Southern Belle

[Petrus]

Last week would have wanted to delete the soft top but #1 son had a desperate plead for him to work in the mountains and being a poor student earning money had priority.
So went on faffing with aluminimum lightening bolts. Only júst short of 500 gramms now.

[Petrus]

Compared mine with a stock one:

https://www.mr2roc.org/index.php?topic=74008.0

the net result through  the accelerometer of the performance app was a bit beyond expectation.

[Petrus]

STILL not deleted the soft top 
Life keeps getting in the way 
But all fún ways 

This weekend (yesterday inluded a national holliday) several examples of the look of my MR2 being a bonus.
Emptied over half a tank enjoying local mountain twisties too narrow for a line in the middle.
The road sign meaning: ´Over 800 metersstart 50 kilometers of twisties!´




Ok let me begin at the beginning. The weekend starts with #1 son getting my birthday wrong and planning a surprise long weekend at the farm.
He tells his mother so shé knows for shopping et al but not to tell me so he could surprise me Friday afternon. Which she of course does. Tell me.
Which is lucky because she was not aware/ had forgotten that I was Friday going to stay over at the coast with a love.
So I call the love.
Which is lucky because she was stressed about her sister in law possibly dropping by Friday evening.
We would celebrate my fakebirthday Monday she said over the moon.

Fast forward to Sunday and there is a horse fair in the village. I go have a look. There is an ex colleque of the Proteccion Civil at the entrance. We have an animated chat and two Policia Local walk upto join the chat. One old hand one fresh new, The old hand and the ex collegue tell/explain the freshman that I have a loud cabrio with stickers and a silly big wing. ´Ah´ the freshman says ´so he has the sidecar ánd that cabrio?!´ and tells we already had made acquaintance when I was on the town square with my Nimbus.
´Well, we need not say more than´ the old hand observes 
Anyway, that is the new crop of Policia Local informed about being lenient with the silly MR2 

Monday down to the coast love is waiting at the door happy to see me.
She has a véry nice place at a prime location.
Here´s the view from the balcony:



We get re-acquainted, shower, have a glass and go out.
She insists we go to a góód place so she can properly treat me with a fine diner for my fake-birthday.
Ihe place is a bit up on the southern slope of the mountains above the local lake.
wónderfull twisties again, the last bit challenging tricky, nooooo traffic whatsoever and I manage to not overcook her exitement info fright/fear.

Back at her place parking is a bit of a challenge but there is a spot free almost dead in front.
Fast forward to this morning, a Spanish neighbor rings the doorphonething and because my chinese is about on par with love´s spanish she call me out of bed. The neighbor telles me in THE most polite way that my car is illegally parked and the police will come by on their morning round, put a fine on it and have it towed.
Double WOW 
1. ever so nice of the neighbor
2. no way I had seen that!
The neighbor and her husband are waiting at the car and explain it is a trap.
I now see that indeed there are rudimentary remnants of a yellow line júst visible at daylight íf you know they are there.
Two cars further it ís allowed ánd ther eis a spot free so easily solved.
The husband was curious about the car, enjoyed me starting/moving it.
The woman had seen mé and because the car stands out in a fun way ....
Still talking at/about the jñust moved car, the police passes.
Lucky!

Back in, the love has coffee and fruit cake for my fake-birthday. Will come back to the coffee.
´Say Petrus´ about last night...´ (she woke me up at 04.00) ´I don´t know what came into me...´ Well thank you for the compliment 
Don´t know what she´d been reading; this was on her bed side table:



Anyway, the coffee.
An übercool Japanese quick one cup. Like freshly ground coffee in a drip filter. Só well designed even the ´abre facil´ worked a treat for me!
It is a véry good cup on par with a good one from a bar machine.




Time to go and I take the longer, most twisty alternatives.
Appearangtly more had had a great day yesterday because the huge truck I came up behind pulled over and waved me past. Like that was not amazing enough the Audi I come up behind further on ditto 
It is the manga look of the car no doubt.

Almost back stop at the local watering hole for a quick top up of caffein to balance the missed sleep.
I walk up to a table and arrive ther at the same time as the waiter with my coffee: ´Seen you pull up of course´ he comments with abroad smile.
When I walk up to the bar to pay the owner asks what I want. Well pay. No he says, today it is ´dia del cliente´  and you are the lucky one    he days.

Yes I am!

Back at the farm the charming company is happy to see me and tells me I have been lucky, pointing to the rear diffuser. She found it lying on the green mid ridge when she went to the village. Lucky indeed that I had lost it on the drive and not somewhere out on the road in front of somene and that she had spotted it before driving over.
Not refitting it. Both lighter and  appearantly safer.

For those who missed it: The chinese letter sign in the side decal means ´lucky dragon´ and the dragon figurine on the dash is a pure coïncidence lucky charm from wáy back.

[Petrus]

Today started the Periodic Inspection Process. Phase 1; refit cat (not Kitty) and OEM muffler done.

Meanwhile #1 son has the plan to 3D print carbonfibre parts. Not sure which parts would be candidates but I will fund it regardless as it is also a learning process fom hím.

Ah and have rekindled the lexan windscreen plan.

The lighter weight is só enticing.  There is simply nothing comparable. Pity lighter brakes are nor feasable with the red tape here.

[Petrus]

Ah and have rekindled the lexan windscreen plan.

´Good afternoon Petrus,

I'm sorry, I don't hold any data to produce the MR2 MK3 Spyder windscreen.

Best wishes

Alex

Sales Team
 
Plastics 4 Performance Limited´


Hmmm. That´s the by far easier (but more costly) off the list.

Most of the PIP list too. Resident female even lent a hand swapping the bonnet.

Had a bit of a senior moment : The horn does not work!!!   Dûh, have disconnected the battery...

Phew, done.
Appointment oops. Last few times it was next day, well now it is not, Tant pis.

Ah and found that  4 M8 screws (per seat) are possibles for aluminium.

[Ardent]

Ah and found that  4 M8 screws (per seat) are possibles for aluminium.

A small win is a still a win.

[Petrus]

A small win is a still a win.

All those little wins are adding up to well over half a kilo. Not all that much in the grand scheme of a whole car but véry satisfactory if you hold the bag in your hand 

Will try to have a go at removing sóme of the webbing under the bonnet. Should ne more than a pound too.

[Petrus]

A day getting it to passable OEM spec.
Passed inspection early this morning.
Most back to mý spec already.
Now first pulling fresh espresso.
Seats need to wait till it stops raining anyway.

p.s. come to think of it; this is the thírd time running they did not even lift the engine lid. Just the front to check the chassis # . 
If I´d fit the nappies I could get away with anything in there which does not make conspicuous noises and passes emission norms. Not that I will because the car is quite quick enough, just an observation.

And still rain, glórious rain!!!

[Petrus]

Spoiler alert 

Rather bad weather yesterday; stormy rain.
Now, pussyfooting about does not tell you anything so after the inspection stepped on it. Réally stepped on it. Like nudgng 200 km/h stepped on it.
So ok, it is at speed notably quicker without the silly big wing but also even more nervous. The wing makes the car a lot more stable and (appear) surefooted. A lót!
Less quick at speed is for me a moot point as we are speaking public road. More stability though ís important especially on public road.
As such it was the fírst thing I refitted.

[Petrus]

Linked to the spoiler thing are the subects of a rear splitter and the parachute effect of the rear bumper skirt which @Carolyn  adressed with brackets to hold it neatly put with the nappy removed.
For mé there is no doubt that opening up the rear improves air flow through the engine bay ánd reduces drag.
When #1 son is back we will take dremel and electric saw out to reduce the parachute effect    I guess 200 gramm lightness added too 

[Petrus]

Tis but a detail, so detailing but with a difference.
There are several ways to reduce the drag of the rear bumper under/lower end.
The high tech one is to go proper diffuser. At the other end of options is deleting the whole bumper shirt or at least the lower half. And several in between.
I went a small, 85 mm., step towards reducing the lower half.

As a perperctive:
On Miata a test was done at 160 km/h. 
A cut down bumper gave 6 kilo of downforce extra and 1 kg less drag.
A proper full size racing diifuse gave 18 kg extra downforce and only 0.75 kg less drag.
Marginal gains, even less because I moderately cut back only, but it doés work.

Have help of #1 son, so he did most of the ground work 

Just did a test drive with two cars and it does not flap the least bit anymore. Have not weighed the bit cut off, yet.

Now I have; 305 gramms. A lót less work than finding same in enlightened fasteners.
Better aero, less flapping by adding lightness detailing.

[Petrus]

Next aero thingamy will be fitting the little air dams which are ahead of the front wheels also ahead of the rear ones:

https://www.wrcwings.tech/2018/09/19/wheels-impact-on-the-aerodynamics-of-a-wrc-car/

Since those are pretty much universal on many cars, will have a look after lunch at the breakers up the road. Fingers x-ed.

[Petrus]

Nope. The Mer-deux has no surface for easy fitment. Ok, off the list. No weight added then.

[Petrus]

#1 son said; ´wait´
Crawled under the car with some tools and during drinks & tapas on thetrrace of the local Venta designed a thing.
This morning invested an hour in teaching me some printer instructing.
Next prototype printed in cheap material.
Test fitted and some mods noted.
Design adjusted and printed in the sturdy black stuff:






Was a bit of a faff to fit it but that was only working the best how to out.

Right, left one fitted.

[J88TEO]

Doesn't a set of mudflaps do the job?

[Petrus]

Doesn't a set of mudflaps do the job?

No.

The second is off the printer now too, so back to rolling on the gravel. Well on the carton on the gravel.

DÓNE!!!

[Petrus]

In Portugal now.
GREAT drive over mainly back roads. The fresh 195/50 82V is just what the doctor ordered.
Left in a dry window between thunderstorms thus top up.
Sun towards the west so folded in down halfway and we managed to sunburn the face like proper tourists.
Saw a warning for cattle crossing and it sure was a big one 

Stickered the country sign post at the deserted border crossing. The sleepy dog opened one eye only.
Today met up with Jason at his holiday destination. Poor bloke  so we kept it short.

[Joesson]

The cattle crossing sign picture needs to be opened up for the reader to better understand, revealed  will be an advertisement for Osborne brandy.

[Petrus]

Met @Ardent in Monte Gordo. We had dusted off our best english and had a réally good time on the same wavel length. Thanks Jason for giving us a reason to go on the road again together!!

The car (before I get complaints from the followers about it being cár forum  ) was all you could want for spirited driving twisty bits hrough the Iberian interior.
We have done some 1200 kms, 300 of which highway, the rest properly challenging with highly amusing surprises. Ok, not as far outside the manual as the camino trips we did but still variations in road design you can nót invent yourself in your wldest dreams. One part in the Portugse mountainous bit towards the border, we came upon a ´road narrowing´ sign. Yup; right át the sing one half of the road was gone. Absolutely brilliant smooth new tarmac from the next twisting blind coners up and down blind crests stretch. All ten kilomters of it    Wonderful driving joy!
Good surface, bad surfaces, worse surfaces, the car was more than a match for everything, period!
Correct decision to go fresh 195/50 front. The júst that bit more precise steering and fresh grip were USED 

For the largest parts we had no traffic. I mean, not a few cars, no, NO cars. Seriously tens of kms without a single car on the road.
We had made a simple sort of road book both out and back. Súch a relaxing joy if the passenger understands what the driver needs to know and when.

About halfway on the way back we topped a mountain pass in the Sierra Morena aptly called Paso Blanco after the winter colour.
We stopped at the Venta on top, with incredible cereativity called... Paso Blanco.
15.00 hrs. so the hottest of the day, 35 centigrades, blasting up the deserted muntain road. Parked in the blazing sun. 20 minutes pause and... the temperature gauge had gone halfway DOWN 

Summed up:
Burbling through villages and rípping the country roads.
This is one real world fun car indeed.
At the stops and also from the (few) cars we encountered, epecially in Portugal, we had appreciating responses to the car. It looks and is is a toy Toy ;-)








and by @Ardent

[Gibla]

Really like the black bonnet n bumper with the silver (along with the hint of red) ....the appearance is seemingly matching the performance now.....kudos

[Petrus]

Really like the black bonnet n bumper with the silver (along with the hint of red) ....the appearance is seemingly matching the performance now.....kudos

Planning to stick our rally competition # on the bonnet; should be worth another 20 hp.   

[Gibla]

Some hints of the Lancia Fulvia 

[Petrus]

Some hints of the Lancia Fulvia 

We have two black bonnet rally prepped oldies right here. Same thing the aux. lights.  The little frog fits in nicely. Would fit in nicer still with the same number stuck on   

[Petrus]

Meanwhile a potentential weight shave again.
Prius 2, of all things  , brake calipers are supposed to fit and save 1 kg. each.
Too good/cheap not to try.
Found two refurbished ones and they are underway.

[Petrus]

Looks like the MR2 pads can be used!!