AM
Like a lot of FD owners, you may be reading this now because you want to really experience what your FD is truly capable of. Sure it's a fun car on the street and in the hills, but you've never really driven your car until you've done it on a race track.
Most racing organisations will require to you to fit a 0.9kg Fire Extinguisher before allowing you on the track. They're not expensive either, I got my CAMS approved 1kg unit for around $30 - from Bunnings believe it or not. Having said that, don't cheap out. Mine was a decent quality Chubb unit, some day it could save you or your car.
When selecting an Extinguisher, make sure you select the correct standard otherwise you will be turned away at scruteneering. The required standard is usually listed on the Supp Regs and the CAMS manual. I'm leaving it out of here to make sure you do your own research :)
Firstly the Exhtinguisher must be in-reach of the driver when he/she is belted/strapped into the car. Very important as you don't want to be fumbling with belts when your car is burning around you!
I can't take credit for this idea as this is how Dave (gotorx7) has mounted his extinguisher in his FD.
Minimum Skill Required: Monkey.
Time Taken: 30 mins - 1 Hr.
Tools Needed: 1 x 14mm socket, extension, ratchet. Drills and a Drill. Assorted mounting hardware. Fire extinguisher.
1) You will need a thin, flat section of steel strap. Mine was around 40mm x 3mm x 1000mm and I had too much. Was $3 from basic steel supplies.
2) Remove the bolts from the front of the passenger side seat.
3) Loosen the rear bolts from the passenger side seat. No need to remove these completely but they do need to be loose to allow some 'wiggle' room to get the bracket under the seat base itself.
4) Measure the distance between the bolt holes in the front of the seat, make sure you measure along the carpet and not straight because the strap needs to bend over the hump under the seat. Cut your strap to length, can't hurt to add 10 or 20mm to the measurement, easier to cut it again if you need :)
5) Mark the holes on your mount while fitted under the seat rail. To get the strap under there, you might need to 'wiggle' the seat a bit because I think it has a locator under the rail to get it into place, this is why the rear seat bolt must be loose.
6) Pull it out of the car, drill the holes, and test fit inback the car again. Don't tighten the seat down just yet.
7) If it all fits OK, you can grab your extinguisher base and mark it's holes on the mount so that it fits and you can reach it from the drivers seat. Don't forget you can bend and re-bend as needed to get the holes to line up if they're a few mm out.
8) Mount your extinguisher to the strap, can't hurt to use some decent high tensile hardware here along with some mudflap washers perhaps so that the load is distributed should you be in an accident.
I will get better pics of my mount later, but these may help you get an idea:
http://www.fdrx7.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4810&stc=1&d=1271463596 (spot the jdm-yo yen coin ;) )
http://www.fdrx7.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4811&stc=1&d=1271463596
http://www.fdrx7.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4812&stc=1&d=1271463596
Most racing organisations will require to you to fit a 0.9kg Fire Extinguisher before allowing you on the track. They're not expensive either, I got my CAMS approved 1kg unit for around $30 - from Bunnings believe it or not. Having said that, don't cheap out. Mine was a decent quality Chubb unit, some day it could save you or your car.
When selecting an Extinguisher, make sure you select the correct standard otherwise you will be turned away at scruteneering. The required standard is usually listed on the Supp Regs and the CAMS manual. I'm leaving it out of here to make sure you do your own research :)
Firstly the Exhtinguisher must be in-reach of the driver when he/she is belted/strapped into the car. Very important as you don't want to be fumbling with belts when your car is burning around you!
I can't take credit for this idea as this is how Dave (gotorx7) has mounted his extinguisher in his FD.
Minimum Skill Required: Monkey.
Time Taken: 30 mins - 1 Hr.
Tools Needed: 1 x 14mm socket, extension, ratchet. Drills and a Drill. Assorted mounting hardware. Fire extinguisher.
1) You will need a thin, flat section of steel strap. Mine was around 40mm x 3mm x 1000mm and I had too much. Was $3 from basic steel supplies.
2) Remove the bolts from the front of the passenger side seat.
3) Loosen the rear bolts from the passenger side seat. No need to remove these completely but they do need to be loose to allow some 'wiggle' room to get the bracket under the seat base itself.
4) Measure the distance between the bolt holes in the front of the seat, make sure you measure along the carpet and not straight because the strap needs to bend over the hump under the seat. Cut your strap to length, can't hurt to add 10 or 20mm to the measurement, easier to cut it again if you need :)
5) Mark the holes on your mount while fitted under the seat rail. To get the strap under there, you might need to 'wiggle' the seat a bit because I think it has a locator under the rail to get it into place, this is why the rear seat bolt must be loose.
6) Pull it out of the car, drill the holes, and test fit inback the car again. Don't tighten the seat down just yet.
7) If it all fits OK, you can grab your extinguisher base and mark it's holes on the mount so that it fits and you can reach it from the drivers seat. Don't forget you can bend and re-bend as needed to get the holes to line up if they're a few mm out.
8) Mount your extinguisher to the strap, can't hurt to use some decent high tensile hardware here along with some mudflap washers perhaps so that the load is distributed should you be in an accident.
I will get better pics of my mount later, but these may help you get an idea:
http://www.fdrx7.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4810&stc=1&d=1271463596 (spot the jdm-yo yen coin ;) )
http://www.fdrx7.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4811&stc=1&d=1271463596
http://www.fdrx7.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4812&stc=1&d=1271463596