I became the owner of a 2013 SR3 last weekend. Purchased from a fellow track mate that moved to a Norma. My previous track car was a heavily modified C5 Z06. Spent last weekend at Barber Motorsports Park trying to get a feel for these amazing machines.
I’m sure I’ll be asking many questions on here about handling and maintenance in the coming months.
Congratulations Mike ! I am glad to her that the deal on 789 worked out. That looks like an amazing car! I went from a Corvette to an SR3 also, you will be AMAZED by the difference 🙂
How did your first weekend go?
Charley
No way I ever got close to the limit of the car. I short shifted and just tried to feel car out. The handling was great. It’s a challenge getting in and out of the car. I would like to know what options are available for adjusting the seat. Heard there are ‘foam kits’ to customize the seat. Also need to get the pedals closer to the seat.
There are two plugs on the side labeled ‘start’ and ‘main’ that I assume are for charging the batteries. Where can I get a charger at.
By the end of the weekend I was already within 1 second of my best lap time ever in the Vette.
Hoping to get on track again near the end of July.
Mike, if you're handy with a multimeter, find out which one of those is "hot" when the master is switched off. That plug should then connect with the battery and could be used to charge it when the car sits between track days.
Post a picture of the connector -- my SR4 used this type of connector but was white/gray.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074J5DS33
You could then just use a normal CTEK or Noco charger but with the connector replaced with the one I showed from Amazon.
Hope this makes sense...
Thanks. Mine are gray too.
I forgot to mention... Make sure you have a heavy gauge wire terminal crimp tool if you do this yourself.
https://www.amazon.com/Channellock-909-Crimping-Tool-Cutter/dp/B00004SBDI
https://www.amazon.com/Amzdeal-Crimper-Crimping-Terminal-Settings/dp/B01GVAODYQ
I've used the Harbor Freight hydraulic crimper with success as well.
No way I ever got close to the limit of the car. I short shifted and just tried to feel car out. The handling was great. It’s a challenge getting in and out of the car. I would like to know what options are available for adjusting the seat. Heard there are ‘foam kits’ to customize the seat. Also need to get the pedals closer to the seat.
There are two plugs on the side labeled ‘start’ and ‘main’ that I assume are for charging the batteries. Where can I get a charger at.
By the end of the weekend I was already within 1 second of my best lap time ever in the Vette.
Hoping to get on track again near the end of July.
I'm glad to hear that you had a good day in the car! Taking it slow to get comfortable with the car is important so it is good to hear that you didn't push it too hard...yet. 😉 You have likely already heard this, but I will say it again because it is so important. These cars are very sensitive to forward / aft balance when cornering. So when people are learning these cars it is VERY common to spin them until you get the feel for that balance. Once you get the feel the cars are extremely easy to drive. Until you get that feel just be aware that you can (and most likely will) spin. If / When you spin it is critical to get the clutch to the floor immediately! If you don't, when the cars turns around the rear wheels can spin backward which causes the starter to engage which causes it to over-speed and self district.
As far as adjusting the seat and foam kits, here is a great post where the topic was discussed at length when Richard first got his car. https://radicalsportscarregistry.com/radicalforum/general-discussion/different-seat/#post-271 . This should answer most of your questions, but ask away if you have more.
Regarding the plugs on the side of your car... as others have said, these are for charging and jumping your car. since you mentioned that you have two I would assume that one goes to each battery. The connectors are made by Anderson (and other companies) and are easy to find (as others have mentioned). Be aware that they are made in different sizes and you have to order the correct size. I have a drawing of the proper connector somewhere and will post it when I find it. Here are a couple of pictures I took at Spring Mountain this weekend that give a couple of examples of the charges they use.
As others have mentioned a special tool is required to crimp the connectors. I didn't have much luck with the smaller hand held crimpers and ended up getting a pneumatic crimper. If you don't have a good crimper you can crimp it the best you can and then fill in the rest with solder. since this isn't a high stress application it will work just fine. Also if the wiring harness is small enough to easily mail you are welcome to send me the parts and I will crimp them for you and send them back. That offer is available to anyone that needs crimping done.
Maybe a stupid question. Do I need a 12v or 24v charger?
Maybe a stupid question. Do I need a 12v or 24v charger?
You need a 12 v charger. Your car has two 12v batteries.
Mike, here is a graphic that will give you a better idea of how the battery/charging system is laid out in the car.
Thanks Charley. I’m leaning toward the Genius charger.
