Mannykiller's Fd Street/Drift build

[greenwood]

great build. Are you going to seal up the wheel wheels/passenger cabin so you are not smoking yourself out every run?

[Ronald_Mcdonald]

Congrats, dude.

You're already improving, and that's awesome.

[Mannykiller]

Update:

Don't have much time to update but Just wanted to share this!!! Was asked to be part of the crew for Mad Mike Whidett for Formula Drift Atlanta this past weekend! INcredible time and experience!

[LaMaR-]

thought that was you in Mad Mikes area. Atlanta was a blast and Mikes car sounded amazing. Great Event for sure. Are you going to Orlando with him as well?

[Mannykiller]

Yea Man!!!! I'll be At the rest of the rounds with him with the exception of NJ. He's got a prior commitment scheduled. But Next time come say whats up!!! I got to meet a couple peeps from the forums. Was pretty cool!

[Ronald_Mcdonald]

I'm going to be at Orlando, as well!

[Mannykiller]

Update!

Well, I really wish I could sit down here and tell you guys everything. But I'd have to sit down for hours and type. I've got so much to share with you guys!! And I know I said i'd try to go into detail a little more....but I honestly don't know if that will be the case for this update. I'll do my best!!

Anyways.... Its hard to even remember where I left off. But After qualifying 7th and Placing Fourth overall at the Limited event last month... I was feeling a bit down because I didn't grab that podium spot. Second place was a stretch.....but I could've definitely placed 3rd. What I really needed to do was sit down and think about the whole experience. While I was packing up after the event a couple of the judges came up to me and started asking me about my car etc. They were really impressed with it and said they'd never seen a rotary go battle after Battle AFTER BATTLE like that before without breaking. They came over and checked the car out and started talking to me about my driving. Taka asked me about my suspension set up, and what I had changed from Pro-AM. I told him how I was running 3 clicks out from full soft up front. And that I changed it to 3 clicks from full hard. I also re-aligned the car a bit. He said it looked night and day and it looked much better than pro am. The other judge...."Hiro" was saying how much my driving improved, and that he was really impressed and looking forward to seeing more of me. I think that was enough to settle me a bit. I mean,.....to build a car is one thing. But to take it out and really push it... All your cut corners will surface.... and to be able to go through a 2 day event and really just push the car lap after lap full throttle..... and have it hold together...is another. I'm so in love with this car.

The event was great experience and as I type this I'm already thinking about Round 2.....which Is this weekend!!!! Sat the 23rd and Sunday the 24th. I'm excited to get out there and show what this EFR fed rotary can do!!

........Also! the pic with Mad Mikes crew.. Long story short... I got some "Spare" tickets to formula drift Long beach. The tickets just happened to be Mad Mikes. Sat next to him the whole event and started talking in Brap Minor.....Hit it off But went our seperate ways after the event. My buddy Dan hit me up a few days later and said mike had asked about me and my history etc.... I asked why but He just said that was all he knew. Then on a friday... I got a call asking if I'd like to go to Formula Drift Atlanta as part of Crew! I was like... Crew? wait....what?! Mad mike? But I probably said Hell yea before all of that haha. I agreed and 3 days later I was in a Truck with mike and Dan headed across the entire United States with the Twin Turbo 4 rotor Bad Bull in tow. Really crazy. The event went great..... And I took the opportunity to show everyone there all that I've learned over the years while building and maintaining the wolf. Before I knew it, I was under the car with Warren Overton From Pulse Performance New Zealand Pulling out a $22,000 Hollinger 6-Speed Sequential Gear Box and Changing the clutch. On the drive home.. it was just me and Mike. We did a fair bit of talking over those 3 days. But on our first day, Mike asked me how I liked Working with Warren. I told him the truth....That guy is like a diamond in the rough. He built the entire car, he built the engine, ...which has a 3 piece E-shaft in it, Has these engines pushing out mega power without failures... Works hard....and is open minded. I said the guy is great, and I found myself hanging around him most of the time. ...Well mike said that Warren really liked me, and was impressed with not just my knowledge but work ethic and thoroughness. Then he asked me If I'd like to be on the team for the rest of the season. I played it cool......But of course.... I said yes!

haha. Here are some photos!


but first...lets wolf out a little first... And if you havn't added me yet You can Follow me on IG for more frequent Picture Updates!! @ AAPARKAH

#Thisisthewolf



Eating at the Cracker Barrel...must've eaten there 8 times over the trip haha



I forgot where this was... sorry


Chillin out in the back........resting up. We would alternate driving by gas tank.


Road Atlanta. Really nice Track!


Real Focus


Weighing in


Tire Run

Mike


What 1100 Drift WHP does to a Drag clutch


Mike Acting American



Stay Tuned for Part Deux!!!!

[Mannykiller]

Originally Posted by Ronald_Mcdonald

I'm going to be at Orlando, as well!

Well come say whats up!

[scottie]

Manny,

The purple "star like" object over the highway is Oklahoma City. Looked like a blast in Atlanta!

[Drifting Kalamari]

Great stuff as always!


Also... OMG, I knew I saw you down there at FD Atlanta!
I was the dude pulling the old wooden RadioFlyer wagon around with my kids in the back :P

Keep up the amazing progress!!!

[Ronald_Mcdonald]

Are you guys going to be staying for Aftermath at Orlando Speed World, the day after FD?

[Mannykiller]

Small Pic Update:

Sorry guys, I've been soo busy lately it's hard for me to even open up the lap top. I'll try my hardest to get in a solid In depth update asap. But for now...I've Officially accepted a position On Mad Mikes Formula Drift Crew. I'll be at Every Round this season with the exception of New Jersey because Mike as a prior commitment across the pond. Here are some Pics!







In the past month I've driven to the east coast and back twice.... the first from Los Angeles to Atlanta Georgia and back,.....and the second this past weekend from Los Angeles to Orlando Florida...up to Indianapolis and then back to Los Angeles. Some of the prettiest Scenery, USA really does have some Epic Scenery. Love this place...Loving life and taking it all in. It's hard to believe everything i've been though and what I'm doing now with my life. And sunsets like this really hit home for me...especially while driving to and from.


Top drift ROund 2... Didn't qualify, but Mike came out and pitted for me. Pretty sick! He asked me when my next event was and asked me if he could come help out. The guy ended up running my entire pit. Changing tires....fueling .....everything I do for him at Formula D......he did for me..and was happy to do it. Had a coupler rip and Mike was on it immediately. Fixed everything pretty solid...wasn't pretty but it held for the event =-). Epicness! This car still rips! I need to focus and not beat myself before I even get to the line. I'll get it...just need to not psyche myself out. Pumped for the next round



Some of my Buddies Darin Burges Left and Tim Cobb right.... Both Qualified hahaha...



Back out to Orlando for Formula Drift Round 3....up to Indianapolis and then back home...some 48Hour one way trip....




You guys can also follow me on IG for pic updates @ #AAPARKAH
or FB: https://www.facebook.com/AAPARKAH

[Mannykiller]

Originally Posted by scottie

Manny,

The purple "star like" object over the highway is Oklahoma City. Looked like a blast in Atlanta!

Ahhhhh don't make me feel like an idiot..... haha jk jk. It was a looooong week. Thanks though brotha!!

Originally Posted by Drifting Kalamari

Great stuff as always!


Also... OMG, I knew I saw you down there at FD Atlanta!
I was the dude pulling the old wooden RadioFlyer wagon around with my kids in the back :P

Keep up the amazing progress!!!

Yea I remember seeing yoU!!! Next time say whats up!!!!

Originally Posted by Ronald_Mcdonald

Are you guys going to be staying for Aftermath at Orlando Speed World, the day after FD?

We wanted to but everyone had early flights and we were running around all morning. But it was definitely on me and Mikes "to Do list."

Next year for sure!!!

[Mannykiller]

COntinued:









My Buddy Alex ended up winning Pro 2 out in Orlando! Not a bad first showing!! This dude is a machine behind the wheel!!


went on a fan boat ride with the crew! Pretty sick out there! Love Nature!! just needed a fly fishing rod and a power dingie and I'd've been in second heaven!


This isn't the next event for me... But it is coming up. Thought it was cool they used a pic of the wolf for the event flyer though!! Woo!! Need revenge from finishing 4th at the last limited event. Round 3 For PRO AM is going to be this upcoming weekend at Willow the 19th and 20th.....A night event so you guys can come out and watch the wolf throw Flames Everywhere and light up the night!! Fri is 5 to 10 pm practice and Sat is 3 to 10 pm for the actual competition.


.....And just so you guys don't think i'm letting up... It's the dilligent one's that work and hustle the hardest that rise to the next level.
I've developed a routine with the Wolf and I've only been refining that process to make her better and better. New plugs, Oil change and filter, Transmission fluid change, Diff Fluid Change, Charge system torn apart, cleaned and re-sealed, took care of the coupler issue, Back up Wideband ordered ..."Just..in case." Alignment and full cleaning before this friday's event. I've also got the ENTIRE kit sitting and waiting for the Right hue of vinyl or paint. I can't seem to make up my mind and everything i've seen thus far in terms of vinyl has been kind of disappointing. Just waiting for that special "feeling" before I commit. Either way....Can't wait!



Till next time!! stay tuned for more updates!!! Thanks for all the support guys!!

This weekend fri and sat the 19th and 20thfor Pro Am Rnd 3 at Willow Springs International Raceway (walt James course)

The following weekend at Willow again for Limited ROund 2 at Hors Thief Mile

And then off to Formula Drift Seattle round 5 in 39 Days July 24th and 25th but we'll be there the whole week....Come out and say whats up!!!


You guys can also follow me on IG for pic updates @ #AAPARKAH
or FB: https://www.facebook.com/AAPARKAH

[OBEEWON]

Happy for you dude. Your hard work paid off in the least expected way. Make sure you enjoy every moment of this summer! Beats a desk job.

[Mannykiller]

Originally Posted by OBEEWON

Happy for you dude. Your hard work paid off in the least expected way. Make sure you enjoy every moment of this summer! Beats a desk job.

Ohhhh foooo shooo Brotha! I'm on it! Living up every last second!!! Hope to see and meet more zilvians over the course of the Formula D season!! I have a couple Ideas I wanted to run by you btw =-)

[Hatemy7]

Bro I dont even know you but I am very proud of you. you are a true inspiration to me and the kids. You are enjoying lifes rewards. God Bless you and please be safe

[OBEEWON]

Originally Posted by Mannykiller

Ohhhh foooo shooo Brotha! I'm on it! Living up every last second!!! Hope to see and meet more zilvians over the course of the Formula D season!! I have a couple Ideas I wanted to run by you btw =-)

Sure man. Always down to rap. I'm in the Philly area, if you are up this way shout me a holler.

[Hatemy7]

Seriously bro let me know when you come to chicago. Ill show you and your crew a good time around my city

[Mannykiller]

Originally Posted by Hatemy7

Bro I dont even know you but I am very proud of you. you are a true inspiration to me and the kids. You are enjoying lifes rewards. God Bless you and please be safe

Hey Thanks for the Blessings!! Really appreciate it. We have to live every day! Some people spend their whole lives building their retirement or saving money and taking the pole from un-thankful employers just to get a certificate when they retire. I don't want that to be me. I want to live every day, experience life when i'm fully capable. Live those moments in the stories I used to read about in the books I loved.... Set new standards for hard work and Hustling in the most positive way possible. Truly love life and make those who I've loved and have perished before me proud that I am making the most of my capabilities and squeezing every bit of life out of what "Life" has offered me.

Originally Posted by OBEEWON

Sure man. Always down to rap. I'm in the Philly area, if you are up this way shout me a holler.

Will do brotha!! we wont' be in NJ due to prior commitments. The next round will be Seattle but if we get close... I'll hit you up brotha!

Originally Posted by Hatemy7

Seriously bro let me know when you come to chicago. Ill show you and your crew a good time around my city

Always wanted to go to Chicago. I'll let you know if were passing through =-) Thanks!!

[Mannykiller]

Thanks for the support guys. Really appreciate it. Top drift round 3 didn't go so smooth mechanically. Had a couple issues.

The first was during Practice Friday night I completed a run and threw it sideways to slow the car down after the finish line. It stalled out and the car shut off. I need to raise my idle up to say 900-950 because this has happened before. Well anyways... the starter wouldn't click over. ...almost like it was stuck. So I got a tow off the track and got the car up on jack stands. Starter was stuck or something. Never really seen one do that specifically.. but it would just crank really really slow. tapped it with a ball peen and then a mallet and still no luck. Pulled it apart and cleaned it... hooked it back up... no luck. So I swapped in my spare the next morning. Fired right up. Good to go. did a bunch of small double checking and chilled out till practice started on friday evening. First practice run and I rip through first, power shift into second... get the wheels moving and rip all the way up the revs and at the very top of second The transmission grenades... It was so loud and sudden that it really shocked me. Wouldn't go into third or any gear for that matter and I cruised around the course back off and when I got to the pit late it would only go into first. And geeeseee....what a terrible noise. Major Clacking all the way to my pit. Put the car up on jack stands to see if I might've been able to use third to qualify. Just use first and third gear.... And nahhh... No such luck.

Transmission was toast.


Found one yesterday morning and pulled the old one out. Just doing some preventative maint and cleaning before I put the new replacement back in tonight.

- Ap

Stay tuned for more updates soon!!!

[bc.]

Originally Posted by Mannykiller

Well mike said that Warren really liked me, and was impressed with not just my knowledge but work ethic and thoroughness. Then he asked me If I'd like to be on the team for the rest of the season. I played it cool......But of course.... I said yes!

That is fucking fantastic dude! Have fun on your adventure!

[Mannykiller]

Update: “Will it beat you? …will you let it? And what will you use this valuable experience for?”
Here’s one of the few pictures of Top Drift Pro-Am Round 3 at Walt James Oval. This section of the bank was sick because the wolf literally wouldn’t go any faster… Foot to the floor in 3rd gear and the only way to get it to jump up in rpm was to slip the clutch. Here you can see how much Grip the wolf was putting down… it was actually lifting the passenger side front tire off the ground around the bank. ..and most likely the reason the trans finally decided to go to gear heaven.

Onto to the Update
Well wow…. Guys.. hell of a couple of weeks. But one hell of a weekend. So the last time I posted I was asking if anyone had a low mileage solid condition transmission because the one in the wolf grenaded. Well I found one. Picked one up on Tuesday morning from Dan Kuo @ Garagelife. I got a great deal on it and it was good to see him. I’ve known him for a while now and he’s a good guy with great intentions and solid work. So picked it up Tuesday morning, and pulled the blown trans out on Tuesday night. Believe it or not it only took about 40 min to get out including the draining process. I spent an hour after it was out cleaning and double checking some things under the car. The next morning I had off from work so I purple powered the hell out of the new (used) JDM low mile trans and hit it with a little water. For some reason it seems like anything coming from japan is always extra dirty or corroded or something. But The overnight purple power didn’t really clean it as well as I had hoped. But It wasn’t greasy or oily so I said screw it and started prepping it. Double checked the Clutch release fork, and spent a good 15 min inspecting the Throw out bearing. Last thing I wanted was to put it in and have it start screaming on me. Cleaned it with some W-D 40 hit it with brake cleaner and dried it with compressed air. Pressure spun it with my hand to “Feel” how smooth the bearings were and it was in better shape than my old one. So I put some light lube on it and worked it in a little, double checked, the fork release bolts and inspected the input shaft seal….everything looked great so It was time to throw the trans in. Balanced the Trans on my floor jack and got under the car…. 20 min later the transmission was flush with the engine and I was fastening the first bolt on the bell housing to the rear Iron. Spent the next 15 Min putting everything back together. I DID end up breaking a V-band Clamp though. That bastard turned nice and easy for a few turns then bound up and broke the T-Bolt. Found a stainless one at a local speed shop and went home and installed it. The trans was installed and only thing left to do was put 75-90 in it. Used my Transfer pump and ten min later it was ready to rock. Warmed up the car on jack stands and went through gears 1-5 while the car was in the air just to feel it out. Everything checked out so I took the car out. Felt great, This JDM trans felt much better than my other trans. Lets just hope it lasts a while. So I prepped the car for Top Drift Limited for the upcoming weekend early so that I could attend my cousins birthday the Friday night before the event.
New Trans going in

Beaten and blown old trans

Checked all my nuts and bolts and ended up getting a care package from Megan Racing. WooHoo!!! Been looking forward to these for the longest time. Megan Racing Adjustable Lower Camber and Trailing Arms. Now I could finally Zero out Camber in the rear of the car. I wasn’t able to do that before due to my current ride height. I had the OEM e-bolts maxed out and there was no further adjustment to be made.

Installed them and then spent the next 3 Hours trying to make my Alignment …P E R F E C T. Measuring. Toe plate-ing, Using my level, and even eye balling all the adjustable links until I finally had to stop because I thought I was over doing it haha. I just really wanted it to be as good as possible to make sure I would be able to tell if the car handled better or worse.

Went and filled 15 Gal of E85 down at the Roxford Chevron and pre mixed it as soon as I got home. As much pre track prep as possible… is your friend. The less you have to do while you are there… the better. I wasssss waiting for a part though. My wide band has been throwing the Error code at idle and needs to be replaced. It’s been on the car since my very first dyno session so it’s about time for it to be replaced. I ordered one from a high rated E-bay seller…. But when I got it.. I realized immediately that I had purchased the wrong Sensor. I ordered the Bosch LSU 4.9 sensor when My innovate MTX-L uses the Bosch LSU 4.2 sensor. I thought about just de-pinning it but ended up calling Innovate and asking if that would work. They said no so I contacted the E-bay seller and they don’t carry the 4.2 sensor but would give me credit. Well they don’t sell anything else I would ever need so If any of you guys need and could use a replacement Bosch LSU 4.9 Replacement O2 sensor… I’ll sell you mine for 45 shipped I paid ten bucks more but at this point.. Just want to get some of the cash back.
Also my roommate was going to throw away this sweet ass harbor freight roller cart because it had a slim tipping point. So I busted the drill out and moved the wheels out a couple inches and the problem was fixed! He told me I could have it so I was pumped because it was going to help me quite a bit at the track. I fit all my tools on it that I’d need including my cordless impact and socket/wrench kit my dad had purchased for me what seems like forever ago.

SOOO got to Top drift limted on Friday morning and dropped off my trailer because I had a wedding to attend that night. Picked a pretty solid part right across the pit to where you could see the judged section of the course. Parked the trailer next to my Good buddies who were camping out at the track and booked it to the wedding. Wedding went great and got to see this gal all dolled up…. Pretty lucky!

Got back from the wedding kinda late and went straight to bed. Got up early Sat morning grabbed some ice, some waters… ate breakfast and headed straight out to the track. Got there early and had the drivers meeting. It’s always great being at the track in the morning. The air is always fresh… and although it was hotter than hell earlier on… it cooled off later on, I’m always happy to be there. Our first practice session went pretty good. I had made one really big change in terms of overall alignment of the car and I was VERY eager to see how it reacted.
The first practice session was great because both of my buddies Micki and Ryan were in the same run group (B). It was good to finally be able to drive again with the guys that inspired me the most. Following them though… the first lap I was really surprised at how big of a difference my new alignment made. The car was wayyy less twitchy and far more predictable in transition and OFF throttle which is what’ll catch you by surprise in these cars. They tend to “Grip up” out of nowhere sometimes…which is sketch. But the new alignment settings fixed that and I’m glad that worked out as planned!

I think I’m done driving on federal SS595’s… this says it all. Backwards and Heat cycled..still delamming:

By buddy Tim was “Spotting” for me. He’s been driving for a while now and competes in Top drift Pro-Am with me as well. He’s qualified at every round so far and has been doing Very well! Helped me out a ton in limited!

Got a new Hat ;-) Melin Brand “The Fall”
The rest of Saturdays Practice session went flawlessly…as it usually does. Well the last session of the day, I took the car out and stayed on throttle coming down the Judged downhill section of Horse thief trying to work on some front braking techniques and ended up going off course. Nothing out of the ordinary…just a little slide off where the car remains running and doesn’t even throw up much dust. So, I head off track because it was the last session and I was pretty much over trying the new technique. But then I decided I didn’t want to end on a bad run. So I go back up and while going up the back side of the track the car backfired and cut really harshly. So I rolled onto the throttle again… same thing..before posi vac. So I head off track thinking my plugs are shot because they’ve been used for some 8 events. Swap plugs and decide to do the same thing… luckily I had a bit more time left in practice…but… it did it again! I was really worried at this point so I headed back to the pit and grabbed my lap top. Hooked it up and ran a log. Charlie let me get a lap around the track real quick just to pull some data so I rolled on the throttle less aggressively this time, but again….. same thing. Get back to the pits and packed up all my stuff, was scratching my head as to why the hell out of no where this would happen when my Buddy micki called me and told me our tire shop we were going to get tires mounted at…was closed. I was like…”Great.” No tires….no Drift on comp day and the tire service wasn’t going to be making the event the following day so it was up to us to get our tires done on our own. So I load up all my tires and head back into Lancaster to get my tires swapped out. Get to Tony’s tires on Ave I on the east side and while they were doing all my tires I pulled my log up. Nothing out of the ordinary was showing up at all. Fuel pressure was great, temps were down (surprisingly for a 100+ degree Track Event), EGT’s looked good, Vac was exactly the same. And at that point I was just straight tired. The wedding the night before…the loading process, tires, prepping the car, getting everything ready for the event…. The weekend before and the fiasco of swapping the transmission plus everything else in life. …I closed my eyes in the drivers seat of my truck while at Tony’s tires and kinda just took a deep breath. Sat there for about 2-3 min with my eyes closed and realized how ridiculous I was being. I opened my eyes and opened my lap top again. Pulled up my log I had taken on my first lap at the track AND the new problem log. Then I went column by column UNTIL I found the problem. Oil pressure had dropped from some 120 PSI + at 22% TPS right at about -1 Vac Pressure….to 56 PSI!!! I threw one of my hands up to my mouth and scrolled up and down to see the extent… but Ahhh!! Got it.. I had set up the Adaptronic Low Oil Pressure safety feature on the ecu so it would “Limit” my revs if there were a problem. “Got it” started making sense.. Then I remembered going off track…. And how bad Horse thief had gotten due to being used so much. And lastly, I remember noting I had smashed the oil pan slightly when I was changing plugs. Yeap….that HAD to be it.
So I finished at Tonys with all my tires and rushed over to my garage… Crap.. I had thrown away my spare oil pan 3 months ago while “Condensing” my parts to things I would really need. Go figure right? …..I remember thinking to myself “nahh man, when the hell would I ever need this other than re-building an engine.” Worst part was my gut was saying “don’t throw it away Aaron.” Well I did, and now I was paying for it. But wait.. I also remember Daniel Kuo being out at Willow earlier. So I called him up and asked him if he had another oil pan. He said he did….but he was spending the night at the track for the Comp the next day. …Without any hesitation, Dan said, “Just come pick me up, we’ll go get it and I’ll help you swap it out tonight.” And that’s when I gave up. Honestly… I had given up. I was DEAD tired… it was 6:30 pm.. My truck had no gas in it. I was in town…Dan was way back out at the track, My sister had barrowed my Prius because it gets solid MPG’s, and I’ve heard horror stories about pulling Pans, and how much of a pain it could be. I told Dan I’d call him back and hung up. I got back to my house and nearly passed out from just being exhausted. I’ve been pushing as hard as I could with this dream. And not just the dream of taking the wolf and drifting in general as far as I can. But I’ve also been pursuing a new Career alongside of it… that isn’t easy. Requires more self-discipline than anything else I’ve ever encountered in the “Corporate” world. I’ve got the best mentor in the game but the studying takes up 100% of my free time outside of the track. If you don’t know the material….You’re not going to pass the test. If you memorize the answers…. Guess what.. You still won’t be passing the test. You’ve got to know and understand it. So I’ve been putting my free hours and min all into studying this because It’s what I want. To take the next step in life, and build a future for myself and my future family, this is the path I have taken. But what seemed like an hour was really 5 Min…. A million thoughts going through my head but I was woken up by a text message. It was Dan… “Hey man, come get me, we’ll go get the pan and I’ll help you knock this out.” I was still groggy from my 5 min almost REM deep sleep nap.. I bet If he would’ve have text me right then and there… I would’ve been out for hours. But he did text me, …. So I replied “ I’m not sure I can make it man, I’ll fall asleep driving.” Dan replied “I’ll drive your car, you can rest till we get back to the track.” I closed my eyes again, going through a mental checklist of how long the drive back to his shop would take and then how long the oil pan would take. Well,.. I had left the wolf at the track with some good buddies. So I’d need to go get gas in the truck, load up, drive back into town, switch my truck for my prius, get gas, head to autozone for supplies for the job, head down to Garage life (3) hour round trip, get back and swap the oil pan…which could take hours. But then I realized again… that giving up has never been part of my routine. That giving up could possibly be one of the only things that had separated me from no future with drifting and the wolf….to where I am now. So I opened my eyes and text Dan back “OMW.” Immediately called my sister and told her I was coming to swap vehicles (MPG’s to LA and back would be killer on the truck). She said “No prob.” Jumped in the shower real quick to try and wake up, made a quick K-Cup of espresso and downed it and was on my way to the gas station. Got Gas in the truck, and headed back out to willow. Got up to Horse Thief and cringed when I saw the truck parked in front of my trailer…. And the I knew the owner… and he wasn’t at the track or anywhere near it. There would be no way to get my Car back to my garage unless I used someone else’s trailer… Closed my eyes again… ran through Options… Nothing viable. “Shit.” Ok whatever…. We’ll do it out here at the track. …Trying to not think about it Me and Dan headed out. Stopped at my sisters house and swapped the truck with my prius, grabbed Gas and A extra Large Coffee and then we were cruising down to Dan’s shop “Garage Life” to grab a spare oil pan. I’ve never really gotten to know DK (Dan Kuo) but for a few conversations here or there and the obvious high 5’s whenever we were the only two rotary guys out at events…and I had picked up my jdm trans from him earlier on that week. But over the next 3 hours.. we shared stories and great Conversation about how we got to where we were with these crazy rotary powered cars. I can honestly say I like the guy, and not just because he was helping me out, but because he was a genuine person with an honest love for Rotary powered cars and drifting. We chatted about set up and turbo choices, GTX vs EFR and tunes/timing, ports and everything you could think about. Our dreams, future builds, what we’re doing now and the numerous people we’ve met that were all mutual friends and acquaintances. I realized that I really liked Dan and was genuinely surprised with his willingness to help. And not just now, but wayyy back when I was first starting my build. He had offered to help me out years and years ago but due to where I was at that time, I had chosen a different route. Anyways, We got to his shop and grabbed the spare oil pan,….and Pick up tube just in case the pick up on the car was damaged and un-useable. We headed back and started feeling it when we got about 30 min away… I was getting really tired. Downed the rest of my Coffee and pulled out one of those little Caffeine shots called “Stok” or something and downed it. The driving was really dragging me down.. but we got out to willow at 11:55 PM. 5 Min before the Gate guard closed the gate… We drove up to HTM and realized just……how….dark…it…was. ZERO light….except the stars. We positioned Dans Truck so the headlights would give us some light and got started at about 12: 15. Over the next five and a half hours, we dropped the sub-frame, pulled the damaged pan off, replaced the flattened oil pick up, put the new pan on, and put the entire sub-frame assembly back on. There were ants, bugs all over us, oil all over us, we were tired…but also just as determined, and we did it. As the light from the sun was peeking over the horizon,… the wolf was back on the ground and all that was needed was oil.


I parked my prius back down at the front, outside the gate so that I could get home for some sleep if need be. Well, I wasn’t sure how much sleep I’d get, but I jammed home. I set five Alarms just to be sure I’d get up but Went to sleep at 6:30 Am. I woke up at 8:30 from a text message from my buddy Micki. “Where you at?” My heart skipped thinking I had overslept…which I had..but not by much. Still slept through the five alarms…and thank god he had text me. Not sure I would’ve woken up. I got to the track just in time for our groups second Practice session. I put Oil in the car and Again, Dan helped me out with a few Hustle things before I went back out on track. Immediately took a look but I new the problem was solved as soon as I started the car and oil pressure jumped up to 116+ PSI. Practice went a little shakey. I wasn’t driving very smooth and I think it was because I was afraid to step on the gas. I was kind of shaken up with that low oil pressure smashed oil pan deal still on my mind. Although I just taken a log and everything was solid all the way to limiter… It was still on my mind. I stopped and closed my eyes before my next run. Just to try and clear my mind. Got back into it and decided to just drive relaxed. Threw down a decent enough run that would’ve most likely gotten me a qualifying position. Didn’t have time in the run group for anymore practice so that was it. I was feeling pretty good about that last run, so I was ok. We went to lunch, drivers meeting then qualifying. I was up. Got ready and up on the grid. Scrubbed my fronts and did a little figure 8 to warm my tires up to temp. Was feeling pretty good after my initiation and was approaching the first outer clipping point nice and smooth so I laid on the gas and hucked it sideways…. My angle coming into the downhill was solid… but for some reason I decided it wasn’t good enough so I nudged it a little more coming into the bowl thinking I could slow it down with momentum and still make it. Well the angle was good…but even laying on the gas wasn’t going to keep me from going off. So I let off and slid to a halt half on track half off the backside bottom of the bowl. I had thrown away my first qualifying run… “Dang it.” Ok, I’ve got one more. Cruised back up to the top and just relaxed, I was really nervous and wasn’t feeling confident at all. But I took this as a test against myself. “To experience the hardest situations, as to better ones self through the experience.” This experience will help me, I knew it would. But in the moment,….it was killing me. Brushed it all off and I was up before I could think again. Scrubbed my fronts but knew my rears were already good. Went extra hard on my initiation and was feeling great,..came down the hill pretty smooth and into the bowl with a little more speed than I thought,.. so I grabbed some e-brake and sort of panicked thinking I would go off AGAIN… used my angle to slow me down but completely forgot to keep my revs up… down shifted and Clutch Kicked pretty damn hard at the bottom of the bowl to “Save” it…and I did… cruised out to the first touch and go then to the second touch and go and finished the course. A HUGE sigh of relief. I was glad to have pulled that one off. Headed back to the pit and started asking my buddies what they thought. The ones in the pit area said it looked “good enough to qualify” but then a couple other people asked me if I had straightened at the bottom of the hill. Which I still don’t think I did. But since they were asking me…I started to second guess myself and starting wondering if I did. I went over it a million times in my head but came to the same conclusion that I was for sure still sliding. Well when we were all called over to see who qualified. I didn’t receive a score. The judges had ruled it a “Straight” therefore I was given an automatic Zero. I was pretty bummed about it, and I still feel the same about it….that I never stopped drifting. But at the same time, the judges are sitting in a spot up on the hill, and from their perspective…maybe it looked like a “straight.” And I couldn’t see it from their perspective so who’se to say I wouldn’t have agreed? Or that had they been in the car with me they would know that I was still sliding? Either way, I didn’t qualify, and I was pretty bummed on it. But I realize more and more that I can simply use this for more motivation to drive that much better. I’ll just have to become a better driver, so that I don’t leave anything on the table to be left up in the air for interpretation. If I drive better, I’ll qualify every time. So this is what I’m using this for. My buddies Ryan Carroll and Micki Frial both qualified…and Micki ended up qualifying first and winning the whole event anyhow. So I was pretty pumped for both of them, but for myself…. A little disappointed…but very motivated to get driving again.
I got some much needed sleep that night, and hit the ground running on Monday morning with an actual alignment. After dropping the front sub-frame I knew things would be off and I wanted to see if all the adjustments I had been making were actually accurate. Believe it or not….The rear camber was dead on, but the toe was off a couple .01’s. The front was another story. -6.5 camber vs -7.9 camber and all wacked out front toe settings. It cost me 80 bucks in the end, but now the car drives straight, and I’ve got the settings I want. Here’s a pic of my settings.
Before:

After


I’m not so sure what was up with the .3 bit of camber missing on the passenger side front… but the guy said he couldn’t get it… and I was feeling bad for him because he’d been working on it for some hour and a half, so I told him don’t worry about it. The car drives straight anyhow… whereas if it didn’t… I probably would have had him fix it haha. But Tire Express in Quartz Hill did a good job and they’ve been changing my tires since I first started drifting. Good business over there. IF you guys are ever at Willow and need someone close to swap tires.. they’re on L-6 and 50th street west. Tell them I sent you ;-)
Driving Straight with my new favor Red Bull Flafor “Cherry.”


I wanted to leave on a special note. Although These past couple weeks havn’t necessarily gone my way…. This is automotive racing. These experiences are inevitable given the fact that I’m a privateer. The only difference is how I decide to deal with them. One person may say “ahh lets go home,” and call it for the weekend. To me… that’s giving up. If there is a way, I’ll be on it… 100%. I’ll fix it if I can, and if the situation doesn’t work out, well….at least I know that I did everything that I could to achieve my goal. These past two weeks have be really hard, on myself and the car. But the issues are solved, and looking forward, what can I do about it? Well.. all sorts of things. I’ve got another spare trans sitting in my garage now. I’ll most likely put it in my trailer “Just in case.” I’m also looking for another Oil pan, and I’m going to be getting a skit plate made to prevent this entirely. But if I hadn’t gone through these experiences now, then maybe I wouldn’t be prepared for them later on in life when the stakes are a bit heavier. I’m taking this experience as a positive one and I’ve learned priceless information and knowledge that’ll aid this journey in the future. This photo I’d like to dedicate to my Dad. A bit late yes,….but nonetheless special. Every time I load up the wolf I put her in a CLEAN trailer, shoe goes to the track, I come home and Clean the Garage and organize all my tools and put the wolf back into a CLEAN garage. My dad taught me to take care of my things. Even if they’re cheap tools,….they’re still mine and they get the job done. This is my discipline, and my art. The way I’ve been taught to do things. Constantly evolving and staying progressive to try and catch up and eventually lead the game. Here’s to dreams and the Life altering hard work and effort that needs to be exulted in order to be persistent in the chase:
Freshly swept and mopped floor of my Trailer:icon_tup:


Until next time! Thank you guys for your time! I’ll do my best to keep you updated more frequently!

Stay tuned! More updates soon!
- Ap

#Thisisthewolf

[brndck]

Gnarly stuff! Happy to be able to follow your amazing adventures!

[TheRealSy90]

You have the best build thread, because you're a great story teller. I always look forward to your updates.

[Mannykiller]

Originally Posted by brndck

Gnarly stuff! Happy to be able to follow your amazing adventures!

Thanks brotha!!

Originally Posted by TheRealSy90

You have the best build thread, because you're a great story teller. I always look forward to your updates.

Hey thanks man! Glad to hear!

You guys should follow me on INstagram!, just lemme know and I'll follow you back!!

@AAPARKAH


I just want you guys to feel how I felt, and really share these moments. I used to love reading stuff like this. Just hope its as good when I share it back to you guys!

[TheRealSy90]

Originally Posted by Mannykiller

You guys should follow me on INstagram!, just lemme know and I'll follow you back!!



@AAPARKAH

Weird I thought I was already following you, oh well now I am! @sylas_g



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Ronald_Mcdonald]

Aaron, I followed you on Instagram. I'm Shakotanlife.

Too bad I didn't get a chance to come say Hey, at Orlando. I went by Mikes booth, but you guys were busy on the car, and didn't want to bother you. Then the rain kinda sucked.

Also, you have such a great attitude about life, man. It's awesome. Keep it up.

[SR20PWRALTY]

HAHAHA! I was up there at Big Willow the weekend you were at Just Drift. I follow your build on here, I did not realize you where sitting at the table when I was talking to Mikey and Ryan. Man I was overwhelmed with seeing old friends that I should have introduced myself to the whole table. I did not put it together till I saw your car up there and just saw the pictures that I new who drives the RX7.

Well you have heard it multiple times but I will say it again awesome build! Hope to cross paths again.

[Mannykiller]

Originally Posted by Ronald_Mcdonald

Aaron, I followed you on Instagram. I'm Shakotanlife.

Too bad I didn't get a chance to come say Hey, at Orlando. I went by Mikes booth, but you guys were busy on the car, and didn't want to bother you. Then the rain kinda sucked.

Also, you have such a great attitude about life, man. It's awesome. Keep it up.

Sick!....Next time just yell at me. As long as i'm not hustling on the car I'll come by and say whats up! The rain really sucked. We had work to do under the car and Warren and myself had to get down there. The water was seeping under the Nitto truck and the ground was wet. WORST conditions because it was still hot out as well. Some of the Nitto guys were looking at me like I was crazy for sweeping the pit area asphalt. But you know what... when it started raining and we had to get under the car....It was worth it. We still got filthy...but at least we werent muddy'd up to the next level haha.

Originally Posted by SR20PWRALTY

HAHAHA! I was up there at Big Willow the weekend you were at Just Drift. I follow your build on here, I did not realize you where sitting at the table when I was talking to Mikey and Ryan. Man I was overwhelmed with seeing old friends that I should have introduced myself to the whole table. I did not put it together till I saw your car up there and just saw the pictures that I new who drives the RX7.

Well you have heard it multiple times but I will say it again awesome build! Hope to cross paths again.

OhhhH! Micky Frial and Ryan?! Yea, you blew it. SHould've totally introduced yourself. Whens the next time your going out?