Just need to fire the propane heater up and place it underneath...

Bryan: how many times has this car been taken apart?

Stupid engine compartment is still dirty.

And can I please come down and bolt a seat in it and go for a whirl now?

Jeff - 3 I think.

Originally built by Bell Motorsports into a HP car from a LTW that saw only a few miles of street driving. It was likely stripped most of the way down to the frame by Bell based on the standards to which the car seemed to have been built when we purchased it from Manny Kruger.

Then, after we purchased the car and ended up as a ping pong ball at a NASA standing start, the car was torn all the way down and rebuilt with the widebody fenders and many parts upgraded for CMod shortly thereafter.

And now, in what will likely be it's final complete teardown, the original HP cage is coming out and a proper Mod class cage with subframe tie ins and partial seam welding is going in. In addition, every non-critical braket or piece of metal is being removed in the name of weight savings. The only question now is whether the car will be too pretty to race...

[EDIT] ANSWERED ABOVE :)

Stupid engine compartment is still dirty.

Hey, you saw the size of the hole in the block and the head!

Most of the dirty look now is from grinding dust, and seam welding and plasma cutter burns.

And can I please come down and bolt a seat in it and go for a whirl now?

Better do it before the charcoal gets fired up.

Thats a pretty nice rotisserie.

Some questions on the seam welding. How effective do you expect the seam welding to be? any plans on *digging* into the frame rails and such to get those seams? Or will it just be a *what can be easily reached without removing a bunch of pannels and rewelding*?
Just curious as I was looking around in my street car with a bunch of stuff out of it thinking "Thats a lot of spot welds... I could spend a week in here with a damn tig." followed by "but I doubt it would be significantly stronger/stiffer... and probably 15-20 lbs heavier. :( I wasn't planning on taking the car apart as far as yours already is though. So perhaps there are better areas for efforts to be concentrated. :)

Hey, you saw the size of the hole in the block and the head!

Most of the dirty look now is from grinding dust, and seam welding and plasma cutter burns.



Better do it before the charcoal gets fired up.

LOL roasted Doby. That doesnt sound very good.. that'd be one SLOW roast. :lol Sorry,couldnt resist. :stickoutt

Some questions on the seam welding. How effective do you expect the seam welding to be?

Fairly effective, particularly on this car because of it's age. It's been a racecar since 1995. After getting everything apart, you can actually see places where pieces of sheet metal were pulling apart in various places up front. The car ran much of it's life as a Prepared class car without any cage structure to the front strut towers. It has never really had a cage designed to seriously stiffen the chassis.

any plans on *digging* into the frame rails and such to get those seams? Or will it just be a *what can be easily reached without removing a bunch of pannels and rewelding*?

The front is all easy to get to. The rear was all accessed through holes that were cut in order to facilitate raising the rear subframe and attaching it to the cage structure. Panels will/have been welded back into place to cover those holes.

In addition, the rear frame has been notched, the rear inner fenders tubbed, and the rear coilover mounts cut out and replaced/moved in order to facilitate raising the subframe and lowering the ride height another 1.5-2 inches.

Interesting fact...with all non-necessary brakets and the old cage removed, the bare chassis weighed 550 pound with the fiberglass rear fenders still attached (since they are bonded on).

Sounds EXPENSIVE!!!! But I'm sure it's going to come out awesome.

Jeff

Sounds EXPENSIVE!!!!

Barry quoted me $1000 for all the work.

:lol

After seeing what Holder is doing out on the West Coast, we figured we better be ready for him when he comes "out East" for the VIR Oktoberfest or Watkins Glen National Championship races. Our stock S50B32 won't have anything for his S54, so we need all the other advantages we can get.

Our car was already prepped to the point that we generally won races if we finished them (mostly car, very little driver), so we decided we might as well have some fun and see just how fast we can go.

so we decided we might as well have some fun and see just how fast we can go.

yes, Light Speed was too slow :rolleyes. you're on your way to Ludicrous Speed! :buttrock

Barry quoted me $1000 for all the work.

:lol



Damn, I got ripped. Barry quoted me $800 for a full IP Cage. You mean I could have gotten ALL that for $200 more??!! :eek:

More pics...

Rear subframe cutouts and replacement sheet metal:
http://forums.***************************************?attachmentid=111398&stc=1

Channel for upper rear control arm:
http://forums.***************************************?attachmentid=111399&stc=1

Backing plates going in:
http://forums.***************************************?attachmentid=111400&stc=1

Some frame reinforcement and stitch welding:
http://forums.***************************************?attachmentid=111401&stc=1

Plasma cutters are fun...
http://forums.***************************************?attachmentid=111402&stc=1

Damn, I got ripped. Barry quoted me $800 for a full IP Cage. You mean I could have gotten ALL that for $200 more??!! :eek:

It's not like it takes a long time...I did my full Miata cage in 8 hours and you saw how well that turned out on the thread I posted a few days ago.

Bryan, we've only worked on your car for 2 hours so far. Half of that was getting it up on the 'tisserie. We got 6 more to go, lets compare when we are done. Time to whip out the JB Welder now.

Barry

Just wait for Jaffe to show up....it will be done in no time once he puts his FSAE expertise on this car.

JL

Just wait for Jaffe to show up....it will be done in no time once he puts his FSAE expertise on this car.

JL

Steve will be the 4th FSAE expertise on the car. We are talking ludicrous speed type of work on the car once Steve gets here.

Barry

We are talking ludicrous speed type of work on the car once Steve gets here.

Barry

great b/c i'm freaking STARVING! those little brownies are almost gone

that lowly LTW is just the appetizer :rolleyes

for the main course we can put this (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4552452291&category=6131&sspagename=WDVW) on the spit :redspot
http://photos.ebizautos.com/5165/664751_1.jpg

Looks like soebody is tired of getting Spanked by the Porsches in PBOC :alright J/K it should be a monster when you get it back.

Looks like soebody is tired of getting Spanked by the Porsches in PBOC :alright J/K it should be a monster when you get it back.

A less powerful, yet lighter and stiffer, monster.

I did my full Miata cage in 8 hours and you saw how well that turned out on the thread I posted a few days ago

Wow, I would have sworn you had at least 40 man days in that cage! I mean, THE QUALITY!