As promised, Andy sent out a new steering column last week which SH Autos swapped for the original one. With the old column out of the car it was easy to see just how bad it was. The run out on the spindle was horrific, the bearing shot and generally beyond repair. If only we had checked this more thoroughly first time around. Note to other builders: Double check every component before final fit.
Anyway, the new column was fitted and the car put onto the 4 Wheel Laser Alignment ramp. With updated settings from GD (the old ones suggested positive rear camber not negative!) the car was set up as advised.
Unfortunately the weather wasn't great so I was unable to get out and properly road test the new set up until a couple of days ago. The result I have to say is outstanding - this car does actually steer and handle like a modern car now (apart from at very slow speeds due to the lack of power assistance).
Most of the other little jobs that needed doing before the Le Mans trip have now been completed too and were hoping to be blessed with good weather.
Showing posts with label Chassis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chassis. Show all posts
Roll Hoops
Wanting to get the car finished by the end of May, I'm throwing some extra hours into the project at the moment and I took the day off with the plan being to fit the roll hoops.
I wanted ot do this when I was feeling fresh and not after a long day in the office and I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time in case things didn't go according to plan.
Opinions and techniques for fitting the roll hoops vary form the plumb line method as used by the factory to a steel rod and template set up as I believe created by Steve R. Time taken by other builders to fit them also seems to vary greatly and I must admit to being somewhat nervous about starting this task.
Before starting, I had a good chat with Alan GD who explained how to set the car up level and then how to use the plumb line method. I had already sourced some 12mm threaded bar and some plywood to make template but after listening to his advice and discussing/arguing with my co-builder Ali I decided to go with the factory method.
With a method agreed, I started to look at how to physically implement the plan and it became clear I was going to need a new drill or at least a 90 deg angle chuck for my existing drill as its too big to get in the confined spaces inside the boot. I managed to find a suitable attachment in stock locally at Screw Fix but this wasted a whole lot of time and it was nearly lunchtime by the time I actually got started.
However, after a full afternoon I had got both roll bars trail fitted. Admittedly, they still need to be filled with expanding foam (apparently this helps reduce road noise from being transmitted up from the chassis), bolted up in place and then the holes in the scuttle tidying up and rubber gaiters fitting but the bulk of this daunting task is behind me.
The following summarises the method I used.
1. The car was jacked up until it was level both front to back and left to right.
2. The rear wheels were removed for access
3. The rear coil spring retaining bolt was removed so that I could get access to mark the position of the outer leg mounting hole
4. Having marked through the holes in the mounting brakets for the front two legs small pilot holes were drilled through from under the boot. The same was then done for the rear leg (although this position is flexible to a degree as the bracket can swivel left or right a little.
5. I then used a hole saw of similar diameter to the legs to open up the lower pilot holes. This gives a clear view of the mounting holes.
6. A plumb line was then taken from the centre of the mounting hole and the position marked on the underside of the rear scuttle. This is a little tricky but lying in the boot helps!!
7. Pilot holes were then drilled into the top scuttle from the underside. These holes were then checked for accuracy by running the plumb line all the way through the hole. A couple were a little bit out so were re-drilled. Then the holes were opened up with a hole saw and dremel.
8. The roll hoops were then passed through and positions checked by running the fixing bolts into place.
After all that it was time for a cold beer...
Next time I will tidy up the holes, fill with foam and fit the rubber gaiters. Need to read up on what people do for sealing the lower holes and then look at getting the carpet in as the roll hoops pass through the carpet in the boot and they cant be bolted in place until this is done.
Steering Column
With the dash and screen support now in place, I was able to tackle the steering column today.
This was another straightforward job and once that when finished made the project look even more like a car!!
The modified column supplied by GD comes in a bare metal finish so this was masked up, primed and then finished in gloss black paint.
The column is passed through the large hole that had already been made in the bulkhead (this did however need a little opening up) and then connected to the screen support bar inside the car. A 'U' clamp is then used to fixed the column to the chassis. The same sort of grommet as used for the roll hoops is used to make a neat finish.
This was another straightforward job and once that when finished made the project look even more like a car!!
The modified column supplied by GD comes in a bare metal finish so this was masked up, primed and then finished in gloss black paint.
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The column the connects to the steering rack via some UJ's and connectiing rods. These all need bolting up tight to eliminate any play in the steering once fitted.
A cheap old steering wheel (off a Vectra) was picked up for a tenner off eBay and fitted which will allow me to move the car around a if necessary.
Oil Cooler 4
Having fitted the oil cooler radiator in place, it is time to find a suitable method of fixing the thermostat in place. This is connected on both sides by two thick braided hoses one to the oil cooler rad and the other to the adaptor that fits between the oil filter and the engine.
The thermostat needs positioning so that the hoses don't foul on anything that moves or is hot and the ideal place in on a bracket mounted to the nearside front chassis members that support the wishbone.
I made a template using thin card held in place then folded around the chassis members. I then cut along these fold lines to create a template that I could transfer on to a thin piece of stainless I had brought off a local stockholder.
The template was cut to size and clamped in place to mark the position of the fixing holes and then returned to the bench for drilling along with the holes required to attach the thermostat to the bracket itself.
Once I was happy with this I then clamped the bracket back in position and drilled pilot holes through into the chassis.
This is yet another job I should have done before the body was on as access was awkward to say the least!!!
After drilling the pilot holes, I then gradually increased the size until I cut fit rivnuts and attached the bracket.
The thermostat needs positioning so that the hoses don't foul on anything that moves or is hot and the ideal place in on a bracket mounted to the nearside front chassis members that support the wishbone.
I made a template using thin card held in place then folded around the chassis members. I then cut along these fold lines to create a template that I could transfer on to a thin piece of stainless I had brought off a local stockholder.
The template was cut to size and clamped in place to mark the position of the fixing holes and then returned to the bench for drilling along with the holes required to attach the thermostat to the bracket itself.
Once I was happy with this I then clamped the bracket back in position and drilled pilot holes through into the chassis.
This is yet another job I should have done before the body was on as access was awkward to say the least!!!
After drilling the pilot holes, I then gradually increased the size until I cut fit rivnuts and attached the bracket.
The thermostat was then fixed to the bracket and the hoses attached. Overall I'm quite happy with the set up but I think the front hoses need to be shortened a little as they dont sit quite right at the front of the car. Ideally I would use some 45deg adapters to ease the angle at which the hoses connect but given the price of them I think I'll make do for now!!!!
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| Job Done |
Body Mounting 3
Having got the body pretty much on and the mounting holes lined up with bolts part way in last week, it was time to do the final fit which involved fitted the rear mounts and drilling holes to fit the mounts that go through the inner wing. These hadn't been fitted before as the original holes had been filled when I had the bulkhead and engine bay sprayed.
At this point the car was jacked up and put on axle stands, now looking every bit like a real car :)
The wheels were then removed for the first time. When we came to remove the front left wheel we couldn't budge the spinner (and yes I know its a reverse thread) but it wasn't for shifting easily.
In the end I took a larger hammer and a large piece of wood to protect the spinner and gave it another whack. This time is simply fell off in one piece, the bolts securing it to the actual wheel hadn't been tightened up and had been cross threaded.
At this point the car was jacked up and put on axle stands, now looking every bit like a real car :)
The wheels were then removed for the first time. When we came to remove the front left wheel we couldn't budge the spinner (and yes I know its a reverse thread) but it wasn't for shifting easily.
In the end I took a larger hammer and a large piece of wood to protect the spinner and gave it another whack. This time is simply fell off in one piece, the bolts securing it to the actual wheel hadn't been tightened up and had been cross threaded.
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| Damaged thread on the spinner adaptor |
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| Corresponding damage to the road wheel |
After this we did a check of all the others and it turned out none of the adaptors had been properly tightened. The damaged threads were re-tapped and all is now well but this is certainly something to check if you are using wheels like mine with decorative spinners.
Gearshift
One final bit of preparation required on the chassis before the body can go on is the fitting of the gear shift selector and then cutting a suitable hole in the steel sheet chassis cover.
With the Tremec box you get the option of fitting the selector in either the forward or reverse position. Given we are of similar height, I asked Andy at GD what his preferred position is and he said he likes the selector in the rearwards position as the cranked lever takes put the head of the shifter in an ideal place.
With the Tremec box you get the option of fitting the selector in either the forward or reverse position. Given we are of similar height, I asked Andy at GD what his preferred position is and he said he likes the selector in the rearwards position as the cranked lever takes put the head of the shifter in an ideal place.
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| Note two holes allow for fitment in forward or rearwards position |
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| Fitted |
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| Fitted |
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| Showing hole through top sheet |
Once the gear shift position was finalised this then needed transferring to the the transmission tunnel and a hole cutting here to allow the body to be fitted.
I used the body mounting holes/brackets as a reference point and went from there.
Washer Bottle 2
16th February 2013
The new stainless washer bottle reservoir arrived this week and I managed to get this fitted.
It was a bit of a faff getting it to line up with the header tank as, although they are the same diameter, they have different mounting brackets and are fitting onto a circular section of chassis.
The braket has to be more substantial for the washer bottle as this is all that will hold it in place, whereas the header tank has two top hoes maintaining its position.
The new stainless washer bottle reservoir arrived this week and I managed to get this fitted.
It was a bit of a faff getting it to line up with the header tank as, although they are the same diameter, they have different mounting brackets and are fitting onto a circular section of chassis.
The braket has to be more substantial for the washer bottle as this is all that will hold it in place, whereas the header tank has two top hoes maintaining its position.
Washer Bottle
14 January 2012
In Steve's blog, I noticed that he had had made a really fancy looking stainless washer bottle resovoir. I thought this looked really neat when positioned next to the header tank so I decided to have one.
The photos below show a steel rule in place taking down the various measurements. Sadly what I didnt cater for was how the body (inner wing) would sit in relation to the chassis so this caused some issues when we did finally come to fit the body... More on that later.
In Steve's blog, I noticed that he had had made a really fancy looking stainless washer bottle resovoir. I thought this looked really neat when positioned next to the header tank so I decided to have one.
The photos below show a steel rule in place taking down the various measurements. Sadly what I didnt cater for was how the body (inner wing) would sit in relation to the chassis so this caused some issues when we did finally come to fit the body... More on that later.
Radiator and Fans
3 January 2013
Decided to go for the stainless radiator upgrade with twin fans. Next decision to make was where to fit the fans, either to the front or back of the radiator.
Having looked at other builds and done some research, it appears they are more effective at the back but I cant help but think they look better fitted to the front - so I'm gambling that as I have gone for an upgrade that isn't technically necessary, then fitting the fans at the front will be fine.
GD now supply some strips of stainless steel to mount the fans to the radiator - this must be a new things as previous builders have spoken about having to source these strips. They just needed marking and drilling as did the radiator itself, taking care not to drill through into the core.
The fans have some pieces that are attached to top/bottom, left/right that have to be removed on the one side to allow them to fit side by side.
Decided to go for the stainless radiator upgrade with twin fans. Next decision to make was where to fit the fans, either to the front or back of the radiator.
Having looked at other builds and done some research, it appears they are more effective at the back but I cant help but think they look better fitted to the front - so I'm gambling that as I have gone for an upgrade that isn't technically necessary, then fitting the fans at the front will be fine.
GD now supply some strips of stainless steel to mount the fans to the radiator - this must be a new things as previous builders have spoken about having to source these strips. They just needed marking and drilling as did the radiator itself, taking care not to drill through into the core.
The fans have some pieces that are attached to top/bottom, left/right that have to be removed on the one side to allow them to fit side by side.
These were cut off using the dremmel but the fumes they created weren't pleasant at all so I would definitely advise using a hack saw or a mask.
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| Fans mounted to front of radiator. Inner flanges removed to all them to fit side by side. Cables tied together for wiring into main body loom |
Once the fans had been fixed to the radiator, the whole assembly had to be fitted to the rolling chassis. This entailed cutting down some M6 set screws as I didnt have any really short ones (the bolts holding the radiator in place will go through the frame and right into the radiator core if this is checked carefully).
The top mounting are held in place by some rubber grommets in the frame - the radiator needs some flexibility hence it isn't fixed with bolts
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| All fitted to chassis |
Exhaust System
17 November 2012
Made a start on fitting the exhaust system today
First it was on with the manifold
Then started working backwards - this was a relatively straightforward task but needed some twisting and turning to get the alignment just right.
Used the standard U clamps supplied by GD but don't really like these so will replace later with some Mikalor stainless clamps like Rob has done on his build.
Cant fit the rear section until the body is on so thats about it on the exhaust for now.
Made a start on fitting the exhaust system today
First it was on with the manifold
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| Stainless Manifold |
Then started working backwards - this was a relatively straightforward task but needed some twisting and turning to get the alignment just right.
Used the standard U clamps supplied by GD but don't really like these so will replace later with some Mikalor stainless clamps like Rob has done on his build.
Cant fit the rear section until the body is on so thats about it on the exhaust for now.
Back at Base
18 August 2012
Right, the rolling chassis is safely back at base.
Next jobs to be completed are..
1. Fit starter motors and dust shield
2. Fit manifolds and exhaust system
3. Cooling system - fit twin fans to radiator, fit radiator, fit header tank and connect all hoses
4. Attach engine loom to reverse and speedo connectors
Right, the rolling chassis is safely back at base.
Next jobs to be completed are..
1. Fit starter motors and dust shield
2. Fit manifolds and exhaust system
3. Cooling system - fit twin fans to radiator, fit radiator, fit header tank and connect all hoses
4. Attach engine loom to reverse and speedo connectors
Engine and Gearbox Installation
18 August 2012
Today is another big day in the build of my Cobra. The engine and gearbox are to be put together and fitted into the rolling chassis up at GD.
So another early start, another sunny summer morning, a Range Rover with a trailer and two excited car builders in it and its off to GD to we head.
On arrival, Andy had already fitted the clutch. So we set to work attaching the gearbox.
Fitting into the chassis was fiddly but not overly troublesome. Some bits and bobs had to be removed off the chassis and with some jiggery pokery we got it in place. The engine mounting bolts look a little on the short side to me and I plan to fit longer bolts there at some point.
Today is another big day in the build of my Cobra. The engine and gearbox are to be put together and fitted into the rolling chassis up at GD.
So another early start, another sunny summer morning, a Range Rover with a trailer and two excited car builders in it and its off to GD to we head.
On arrival, Andy had already fitted the clutch. So we set to work attaching the gearbox.
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| Clutch Fitted |
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| Pairing Engine & Gearbox |
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| Paired and Ready to Install |
Fitting into the chassis was fiddly but not overly troublesome. Some bits and bobs had to be removed off the chassis and with some jiggery pokery we got it in place. The engine mounting bolts look a little on the short side to me and I plan to fit longer bolts there at some point.
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| Left a bit, right a bit!!! |
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| And in she goes |
The gearbox mounting plate needed drilling so we also took advantage of Andy's workshop facilities to do this.
Once everything was in place and bolted securely we loaded the rolling chassis on to my trailer for the long journey home.
Rolling Chassis
Saturday 21st July
With the van loaded with my shiny new engine it was back on to the A1 for a trip down to GD to drop the engine off and to have a first look at my rolling chassis.
The plan being that we would head back to GD a few week later once the clutch and gearbox arrived and we could assemble everything and fit it into the chassis at GD using their engine hoist.
With the van loaded with my shiny new engine it was back on to the A1 for a trip down to GD to drop the engine off and to have a first look at my rolling chassis.
The plan being that we would head back to GD a few week later once the clutch and gearbox arrived and we could assemble everything and fit it into the chassis at GD using their engine hoist.
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| Rolling Chassis |
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| Wheels |
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| AP Brake Upgrade |
Excitement - Engine & Chassis Ordered
Tuesday 17th January
Well, today proved to be a very exciting day in my Cobra Build program.
After phone calls to various engine builders, a visit was planned to see Ken Coleman at EDA up in Castleford, West Yorkshire. It took three hours to get there after M6 traffic problems but have to say it was well worth the journey.
Met Ken and his two colleagues and they couldn't have been more accommodating with coffee on arrival, a workshop tour and an explanation of their build process. Some two hours later, I had shaken hands on a deal for a 400+bhp 383 Chevy Stroker engine, blueprinted and built to EDA's exacting standards including steel crank, steel conrods and aluminium Edelbrock heads.
Estimated delivery to be end of April 2012. This gives plenty of time to complete all body work tasks without any excuses!
A trip back down the A1 followed calling in at GD to meet with Andy to discuss the Chassis configuration and options.
Another hour later and I've shaken hands on the deal to supply the rolling chassis complete with AP brake upgrade. Still need to give some thought to the radiator though and decide if I go for conventional with single fan or the aluminium rad with twin fans.
So... best part of £30k later and I'm driving back home. Broke but happy and looking forward to the end of April. The engine will be delivered to GD and Andy has agreed that we can help with the installation!!! How exciting!!! And much better than any Easter Egg :)
Well, today proved to be a very exciting day in my Cobra Build program.
After phone calls to various engine builders, a visit was planned to see Ken Coleman at EDA up in Castleford, West Yorkshire. It took three hours to get there after M6 traffic problems but have to say it was well worth the journey.
Met Ken and his two colleagues and they couldn't have been more accommodating with coffee on arrival, a workshop tour and an explanation of their build process. Some two hours later, I had shaken hands on a deal for a 400+bhp 383 Chevy Stroker engine, blueprinted and built to EDA's exacting standards including steel crank, steel conrods and aluminium Edelbrock heads.
Estimated delivery to be end of April 2012. This gives plenty of time to complete all body work tasks without any excuses!
A trip back down the A1 followed calling in at GD to meet with Andy to discuss the Chassis configuration and options.
Another hour later and I've shaken hands on the deal to supply the rolling chassis complete with AP brake upgrade. Still need to give some thought to the radiator though and decide if I go for conventional with single fan or the aluminium rad with twin fans.
So... best part of £30k later and I'm driving back home. Broke but happy and looking forward to the end of April. The engine will be delivered to GD and Andy has agreed that we can help with the installation!!! How exciting!!! And much better than any Easter Egg :)
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