I was taking a few parts off the RallyX car today and I noticed that the intake had a bit of dirt in it. I was using a "short ram" intake with a cheapie cone filter on it and I don't think it was doing a very good job with the fine dust we typically see out there.
If anybody is using a K&N type filter, you might want to check your intake tract carefully. The dirt I saw was pretty subtle in that it only collected in a couple of spots where the intake tract made a slight turn so even if you don't see any initially, that doesn't mean that dirt isn't getting sucked into your engine. It might be a good idea to re-think your intake or go with a paper element if you see any signs of dirt. At the very least, you might think about changing your oil after each event to prevent any long-term damage to your engine.
To follow up on the rear sub-frame damage I suffered at the last event, if you are running a Civic/CRX out there, you might think about installing some extra bracing.
There are a few cheap options on EBay that might serve as good insurance. You can also get a full set of braces which might even be a better option for our flimsy-flyers. Be careful when shopping as most vendors use an old electronics trick of super low initial pricing and then they hammer you on shipping. Most of the vendors seem about the same at this point so it may not matter much who you go with.
If you're handy with a welder and have some scrap metal laying around, you might be able to build something stronger than what any of the EBay vendors are selling. Either way, it could be cheap insurance to prevent any possible problems in the future. I did a bunch of research and it seems like there are quite a few instances of the same issue I had with rally guys, road racers and HPDE'ers. Basically anybody who is using Hondas in an "extreme" environment for an extended period of time.
Jim
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