Brill thread Thanks for sharing. Note : as for taking up golf, once you're a single handicapper, yer wife will get you another donor car instead..
Hi nick I've been watching this thread with great interest. Excellent work and great reporting and pictures. keep up the good work and I might pop round for a chat and a look before I travel on monday but I'll give you a call before.
Nick, awesome thread - really take my hat off to you for tackling such a project. Well done so far mate
Hi Mate, No problem, I'll be in all day (no suprise where I will be!) Thanks Rob! Its turning into a labour of love, but I have come to a more-or-less standstill while I wait for things to turn up, so this week is going to be a abit dull I am afraid Just a remonder, If anyone has any old car bits they don't want, let me know first! Thinking along the lines of a square fuel tank, oil cooler, aluminium tubing (1 1/2" to 2") and a windscreen Saloon size and as curved as possible.
This is very impressive Nick. Have you thought of checking the torsional rigidity while its still a bare chassis?
Another well done Nick! I like wiring until I get completely stuck-like my spare wires on my V12 you helped me out with!!! Have you had any more thoughts about the flywheel and starter problem yet?
Hi and Welcome to Ferrari Chat! I got the pedal box today so have been leaving the electrics for a more engineering type job, the Vauxhall one I bought yesterday is only good for bits so I have cut it up and am making a floor mounted pedal box, tailor made to my feet . I also had to drill the 12 exhaust flanges so i could start making the 12 branch manifold. Glad the Jag bit is OK! Cheers Nick
Hi Simon Not sure how I would do that, however, I have toyed with a dial guage and a jack to see what impact on the chassis the engine has (supported/unsupported). As the engine is about 400kg I was worried it might sag in the middle, but there is only a .5mm drop. This was done when the car was on axle stands. Is this what you mean? Once the exhaust is on/fabricated I am going to add a bit more triangulation on the rear cross members, as i have seen on other spaceframe chassis. As previously mentioned my main worries are the huge 2m front track and the front wishbones. Cheers Nick
Hey Nick hows it going? Just wondering a few things- how are you doing the exhaust manifolds and have you toyed with the engine much yet? Also do you (or anyone else) have much experience with the VW transaxle gearboxes commonly used in formula ford etc? Am wondering if they will cope with 3.5l rover V8's ok on the race track?! And one other- how are you going to do the body?! TDC
Hi there! right, I started the manifolds on Sunday, I cut 12 flanges from 10mm thick mild steel, drilled a 38mm hole bang in the middle and two 8mm holes in the corners. They fit really well, and as the ports on the exhaust are 35mm in diameter, when you insert the 1 1/2" (38mm) pipe in the hole it lines up seamlessly with the head Cool eh! However, there is always a down side... I bought a pipe bender to do the 90 degree bends, and its awful! So I have resorted to cutting the pipes and welding them into place, so its a very slow painful process. I havent touched the engine other than strip the auxiliaries off and clean it up, However, I have bought a starter for a XK8 (high torque thing) which I should get tomorrow, this will either mean I can turn it over OR I have to buy an XK8 flywheel. I bought an Audi starter, but the solenoid came hard up against the block and wouldnt allow the starter anywhere near the ring gear. I am also having to make the spigot bearing for the clutch, not sure whether I should buy a 16mm needle bearing or machine one out of brass?? I am also having to change all the steel coolant pipes that run from one end of the block to the other across the heads as they rusted through! Today I bought the 36-1 trigger wheel and sensor for the Megasquirt ECU, I already have bought the 2 Ford V6 coil packs, and assuming my injectors work, and that a wasted spark system will work on my engine, all should be OK! The gearbox I am using is an 012, as used on the Porsche 924/944 and Audi 80s (I believe). Will it handle the V12? and 350 bhp? Well we'll see, I am not a driver who tends to drop clutches and do donuts, so probably.......... I am going to use what they call a plug system, you run sheets of 8x12 one way up the chassis contoured to the car, and interlock sheet running from side to side, and plug the resulting holes with polystyrene then plaster over the top. You then lay fibreglass over that, when it dries you peel off the FG, and you have a mould! this URL gives you a pictorial version http://www.ddrmotorsport.com/picture_process.html I'll try and get some pictures loaded tomorrow, But as the weather is so crap and i don't want to keep sticking the Ferrari out in it, progress is woeful! Cheers Nick
Oh yes, nearly forgot. I have also fitted the steering column - complete with height adjuster! and the hand brake, But I need to get a longer handbrake cable.. I have also made the floor mounted pedfal box, and I desparetly need to know the pipe out config of the teves Mk2 ABS unit!! It has 3 outs, one for the rear, and the other two for the front, but which ones are which! The rear runs at very high pressure and if I get it wrong......
Doing those manifold flanges must have taken ages, and I found out all about bending thin wall ERW tube when I was trying to do a rollcage last year- now looking at buying a proper bender with dies etc from the states but bloody expensive! Maybe you should think about getting a brass oilite bush near enough to what size you need for the clutch then boring it out- you get constant lube because of the porous oil soaked body then- is what Im using on the bike for all the suspension bushes! Do you intend on going to Stoneleigh for the kit car show on sunday? Hoping to finalise what my next project will be using some inspiration...
Oh- and that is one HELL of a long looking process- and very Very messy!!! Will be stunned if you do it all like that!!!
No actually I bought one of the best tools EVER on ebay, a 38mm hss hole cutter (£5.00) plus an arbour. It took around 3 hours to make all 12, in the scheme of things thats pretty damn quick Got the starter fitted today, the gear on the starter doesn't quite marry up, but what the hell! When the ring gear goes I will get a xj8/xk8 flywheel. For the 1st time in donkeys years the old V12 spun over! I also fitted the drivers side floor pan and made 5 of the 12 branch outlets (then the MIG overheated). Thnaks for the bush tip, where do you get that oilite from? No I can't go to Stoneleigh, didn't you know - I've got a car to make
I buy them from Essex Bearings as I have an account and is local!- but there are some on ebay, try Item number: 250235604632 Well have a productive weekend and looking foreward to seeing some more pics! TDC
great thread and a huge project! It's looks good so far! The only other comment I have (besides it would be even better with a ferrari V12 engine of course ) is it would add a lot of strength/stiffness to the chassis if you triangulated any place you can and capped any opened tube ends. It looks good though.
Thanks! I am using a Ferrari Mondial exhaust on it, coupled to my home made 12 branch manifolds So it will be interesting to hear what it sounds like! I am going to do a lot more triangulation when i have fitted everything I need to fit, I like the pluging the ends idea, thanks for that! Today I made another of the 12 pipes, seriously tedious! I also refitted the wiring loom and made the battery tray. I put the key in the ignition, turned it and ..... the engine turned over!!! Well I was chuffed. From a pile of metal tube to a car with no body that sounds like its run out of petrol Seriously I need to change the pinion gear on the XK8 starter to the one off of the Audi starter otherwise the ring gear on teh flywheel is going to get shredded. The other problem is the 13mm adapter between the V12 and the transaxle pushed the gearbox back quite a bit (13mm) so the shaft doesn't go through the clutch plate very far. This means that the spiggot bearing is going to be a challenge. It seems my only real option is to put a spacer behind the flyweel, but I'm not overly keen on that. I still need help on the Teves ABS pump, surely someone has one in their 328?
Nick Try here: http://passionford.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-88670.html Seems to be scans of an autodata book about the ABS on a granada Nigel.
Have you tried the clutch for function? The 13mm adapter puts the pressure plate a long way from the release bearing.
That's a very good point - and one I haven't checked.. How do adapters normally work? I guess I will have to make a 13mm shim to go between the crank and flywheel. Or I could lose the adapter and drill and tap the aluminium V12 block to take the VAG bellhousing?
Nick, I am aware that your chassis is still growing and I don't want to add any weight to you project un-necessarily... You seem to have a nice triangulated spine up the centre of the chassis, which is good, but at the moment I don't think your cill rails are contributing much to the strength or stiffness of the chassis. In basic design triangles are good, squares are weaker and rectangles worse. The tubes will work brilliantly and be structurally efficient if they are loaded end on in compression (crush) or tension. However tubes are not good in bending. Imagine you take a drinking straw and load it diectly in line it will take a suprisingly load, but introduce any kink or bend and you will get an early failure. Likewise long tubes tend to flex and bend, keep tube lengths short between nodes is also good. (A node is a meeting of one of more members / tubes) Frankly for the weight of you vehicle my gut feel is that you probably don't have a problem, you have a lot of steel going in a lot of ditections (although some of it might be un-necessary...). But to bring those cills into play and bring an increase the stiffness of your chassis you need a couple more tubes (see attached sketches...) I imagine that since you last posted picturs you have probably added a few more tubes, but this is my suggestion for what it is worth. Keep up the good work and astounding progress! David Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Hi David Thanks! I was concerned about the cills, and agree they need something, but, and its a big but - that I don't know how to handle! The lack of triangulation where you have pointed out (particulary where the green meets the verticle yellow in the 1st picture) is because that is the air intake for the 2nd water rad and other side oil cooler. I gave added more to the front of the cills and jacking the car from that point lifts the engine. I was aiming to put all the strength down the middle and around the engine (where I still need to add some more tubes) - but once everything else is in situ. Interestingly I was welding two tubes that support the handbrake - and even they seemed to add noticeable stiffness. I have since these photos, completed the door hinge sections (where the scissor doors will hinge from) and added more on the front to support the steering rack. The rear will have to wait until the exhaust manifolds are finished, as I don't want to have to weave the manifolds round as an afterthought. My main concern at the moment is the clutch and flywheel. If I move the flywheel back towards the transaxle with a 13,, shim, will it make teh flywheel unsafe? If I don't the mainshaft only goes through the clutch plate by 7mm and I have to make a spiggot bearing that is 25mm longer than normal to hold everything in place! Now that's a dilema. Regards Nick
If you can eliminate the transaxle adapter altogether and bolt-up directly this would be the best way. I don't see why you couldn't make an adapter for the flywheel but it would need to be machined precisely out of suitable steel and affixed using correspondingly longer Grade 8 bolts and dowel pins. The adapter could also accommodate a repositioned pilot bearing so that the input shaft is well supported. This will of course affect your starter alignment.
I think that is what i will do, drill through the adapter plate into the block and drill tap the block to take the 13mm bolts. I can then use the original fittings. I modified the XK8 starter motor today, and fitted an Audi 80 gear to it, now the engine spins perfectly! I also fitted some brake pipes. Here are the latest pics.. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
