i'm aware of teams that do this - jacking up the rear and running through the gears to check everything is functioning.
I've done it once, with a team at my last test day - it was a disconcerting experience, with really harsh vibration but i was egged on with the team saying it was fine.
anyway...it wasn't a pleasant experience.
Now that i've fixed my gear tubing and pressure seems to be holding, before i'm out on track this Saturday i want to run the car through the gears again and check.
what is the best way to do this?
on youtube where people take videos of various race cars in the pits being prepped, you usually see the engine warmup process (especially on older f1 cars) and they also run up through the gears, most of the vids i've seen it's with the wheels off.
so....Wheels on or off?
and then for the procedure itself,
apply gentle throttle and keep pulling upshift, then on downshift no throttle and pull back down?
i take it no need to clutch at any point...other than to get to neutral/1st.
For an SR3 I would recommend that you do not do this.
On older F1 cars, SR8 or 10 etc the main reason is to get some heat into the gearbox oil.
For an SR3 this is not needed with the engine oil also being the gearbox oil, providing it is pre heated. (drive unit is separate and normally good)
As you mention it will not feel nice with straight cut gears being rattled around without any load.
If you really decide you are doing it do it with load and confidence as putting the gears under load will make it better.
Can't you just drive down the street for a block or two and tunr around?
@meatman no chance. anyone seems me and reports and i'd be screwed.
here's what radical have come back with:
It is not advised to run the car through the gears without any load ( with or without wheels )
but just to make sure everything work you could go through the gears once up and down without any throttle application with rear wheels removed.
@rojid - From what I understand Radical's own position on this question has flipped-flopped over the years. I was first told by Radical not to do it under any circumstances... then told by someone else that Radical are known to do this at their own track/test days but with the with the rear wheels off the car (probably to reduce the inertia of the drivetrain and reduce the likelihood of damage from backlash in the straight cut gears)
... and this is directly from their new SR3-XXR Manual...
I have been doing this for two years now and haven't had any issues, so I would suggest it can't be much problem if you do it without any throttle application
Awesome thanks.
Do you apply any kind of revs to switch to first?
Or simply disengage clutch slowly and let engine speed catch-up as it engages with drive?
thanks. i did just that and it was OK. Still uncomfortable on the downshift, it doesn't sound like it enjoys it much.... and i don't know if putting the clutch in on downshift would help or hinder?
Anyway i'm not planning on doing it again.... my shifts were perfect at the track on Saturday, my higher temp resistant PTFE + heat protection seems to have cured any further shifting issues.
the reason i wanted to test it was because the tubes from valve block to shifter rod are actually crossed over VS the diagram in the mechanic manual, no idea why. Maybe the upshift/downshift switch/signal is for whatever reason coded the other way around. I'm not worried about it, as long as it works!
@rojid ... great! Yes - clutch on downshift helps the issue you've noticed...
I've had zero issues since changing my blipper tube to PTFE, and applied the heat insulation - I'm sure you will be the same.
The shifter pneumatic tubes being 'crossed' is normal if you mean that the middle outlet on the solenoid block is plumbed to the front end of the actuator cylinder, and the front outlet on the solenoid block is routed to the back end of the actuator cylinder.... so they are 'crossed'
