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After the door bar additions are completed, the entire cage will get the scotch bright scrubbing treatment to remove the surface rust in preparation for primer and paint. Currently I'm undecided on a cage color, any recommendations feel from to post in the comments.
I know the 5 inch tachometer leads to a lot of Honda “ricer jokes”, but fact of the matter is, visibility is critical during race situations, especially with your helmet on and a bunch of other race cars fighting for position. So the large display, shift light, and even the digital RPM read out will help make sure I never miscalculate a upshift while spinning to 8500rpm. The added speedo is a nice touch as well. I've been in race cars without one before and it doesn't bother me, but the extra info doesn't hurt. Now to get rid of the steering column stalks and factory turn key ignition. Plan is to do a centrally located switch panel. 
Oil pressure, oil temperature, water temperature, and fuel level. All the essentials for monitoring vitals. I was extremely pleased to see this matching setup in the car.
The interior needs the rest of the sound deadening removed for more weight reduction and over all cleanliness. After that, the cage and floor will be painted to avoid rust and maximize coolness.
The car came with a good amount of aftermarket suspension upgrades. Fortune Auto 510 single adjustable track coilovers valved around a 10kg front spring and 12kg rear, Skunk 2 aluminum rear lower control arms and Front upper camber arms, ASR adjustable race rear sway bar, and all of the OE rubber bushings replaced with either polyurethane or spherical bearings.
The heavy weight bumper beams are going to be another item replaced with a lighter alternative. Also the stock beam requires the factory Styrofoam to support the bumper skin. The plan is to make drift car style tubular beams that will go out to the inside of the bumper cover to give it a solid mounting point. This will save a significant amount of weight at the polar ends of the car, front and rear. Front splitter support hardware, fluid coolers, and a tow point can all be built into the tubular crash beam as well with little fabrication effort later down the road as the car develops.Weighing 2195 lbs in its current trim with a full tank of gas (which is 12 gallons), Project EF Racecar sits at around 2120 lbs with about 1 gallon left in the tank. Add that amount plus 135 lbs for my weight with helmet and Hans device on, and the total package on minimal fuel is a total of about 2255 lbs. 2255 lbs divided by 192whp puts me at an 11.74 pounds per horsepower ratio, which is too quick for the Tuner Under class limit of 12 pounds per horsepower. I still plan to take out more weight, even though some weight will be added back for aero parts, I'm going to be under the TU limit. This is where race ballast comes into play, because now I can add the weight to make the 12 to 1 TU limit by bolting ballast in places on the car that will most benefit its handling balance and dynamic. I want the car to make minimum weight with the least amount of fuel possible so I never have to worry during a race “Did I leave enough fuel in the tank by the end of the race to make minimum weight?”. So at 192 wheel horsepower, the car can never be under 2305 lbs as to not get disqualified. I'll most likely ballast the car up to about 2310lbs to cover any kind of power output variance from either track location elevation, weather conditions, or not eating enough lunch before my race. With that 5lbs extra ballast weight and what fuel should be in the tank to be able to finish a race, I should never run into an issue of being too light for the rule requirements while still being close to the limit for maximum acceleration potential.
Being as close to the limit as possible (both in power output and overall lightness) is critical since compared to the rest of the field, Project EF Racecar will be one of the least powerful (by a small peak horsepower margin), have the lowest peak torque output(by a lot compared to the forced induction cars), and can only run a max tire width of 225mm per rules because its under 2500 lbs. But on the flip side, Project EF Racecar will be one of the lightest cars on the grid, this will make managing tire and brake wear during the race much easier. So the goal is to be a strong performer during the second half of the race when the heavier and more powerful cars have started to overheat their tires and peak cornering speeds start to reduce.
Our first test day is planned for the end of December at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. There is still a lot of prep and changes I plan to do before the test day as to get an accurate baseline of the car’s abilities and shortcomings. Aerodynamic modifications will be implemented, latest before first MPTCC race end of February, but hopefully I can sort it out in time for December testing. Stay tuned for build progress leading up to the opening race at Willow Springs International Raceway, and race weekend reports throughout 2015.
