Race car first drive _ Nissan Tame Prototipo

What is your big news as of now? I am employed. Yeah, there's gonna be some man smells in there. Dad shoes. Violent car. Feet hurting. Ready? Oh, I'm gonna be walking funny for a day or two. This is the 1993 Tomei Prototipo. And I am not Doug DiMiro, I am Casey Putsch. And this is Cameron. And I forgot what we're doing. Oh, we're gonna drive this thing today! That's right. Okay, so you think it's gonna work and not catch on fire and explode and work and stuff? Yes. Why do you think it's gonna work and stuff? Well, we know the motor works, and we know it has oil pressure. We've been able to test that enough. We know the clutch works. We've been able to test that without it running. So, if the engine works, and the clutch works, and it goes into gear fine. Then it should totally work. And it has wheels on it. What makes you think it's not gonna spontaneously burst into flames? Well, there's no fuel leaks. Okay, that's good. There's no oil leaking or fuel. That's also good. Spraying anywhere. There's no combustible liquids. And for you to confidently put the bodywork on, means that you have also confidently done everything from shimming the starter so it engages the teeth properly, to even painstakingly switching out clutch master cylinders, just to get the right ratio so the throw of the clutch pedal is nice. Yep, that. We had to remount the oil filter. We had to... Well, actually, they don't know that we had to actually... Oh, we had to split the car in half again. Yeah. To fix the slave cylinder issue. Yes, the slave cylinder, which is an annular bearing, and it goes around the input shaft of the transmission, and it pushes the clutch fingers. It was actually off-center because we got a new one, and it didn't fit the machining of the transaxle right, and it was slightly kinked over. And every time you push the clutch, and it would put force against the actual fingers of the pressure plate, the annular bearing sleeve would kink in there and lock like a Chinese finger trap. Exactly. So, fortunately, I've experienced that once before in a Lola T70, and learned that lesson hard because the Lola T70 was being nice at the shop, and then we unloaded it at the track, and it instantly is a jerk. And we had to split that car in half like too many times. I don't want to talk about it. So we fixed it. Fixed. Split in half, back together. Things are tight. Things are working. Okay, so I'm going to put you more on the spot. If you're so smart, why does it not have the big wang on the back? Because we have to fit it underneath that wing. Sorry, wing. We have to fit it underneath that wing. Oh, yeah. We have to fit it underneath that wing. Yes. That thing has wings for days. Okay, so anyway. Now, this is interesting. I'm going to put you on the spot. So, this was your big project this year, basically restoring this because you wanted to be a motorsports and high-performance mechanic and technician, right? Yes. And you also were integral in the yellow Corvette, which we raced at Road American, had a great year, and helped with the light and everything like that. But this is the big thing. What is your big news as of now? I am employed. I'm actually technically getting paid right now. You are? Yeah. Why am I not getting paid? So I've just been employed with Extreme Experience, the supercar rental company. What? Based out of Chicago, Illinois. Doing what? Cleaning bathrooms? Working on cars. Working on supercars. Fixing Lambros, fixing Ferraris, fixing everything they got. And going to track some stuff. Oh, yeah. Okay, so how did you find out about this job, and how the heck did you get it? Well, I found out about it through you and Genius Garage. Yeah. I remember, what was it, like a couple months back? Yeah, I interviewed. I did like an Instagram interview collab kind of thing with those guys. Exactly. So, I heard about them through them, and then, you know, again, through you, managed to get a hold of the shop manager there, Ted, and then I just started messaging him directly. And just this last weekend, I got the chance to sort of, I had an interview with them a couple weeks back, and then I helped them over at MIS, Michigan Speedway, at an event they held up up there. That was my first day. And apparently, they already thought you were great from the interview, and then the few days at MIS was basically just to see if they liked getting along with you, and you actually... Pretty much if I get along with them when it's a good mesh. Right, and you had a good work ethic and all. Yeah. And they said, what did they say? Like, after the first day, you were the best person they've ever tested out there? They actually did, yeah. The shop, the chief told me that he was like, that I had one of the best, as far as my first event day, he said I was one of the best. Okay, so where are you moving? Chicago, Illinois. So, you're ditching us tomorrow at Genius Garage. That's done with your life. Tomorrow's my last day. And you're moving to Chi-Town. Yes. And you're going to work on Ferraris and stuff. Yep. And you're going to go to racetracks. Yep, how sad. And you're going to have benefits. Yes. I hate you. Benefits. Video's over. I don't want to talk to you anymore. Okay, I'll come back. So, that's exciting. So, we got to drive this race car that you prepared today and put this on the video. So, I hope it goes well for you, because there's still opportunity for your new employer to say, yeah, maybe we don't want that guy after all. Stakes are high, buddy. Stakes are high. I guess they still could. They could. They totally could. I mean, I signed papers and all that, but you know. You did? Yeah, but you know how that is nowadays. Yeah, I know. I know, okay. So, I think we should just shluff this thing out of here. Yep. And see if it works and hope you still have a job after everybody watches this. Yeah. Also, I do want to make a note for everybody that's followed along. So, Freddie Tommy, if I pronounced that correct, Freddie Tommy, he still lives in Mexico City, is that right? And a few other people or Texans that reached out were very helpful. And thank you guys for that. Obviously, with this YouTube channel, I like to have fun and be silly with the guys. We're not actually idiots. So, I kind of worried that Freddie was like, who are these freaks? You know what I mean? A little bit. Yeah, I think at one point he was like that. He was a little bit like, eh. But no, the car's going to be great. It's a little tired in terms of the paint, but sometime here in the future, we're going to remove all the carbon fiber bodywork, fix up any where there's little stress cracks or anything like that, and give it a beautiful paint job. But this should be an exceptional track car. And then what you've been able to do is sort of give your work that helped you get your job and move on, is sort of giving a gift for the Genius Garage students of next year. Because now they have a car that's closer to ready that they'll get to set up like a new race car and actually do track stuff with. So, that's really cool. So, let's just get it out. So, how are we going to do this? Does it fit under the wing? Not really. It's going to be a bit of a process. We need to not cut the wing with the antenna. Yeah, the antenna can at least bend. Yeah. I can lift the airplane a little bit. Do you want to push the car and I'll lift the wing? Yeah. Okay, you do that. Should we take our shoes off to get in this? By the way, Cameron and I are both going to get in this car. And we are two, like, decently tall adult men. I'd say I'm pretty much perfectly average size. You're definitely on the taller end. I'm on the tall side. Which, for a race car driver, is I am like an Amazonian giant or something. So, I don't think we're going to fit in this. We have a GoPro in here to watch the hilarity of us both trying to get in this car. Because why not? Was it designed to do this? No. But the rules of these things was sports car racing, which means technically you're supposed to have space for a passenger. Have a look, Cameraman Peyton. Do you think there's room for a passenger? Because it was supposed to be. This is true sports car racing, Cameron. Yeah, look at that. This is for my fatty driver. And somehow Cameron is going to fit in there with all the gauge cluster, the ECU, and the MSD box. Hey, do you think the MSD box will leak and zap your neck? It may give you super brain powers. That's what we've learned from Marvel and comic books and everything else, right? The master of race cars? At least ignition. So, it's like becoming Spider-Man, you're going to become MSD-Man? Yeah. That's not necessarily so great, because then you'll just fail half the time. That's okay. There's a reason why they put dual MSD boxes in most road racing cars. I'm still salty after one ruined our two back-to-back first place finishes at Indy. It is pretty out. Wow. You loctited those little screws that relate to the fuel rail, right? Yeah, I did. And you're absolutely confident the fuel rail is held down well, right? Yep. Okay. I've been checking it. Okay. Okay, so now we're going to transition to getting in this thing and driving it, huh? Oh, boy. Yes. That's exactly what we're going to do. How do we feel about driving this thing? Because now all bets are off. If this is no longer safe in the habitat of the shop, we actually have to get this out and risk it in some fashion to move forward. Yes, we have to risk it. Yeah. Is there any good philosophy or something we know about why risk it? We could just leave it in the shop, and it would look pretty, and we could show off and tell people we're real cool about cars we don't drive. When I was 16 years old, my first job at the grocery store, I messed up a lot of things, as you do at your first job, right? Oh, okay. And I one time messed up a customer's order, and the man told me that the type of people who make mistakes are the type of people that are doing something. Okay. And then he gave me a tip for messing up his order. Oh, and then he tipped you. So I use that philosophy on most things. If we leave it in there, nothing will ever go wrong because we're not doing anything with it. But if we do something with it, things might go wrong. Yes, let's do something with it. Get the stuff. No, I'll get in, and then you hand me the fire extinguisher, and then you try to get in, and then we'll look like idiots. How about that? Okay. This is a tiny car. Tiny race car. Tall, spidery man. Wait, what are we doing? Oh, where's the... You know, we don't have any seats or seat belts in this. That's for sissies. Where's the fire extinguisher? Did I take my shoes off? I might. Hold on here. Let me see if I can drive better with no shoes. Bad shoes. Ooh, ooh, ooh. That was weird. Wait a minute. Ah, it smells like beef jerky. That's odd. I don't think you should do that. Oh, that's much better with socks. Okay. Wait, what am I doing? Oh, we're in a race. I forgot what I'm doing. No, let's just get in, and I want to situate and just think of the car. Yes. Don't hurt the car. You should take your shoes off. Take your shoes off. Take them off. It's way better. It's just... I'm in now. No, you're not. The door's still open. Yes. Hold this. Here's what I'm gonna do. This is gonna be, like, on my front. Oh, yeah. I can't see the gauges. Can you put your leg down there and around them? Why do you put your foot there? Move your foot over. I told you to take your shoes off. What? Huh? Ow. Oh, you can't put your foot over there. Yeah. You need to take your shoe off, because it's too big. I need to use the clutch. I'll take your shoe off. Did you get them off? Oh, I'll untie it. This is quality YouTube. Did you double-knot this? Yeah. Why'd you double-knot it? You don't do anything. What? This is getting weird. Welcome to YouTube. The last time I had someone tie my shoe. Here, smell your shoe. How does it smell? I don't want to smell it. There we go. Oh, look at it. It fits. It fits. Oh. It's made for a passenger. Oh. This is totally gonna work. Hey, FNG. You got the battery plugged in? It is. Okay, um... You... FNG and Dylan are gonna be our prime yell-at-us people. We're gonna just kinda circle around and see if the car is worth a darn before we do anything interesting. And you're gonna have to, like, run out at us waving if we kill it. If I see you running out waving, kill it. But, like, you need to do that. Don't assume we know everything going on, okay? Yeah. Alright, so we're gonna start this. FNG, you plugged in? After it's running, just unplug it, okay? That way I know you're out, okay? You can leave the door open for a second. This is like a little airplane. Go for it. Ignition. Everything... Nothing leaking on the ground, guys? I feel like I'm grabbing a junker. Yeah. Ooh, come on, engage. Dang. Okay, uh, let's do this. I need some... I need you to push it gently so I can bump the car in gear to get the flywheel to move. Yeah. Yeah, just... I just need to bump it. Hit it. Again. I don't know if that did much. Alright, here we go again. Again. Hold it. Here we go. Ho-ho! You clear? Take those off so we... you can hear. Yeah, okay. Look at the car over. Make sure nothing bad's happening, please. Yeah, it seems relatively, uh... I don't want to say civilized, but non-insane. Let's see if the clutch works. Ooh, it works. Can somebody plug in? We need more electricity juice. I ain't bad at driving. I... Uh... Yeah. Yeah, can you give me some more juice back there? No, genius vlog. We're actually an environmental, uh, friendly program. This is a plug-in car. And we do not be being badly at driving ICE cars. Is it plugged in? Yeah. Alright, here we go again. I'm so smart. Clear? Okay. Tall gear. Woo! It's driving. Keep your eye on the gauges, too, because I don't have a seat. I'm driving with my socks in a tall first gear thing. You're good. I'm good. With a vicious throttle. Why is that light on? That's the ignition light. Okay. Here, we'll go this way and go around this little circle here. Alright. Hopefully it'll idle on its own. How we doing? There's the car coming. Alright, alright. I'll let you know when it's done. Thanks. This guy, one more guy. Alright. Good? Good. Come on. Didn't snap and it moved off. Now we've got to turn around in the neighborhood. By the way, we've got registration for this thing at home. I've got to drive it like a coon pod. Yeah. If I kill it, we're not going to be able to restart it. Yeah. Ah! I need race shoes on. Woo! Note to self. Don't drive race cars without race shoes, seat belts, and a seat. Oh, crap. I'm bouncing around without a seat and seat belts. Oh, yeah. This is not the best road trip vehicle. No. Violent car. Feet hurting. Ready? Good. Come on. You're getting there. Oil pressure is doing weird. Yeah. It seems to be like... We might be low on... When you're turning and like braking, but... It might be low in the tank. Let's call this a day. Yeah. Tell us things before we kill ourselves. Yeah. I think I had enough fun with that. Ouch! Holy sh... Oh, I'm going to be walking funny for a day or two. I don't know if that hurt any of what we just said, but just in case it didn't, this is not the best road trip vehicle. Okay, yeah. Let's talk about this. This is why race cars suck on the street. Yeah. Everybody thinks race cars are cool on the street. They're not. They are not. Nope. Okay. Oh, no. So we tested it. We learned everything we needed to do before we go to mid-Ohio, but my foot doesn't work, and that was... That was silly. And when I went to turn around, we went by a fire department vehicle. I thought that was a cop. With a sheriff riding along. Oh, no. They got radios. Yeah. And so... Ouch. No, my foot's killing me because I'm not wearing shoes, and I'm trying to push that light switch plus. Yeah. Yeah, and also, don't drive a race car without a seat and seat belts, because you can't stay in the right spot. But it's really great. It is. It's awesome. It'll shift amazing when I've actually got... I missed the shift going from, like, third to fourth, because I went to do it without the clutch, and I didn't stick it hard enough, and I put it in neutral. Whatever. But otherwise, it's really good, and stuff works. That was an experience. Okay, I'll get out, and I'll grab your fire extinguisher from you. Yeah. Sounds good. It would have been fun to wail on it, but... Actually, you can grab it. I wasn't about to do that without seats and people in it and stuff. Where's my seat? Oh, I ate it. This is good, old-fashioned fun, Cameron. This is what all the old-timers... These are the old-timers' stories at vintage races. Hold on. Has the camera ever seen the sticker thing? Yes. Not yours. That's how you know. It's not your key. It's not your keys? Not your key. Not your keys. Yeah. Who's the... Okay. Honestly, after that, I'm just glad we got it back here in one piece. Race cars on the streets suck. Yeah, it was, uh... Yeah, when you guys pulled out, we were like, Oh! I'm just going with it. Okay! The first gear is so tall! Yeah, we noticed. What was I gonna do, turn around in here? We noticed. First gear was pretty tall. Alright. Yeah. I think you need some wing angle adjustment. That's still on. Oh, yeah. Oh, wait. You gotta hold stuff in your hand. There we go. Okay, you built a race car. I did. Not on fire. So, we'll be ready for Genius Garage students to get ready to race next year. Let them have fun with it. And you're gonna take all credit for it? Yes. Absolutely all of it. Well done! On that note, we'll see you guys next time. See ya.