News

The FBR09 is now being prepared for Hockenheim in the wake of its running at Silverstone.

Despite the strong mechanical reliability of the FBR09 at Silverstone, the team is always looking to improve performance. In addition to essential repairs (engine gaskets and a new plenum) the car is undergoing some tweaking following its running at Silverstone, based upon driver feedback and experiences of working on it 'in the field'.

These modifications will include clutch adjustments, tweaks to the oil and data acquisition systems and some aesthetic touches. Follow the team's progress in the Hockenheim 2009 blog, starting soon…

As leaving day approaches, the FBR09 final assembly draws to a close.

In the past 10 days, the FBR09 has been transformed from its post launch spec into a fully functioning race car. Exhaust, cooling, drivetrain, intake, electrical systems, data acquisition systems, gearshift, pedal box… there really has not been a system on the car that has not been finished, assembled, checked and fine tuned as the team readies itself for an engine test and a shakedown prior to Silverstone. Long days and nights put in by the team members have ensured that the team is better prepared for this season's competitions than ever before. Reliability has been this years major aim as the team focusses on producing a car that will finish all the events at both competitions - a strategy guaranteed to land the team firmly in the high scorers if it succeeds. Tomorrow the team will spend the day in the workshop, utilising the last bit of machine time available to finish small parts and spares for the competition before an engine test in the evening. Tuesday will see the team pack up and leave for Silverstone, intending to untilise copse runway for a shakedown. The competition officially starts on Thursday, with design, business and cost judging overlapping with scrutineering and technical inspections on Thursday and Friday. The weekend (18th/19th) will see cars fired up for the dynamic events (Acceleration, skidpan, autocross and endurance) and it would be great to see you there - the event is free for the public to enter and all those attending can roam the garages to get up close and personal with the 93 cars racing. If you're not able to join us, you can keep up to date with our progress through the 'Silverstone 09' blog, which we'll be posting on everynight from tomorrow until Sunday. See you there!

Powertrain development moves on as first test approaches.

The team is working hard in preparation for the first test of this year's powertrain package in the FBR09. The cooling system is in final assembly, whilst the custom exhaust is being fabricated 'in house' and the drivetrain is receiving final tweaks. The electrical systems are also being fitted in time to control and log data from the test. On Tuesday 7th the engine package will be started for the first time in a 'static' test, before work moves onto the mechanical systems of the car - readying them for the first dynamic test of the FBR09 shortly before competition. Whilst slightly less than hoped, the team is excited to be able to have time to perform a shakedown test - something that has not been possible previously, and provides an opportunity to iron out any last minute problems that could affect reliability during the competition. We'll be looking to post photos from this week over the weekend so check back soon!

As the UK competition looms ever closer we'll be upping our post rate..

With just 23 days to go until the team leaves for Silverstone, there is still plenty of work to do if the aim of testing before the competition is to be acheived.

Following a well deserved week off for may week, tomorrow will see the team return to the workshops to move the development of the FBR09 foward another stage.

The exhaust will be fabricated following its design freeze 2 weeks ago, and the electrical systems will be finished and fitted to the chassis. At the same time, the team must overcome some small hurdles regarding suspension & steering installation that we discovered during launch assembly.

In addition, a number of the team will be graduating this week - only reminding us how little time we have left! Stay tuned to see how things develop in the run up to Silverstone.

The SAFBR09 is now in a state ready to be launched

This involves the car being ready to present to the public - including its livery and bodywork being fnished, and essential systems such as powertrain, steering and pedal box, drivetrain and electrical systems being finished. From here, it is a two week slog to finish and fit all the remaining parts to the car to enable it to meet the deadline of the first engine test at the end of the month.

The SAFBR09 drivetrain is ready for final assembly following machining of the support plates and delivery of a stunning spool from Cambridge Precision.

Use of the water jet in the CUED instrument workshops has allowed the drivetrain parts to be fabricated in just a day, whilst the spool has been machined from Aluminium 7075 alloy, with an EN24 backup for endurance runs - The alloy offering a 70% weight reduction and an associated increase in acceleration performance. Running a 4.27:1 final reduction allows the R6 engine to plant the maximum amount of its power onto the road without shredding tyres and losing precious time.

The SAFBR09 bodywork has begun layup, marking a significant step towards car launch

Having spent a large amount of effort and time perfecting the bodywork plug for the SAFBR09, today saw the first layers of the bodywork laid. This marks a milestone for the FBR09 and ensures Full Blue Racing is on schedule to meet the tough deadline of the car launch on June 12th.

The Yamaha R6 engine for the FBR09 is now mounted in the car.

This is a significant step towards preparing the car for launch, as drivetrain parts can now be manufactured and fitted, along with final tweaks to the packaging of the fuel tank, exhaust, electrical components and intake.

After almost a solid month of hard work from all the team, the Sealub Alliance FBR09 chassis was rolling earlier this week.

This marks a major milestone for the team, as delays in the chassis construction threatened to affect the tight time schedule the team has set itself this year. The parallel development of all the systems on the car through extensive use of CAD saved this from happening, however, and with additional effort to finish the chassis on time the suspension components arrived as planned and the deadline was met. This marks a key point for FBR, occurring over 3 months earlier than last year and in time to allow team members to focus fully on their looming exams

FBR is pleased to have completed the construction of the FBR09 chassis on schedule. Despite some delays, the team has worked hard over the past two weeks to construct the chassis for the FBR09 by hand. The team is proud of its efforts and confident that the chassis is fabricated to a very high standard, forming a strong base on which to build a quick reliable car. The next deadline is to have a rolling chassis by the end of the month - work is progressing well, but this weekend sees a well deserved rest!