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On the nail Nate. Sold here as the Chev Lumina. Similar Sedan (Holden Cavalier?) sold here as well, and sold in the UK as the Vauxall VXR. I don't think the ute is available in the UK?? Sedan and ute are both quite expensive here as I think they are fully imported. Correct, "Bakkie" is local word for "Ute".
Making the situation worse was that the event was apparantly very poorly organised and many of the spectators drunk. The posts following the main article make for intersting reading. It's sad as the Gydo pass is a fantastic strip of uphill tarmac (with 27 blind corners and fantastic cliff views) where I would love to (legally) race my car when it is finished. However, if your not sure whether you're going to run through a poorly constructed barrier into a spectator round the next corner, it just ain't worth it. There really isn't much room for spectators on that hill.
Making the situation worse was that the event was apparantly very poorly organised and many of the spectators drunk. The posts following the main article make for intersting reading. It's sad as the Gydo pass is a fantastic strip of uphill tarmac (with 27 blind corners and fantastic cliff views) where I would love to (legally) race my car when it is finished. However, if your not sure whether you're going to run through a poorly constructed barrier into a spectator round the next corner, it just ain't worth it. There really isn't much room for spectators on that hill.
Replacing the outer skin of an R5 door with aluminium is a fairly simple procedure. I began by cutting a hole in the face of the left-hand door, leaving roughly a 1 inch strip all the way around. This is important as it provides the mounting surface for the new aluminium skin. I then had the door sandblasted, inside and out, exposing all rust and damage. Cutting a hole provides excellent access to the interior, making all repairs much easier. Luckily, these doors were in quite good condition, with the exception of some rust along the underside. I have, however, repaired doors for others that were so badly compromised that the hinges, particularly the lower hinge, had become disconnected from the door!
After sandblasting I undertook the necessary repairs with the TIG welder set to around 15A. I then primed the door with a quality 2K etch primer, and sprayed a coat of polyurethane rubber on the inside surface. The polyurethane rubber helps to prevent the onset of further rust if the inside gets wet. This is also a good time to unblock and enlarge the drain-holes on the underside If they have become blocked.
I manufactured the aluminium door skin from a rectangle of 1.6mm thick aluminium sheet, cut slightly larger than the area to be covered. After placing the panel across the frame and marking with a pen, I drilled a 26mm hole for the door release button. I then rolled the panel through a set of rollers (similar to an old fashioned mangle) to obtain the required curvature, after which I applied the characteristic fold line with a bending-break. Luckily the panel is fairly two-dimensional and requires forming in one direction only (unlike the bonnet which will require an English wheel). After checking the curvature and fold against the door, I pressed the dimple around the door button using a male and female die (profiled similarly to the area around the door button) which I machined on a lathe from two pieces of EN36 round-bar.
The panel can be fitted to the body of the door using only Sikaflex (provided you secure the skin with clamps to the frame), although I used both Sikaflex and 3.2mm x 10mm rivets. I don't mind the rivets since this is a track car - gives it a bit of an "aero" look which I quite like. I have also omitted the door lock. Once bonded, I trimmed the panel to the shape of the door. The process will be finished with the usual sanding, filling, priming and painting. It's quite important to use a filler that is compatible with aluminium when surfacing any scratches incurred during manufacture, else the filler will fall off and you'll feel a right idiot. With a little care, no filler is required.
After sandblasting I undertook the necessary repairs with the TIG welder set to around 15A. I then primed the door with a quality 2K etch primer, and sprayed a coat of polyurethane rubber on the inside surface. The polyurethane rubber helps to prevent the onset of further rust if the inside gets wet. This is also a good time to unblock and enlarge the drain-holes on the underside If they have become blocked.
I manufactured the aluminium door skin from a rectangle of 1.6mm thick aluminium sheet, cut slightly larger than the area to be covered. After placing the panel across the frame and marking with a pen, I drilled a 26mm hole for the door release button. I then rolled the panel through a set of rollers (similar to an old fashioned mangle) to obtain the required curvature, after which I applied the characteristic fold line with a bending-break. Luckily the panel is fairly two-dimensional and requires forming in one direction only (unlike the bonnet which will require an English wheel). After checking the curvature and fold against the door, I pressed the dimple around the door button using a male and female die (profiled similarly to the area around the door button) which I machined on a lathe from two pieces of EN36 round-bar.
The panel can be fitted to the body of the door using only Sikaflex (provided you secure the skin with clamps to the frame), although I used both Sikaflex and 3.2mm x 10mm rivets. I don't mind the rivets since this is a track car - gives it a bit of an "aero" look which I quite like. I have also omitted the door lock. Once bonded, I trimmed the panel to the shape of the door. The process will be finished with the usual sanding, filling, priming and painting. It's quite important to use a filler that is compatible with aluminium when surfacing any scratches incurred during manufacture, else the filler will fall off and you'll feel a right idiot. With a little care, no filler is required.
The Christmas holiday has afforded me the opportunity to make some progress on the car. I have made up and installed the wiring loom that runs from the front to the back. I made this from wire stripped from a complete BMW E36 wiring loom. I am however using a fuse and relay box from an E30 BMW as this is smaller than the one from the E36 and is better suited to a car with few fuses and even fewer relays. One of the reasons I strip so many spares from old BMW's is because of the quality of the parts. I'm not sure why, but they are generally quite good. The wiring loom includes connections to the rear ABS sensors, two fuel pumps, fuel level sender unit, handbrake microswitch, and the usual tail lights, indicators and reverse lights. The handbrake is fully installed and works really well from a combination of Renault and BMW parts - a true Frankenbrake. Both seats with harnesses are installed.
I have also done quite a bit of work on the engine. I have replaced the mechanical waterpump with a steelplate to which I have attached an idler pulley from a Subaru Forrester in place of the waterpump pulley (around which the cam belt winds). The engine thus has no water pump. I am instead using a Davies-Craig electric water pump mounted adjacent to the radiator. This is a brilliant gizmo which pumps at a rate dependent upon the temperature of the engine. If the engine is cold it does't pump at all. If the engine is hot it runs at full power, other times it is somewhere in between. There is no traditional thermostat in this system. What also makes this waterpump so clever is that it is in no way dependent upon the engine RPM, and can be pumping at full capacity even though you have just pulled into the pits after a fast lap (thus the engine is hot) and are now at idle. The pump is controlled, in my case, by the cars ECU which reads several temperatures about the engine. The alternator is from a Toyota Camry. I have also fitted venier pulleys to enable the adjustment of the inlet and exhaust valve timing.
I have also done quite a bit of work on the engine. I have replaced the mechanical waterpump with a steelplate to which I have attached an idler pulley from a Subaru Forrester in place of the waterpump pulley (around which the cam belt winds). The engine thus has no water pump. I am instead using a Davies-Craig electric water pump mounted adjacent to the radiator. This is a brilliant gizmo which pumps at a rate dependent upon the temperature of the engine. If the engine is cold it does't pump at all. If the engine is hot it runs at full power, other times it is somewhere in between. There is no traditional thermostat in this system. What also makes this waterpump so clever is that it is in no way dependent upon the engine RPM, and can be pumping at full capacity even though you have just pulled into the pits after a fast lap (thus the engine is hot) and are now at idle. The pump is controlled, in my case, by the cars ECU which reads several temperatures about the engine. The alternator is from a Toyota Camry. I have also fitted venier pulleys to enable the adjustment of the inlet and exhaust valve timing.
Nate, any idea what the problem was so that I can tackle it proactively?
I know that the 80 litre per minute unit is less than sufficient for its advertised application, so I have purchased a 110 litre per minute unit (advertised for V8's and similar). I can also imagine that if the control of the unit isn't implemented correctly it could give problems. It usually requires a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller to control a pump like this properly. It is insufficient to use a simple Proportional controller else by the time the pump gets busy its too late due to the high heat capacity of the engine block - the pump just won't be able to keep up with the heat accumulating in the block. This is of course not the fault of the pump, but the fault of the controller trying to control the pump.
Of course it also doesn't help if you leave your old waterpump intact or forget to pull out the thermostat :shock:
I know that the 80 litre per minute unit is less than sufficient for its advertised application, so I have purchased a 110 litre per minute unit (advertised for V8's and similar). I can also imagine that if the control of the unit isn't implemented correctly it could give problems. It usually requires a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller to control a pump like this properly. It is insufficient to use a simple Proportional controller else by the time the pump gets busy its too late due to the high heat capacity of the engine block - the pump just won't be able to keep up with the heat accumulating in the block. This is of course not the fault of the pump, but the fault of the controller trying to control the pump.
Of course it also doesn't help if you leave your old waterpump intact or forget to pull out the thermostat :shock:
Thanks Nate, I appreciate the offer. I'll let you know if I have any problems with my pump once I get the engine up and running. At present I am busy wiring up the dash - a much bigger job than I anticipated.
I'm not sure that Westfield (alias SJ Morgan ??) still follows this forum, haven't seen him around for a while. I've registered on the other forum in the mean time and I'll have a look at what he had to say over there.
Regards
Geoff
I'm not sure that Westfield (alias SJ Morgan ??) still follows this forum, haven't seen him around for a while. I've registered on the other forum in the mean time and I'll have a look at what he had to say over there.
Regards
Geoff
OK, I found those posts on the other forum. Seems the pump was not installed properly. I do not agree with the procedure of leaving the original pump and thermostat intact, that's not how an electric water pump (EWP) should be installed. Also, a simple "On/Off" type controller was employed (a thermoswitch) as opposed to variable current source operated by a PID controller connected to a temperature sensor. Operating one of these pumps properly sounds complicated, I know, but I have the feature built into my Adaptronic ECU, so what the heck.
This is the view of the instrument panel through the steering wheel. The centerpiece is a 0-8000 RPM tachometer surrounded by a fuel pressure gauge, oil pressure gauge, oil temperature gauge, water temperature gauge, Voltmeter, Fuel level gauge, Air:Fuel ratio gauge and Manifold pressure (boost and vacuum) gauge.
Thanks Erik, I appreciate your comment.
The LEDS are for the park, dim and bright lights (above the tachometer), handbrake up, Alternator fault, ABS fault (out of view, below the tachometer), indicators, engine warning and oil pressure warning (left and right of the tachometer).
I'm building the car for the track, so technically I don't need to include all of the above (lights, indicators ,etc), however it would be nice to get the car approved for road use if possible. At least then I don't have to take it down the track each time I want to check something small.
In response to your question, I will require a speedometer to have the car approved for road use. I have thus opted to mount an electronic speedometer on the centre panel below the central air vent. I purchased the attached speedometer this morning for the equivalent of 17 Euro, still in its box with instructions - Bargain! I was going to strip something out of a BMW instrument panel but the merchant said that he had this new unit sitting on his shelf for years and years that nobody wanted. It's electronic, so no cable is required to drive it. It takes its input from an inductive sensor mounted on the differential. It will take some work to get the speedometer wired up, but I think I can get it to work. The unit has a few km to go before it ticks over to 000000 km, so I can test the electronics on the work bench to make sure it works.
Regards
Geoff
The LEDS are for the park, dim and bright lights (above the tachometer), handbrake up, Alternator fault, ABS fault (out of view, below the tachometer), indicators, engine warning and oil pressure warning (left and right of the tachometer).
I'm building the car for the track, so technically I don't need to include all of the above (lights, indicators ,etc), however it would be nice to get the car approved for road use if possible. At least then I don't have to take it down the track each time I want to check something small.
In response to your question, I will require a speedometer to have the car approved for road use. I have thus opted to mount an electronic speedometer on the centre panel below the central air vent. I purchased the attached speedometer this morning for the equivalent of 17 Euro, still in its box with instructions - Bargain! I was going to strip something out of a BMW instrument panel but the merchant said that he had this new unit sitting on his shelf for years and years that nobody wanted. It's electronic, so no cable is required to drive it. It takes its input from an inductive sensor mounted on the differential. It will take some work to get the speedometer wired up, but I think I can get it to work. The unit has a few km to go before it ticks over to 000000 km, so I can test the electronics on the work bench to make sure it works.
Regards
Geoff
If it fails, maybe use a bicycle computer?
www.torpedo7.com is where i get all my stuff, for <$10 you'll get a digital speedo....
For books, i use these guys: http://www.pitstop.net.au/
They've got a book on performance car wiring etc... worth a look, nothing special if you've got good common sense, but a few tips & tricks that are worthwhile.
www.torpedo7.com is where i get all my stuff, for <$10 you'll get a digital speedo....
For books, i use these guys: http://www.pitstop.net.au/
They've got a book on performance car wiring etc... worth a look, nothing special if you've got good common sense, but a few tips & tricks that are worthwhile.
Thanks Nate,
Does a bicycle speedometer go up to 240 km/h and will I have to pedal the car :?:
But seriously, I know what you mean. My ABS computer (which controls the Bosch-5 ABS unit) has the ability to drive a digital readout, I just have to fit three off seven-segment displays and a display driver (easy project). Problem is I have to have an analogue unit with an odometer to get the car approved for road use, hence the ugly round thing on my centre consol. I think analogue is a legal requirement here because digital speedometers are sometimes difficult to read in bright sunlight. What's the law in Oz, Europe and Uk, and who reads their speedometer anyway :?
Geoff
Does a bicycle speedometer go up to 240 km/h and will I have to pedal the car :?:
But seriously, I know what you mean. My ABS computer (which controls the Bosch-5 ABS unit) has the ability to drive a digital readout, I just have to fit three off seven-segment displays and a display driver (easy project). Problem is I have to have an analogue unit with an odometer to get the car approved for road use, hence the ugly round thing on my centre consol. I think analogue is a legal requirement here because digital speedometers are sometimes difficult to read in bright sunlight. What's the law in Oz, Europe and Uk, and who reads their speedometer anyway :?
Geoff
We have very few laws governing what gets on the road over here. As a result we now have a problem with imported Chinese vehicles, particularly bakkies (pick-ups, Utes) which fold across the middle if you load them too heavily! All our local factories (Ford/Mazda, BMW, Opel (GM), Toyota, VW, Nissan and a few others) are foreign owned/controlled, so our locally produced cars are to European standards (the factories are cleaner than our hospitals, and the cars mostly get exported anyway). These usually undergo NCAP testing in Europe. Did you know that all BMW 3-series sold worldwide are built in South Africa. You can see that as good or bad, as you see fit ...
My colleagues have advised me that to put my car on the road it would be useful if I have kept the papers from the original R5TS from which the body was carved. The idea being that I slip it under the radar as a R5TS. If I did this I could easily get bust for an illegally modified car, which would inevitably happen. The other route, the one which I will follow, is to have the chassis and suspension examined at our one and only certified testing facility in the country (which luckily is local to me) and have the vehicle declared a prototype kit-car. In which case it gets it's own unique set of papers, chassis number etc. It won't cost too much money, and will be worth it in the end. I think the UK still has similar "kit-car" laws with regards to cars built in garden sheds?
My colleagues have advised me that to put my car on the road it would be useful if I have kept the papers from the original R5TS from which the body was carved. The idea being that I slip it under the radar as a R5TS. If I did this I could easily get bust for an illegally modified car, which would inevitably happen. The other route, the one which I will follow, is to have the chassis and suspension examined at our one and only certified testing facility in the country (which luckily is local to me) and have the vehicle declared a prototype kit-car. In which case it gets it's own unique set of papers, chassis number etc. It won't cost too much money, and will be worth it in the end. I think the UK still has similar "kit-car" laws with regards to cars built in garden sheds?
Due to the position of the engine I have had to move the windscreen wiper motor from its usual position (more or less between the two wipers) to the left side of the car. To make this work I manufactured a frame from aluminium which I welded to the firewall. The motor bolts to the frame as per normal. I used the same linkage from the motor to drive the wiper arms - only difference is the linkage swings to the left instead of to the right (right of political joke reserved). The two aluminium bosses/hubs, through which the two wiper stub-axles protrude were badly worn (causing the wipers to jerk and wobble) so I have rebushed these with stainless steel inserts. The wipers now work better than I can remember when.
The E30 fusebox is lurking just behind the wiper motor between the dash and the firewall, and is quite accesible from below the dash. Below the wiper motor bolted to the inside of the firewall is my four channel CDI (Capacitor Discharge Ignition) unit. The ECU (Electronic control Unit) drives the four logic inputs to the CDI, which in turn discharges four 1uF capacitors charged to 350V into each of the respective primary windings of the four Bosch ignition transformers (hopefully in the corect firing order :shock: ). The four Bosch ignition transformers are mounted in a single potted enclosure to the left of the wiper motor. The spark plug leads plug into the four outputs from the transformers. What this all means is that this engine has no distributor (its one logic signal, one CDI channel, one HT transformer and one spark-plug per cylinder - neat). Attached to the inlet cam is what vaguely resembles a distributor, but actually just houses three inductive sensors and a 24-toothed wheel. This is where the ECU gets its timing signals from. Once the wiring is finished I'll tape up all the wires to form the cars new loom.
The E30 fusebox is lurking just behind the wiper motor between the dash and the firewall, and is quite accesible from below the dash. Below the wiper motor bolted to the inside of the firewall is my four channel CDI (Capacitor Discharge Ignition) unit. The ECU (Electronic control Unit) drives the four logic inputs to the CDI, which in turn discharges four 1uF capacitors charged to 350V into each of the respective primary windings of the four Bosch ignition transformers (hopefully in the corect firing order :shock: ). The four Bosch ignition transformers are mounted in a single potted enclosure to the left of the wiper motor. The spark plug leads plug into the four outputs from the transformers. What this all means is that this engine has no distributor (its one logic signal, one CDI channel, one HT transformer and one spark-plug per cylinder - neat). Attached to the inlet cam is what vaguely resembles a distributor, but actually just houses three inductive sensors and a 24-toothed wheel. This is where the ECU gets its timing signals from. Once the wiring is finished I'll tape up all the wires to form the cars new loom.
The engine, gearbox, propeller shaft, differential and sideshafts are all in place, and hopefully will remain in place for a while to come. The wiring loom is complete and all that remains is to attach the last few wires to the various sensors and actuators on the engine. The ECU is up and running and has a basic fuel and ignition map loaded to enable the engine to at least start. After that it's off to a dyno to get the ECU mapped properly.
The exhaust header won't remain shiny for long. Not that I care, this is not a show car. The turbocharger is fully plumbed into the engine (oil feed, oil drain etc) and is ready to spin. I have installed a wideband Lambda (Oxygen) sensor where the exhaust interfaces to the turbine flange. The wideband Lambda sensor facilitates a measure of the air-fuel-ratio (AFR) from 10:1 (rich) to 20:1 (lean). This greatly assists the tuning of the engine and warns of burned pistons and valves if the AFR ever runs high (lean).
The exhaust header won't remain shiny for long. Not that I care, this is not a show car. The turbocharger is fully plumbed into the engine (oil feed, oil drain etc) and is ready to spin. I have installed a wideband Lambda (Oxygen) sensor where the exhaust interfaces to the turbine flange. The wideband Lambda sensor facilitates a measure of the air-fuel-ratio (AFR) from 10:1 (rich) to 20:1 (lean). This greatly assists the tuning of the engine and warns of burned pistons and valves if the AFR ever runs high (lean).
Houston, the Eagle has landed. Fired up the engine for the first time on Sunday 1st February 2009. As shown here, this was enough to get the engine started, but not idling. Just to check the operation of the engine I connected an upturned water hose to the front of the engine block and filled the block with water. Before I can consider idling the engine for any length of time I must install the radiator and electric water pump, else the engine WILL overheat and do damage. I won't connect the outlet of the turbocharger (on the right) to the inlet manifold throttle body (on the left) until I am absolutely confident that the engine won't backfire. This basically entails checking the timing and the injectors for leaks.
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