Joe's R went BOOM!

[Andy M]

Folks,

I just finished a call with my buddy Joe J. He made the trip to Hallet for this weekend's MidAmerica Ford event and was just warming up on the track when something went :bash: boom in the motor. He saw a bunch of blue smoke and pulled off track and opened the hood and saw a huge hole in the front of the driver's side valve cover. Apparently, the timing chain assembly flew apart and it ripped a hole clean through the cover. Not sure yet as to the extent of the damage.

Anyway, besides being a bit bummed out, he has already loaded it up onto the trailer and is headed back to Houston. Question, are the covers for the 5.4 the same as the covers for a 4.6 engine?

He will be calling Steve at Houston Performance to see when he can bring it over there to see what went wrong, but is certainly already planning a total rebuild if necessary.

I will keep you guys posted on this.

Oh well, we all know Joe's car has been to hell and back about 10 times, so it was just a matter of time before something like this happened. I am certainly bummed for him, but I told him this is certainly better than having a serious accident and being hurt. At least the car can be fixed.

 

[DaleM]

Not old Joe? I did a student ride at Sebring with him last April!

 

[93SVTCobra]

I got the call as well.

We'll fix it....no worries....seems like an issue related to the timing chain. Car still runs fine but pukes out a lot of smoke!!!

The valve covers are the same.

 

[JorgeG]

Bummer!!!!!!
Hope its ready for TWS! I guess he can also look into the GT covers?. Hope she convalescence quickly. Would the timing chain explain the smoke?

 

[ac427cobra]

Anybody know what kind of mileage Joe has on the car? I'm assuming all/most of the miles are track miles?

Joe, good luck with it. Hope it goes well and you can find parts?

:thumbsup: :coolman: :beer:

 

[Andy M]

I think Joe's car has around 12K miles, and yes, they are ALL track miles!!!!

I told Joe we must get it ready for the TWS event, otherwise we'll be forced to rent a spec Miata. :bash: :rollseyes

 

[ac427cobra]

I think Joe's car has around 12K miles, and yes, they are ALL track miles!!!!

I told Joe we must get it ready for the TWS event, otherwise we'll be forced to rent a spec Miata. :bash: :rollseyes

Wow, then I'm not far behind at 11K! I thought he had more miles than that?!? :read:

Thanks Andy.

 

[Andy M]

Bummer!!!!!!
Hope its ready for TWS! I guess he can also look into the GT covers?. Hope she convalescence quickly. Would the timing chain explain the smoke?

I am pretty sure the smoke was all due to oil spewing out of the hole in the cover and onto the headers?... :xpl:

 

[JohnLemoine]

Joe Johnson

Hey Andy I was at hallet running the same group as Joe and saw all the smoke coming out of the car from oil getting on the exhaust. We spoke of you at the Drivers meeting. He told me I should have bought you car. does the guy that bought your car still have it. How have you been .Later John Lemoine

 

[Flying Fred]

Sorry to hear about the problems Joe. In my first event at Road America this spring a secondary crankshaft gear broke and ended up bending 6 valves. Luckily no damage to the heads or pistons. The gear was in 3 pieces and when it was closely examined, there were signs of stress/fatique. Seemed like an odd thing to break, but I was lucky and suffered no major damage.

BTW, my car has 18K - mostly track miles. And it's definitely been to hell and back as well... unfortunately being on fire for 10 minutes probably qualifies you for that.

Good luck on the fix up Joe and please keep us posted.

 

[NJ2000R]

geez, we're all breaking moders lately....at least mine was a pushrod moder and not the 00R's....doesnt sound too bad, and HP knows their stuff....I'm sure joe will be back in action in no time! epper:

it does ruin your weekend....mine broke at the end of session #1 at SP :cryying:

 

[JorgeG]

Well, Joe, Andy I have 2 cars going for sure and possibly 3 if i can convince my bro to test the subie and drive it there. :beer: oke: So I m sure we can work something out for TWS :bowdown: epper:

 

[JorgeG]

That way you can see if im going in the right direction with my set ups

 

[JoeJ]

Guys,

I dropped off the Cobra R at Houston Performance yesterday. After they pull it down and see what the damage is, I will have them freshen it up. I would like to have a bit more power without compromising the reliability. I would like some suggestions from some of you engine guru's. I was thinking about raising the compression from 9.6 to about 10.5. I want to still be able to run regular premium gas and not have to go to race fuel.
I was also thinking about some different cams and of course doing some work on the heads. I also think there might be some help increasing the air intake. Come on guys, let me know what you think.
I have had gobbs and gobbs of fun with the car and still want to do some more open track events in the future.
Jeff Lacino took some pictures of hole in my valve cover and hopefully he will post them somewhere. I guess after about 12000 track miles, a person should look at the valve train and check the chain tensioners.
Hope to be back on the track before too long. I am still going to try and make the SVTOA event at TWS even if I have to rent a 6 cylinder mustang..lol..What a change that would be..I also might take my 300ZX twin turbo and play a bit.
Later,

 

[93SVTCobra]

Joe,

I'd talk to Tim Brown as he has had his motor apart and definitely knows what works!

 

[Andy M]

Well, Joe, Andy I have 2 cars going for sure and possibly 3 if i can convince my bro to test the subie and drive it there. :beer: oke: So I m sure we can work something out for TWS :bowdown: epper:

Jorge,

As am I "R-less" these days, I welcome the opportunity to drive anything I can get my hands on!! :rockon: :thumbsup: :shrug:

See you at the track. I am going no matter what, even if Joe's car is not ready in time. Heck, I may even take the Powerstroke around for a few laps!! :beer:

 

[JoeJ]

Guys,

Well, Houston Performance got the engine out of the car and found a bolt had came out of the one of the chain guides and ran around under the chain which caused the chain to contact the valve cover. The chain tensioners looked good and the plastic on the chain guides showed very little wear. I will try and attach a picture of the front of the engine.
I plan on having Houston Performance freshen the engine and hopefully will have it back on track in a month or two.
Later,

 

[JoeJ]

Another picture of the valve cover.

 

[Flying Fred]

Guys,

I dropped off the Cobra R at Houston Performance yesterday. After they pull it down and see what the damage is, I will have them freshen it up. I would like to have a bit more power without compromising the reliability. I would like some suggestions from some of you engine guru's. I was thinking about raising the compression from 9.6 to about 10.5. I want to still be able to run regular premium gas and not have to go to race fuel.
I was also thinking about some different cams and of course doing some work on the heads. I also think there might be some help increasing the air intake. Come on guys, let me know what you think.
I have had gobbs and gobbs of fun with the car and still want to do some more open track events in the future.
Jeff Lacino took some pictures of hole in my valve cover and hopefully he will post them somewhere. I guess after about 12000 track miles, a person should look at the valve train and check the chain tensioners.
Hope to be back on the track before too long. I am still going to try and make the SVTOA event at TWS even if I have to rent a 6 cylinder mustang..lol..What a change that would be..I also might take my 300ZX twin turbo and play a bit.
Later,

Glad to hear the damage wasn't too bad Joe. I agree with Mark that Tim Brown should be an excellent source. I had engine work done to my car this winter and am generally pleased so far. If you want the name of the engine builder we used, PM me.

Having said that, here is my 2 cents. Everyone wants more power. My question to you is why and what are you going to do with it? If you are just going to open track, why bother??? Sorry to say, but you would be better off getting an 06 Z06 - or maybe a new Shelby. If you want more power to race, I would think twice. I have serious regrets about trying to race with my R. Not that I think the car is super special (I never bought that crap because it's just a car), but because of all the headaches and $$$$$$ involved. Tim Brown has resources far beyond mine. I tried to make mine a race car, but it will never be competitive. I should have bought one like Brian or built one from the ground up like Wilson/Tone or Ted.

You can get more power - just like the old saying how much $$$ are you willing to spend? But as you know it's risky to go for more power AND maintain reliability. If I could turn back the clock, I probably would not have gone into racing. Sure I like it, but considering the time, frustrtaion and $$$ I spent I would have been better off to stick with NASA TT.

We don't see each other often Joe, but have known each other for a few years. You are a super guy and have far more mechanical knowledgeable than me. I'm not necessarily trying to dissuade you, but just wanted to give you my perspective. Good luck and contact me if you want the guy's name.

 

[ac427cobra]

Sorry to say, but you would be better off getting an 06 Z06

:nonono:




Sorry Freddy, you know that's not getting by me!??! oke: :-D