The 2019 $2000 Challenge is complete. I placed 18th out of 57 cars that made it through scoring. I had a great time and learned a lot. With the V8 installed next year I think this car can truly be competitive.
I didn't push the 2.5L engine to the breaking point, but I could tell it was weakening. After every run, it needed to cool down for 20-30 minutes to de-pressurize and refill the coolant tank. On my first drag run with the car floored the whole way, running to a 7k redline, it only got a 16.1 1/4 mile. With a 50 shot of nitrous it did 14.6 with the Tiptronic shifting at 8k rpm. The 150 shot would have been glorious, but I was worn out from a long day. My wife convinced me to let the engine live and we called it a night.
Later this week I'll detail the modifications to the car, to wrap this up as a 'build thread'. I'll post the build for next year under a new title. Here's a few pics from the Challenge.
Prep in the paddock:
Topping coolant. Extra plastic tank (Audi) catches the drainage.
Tight corner in the autocross.
Danny Shields completing a run in my car. Great to get feedback from a pro driver.
