Vince's Stuff: RSX is fixed, but no lapping at ICAR this week

Tuesday, June 16, 2026

RSX is fixed, but no lapping at ICAR this week

BG was right, the RSX needed a clutch. He did not have time to do it, but fortunately for me, the neigbouring garage, called Garage Patel, had time to do it. I brought them an Exedy clutch bought from Carl and the car was ready a couple of days later. They even removed my non-functional a/c compressor. I couldn'to do it since the subframe was in the way.

When I picked up the car, it would not start on the first try. So there were still two issues to deal with: the fact that the car took several tries to start sometimes (starter dying?) and the non-functioning radiator fan. I hatched a plan to use the switch from the yellow aftermarket light bar to make a manual fan switch. Rob came over and confirmed to me that it was safe, since there was a fuse in the circuit. I now have an on/off switch under the dash for the rad fan, which should help keep temperatures in check (mostly on the road). As for the starter, I will see if someone has time to do it in their spare time during my summer trip. The car is ready to try on track, but for some reason, there is no Tuesday night lapping at ICAR tomorrow. I will be leaving on our summer trip next Tuesday, so my only other chance to get on track is to fund an event this weekend. There is evening lapping at Calabogie on Saturday, I may go if the weather holds up.

We squeezed in a short trip to Deschaillons last weekend and I pulled the M3 out of the barn to start using it. It started right up and we brought it back to the city. The Subaru is a great car, but the a/c doesn't work and I don't feel like dealing with that right now. The M3 just needed a valve changed on one tire, but it should be reliable as-is. It is, as always, a pleasure to drive.

Oh, the yellow Civic is sold, for 2600 $. A young couple bought it. I had to lower the price a bit because the condition of the floor had deteriorated over the winter. I guess there was a water leak somewhere I hadn't noticed. I gave the buyer several of the parts I had too, so there is a bit more space in the basement. The RSX has to be reliable now, there is no more backup track car!