Last month we had reported that the Rally xD had run into some…complications.
With the hard work of the Rally xD Team and all others involved the xD was up and running and ready to race in no time at all.
The latest race took the Rally xD Team to the New England Forest Rally, where after much effort they were able to finish in 3rd place, despite some initial set backs.
The Rally xD Team’s next challenge will be the upcoming Pikes Peak Hill Climb. Look forward to more on the Rally xD’s exploits.
As we previously mentioned, the Sparco Rally xD team had a rear twist beam axle failure during the last event, Susquehannock Trail Rally in PA. Once they got the car back down to California, they dropped off the rear dampers to us for inspection/repair.
Like we stated before, we knew that the dampers had some damage and broke the piston shafts. Here’s a look at the carnage
Remote hose was ripped right off. The shell case took a few hard impacts causing some dents. Now onto the piston shafts
The above picture shows the top of the shell case where the ring nut seals off the damper. The piston shaft broke midway and the remaining pieces recessed into the damper with oil coming out this ring nut portion. The top portion of the piston shaft was still attached to the shock tower.
This pic below shows the piston shaft broken towards the top, snapping right off after the twist beam axle gave way.
But after a full teardown, we saw that the inner tube (where the piston is inside of) was still intact. The outer shell case took a hit, but the inner tube was unscathed during this violent axle breakage. Here’s a pic showing the dent
The second pic from the top shows the other indentation on the shell case.
On a mono tube damper, this wouldn’t fare so well with that type of dent. Since the piston would reside right against the inner lining of the shell case of a mono tube damper any imperfection to the case will make it either impossible to function properly, or to be field stripped, or both. This is what I meant as testament to the durability of the twin tube damper structure and this case shows it well!
If you’re wondering why we would make a twin tube damper for a rally car, there’s a bit more to it than just the damage that could be inflicted to it physically. Our HG twin tube structure isn’t like a normal damper.
In a standard twin tube damper, there is still an inner tube that contains the piston shaft and piston. This area is fully submersed in damper oil. From the bottom of the damper and through the base valve controlling oil flow into the outside of the inner tube (inside of the shell case) is where there is some oil and the nitrogen gas charge. This charge is important in sufficiently providing rebound force to the damper.
What we do with the HG is fill the inner and outer tube with damper oil.
But wait. If you fill a damper full of incompressible oil and no compressible gas like nitrogen, then technically the piston shaft will never recess into the damper and it wouldn’t function at all.
That is true. But this is also why we utilize an external reservoir to keep the nitrogen charge separate. With this, we can eliminate any chance of aeration (nitrogen gas mixing with damper oil, causing it to froth, decreasing damping effectiveness) while still being able to secure sufficient rebound. The twin tube structure also allows ample stroke length for a given shell case size compared to a similarly built mono tube damper.
So why not utilize this design into all rally suspension? Mono tube dampers still have many great benefits- they dissipate heat better; when inverted, they decrease unsprung weight (you can technically invert our HG damper, btw); they allow a larger piston size; overall damper oil volume can be much higher. They also allow for us to use our Group N.technologies, which aren’t readily applicable to twin tube dampers
http://www.tein.co.jp/e/products/gr-n_frs.html
http://www.tein.co.jp/e/products/gr-n.html
But mono tube rally dampers are a much higher investment as development costs are quite high. Also, they are physically much larger in length and body diameter. the pistons used in them are much larger too, which is key for precise damping control.
So in the end, the HG is still very capable and also very durable at a much more reasonable price!
Anyway, enough ranting. We went right to work getting it rebuilt with new shafts and internal seals. this time, we stuck with our shorter length reservoir hose, still giving the team the freedom to reposition the external tank for their needs.
Awwww. Looking as spiffy as it will ever be! Ready for more abuse!!!
Speaking of which, here’s a video the Rally xD team posted from their blog showing the twist beam axle breakage
If you’ve been following the Sparco Rally xD team as much as we have, then you know that they have consistently placed podium finishes. As of the Oregon Trail Rally (May 4-6), they temporarily held 1st in championship points under the 2wd class. Good stuff! That’s not an easy task, mind you!
Consistency is key. If you follow these dudes on Facebook and/or Twitter, you’ll see that they completely rework the car after every event, going down their laundry list of items to check, making sure that all components are good to go or replaced if needed well before the next race. I must add that they run a very tight ship- only a handful of guys working on this car. They not only serve as pit crew and transportation, but I’m guessing also as entertainment for their driver and co-driver Andrew Comrie-Picard and Andrew Wimpey. Geez. That’s a lot of work!
After every three or four events, they normally send their custom HG dampers to us for inspection. In some cases, they go longer without inspection, especially when they quickly have to prep for the next event. As with anything rally, these parts take a beating! In our case, it’s normally exterior coatings that get blasted off by dirt and gravel. Minor concern, i suppose.
Before the Oregon Trail Rally on May 4th-6th, Crew Chief Philip Chase brought in the dampers for a quick check. Surprisingly, nothing to really change on the front dampers.
Jon a.k.a. Sir Smiles-A-Lot Inspects The Front Dampers.
But for the rear, he requested remote reservoir mounting (tank detached from damper body), rather than the external mounting (tank attached to damper body) to give them freedom to reposition the external tank and add some needed clearance in the wheel well. Since that kind of work requires complete damper tear down, we overhauled the rear dampers for them. Now they have the reservoir attached by way of a braided steel hose, allowing them to reconfigure reservoir arrangement (they still keep the reservoir close to the damper body, just upside down and a few degrees in towards the chassis).
Still, even with all this preparation and constant rebuilding, something is bound to go wrong in the world of rally. Case in point- the Susquehannock Trail Rally (June 1-3) proved to be the breaking point for the Rally xD. This time, a fatigued rear twist beam axle gave way, pulling apart the axle and the damper assemblies. Ouch! Seven consecutive events can easily do this to a car and its parts. But seven events is also a long time of service! Seems the xD ain’t no cheapo box, afterall!
Susquehannock is no joke. check out this video showing the driving conditions they face
Fortunately, the break was at the beam. So it looks like they’ll be able to repair the car in time for the next event. Also, it seems that our customized HG rear dampers may be able to be repaired, too! That’s testament to the strong twin tube structure of the dampers that can take a good amount of punishment!
Next up is preparation for Pikes Peak, then off to New England Forest Rally (NEFR). They’ve got some time to knock out repairs.
I wish them the best this season, as these hard-working guys continue to do a great job time and again. On our end, we’ll continue to do the best we can to make sure their TEIN HG dampers are in top working order!
Keep it up, guys!
For an econobox, this Rally xD is one tough shoe!.
There’s some good recap of the events at Rally America’s website
www.rally-america.com
And of course, the dudes at Sparco Rally xD keep their blog up-to-date!
www.rallyxd.com
You can also follow them on Facebook (Rally xD) and Twitter (@RallyxD)! Oh, and you can follow us on Facebook, too (TEIN USA, Inc.)!
P.S.- if you were to look up the Finnish term “Sisu”, I’m almost positive that you’d find a picture of the Rally xD team. Look it up!
Congratulations to the Rally xD Team pulling a 2nd place win just beating 3rd place by a few seconds!
Even though the teams were faced with a portion of blindness due to high speeds and dry weather, which combined created major dust clouds affecting some of the teams on day one of The Rally of the 100 Acre Woods in Salem, Missouri which forced the Rally xD to fifth place on Day 1.
They eventually managed a second place finish but not without battling their way through the ranks.
Nice shot of their custom TEIN Suspension.
Good Luck on their next event! Keep up the Good Work Rally xD Team!
January 27th 2012 saw the start of the Rally America Championship series, and the TEIN sponsored Sparco Rally xD is off to a great start.
The Rally xD team managed to nab a 2nd in class win in spite of the frigid temperatures of Atlanta, Michigan and the subsequent snowy/icy/slushy road conditions they faced.
Andrew-Comrie Picard and Jeremy Wimpey returned once again as driver/ co-driver, piloting the xD expertly against the likes of Fiestas and Focuses, and even some Evo’s and STi’s.
After the event was finished and the team returned to sunny SoCal, the Specialized HG Dampers were removed from the xD and brought to us for a tear down and refresh before the next event.
Close, in-house repairs are definitely an advantage when you need your products back ASAP.
The next Rally America event will be February 24-25th in Salem, Missouri.
Check back for more coverage and results of the TEIN sponsored Sparco Rally xD in future Rally America events.
(Pictures via rallyxd.com & scion.com)
Recently the Sparco Rally xD finished the New England Forest Rally (2nd in the 2wd class, and 10th place overall) also bringing this season of Rally America to an end.
This car has been covered many times on our blog, but each coverage brings with it different situations the car and crew has gone through, and one amazing constant.
That constant being how well this little car performs day in and day out.
(Watch the video and be amazed)
To be honest, when I first heard that an xD had been chosen as a rally car and that we would be making Specialized Dampers for the vehicle, I laughed inside (and a little bit outloud) all the while thinking that they must be dreaming.
Considering all the high end, rally bred cars there were in the market, “why go with an xD? Tein already has a plethora of offroad geared products for those other cars.” were my thoughts.
But seeing the “dream” car, with the help of the amazing team behind it, perform time and time again, against all odds, was truly a sight to see.
After every race the dampers would be taken off of the vehicle and brought in for inspection.
Seeing the video will show you how much of a beating the car takes (cracked downpipes, bent skidplate, oil leaks), here is a glimpse of the carnage the dampers go through as well.
(The powdercoating on the dampers has been sandblasted off to the bare metal and this is spite of the shields placed on the rear H-beam of the car.)
Look forward to another seasons of rallying next year.
This weekend Stephan Verdier will be driving his STi in X Games 17 in Rally and Rallycross competition.
Tune in to ESPN or ESPN3.com on Saturday from 1-3PM PST for Rally and 2-4PM PST on Sunday for RallyCross action.
Stephan’s car has undergone changes in preparation for X Games which includes a brand new Tarmac spec Gr.N damper. Our in-house engineer, Katsuma Nakai, has been on-hand to help setup and tune the suspension for the new X-Games street course. Stephan should be a force to be reckoned with. He has been considered an underdog all year long as he is one of a few teams/ drivers which is not factory backed (big budget). Yet his Crawford powered STi can compete right alongside the factory Fords, Subarus and Hyundais. Stephan has been competing all year in the Global Rally Cross and currently sits 4th in the overall standings behind Foust, Gronholm and Jernberg.
A little over a month ago Stephan drove the Zenkai Motorsports STi at Pikes Peak Hillclimb. He is featured in a video just released by Motul. The Zenkai STI is powered by a Crawford built motor and utilizes Super Racing coilovers.
Stephan unfortunately crashed about 2/3 rds up the hill. The heavy winds and road surface conditions change by the minute making Pikes Peak one of the most dangerous hill climbs in the world. We are glad Stephan walked away unscathed.
This past weekend was the final round (Rd. 6) of the 2011 Rally America series. TEIN sponsored Sparco Rally xD made the trip out to Maine for the New England Forest Rally. Andrew-Comrie Picard and Jeremy Wimpey returned as driver/ co-driver. The winning combo last drove the car at round 4 in Oregon to the 2WD class win.
At NEFR the newly improved xD faced a plethora of Ford Fiestas including 2010 2WD Chris Duplessis (who drove the xD last year), 2009 2WD Champion Dillon Van Way in another Fiesta and 2011 2WD Champion Wyatt Knox in a MazdaSpeed 3.
Since Oregon the xD has undergone major modifications mainly in the power department. Greddy tore down the motor and installed Carrillo forged rods and pistons to beef up the 1.8L. The fuel system was upgraded as well which netted a significant power gain. The 1.8L Scion xD now produces 200 WHP, up 35 WHP from the last outing. Not big by HP number but if you look at percentages that is a big difference.
Greddy engineers working on the 2ZR-FE.
Carrillo components help beef up the short block. Power is still left at a conservative 200WHP.
The HG suspension worked perfectly over the rough terrain and various sized jumps.
NEFR was a real test for the car and newly modified engine as it has some long stages, three 16 mile stages and one 19 mile stage. The crew tells me the motor ran flawlessly but there were other issues to deal with at every service. Loss of 3rd gear, a slipping clutch, damaged exhaust system, cracked wheel, punctured tires…
The crew working hard during service to inspect and repair the xD.
Some of the chassis modifications that Design Craft made prior to NEFR also paid off. This tubular brace was added to the underbelly of the car for added reinforcement against all the offroad abuse. Even with this, the oil pan took a hit. Without this who knows what would have happened to the oil pan.
At the end of the 2 day rally, the Rally xD finished second in class and sixth overall. OVERALL. Meaning against 4WD turbo STIs, EVOs and WRXs.
Left to Right – Kenji from Greddy, fabricators Gary, Len and Ben from Design Craft, Co-driver Jeremy W., Driver ACP, Team Manager Gordon, and Jason.
Look for a video soon.
Patrik Flodin and the Uspenskiy Rally Tecnica fought a tough battle during this year’s Rally Argentina. However, team and driver efforts garnered a 2nd place podium finish for the team.
The URT rally team chased down some electrical problems after SS6 that retired them from competing the remainder of the day. Once they resolved the issue, Flodin continued his charge, quickly closing the gap on first place driver Hayden Paddon.
Repairs continued throughout the rally.
Tire preservation proved to be tough for many teams this year.
Flat-out, and nothing less!
We congratulate both Flodin and Team URT and their continued push to see this event through. It was a great result for an otherwise terrible setback! Way to go, Patrik and Team URT! We wish you all the best this season!
Check out this awesome video of the Scion Rally xD at Olympus Rally.