Souvenir from an expensive lesson 

"RacinBob" (racinbob) 09/02/2018 at 19:39 • Filed to: None

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Here’s the lesson. When you change a part. Take the time to make sure the replacement is the same...... This is a short lived plug from my Chevy Citation 2.8 V6 X-11 tow car. I changed the front bank but couldn’t get to the rears. Next morning got on the road at 3:50 am going to a race and within a minute on the interstate the engine cut out badly. I found if I ran in 3rd it would keep running. 3 hours later, all front cylinders were dead. I pulled the plugs and saw this.

The problem was that it was the right delco number but it had a E following. The E stands for extended, this plug has an extended tip and the front 4 threads were extending into the cylinder and I am sure were glowing red for the whole trip causing pre ignition. Amazingly I won the race and towed it home and changed the head gasket so I could race again the following week. 

All of this would have been had I just compared the new plug with the old.... Just a reminder to always check the parts to see if they are really the same. 

dogisbadob > RacinBob 09/02/2018 at 19:56

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The real problem is that you have a transverse V6 where it’s impossible to get to the rear bank. In those cases, iridium is a MUST! The Denso Iridium TT is good stuff. And you won ’t have to do them again for along time.

The X11 is kinda cool tho. Do you have any photos of it? :o)

RacinBob > dogisbadob 09/02/2018 at 20:49

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Here’s the race car

RacinBob > dogisbadob 09/02/2018 at 20:51

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Here’s the tow car that lost the plugs .

RacinBob > dogisbadob 09/02/2018 at 20:59

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Another of the race car at the 24 hours of nelson ledges. That was my last race in it. They were well engineered but had a couple of problems.

1. Front hubs were way to weak. I had the carrier machined to accept cavalier hubs which pretty much solved the problem.

2. You would toss the rod bearings every 2nd race until you put a trapped oil pan it. The oil pressure gauge acted as a dandy G meter. 1 g, no oil pressure.

3. I didn’t know enough to figure out the front suspension. It did not turn well. Maybe it was roll center, maybe just too long of wheelbase. Whatever, it would destroy brakes trying to get it slowed down so it would make turns.

After 4 years, I ended out upside down on the outside of a carousel and decided then and there that the car would never be a winner. I bought a Honda CRX and never looked back. 

dogisbadob > RacinBob 09/02/2018 at 21:53

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Wow that is awesome

Thank you for sharing the story and the photos :o)

RacinBob > dogisbadob 09/03/2018 at 00:06

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Ps, I couldn’t even get the boots off of the rears much less pull them.