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Thread: Mike's 1964 Elva Courier MkIV Build Thread!

  1. #1
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    Mike's 1964 Elva Courier MkIV Build Thread!

    Hey guys! I know this isn't anything close to a BMW, but I thought you all might be interested in it. I've never done a build thread and it seems late to start one for my E30, so this is my first attempt.

    Let me first give you a little background info on the car I'll be building. It is a 1964 Elva Courier Mark IV, serial #1187, a British sports car that was commonly used as an "arrive and drive" race car in the mid sixties. It is actually only a few years younger than the car in my sig, which also inspired my username. The car first came to our shop about 8 years ago, where it was built as a kind of car-for-hire from our shop. That didn't last long, as one of our customers decided to buy the car outright and race it. Here is a shot of the car at that stage:


    The car was run for about two years pretty successfully before the event. We brought the car to the street course in Pittsburgh, where it was to meet its end.

    After this, my Dad bought the car back and sold some things like the Prather MGB motor and dry sump system. The remnants sat outside until this past October, when he gave the car to me as a birthday gift.

    I'm really excited as I only dreamed I would someday be able to own my own vintage race car! I've been very lucky to race the Lotus Cortina, but it is actually co-owned by my Dad and another one of our customers.

    Current pictures in the next post so this one doesn't get too long!!
    Last edited by ELVA164; 02-05-2015 at 12:59 AM.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  2. #2
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    Ouch, that poor car! I remember watching that incident in person... That was a hard hit, IIRC they had to rearrange the concrete wall afterwards. We were in the BMW group that was waiting to go out after that run group. Glad to see the car is in good hands and being saved!

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  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by craz azn View Post
    Ouch, that poor car! I remember watching that incident in person... That was a hard hit, IIRC they had to rearrange the concrete wall afterwards. We were in the BMW group that was waiting to go out after that run group. Glad to see the car is in good hands and being saved!
    Dad and I were at pit wall next to pole position. It was extremely scary, especially because the driver has had 8 back surgeries. Amazingly, he was completely fine!

    - - - Updated - - -

    Here are some pictures of the body and chassis as they currently stand! First, the body:













    And what's left of the chassis:





    Got some work to do!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  4. #4
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    A few updates! Got some of the rough fiberglass done on the nose:



    Also picked up a Triumph Spitfire chassis that will be donating the area between the front bumper and the firewall!


    Last but not least, cleaned out all the wiring and removed the dashboard.
    Here's a shot of sme of the harness and the old fuse box(who needs that?):


    The pile of extra weight and the dash:


    The top of the dash is facing right, by the way.

    Next on my list is to remove all the gauges from the dash and surround, then decide which gauge setup I will be using and make an aluminum dash to fit those!
    Last edited by ELVA164; 01-15-2014 at 05:19 PM.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  5. #5
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    Small update. Got the gauges out of the dash and got it ready to return to the car:

    I also unearthed an aluminum gauge pod that was made for the car before its demise:

    I might need to see how it works!

    Also, there were rumblings about some additional fiberglass work getting done over the weekend!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  6. #6
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    The bodywork is on hold until things warm up due to space constraints, so that leaves me some time to think about things way before I need to! As such, I've been putting a little thought into color choices and would love your opinions. Here is how the car looked before:

    This is my (badly photoshopped) idea at the moment:


    I went with this scheme to integrate the dark blue which is one of the shop colors (blue/yellow) with a bit of a change to differentiate the car as mine. I also thought the silver stripe would match the silver bumperettes on the four corners well.

    Feel free to share/photoshop any ideas you have! I'd love to see what you guys come up with!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
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    Elva Courier build thread here!

  7. #7
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    I'd stick with the blue and yellow, but do the tip of the nose in yellow lending into the yellow stripe. Classic way of teams telling their cars apart. Same color scheme but easy to tell them apart as they came down the pit strait.

    I couldn't do photoshop to save my life...

  8. #8
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    You mean like this?
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
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    Elva Courier build thread here!

  9. #9
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    Like this:

    http://wallpaperbus.net/wp-content/u...Racing_Car.jpg

    Sorry can't get the photo to display...

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by maj75 View Post
    Like this:



    Sorry can't get the photo to display...
    There you go! just add [img] to one side and [ /img] on the other side. Interesting idea! Hopefully someone with photoshop ability could help us see what it would look like. Speaking of...

    For any potential photoshoppers: I found a good amount of photos of the car online last night! Here are some, I can provide more if you would like!




    Last edited by ELVA164; 01-29-2014 at 12:25 PM.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  11. #11
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    Post-Sebring update!

    We've been gone to the races for a few weeks now, and when we returned I was surprised with some pretty exciting progress on the chassis!

    A new setup to replace the destroyed front section of the frame:


    Complete with the Spitfire suspension towers, which just need to be perfectly aligned and attached:


    A great-looking new rocker panel to replace the old bent/warped one:


    A new steel floor, both for a bit of added stiffness and some extra protection:



    And a good amount of work un-twisting the chassis, which is almost straight again. You can see where the frame was cut at a damaged weld near the trans mount to allow the chassis to get happy before re-welding:



    One interesting detail was the...odd angles the rear shock mounts currently have:



    I think I'll also be either cutting the bottom halves of those huge trailing arm brackets off or just making new, proper mounts to replace them.

    Some of the next things to do are bring a dummy engine block/transmission over to start figuring out mount locations and disassembling the rear end to replace any seals/gaskets and check the condition of the hubs, hub bearings, and diff internals. Pretty exciting stuff!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  12. #12
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    Stopped by the shop where the Elva currently lives for other business and found a bit more progress!

    The front chassis rails are all welded in!



    We also have the Spitfire towers tacked in place for the time being...need to find some Spitfire front control arms first. Anybody have any?


    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  13. #13
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    Small update! I found the original steering rack off the Courier:


    But it's a little...bent.


    I was going to have it repaired, but I took a quick look on Ebay UK and found a remanufactured RHD Spitfire rack for just over $200!


    I also dug up the radiator, which appears to be perfectly fine and useable:



    And I got the motor back from the dyno, too! Came out just under 300bhp, should be a lot of fun!

    We removed the valve cover, oil pan, and gearbox internals to save weight. Should make a big difference.
    Last edited by ELVA164; 04-02-2014 at 12:33 AM.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
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    Elva Courier build thread here!

  14. #14
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    Big update today! The body is back on the car!

    We did some quick work on the nose, just to get the basic shape of the headlight bucket back.

    Some of the next areas to address are the side of the front cowl:


    And where the cowl attaches to the dash:


    Additionally, when we were placing the body back onto the chassis this happened:


    Turns out this area had been previously repaired with bondo and WOOD:

    If you can't tell, that's a big piece of plywood that someone used there for strength I assume. Looks like we might need to take a closer look at the bodywork from now on.

    We got a nice gusset welded to the front of the new floor and the new rocker panel:


    We have to do some modification to the new front chassis tubes to make things fit, but the trunk lines up almost perfectly!


    We have the dummy motor and gearbox in there as well, just trying to see how things line up:


    It looks like the motor is a couple inches too far forward by our initial measurements:


    We do still need to cut a notch into the firewall just behind the cylinder head though. On the original Ford-powered cars, there was a notch just behind the head where ours is flat:


    Still a lot left to do! Unfortunately, the incident with my E30 now requires all my time and money so the Courier will have to stay like this for a while....
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  15. #15
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    A small addition: You can see here where the fabricated front chassis rails meet the nose. We have some measurements for the location of the stock brackets (and may still be able to use the brackets from the bent front end), but it'll have to wait until I have the funds.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  16. #16
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    Really exciting update today! I've been chatting with a friend who is a longtime Elva fan and expert, and he offered to search around for any info about MkIV Couriers and my car in particular. Look what came in the mail!

    He put together an awesome collection of period magazine ads, road tests, and an article about the restoration of another Courier MkIV, but this was BY FAR the coolest part:


    That's the original bill of sale for my car! Holy crap! It's awesome to know where the car came from, what options it had on it from the dealership, and to look at some of the interesting details like the original owner trading in a 1962 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spyder for a whopping $500 credit. Very cool stuff!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  17. #17
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    It's my first update is a very long time, but an exciting one!

    Bodywork continues on the Elva, with the inner fender installed on the left side, the left headlight bucket and bumperette area rebuilt, the left rocker panel rebuilt, the left pedal box rebuilt, and some extra "clearance" work done to the firewall to leave plenty of room around the Ford cylinder head.

    Her face is looking more complete!


    Some shots of the bumperette/headlight area:



    The inner fender is feeling more at home!




    Roughed out rocker panel:


    The pedal box/firewall area, complete with custom catch bottle :P



    Inside the pedal box, all new:


    I'm collecting engine and gearbox parts as well which I hope to start building up while the bodywork continues! If anyone has a steel Ford 1500 crank, aluminum or lightweight steel flywheel, and/or a good used 5-port dry sump pump for a 1500 pre-crossflow, please let me know!
    Last edited by ELVA164; 02-04-2015 at 10:55 PM.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  18. #18
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    Another small but exciting update! The left front fender has been revived!

    The front of the rocker has been mostly re-formed as well, and a bit more progress was made on the front bumperette:


    We also have the area around the door hinge almost completely rebuilt, with only a couple small patches left!


    My hope is to remove the various aluminum patches from the rear firewall tomorrow so we can make it one smooth fiberglass piece, and it sounds like I might get my first chance to do some fiberglass of my own!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  19. #19
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    Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

    Got a bit more work done on the Courier today, although I didn't get to the fiberglass like I'd hoped. Looks like that will be tomorrow.

    When I arrived, I discovered some progress around the front fender, door hinge, and rear of the door opening:




    The hinge bolts are now welded in, which should make installation and removal a lot more possible in the future.

    Today I removed all the dumb aluminum panels which had been installed to cover various holes and breaks in the fiberglass on the rear firewall and transmission tunnel:




    It appears "grab the scrap aluminum" was the go-to fix for some previous owner...

    Tomorrow should be fiberglass day! I think I'll be working on gluing the inner fender to the outer one, but we will see.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  20. #20
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    Another update!

    Today was my first experience with fiberglass, something I feel is almost prerequisite to working with vintage British race cars. I focused on the area inside the left front fender, attaching the inner fender to the outer. I took a few "before" pictures as a point of comparison:




    I also did some small smoothing out of the area between the hood and the headlight:



    Here are the results of about three hours' work:





    This picture is the rear of the fender well, it's kind of hard to tell by itself:

    This is the small patch made just in front of the suspension tower:


    I forgot the "after" pictures of the outside, but I'll get those sometime soon!

    I was pretty happy with my first effort, with only one air pocket and minimal sloppiness. The most important thing I learned? More gloves = less sadness.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
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    Elva Courier build thread here!

  21. #21
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    Not an update per se, but some exciting finds!

    First, I found a good used Titan 5-port dry sump oil pump:



    I also found an awesome std/std forged 6-bolt crankshaft, good for 8,000rpm (more than I'll use, of course)!



    And I took some time after work to clear a bench and get ready to assemble my gearbox with Dad! I have a few parts there now, with a bunch more to move:
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  22. #22
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    Time for another update! I was able to remove the rear axle housing from the car and bring it back to the shop:



    I wiped it off and removed the brake drums (with a screwdriver and a hammer) to see what things looked like:





    Both drums were pretty rusty and one of the slave cylinders was leaking, but the shoes are probably passable. I decided to sandblast the drums to remove the rust and check for cracks:



    Good thing I did:


    Luckily we have a spare drum around here somewhere.

    With the drums off, I slid the axles out some and removed the ring and pinion:



    10-year-old gear oil is pretty interesting stuff!
    Turns out I have a 4.22 welded rear! Guess I'd better try to find some footage of Mark Donohue!



    I also got a box filled with the Courier's old front suspension pieces!

    A whole front end assembly plus half the steering column and a spare lower control arm. I immediately removed all the bushings and got ready for the sand blaster:

    Looking better!

    Finally, I got a few coats of paint on everything and it's ready for new bushings and assembly!


    I've got both front uprights (which will have to be crack tested) and the one surviving front coilover to use as a reference!


    I'm getting excited!
    Last edited by ELVA164; 05-03-2015 at 10:29 AM.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
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    Elva Courier build thread here!

  23. #23
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    Another small update!
    I pulled the axle housing out again and took a quick look at the floating hubs:

    Everything came apart pretty easily and I made sure to label the brake backing plates very carefully:

    I packed the hubs, set screws, and other bits in two bags for later:

    Next, I took at look at where the bottom halves of the radius rod brackets had been cut off. They looked pretty gnarly:


    After a bit of grinding:



    And one more kicker: Apparently the brake drum wasn't the only cracked piece:


    Womp womp.
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  24. #24
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    I got back from Summit Point at midnight, but I still had plenty of energy to do fiberglass work today! I made what I think is quite a bit of progress. I'll post everything as a "before" and "after."

    First, I did all of today's work with the car on a rotisserie at this angle:


    It made some parts a bit easier and some MUCH harder.

    I started with a seam on the passenger pedal box:




    I patched up the inside of the panel I'd previously attached:



    I filled a couple cracks/cuts around the hood opening:







    I also cut a couple patches for holes in the firewall and taped them into place:





    I filled a seam between the left inner fender and the nose, as well as a large hole under the nose:



    I cleaned up along the firewall and sealed it:



    Finally, I fixed two large cracks and a hole in the rear of the car:









    Finally, the hood finally fits properly!


    We did have to...modify it a little to get it to fit though:


    That's all for now, but I felt pretty accomplished!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

  25. #25
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    It's been an unbelievably busy season thus far and I've only just gotten some time to work on the Courier again. There are some things I didn't get pictures of, but this will get the idea across for now!

    I've been heading to the shop where the car is located after work, usually after the owner is done for the day. The last couple times I went, nobody was there and I couldn't figure out how to get the compressor turned on. That meant instead of grinding the areas I had to fiberglass, I had to file them by hand. Took a while longer but worked alright!

    The biggest news first: We have one of the doors fitted! We had to remove a bit in front of it to get the hinge to work, but we'll add it back in once it's settled.


    On the other side of the car, I did a bit of smoothing out around the front and rear of the left-hand door.



    I reattached the two halves of the area underneath the car's "mouth."


    There was a hole after reattaching the upper part of the mouth, but I forgot an "after" picture of that. (It's filled now)


    I cleaned up the area between the passenger footwell and the inner fender:

    As well as attaching the footwell to the chassis rail.


    A super-nifty bar has been added under the front cowl so I glassed one of the feet to the chassis (it's been welded already, just so everyone knows):


    I also started to attach the center of the bar to the underside of the cowl:


    I sealed up the gap between the rear shelf and the underside of the rear cowl. This part was pretty tough as the glass mat had to wrap from a vertical surface to the underside. I started with a single piece but discovered it was too heavy so I used three smaller pieces with more success.



    I cleaned up the rear vertical members of the chassis so I can reattach them to the body:



    Then I stuck them together!




    On a different note, the transmission tunnel is almost completely done and will ultimately be attached with screws for easy removal!
    Interested in vintage cars? Ever thought about racing one?
    Info, photos, videos, and more can be found at www.michaelsvintageracing.com!


    Elva Courier build thread here!

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