EFM Racing - Purcell Race Engineering - Eric Purcell - Van Diemen - Sports 2000

2007 was the first full year of the EFM Team concept. Utilizing the power of a unified group in order to make racing more affordable and more fun for everyone netted us some good deals. Our association with Bell Racing, suppliers of helmets and safety gear, was a great one, with tremendous bargains available for each team member on driving gear, crew uniforms and such. I’m excited to say it appears that Bell is going to continue this relationship with us – a great deal not only for the bargains, but for the exposure it provides to the entire EFM Team.

Rick Johnson, Eric Purcell, and Dennis Pavlina at Seattle This was also the first full year for the EFM website. We got a LOT of hits on the site, and are happy to be associated with Friends of PIR, The GT Channel, and MyRacer.com. If you haven’t checked out the links, you should. 2008 will see a significant upgrade to the website, with new and used parts for sale being listed (got any good old parts you need to sell, let me post them on the site for you), and the continued updating of each drivers page. We fell a bit short of our hopes for the driver pages in 2007 – so we need everyone’s info to make these pages come alive. This is at the core of the EFM Team marketing concept, and what gives us power to negotiate better deals with suppliers – to make your racing more affordable!

As for the EFM Van Diemen Sports 2000 cars, several updates saw the light of day for the first time in 2007. The newest pre-preg nose configuration appeared late in 2006 on the Michial Shumate cars and Rick Johnson car, but this configuration really was not developed until this year. The new nose has proven to be a dramatic improvement in drag, downforce and weight, and has helped lead EFM to several other changes in the car’s setup.

With adequate front downforce available now, rear downforce has become the focus of aerodynamic development during the second half of 2007 and into 2008. Advanced Racing Composites (ARC), a division of Lee Stohr cars (the highly successful DSR manufacturer), created a dramatically improved one-piece undertray for the engine bay of the Van Diemen S2000. This component not only removed more than 10 pounds from the car, but sealed up the underside of the car, achieving much improved aerodynamic efficiency. Following in the footsteps of the new undertray, EFM and ARC worked together to develop a completely new, radical rear diffuser. The new diffuser made its debut at the June Sprints on Dave Ferguson’s car, and was immediately a success. All other EFM team cars that ran in 2007 finished the year off with the new diffuser on the car.

The rear bellcrank system on the car, responsible for mating the shocks and springs to the suspension, also received an update late in 2006. The latest rear bellcrank upgrades make the rear motion ratios more linear as well as stiffening the mounting platform significantly. Seven post “shaker” rig testing performed in England showed an issue in this area that was addressed with the revised parts, and the results have been very good.

A new, permanent magnet, reduction gear starter was introduced in 2007, a newer version of a part that had been used in years past. The latest spec weighs 4 pounds less than the predecessor, and has proven much more reliable than the part it replaces.

A vastly improved airbox, properly sealed to the intake of the engine and integrated into the bodywork attached to the tub, was installed on nearly every Van Diemen S2 this season. The original design, carried out by Dave Ferguson, was improved for efficiency and molds were created early in 2007. Not only does the new airbox clean up the airflow over the tail but its improved seal to the engine has netted in some moderate gains in top speed.

The aerodynamic improvements on the Van Diemen S2 led to several significant setup changes in 2007. Most notably was a revised shock absorber valving package, which continues to be developed. The changes to the shocks have resulted in improved “power down”, and more stability under braking and over bumpy surfaces. More improvements in this area are under work for 2008 as well.

An improved cockpit adjustable front anti-roll bar (sway bar) was introduced in 2007, part of the overall development of the mechanical grip package for the car. A completely new rear anti-roll bar, available as either cockpit adjustable or manually adjustable debuted in late 2007, just prior to the runoffs. This new component moves the rear bar off of the back of the gearbox, cleaning up that area and making gearbox maintenance and ratio changes much simpler. The new rear bar also has a broader range of adjustment than the previous Van Diemen bar, and rates that are better suited to the current crop of racing tires.

Dave Ferguson’s car received a winter rebuild and several updates over the 2006-2007 winters. Dave added the latest rear bellcrank upgrades, and the engine bay on Dave’s car received a complete makeover. Repairs to the radiator ducting, anodizing the aluminum components of the cooling system, and a new Stohr-built carbon floor completed the task. Custom built tail frames with integrated LED brake and rain light mounting helped to stabilize the rear bodywork, and the new sidepod mounting brackets made the center bodywork solid as a rock. Dave debuted the new rear diffuser in June, and continued his frenetic development throughout the National Championship Runoffs. Unfortunately, Dave’s bid for a top position at the Runoffs was cut short by a faulty ignition box after a brilliant drive through the grid to challenge for the top five.

Dennis Pavlina ran his Van Diemen S2 in several races and the SCCA Runoffs this season. His car has more history than any other Van Diemen S2000, as this car was built from the remains of one of the first chassis brought to the US. Rick Lee purchased this car and ran it in the ACRL series with a Cosworth YAC power plant until later selling the car to Steve Romak. Steve, a former ACRL champion, used the car to often challenge for top positions in the ultra-competitive series, but eventually could not carry on with the development as his architectural steel business began to take up more and more of his time. The car sat for a few years before Dennis purchased it and had EFM remake the car into the latest S2000, 2 liter Ford powered version. Dennis challenged for the victory in several Northwest S2000 races, and is scheduled to return in 2008, splitting his time between the S2 world and endurance racing in his new Norma Sports Racer. Dennis updated his car in 2007 with the new ARC rear undertray and diffuser, the new airbox, the improved sidepod supports, and the front and rear anti-roll bars. In addition, like Dave Ferguson, Dennis also updated the rear bellcranks and mounts to the latest spec.

Rick Johnson had a very successful full year in S2000, gaining his National License, qualifying for and completing the SCCA Runoffs, the “World Series of Amateur Racing”. Rick qualified 17th and finished 13th, earning the “Sunoco Hard Charger” award for his efforts through the field, overall a great debut in a very competitive field. Rick made great progress through the year, and ran the most races of anyone in the EFM stable, including nearly all the Oregon Region events at PIR. Rick updated his car with a new exhaust system, the new ARC undertray and diffuser, the new airbox, and the revised rear anti-roll bar.

Business once again kept Michial Shumate from racing this season, but as usual Michial made sure his cars were kept up to the latest specification. Michial had the new airboxes and ARC undertrays and diffusers installed, as well as repainting both of the pristine cars. Michial sold Chassis 2212, the former Nik Johnson car, to Andrew Engle late in 2007. Andrew became the latest addition to the EFM Racing team, and is scheduled to go through racing school in March of 2008.

Rob Conrad will be making his return to the cockpit in 2008 after a couple of years off working on a huge project at his “day job”. Rob attended the 2007 Runoffs as crew for Dave Ferguson, which proved to be very inspirational for his return to racing. Rob’s beautifully painted car will no doubt be in line for several of the updates along the way in 2008.

All in all, EFM Racing is looking forward to an exciting season of Regional and National racing in 2008, culminating with a return to the SCCA Runoffs in October.

Thank you to all our Teammates, Crew, Sponsors, and our Supporters.

Eric Purcell
Earthbound Flying Machines/ EFM Racing