'94 Impreza - The Buddha Frog Build

[Daniel B]

Hi,

So I'm a new member here. Ive been watching some of the Rally builds in the 'Members Jurnals' area for a few months now - very motovational! I thought I'd post up some pictures from my Rally Build. The car is being built for Open Class in the CRC (Canadian Rally Championship) and the OPRC (Ontario Performance Rally Championship). I'm hoping to keep the 1.8l engine (~110hp FTW) but I'm converting the car from FWD to AWD.

Daniel B

EDIT - Here is my formal introduction:

Here it goes...

5 years ago, I had no idea how to work on a car. I had just bought my first Subaru, a beautiful 1996 Impreza Outback Sport. The car only had 10,000 miles and soon become my pride and joy! I lived on a farm at the time and 3 months after buying the car I center punched a tree at the side of my driveway thinking I was Petter Solberg :oops:. I spent alot of money I didn't have to fix that poor car.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/96.jpg

At the time, my wife to be, Sara (She's awsome by the way) was driving a 1991 VW Cabriolete. It was a fun car but we were both worried about her safty in the winter driving such a small car. So... she sold the VW and took my (very proffessionally $$$) fixed up Impreza as her new car. I went out and found a mechanically sound 1997 Impreza Outback Sport - Manual Transmission! The car was in excellent shape but had many, many more miles than the first one (and was worth less $$$).

In November of that year (2004), I attended my first rally - The Rally of the Tall Pines. I was hooked. I was 100% addicted to rally. I did not know the first thing about rally cars - I mean NOTHING. I'll admit, I even called the local prep shops and told them that I wanted a cage. I didn't know for what series (they asked) or by what event (all I knew of was Tall Pines) and I wanted to keep the car as a daily driver... Needless to say. The shops never called me back. I didn't get discouraged though. I read everything I could online, asked all the nOOB questions, and tried my best to figure out anything and everything about this awsome sport.

In May 2005, sitting at my desk for lunch I stumbled upon the Maple Leaf Rally Club (MLRC) forum and I found out about RallyX. I signed up for the next event. It was more fun than I could have expected. Everyone was so friendly. I'm pretty sure I came in last in class :D but I couldn't wait for the next event.

Well, 5 days before the next RallyX I drove through a deep puddle and blew my starter. I called one of the local Subaru shops and they said they were too busy to fit me in, but that I should try it on my own. This freaked me out! Other than changing tires, I'd only done an oil change (once). I was making plans with Sara for us to take two cars to the event - hers to bump-start mine, and mine to compete :crazy:. A day later I bit the bullet and bought a starter from the local part store. I also bought a Haynes Repair Manual (FTW!). On friday night I did my first repair on a car - EVER! That was August 2005. We made the event that weekend and I placed in the middle of my class.

The RallyX events in my area were one month apart. When I had replaced my starter I noticed that I had a tear in my CV boot and in the boot on my tie-rod end. Feeling all hyped up from the starter replacement :headbang:I decided to replace the CV and tie-rod end. It went well. The next (and final for the year) RallyX was in September. I took first place in my class :mrgreen:...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/97green.jpg

That's where thing's really got going. After that event I stuck around and met a few new people. I found out about TSD rallys and it was suggested that I volunteer at the next Tall Pines Rally instead of spectate. Sara and I volunteered that year and finally saw what a rally was all about! We also ran the Ontario Winter Rally (OWR) that year. The OWR was a TSD run overnight at "brisk" speeds on many of the roads used for Tall Pines. It was the first time my wife got a chance to really participate as a co-driver, she was absolutly hooked!

The next RallyX season was bitter-sweet. It was a championship format. Your best scores from 3 of the four events would be calculated at the end of the year. I had a great runs at the first three events. I won my class at all three and in doing so, I secured the championship. On October 7th, a few weeks before the last RallyX event, there was a "Test and Tune" day at a new facility. I was having a blast all day, the track was awsome. In the afternoon we started running the track backwards. On my first run through - I was runing it on memory - I cut a turn too much (at a pretty good speed :shock:) and I cliped a tire (that was used to mark the edge of the track) with my inside front tire. The car rolled. I can still remember being upside down, we were still rolling, and Sara was shouting "I'm OKAY!". We had a deal. We had discussed the possibility of a crash many times before and we both agreed, nothing matters other than our safety so the first thing is that we tell each other if we are okay. She did :crazy: and she STILL can't wait to get out on the stages with me.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/roll.jpg

The car was toast and I started looking for another one immediately. I found one with a Rally history. It was a 1997 Impreza L. It was bought as a RallyX/TSD toy. It also served as the 99 car (stage closing car) in a few local rallies. It has been beat up a little. Before I bought it, it met with a snowbank at the OWR and the airbags went off. So the dash needed to be replaced so I could safety it and the front end looked a little crooked :?.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/223_2008_05_24_4263.jpg

I converted it to a track toy and spent the next year learning how to go quick on road courses. All the while I was learning to work on cars. I learned how to work on suspensions and brakes and a little bit about bodywork.

In an attempt to save some money on gas and insurance (I was driving ~200km a day to work and back) I bought a 1994 FWD 1.8l Impreza L. This car was boiught with the intention of turning it into a rally car!

In the fall of 2007 I went to TARGA as part of a service crew for two Subaru's. When I came home I made up my mind. I was time to get serious about building a stage rally car. A couple weeks after I got home from TARGA, one of the other crew members, another Subaru nut named Nuwan, sent me an e-mail. He had built his own Legacy Trubo rally car a couple years earlier and he was looking for a Co-Driver for Tall Pines 2007. I said something like "HellsYeah" and a couple weeks later I was strapped into the silly seat having the best ride of my life. I've been Co-Driving for him ever since.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/IMG_0124-1.jpg

In early 2008 My wife and I bought our first house. It had a one car garage :headbang:. And I had a plan. I decided that the first car to go in the garage would be my Rally car. At that point, I hadn't competed on the loose stuff in many months. I figured that I'd better get back out and see if I could still drive. So, I converted the Track Toy over to RallyX Toy and went out to the first RallyX of the season. I took first in class and third overall that day. A week later, I took the Track Toy off the road and put it in storage.

From then on there has been no real compeditive driving. All the money and time I can spare goes toward Co-Driving, or building my car. Six months after I parked my Track Track toy, this journal begins...

[Daniel B]

January 11th was the first time since July that I had time to work on one of my cars. My wife and I moved into our first house 1 year ago and I've been working on renovations since. The whole time, the plan was to get the house done and the garage insulated, drywalled, and painted so I could build the car over the winter.

Here's what the car looked like at the end of the day...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress3.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress4.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress5.jpg

[Daniel B]

On January 13th and 14th I got started on the interior...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress5-1.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress4-1.jpg

[Daniel B]

Well, on January 15th it was -25 degrees C. I left the garage door open a crack and took the oppertunity to remove the tar sheeting inside the car. It took about 2 hours with an assortment of small hamers and a paint scraper to get 90% of it. I left the rest for later.

My feet went numb after 20 minutes! :shock:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress01152.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress01151.jpg
________
website design (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QRxLZnYR9nc/Ro06JOY7hUI/AAAAAAAAAAM/OhzQP1Dk_Vw/s320/sexy-alf.jpg)

[Daniel B]

I made some random progress in the few hours I had over the weekend. The biggest acomplishment was removing the dash and preparing to remove the engine...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1-1.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2-1.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress3-1.jpg

[Daniel B]

I was tired and I had a long day at work. But, I wanted to see the engine out of the car...

I think I need to replace the rear main seal ;)

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/rearmain.jpg

[Daniel B]

This was a big day for me. I only had an hour or so and I spent most of the time sweeping and acleaning up the mess left from pulling the engine. The most rewarding part was getting the car up on jackstands. Until this time I'd done everything with the car on it's wheels. Once the car was off the ground it was there until bare...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2-2.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress3-2.jpg

[Daniel B]

I started to feel like I was getting somewhere. I got the FWD transmission out of the car. I got the rest of the wiring out from the dash area and cleaned out the engine bay a bit...

FWD transmission are much easier to lift on your own thtan AWD ;-)

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1-3.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2-3.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress3-3.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress5-2.jpg

[Daniel B]

This was a fun weekend. I know and love Subaru suspensions and I spent all the free time I had removing the suspension and gas tank. You can see in some of the pictures where Subaru has left the holes needed for my all AWD conversion. Only four fasteners gave me trouble on this sweet 15 year old shell: two seat mounting bolts (rusted in the transmission tunnel so I drilled them out), One gas tank mounting strap bolt (heat, penetrating oil, drill and broken extractors :machinegunleft: and I got it out), and the last one was a front sub-frame mounting nut (see grinder in picture below 8))...

Note: in the second picture you can see nice new looking threads in one of the suspension pickup points. This is a 15 year old Canadian car in the salt belt... I got lucky! Most threads for the suspension are in that condition.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1-4.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2-4.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress3-4.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress4-2.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress5-3.jpg

[GodSquadMandrake]

You really expect to get a cage done in 2 weeks? How much meth are you smoking? :p

That buddha frog is creepy! Does he bring good luck?

[Daniel B]

You really expect to get a cage done in 2 weeks? Less than 2 weeks! How much meth are you smoking? :p None. But the garage still smells like gas from when I was removing the tank and the siphon gave up...

That buddha frog is creepy! Does he bring good luck? Good Vibes!

The cage is being done by a professional. I'm doing the rest.

[Daniel B]

I had an hour and a bit so I fought with the winshield :machinegunleft:

I removed it with and Olfa knife using the black blades - What a mess I made!

But the windshield came out and I only broke it in three places :oops:

I also got all the fuel and brake hardlines out of the car.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1-5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2-5.jpg

[Daniel B]

Friday night was spent cleaning up the mess I made taking the windshield out and I also removed the gas tank filler assembly.

Saturday and sunday were spent on shell prep... mainly seam sealer removal and rust removal.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro7.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro8.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro9.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro10.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro11.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro12.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro13.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro14.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro15.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro16.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro17.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro18.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro19.jpg

[JacksonRally]

Looks like you are having fun!! Can't wait to see her back together.

[SubieImpreza07]

looks like a fun build, good luck!

[Daniel B]

Looks like you are having fun!! Can't wait to see her back together.

I'm having a blast :headbang:

Got a chance to start removing the rubber goop in the wheel wells on tuesday. I used a cupped wire wheel on an angle grinder and when I was done, I felt like I'd stuck my head in a cotton-candy machine - I was covered in stringy rubber goop!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress3-5.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress1-6.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/progress2-6.jpg

Here's what the garage looked like last week.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/light.jpg

[Daniel B]

I made a sandbox in my garage - but I used rubber instead of sand :crazy:

So much junk came out of the 4 wheel wells, I can't believe it!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro2.jpg

[Daniel B]

So I'm a freak when it comes to preping for paint. I learned the hard way that things must be stupidly clean for paint to stick to them, so I spend about four hours making sure that the wheel wells were cleaned out before shooting some primer. I removed all of the seam sealer first. This is just a prep coat, I'll have to go back later to fix some rust and to stich weld but now I don't have to worry about new rust forming.

I also experimented with removing the urethane leftover from my windshield removal... I'm not happy with the nicks I left and as a result I'll be stripping the A-pillars down to bare metal, coating them with primer and once the cage is gusseted to them, I'll re-primer them and finish the final paint job.

I met with my cage builder on the weekend and we decided that the car will not be going in for another couple weeks... He's busy/running behind and I could use the extra time to prep the shell some more before before the cage goes in.

The garage is still so messy from the rubber dust - even after spending 2 hours cleaning... :shocked:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr7.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr8.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr9.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pr10.jpg

[bigjoshsubyfan]

love the frog kinda weird but hey its cool anyways good project

[I Like It Sideways]

Holy cow awesome cage prep work so far!
I can't imagine how much of a mess that is making.

Can't wait to see the cage go in.

[Daniel B]

Holy cow awesome cage prep work so far!
I can't imagine how much of a mess that is making.

Can't wait to see the cage go in.

I really enjoy working on my cars! I'm taking my time to prep the shell. It's most likely the only time I'll have a chance to go through it like this. And I can't wait to see the cage go in either :D

[Daniel B]

So, I haven't worked on the car at all this week :shock:

But, I'm busy getting ready to! I'm running a 240v Sub-pannel out to the garage so I can finnaly get the welder going. Up until now, I've been using one little flourecent bulb on the ceiling and I've been dragging a 4ft flourecent fixture around with me for light. After today I'll have good ceiling light, and recepticles that don't dim the lights when I use power tools 8)

I'm picking up the Co-driver seat, and hoping to make some more progress on the shell this weekend.

More picture shortly...

EDIT: added pictures of the sub-panel and my first welds EVER!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/subpanel.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/firstbeads.jpg

[aresbykes]

wow, i'm glad i found this thread, i'm completely impressed.

DIY FTW!

[Daniel B]

So I went and picked up the wife's seat today (the Sparco).

My wife is the Co-Driver. She's the only one :crazy:CRAZY:crazy: enough to sit in the silly seat when I'm driving :shock:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/recliner2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/recliner3.jpg

[mmise]

those seats are sexy, its great to see a guy from ontario doing a build like this.

[Daniel B]

Okay, so I've been learning to weld! :crazy:
I am very happy with my progress - It's been a trial by fire... :flamed

Here are a bunch of picture showing the progress and the learning curve. Unfortunetly, these are not all in order but you can be sure that the better looking welds are more recent...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/weld4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/weld3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/weld2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/weld1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich9.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich7.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich18.jpg

[Daniel B]

If anybody reading this wants to share any welding Tips or Tricks, I'd be happy to hear them. This weekend will mark 4 weeks of welding for me so I've got a whole lot to learn...

Some more:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich17.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich16.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich15.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich14.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich12.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich11.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/stich10.jpg

:D

[Daniel B]

So I tackled my first real body repair job last weekend. Here's how it went:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/rustbefore.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender7.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender8.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender10.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender12.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender11.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender13.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender14.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/fender15.jpg

[Broken Motorsports]

Well done! Saw this over on rallyanarchy i think.

good stuff. good documentation.

_billy

[Duffurban36]

The build is looking amazing. Your welds look pretty decent for being newish to welding. Great to see someone build the car purely by themselves basically.

[frogstar7055]

Good build and very ambitious.
With welding you want to make sure your getting good penetration.
My welds are almost never pretty but they will NEVER break.
yours look good for just learning.

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/

[Daniel B]

Thanks for the encouragment everyone!

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/

^^^Great Site!

I'm having SOOOO much fun learning to weld. This is really a perfect oppertunity, 3-5 days a week I get some practice. When I'm done with the chassis prep, I'll go through all the pictures I've got from the first seam welds to the last, some of the first ones looked so bad I just wanted to give up :roll: but my friend that I co-drive for (he's a good welder) kept looking at the pictures I sent him, he'd give me tips and keep telling me I'd get better and that I should just keep trying.

:eek:

^^^ I kinda feel like that! :headbang:

I'm hoping to get AT LEAST 10 hours to work on the shell this weekend. I want to make some serious progress...

Last night:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay10.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay7.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay8.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bay9.jpg

[Broken Motorsports]

are you going to put new seam sealer in those joints now that they are welded up or are you just going to leave them?

[me_jimmy]

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/


thanks allot, now ill be up all night:shootsself:

[Daniel B]

are you going to put new seam sealer in those joints now that they are welded up or are you just going to leave them?

I'm going to put new seam sealer in all of the seams inside the cabin for sure.

I'm not 100% sure about the seams in the engine bay, but most likely there too.

[Daniel B]

thanks allot, now ill be up all night:shootsself:

Yeah... thanks to Frogstar7055 I was up all last night :shock: Great Info!

[Daniel B]

So I'm just about done the seam welding. I have maybe 20-25 'stiches' to do before the car goes into get the cage. And I've got a few areas I'll do after that.

I'm in the process of romoving the rubbery gunk from under the car :machinegunleft:
It sucks! I let the factory intalled smoke out of one of my angle grinders this weekend ;-)

Another couple hours under the car with my backup angle grinder and I should be ready for paint. Where I live rust is part of life. I want to be able to see rust as it form. So, I'm painting the underside of the car and the wheelwells white.

I had to learn how to weld all over again when I started welding under the car. I almost gave up again, but a good night sleep and a little perserverance and now I have no problem with it :eek:

Welding is soooooo much fun. I'm just going to keep pushing and trying new things. I hope to learn all the basics of welding on this shell so when I build the next one I'm comfortable right from the start!

I still have lots to go. The car goes into the shop - for the cage 8) - on April 4th or 5th. Befor then I want to remove all of the rubberized junk under the car, the remainder of the door trim, the leftover interior knik-knaks, the rear deck between the shock towers, the rear windshield (without breaking it, I hope!) and a couple of the seat brackets. I also want to prime some of the exposed/bare metal and patch a couple more rust spots. I'll be busy, but I'm on schedule...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro1-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro10-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro11-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro12-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro2-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro7-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro8-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro9-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/spot3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/spot1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/spot2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/spot4.jpg

[Daniel B]

WARNING: Ranty/Blogy thingy ahead!

I'm keeping a detailed spreadsheet on the build. When I'm done, I'll go back and list all the details, so anybody who wants to build a car this way can have a better understanding of what's involved.

So far, in the past three months I have over 100 hours on the shell. Allot of that time has been consumed by the inevitable learning curve. If I were to start the same process over right now, I'm confident I could do it in 75% of the time or less.

I'm committed to this project. I have wanted to build a car just as much as I want to drive a car - I mean that. And, I think that's the only reason things are still getting done at a steady pace. I've felt overwhelmed by the project a half-dozen or so times. But, I walk away when that happens and relax for the rest of the day. Then the next chance I get I go back and work away at whatever it was that was bugging me. So far, every time I get back at it, things go smoothly and I feel better.

I'm also learning allot while prepping the shell. Six weeks ago I'd never welded. Today I'm fairly comfortable that I can handle any welding projects that may be required while I'm rallying. That excludes cage work and all welding directly related to occupant safety.

Learning to seam weld under the car was a nasty process for me. Some of the metal was pitted from surface rust and I was having a terrible time getting my welds started. If I did get a bead started, I blew through the metal half of the time. I changed setting and wire with no luck at all. So, I stopped for the day and went back to it on the weekend. I started on a clean smooth area of the metal however and it all went well from then on. I'm still not consistent with my welds I've got tons of learning to do (I'm going to take a course shortly) but I've got an idea of what I should be doing.

The extra expenses of building the car have started to show up. I knew they would so I've budgeted for them. The paint I'm using to seal the underside of the car costs allot more than a couple rattlecans do, but it's rally proven. Here's the stuff:

http://www.sherlink.com/stores/ImgServ?id=datapages/macropoxy_646_fast_cure_epoxy_4-53.pdf (http://www.sherlink.com/stores/ImgServ?id=datapages/macropoxy_646_fast_cure_epoxy_4-53.pdf)

It's stuff like that though, that made me want to build vs. buy. I want the underside of my car white - I want to see potential problems before they are serious. And, I want to find serious problems immediately.

If you plan to prep a shell like I'm doing it, buy stock in a company that manufactures cupped wire wheels. I’ve bought $200 worth and gone through nearly 90% of them (but 90% of the factory installed goop has been removed). Also, I've bought a bunch of small scrapers, dental picks, dust masks, various sizes and styles of safety glasses/goggles, etc...

The whole process has been way more fun than I thought it would be. I think that's mostly due to how rewarding it is to stand back and look at what I can achieve when I work toward my goals. With a little bit of luck, by the end of April I'll have the car back from being caged. I figure I've got a months worth of fab work and then I'll be able to paint it. That puts me into June for reassembly.

It's a BIG stretch of the budget, but we have a local rally on August 8th - I'd like to have the car ready by then. We'll see!

[Daniel B]

I feel like I won a big battle with this one! The rubberized Gunk under the car and in the wheelwells has been terrorizing my house for the past 6 weeks! This stuff ginds off as a sticky, stringy powder and worst of all, the needles that come of the wire brushes stick in it and to you! Ive woken up the morning after working under the car (or in a weelwell) and found these weire needles still sticking in my arms or side or worse... :machinegunleft:

As of last night though, 99% of the goop is gone! :angryfinger:

All I need to do now is spend some quality time under the car with a wire brush, a small wire wheel on a drill, a rag, and some brake cleaner. I'l probably leave some of the rusty areas with that nice orange hue. They will just rust in the next couple months anyways. And then I'll give them a good cleaning before I paint.

snowcrzy... these pictures are for you - I hope they are motivational :D

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro1-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro2-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro3-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro4-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro5-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro6-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro7-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/pro8-2.jpg

[Daniel B]

I did some metal removal over the weekend of March 21st-22nd. I used a proper tool to drill out the spot welds. That was fun to learn with... I ended up drilling like 5 holes through the car befor I got the hang of it :oops:

I removed the rear mounts for the front seats, the rearview mirror bracket, the three support 'ribs' for the roof, and alot of the rear deck to make room for an x-brace between the rear shock towers.

It took me a LOOOOONG time to figure out how much metal to remove from the rear deck. I wanted to keep the factory trunk 'springs'. It's hard enough to get triangles and spare tires out of the trunk when the car is tilted on the side of the road or in the ditch (BTDT :mrgreen:).

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a7.jpg

Oh... I also got some new rubber:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a8.jpg

[Daniel B]

Well, the pre-cage shell prep work has come to an end! :D

The car goes in to be caged on Saturday :headbang:It's time to make it a rolling shell again.

As the shell sits, I'm happy! She's fully seam welded, most of the rust has been repaired, factory installed holes have been pluged, sound deadening removed, useless studs chopped off, excess metal removed, etc...

I sprayed some (8 year old) rattle can primer on the bare metal to prevent rust. The car is traveling by open trailer on Saturday and it's supposed to be raining - plus, there is still salt on the road :machinegunleft:

Here's what she looks like:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b9.jpg

The strut mount has been seam welded and the welds have been ground down in preparation for plating.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b6.jpg

This seam was fun! This is between the front strut tower and the firewall. I'm getting to be more confident with my welding abilities.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b7.jpg

When I prep the next chassis, I'll seam weld like this. I just could not do this when I started, but all the 'stiches' in the last week or so have been push type continuous beads.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b8.jpg

Rear fender patches.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b10.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b11.jpg

This is exactly what I mean by unexpected rotary tool purchases... ;-)

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b2.jpg

[Daniel B]

This I know how to do - I'm back to using my tools.

Last night I began to get the shell ready to roll. As the bolts I removed from the shell have been there for 15 or so years, I'm going to be freshening up the fastners... If any captured nuts show signs of corosion, they get 'the tap', and all bolts are getting their threads cleaned, or they are getting replaced.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b13.jpg

I have a whole bunch of buckets that look like this!
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b14.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b15.jpg

[Daniel B]

He's Back...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b12.jpg

[Daniel B]

So the car never went to get a cage... :cry: The builder has been too busy. But, that's life I suppose. The next possible date is the 15th of May - We'll see :unamused:

[Daniel B]

I've seen first hand what can happen when the OEM front towhooks dig into the ground :shock: It's not pretty!

So I figured I'd practice welding and gain an inch and a half of ground clearance in the process.

I welded around the edges and plug welded the guard directly to the stubs that were once my towhook - they are not going anywhere!

My Idea is to have the skidplate cover these and to have the front lip of the plate bent up in front of them. But, that's still months away...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p7.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p9.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p10.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p11.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/u3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/u1.jpg

[Daniel B]

Well, this 15 year old Canadian car has some rust. So I spent the weekend cutting it out and patching it up. I took the oppertunity to 'correct' some OEM flaws :p...

Anybody who has tried to mount mudflaps flush to the rear of the wheelwells knows that the sides of the mudflap will get pushed out toward the tire and that the bottom of the mudflap suffers the same fate. The OEM sheetmetal curves toward the tires. I've played with the shape a bit.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p1-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p2-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p3-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p4-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p5-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p6-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p7-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p8-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p9-1.jpg

[Daniel B]

I was learning alot and gaining some much needed confidence while I was repairing the rust at the bottom of the wheelwells, so...

I decided to make the whellwells even more mudflap friendly.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p1-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p2-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p3-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p4-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p5-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p6-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p7-2.jpg

[Daniel B]

And, the other side.

The offending strip of metal is removed and then the whole area is re-shaped with a hammer until the angles are just the way I like them :tongue:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a1-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a2-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/a3-1.jpg

[Daniel B]

Okay, so this is out of order. But, I just came accross these pictures and had to laugh. When I disassembled the car I took the rear suspension off in one piece. Rear subframe, lateral links, hubs, e-brake cables, and trailing arms, all in one.

I thought that the car was going on a trailer in a few short hours and nobody was around to help, so I got out the scissor jacks :eek:

In the second picture: Yes, it is completely balanced and completely off the ground!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/c1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/c2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/c3.jpg

[409industries]

Daniel,

Great progress on the car! I admire your ambition getting things done even when its freezing outside. You did a fantastic job on the inside of the wheel wells too, i didn't have the patience to sit there and blast all that stuff off with a wire brush...

I love the Golden Frog Buddha too, keep him in all the pics for sure! :)

[Daniel B]

Daniel,

Great progress on the car! I admire your ambition getting things done even when its freezing outside. You did a fantastic job on the inside of the wheel wells too, i didn't have the patience to sit there and blast all that stuff off with a wire brush...

I love the Golden Frog Buddha too, keep him in all the pics for sure! :)

Thanks Aaron,

The nice part about that goop in the wheels is that once it has been roughed up pretty good it starts to come off alot easier. I see the professional body guys with a special brush that has rows of bristles with big gaps between the rows. I think the reason the wire brush is so difficult is that the rubber gets hot and sticks to the wire. I'd like to see how much easier it is with the proper tool.

But, I'm not all that nice to my cars, so I'm sure I'll get a chance to try again in the not so distant future... :crazy:

I'm glad to hear that the AWD'n struts are working out for you. Barret seems like a great guy and his professionalism (and his ability to tolerate my many, may questions) is top notch. Right now, those struts are on the top of my 'want to buy' list.

[Daniel B]

o·ver·kill
- An excess of what is necessary or appropriate for a particular end

I made some weldnuts for mounting the mudflaps. It took me a little while to get the setting right on the welder. You can see the progress in the first picture. By the fifth attempt (the one with the bolt still in it) I’d got the setting right.

I still find it hard to weld in a circle. And, if anyone can tell me what to do when I’m welding over/through tack welds, that would be great. I’m experimenting with slowing the puddle down right before the tack weld and then pushing over it slowly. But, a couple times the wire I’m feeding comes out of the puddle as it travels over the tack weld. Other times I end up blowing through. I’m getting more consistent with my weld, but this is an area where I have not clue what the correct thing is to do…

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/p8-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b1-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b2-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b3-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b4-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b5-1.jpg

[Jordanh]

dont get discouraged with the welding, it looks like you are doing a great job so far. ive taken a year and a half of courses, and welding around circular joints only comes easier in time. practice, practice , practice. its looking great so far though!! if you ever have any questions just pm me, id be happy to give any pointers.

i get so stoked(and JEALOUS) reading threads like this. i was at the bank and seconds away from pulling the trigger on an 04 wrx until my insurance agency called. its hard to afford a car when the insurance isnt to much less then the loan payment:-( impreza 2.5 here i come!

[409industries]

I see the professional body guys with a special brush that has rows of bristles with big gaps between the rows.

Yep, ive used one of those on the underside of the RS. Scott had a "crud-buster" at the shop that he let me use. It blasts the hell out of undercoating, its awesome!


I'm glad to hear that the AWD'n struts are working out for you. Barret seems like a great guy and his professionalism (and his ability to tolerate my many, may questions) is top notch. Right now, those struts are on the top of my 'want to buy' list.

They should be at the top of your list. They are excellent units and are an awesome value for the money. Ive beat on my pretty hard so far and they've done nothing but come back for more! Barrett is awesome and always has time to answer my endless list of questions too. That goes a long way with me :)

Keep up the great work on the car! One of these days i need to give welding a shot too...

[snicker]

It looks great, way to be meticulous! That's what keepa car running for a while.

[Daniel B]

dont get discouraged with the welding, it looks like you are doing a great job so far. ive taken a year and a half of courses, and welding around circular joints only comes easier in time. practice, practice , practice. its looking great so far though!! if you ever have any questions just pm me, id be happy to give any pointers.

Thanks for the encouragement. And, I'm sure I'll take you up on that offer!

i get so stoked(and JEALOUS) reading threads like this. i was at the bank and seconds away from pulling the trigger on an 04 wrx until my insurance agency called. its hard to afford a car when the insurance isnt to much less then the loan payment:-( impreza 2.5 here i come!

I feel your pain on the insurance issue! I did the math three years ago (when I was looking at a WRX) and what I've saved in insurance by driving N/A wagons since then, has almost payed for this build :shocked:. I daily drove this car for a year before I started working on it. I paid for the car with the money I saved. When I called my insurance company for a quote, the words "'94, FWD, 4Dr, 1.8l" were so much easier to say than "'02, AWD, 2.0T".

Yep, ive used one of those on the underside of the RS. Scott had a "crud-buster" at the shop that he let me use. It blasts the hell out of undercoating, its awesome!

Was it like this one?
http://www.snapon.com/international/21pdffiles/pt280thug.pdf

Barrett is awesome and always has time to answer my endless list of questions too. That goes a long way with me :)

That was THE selling point for me.

One of these days i need to give welding a shot too...

Especially if you can get some tips from Kyle. I think that basic welding is sort of quick to get the hang of. But, it would sure be nice to have somebody to actually show me what I should be doing, or to watch what I'm doing and correct my technique... I'll have to take a class when I get a chance. Welding is FUN! :D

[Daniel B]

The car WAS scheduled to go in for a cage AGAIN on the 24th of April. But, after cuting the front tow hooks off (and not creating the new ones yet) I needed a quick and easy way to tie the car down, so...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/GetAttachment.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/GetAttachment2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/GetAttachment3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/GetAttachment4.jpg

[Daniel B]

I created a template for the driverside rear mudflap. It mounted up flush to the wheelwell just like I was hoping it would. The orientation of the mudflap will be different when I create the actual ones but I'm happy so far...

...

IKEA FTW!!!

:lol2:


http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/GetAttachment5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/GetAttachment6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m4.jpg

[Jordanh]

Especially if you can get some tips from Kyle. I think that basic welding is sort of quick to get the hang of. But, it would sure be nice to have somebody to actually show me what I should be doing, or to watch what I'm doing and correct my technique... I'll have to take a class when I get a chance. Welding is FUN! :D[/quote]


classes are fun, but its all certification welding instead of fun welding haha. is what you have to do is take 2 plates, make 30 degree andgles on each side, weld a root, then the cover passes. after that you grind them flush and cut out "coupons" as my instructor called them. then bend them in a "u" shape with the root up on one, and the face up on the other. if they break, guess what, start over haha.

im not trying to discourage you, but you will learn a ton!

[Daniel B]

I made a small step forward. I'm glad I did this now, though. If the cage was in I'd probably have rushed this. The shape of the mudlfaps (the templates actually) meets flush with the inside of the bumper skin. The idea being that another flap will sit on the outside of the skin and come down under the bumper and overlap the mudflap I've templated. Then I'll rivet them together.

These are just templates for shape and hole location. the actual mudflaps will extend lower and higher as well as a bit further inboard.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m1-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m2-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m3-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m4-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/m7.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/mm1.jpg

[Rex_Saugerty]

that was one rusty car. i showed this tread to my friend and he was shocked for all the progress you made. cant wait to see, your future plans

[Daniel B]

cant wait to see, your future plans :muhaha:

[Daniel B]

After lots of waiting, the car has gone to get a cage :eek:
I don't expect the cage to be done until at least early July, but I have lots to do in the mean time.

Choose an Engine
Remove the transmission from my track car
Flock the dash ?
Replace seals and timing belt on the Engine
Build a Rotisserie !!!
etc

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/r.jpg

[Daniel B]

Help me choose an engine:

http://www.dirtyimpreza.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10146

[DonKennedy]

Not to spoil any ones project or rain on them, but from the experience of someone else, to help the next guy that decides to build a rally car, IMHO, all that body striping is a waste of time unless you have absolutely nothing else to do and are not in a hurry to get out on the stages. I’ve been involved with the sport for 29 years. Have helped build and co-drove a Loyale for 4 years and a Legacy for 6 years. Built and drove my own 1st gen Impreza for 6 years until I had an accident that required me to re-shell it. Built the second Impreza and rolled it 3 or 4 times last year after 2 years and totally destroyed it and am now building my 3rd Impreza. We have never stripped any undercoating or sound deading material (it will mostly come off on its own after a couple of events). Until the second Impreza we have never done any seam welding (Subarus are built tough) and have never had any issues because of it. On my last 2 cars I’ve started to seam weld the areas around the strut towers which is what takes the worst beating. So the seam welding is mostly unnecessary on a Subaru. And how much weight are you going to save taking off the undercoating and sound deading material? It’s not going to matter out on the stage. What’s going to matter is your driving ability. And how will you feel if after putting all this time into the body and you roll and total it on the first or second event (you wouldn’t be the first to do that)? This is not a show car you’re building (unless you’re SRTUSA). Just My $.02. Flame away (ask on SS what experienced people think of what I’m saying if you don’t believe me). Good luck with your adventure.

[409industries]

Was it like this one?
http://www.snapon.com/international/21pdffiles/pt280thug.pdf


Yep thats the one.

I agree with what Don said about the undercoating. It is very time consuming and gravel will probably do a good job of ripping it all off anyway, if its left on. However, i have heard from quite a few people that seam welding is never a BAD idea. If you are fortunate to not wad the car up your first event, or few events... the seam welding will help the shell stay stiffer, longer.

No matter what you do, if you're building a car yourself there will be tons of hours put into it and a bond between you and the project is going to form. Its impossible to stay detached from the car emotionally, so if it IS wrecked on its first rally its going to be devastating, no matter how OK you THINK you are with writing the car off.

[Daniel B]

IMHO, all that body striping is a waste of time
IMHO, not doing the job right is a "waste of time".

This thread is not a tutorial... If anybody wants to learn how to build a GC Impreza in the quickest, cheapest way, BUY RANDY ZIMMER'S BOOK.

I enjoy building cars JUST AS MUCH as driving them.

We have never stripped any undercoating or sound deading material
I left some sound deadening in a track car once, the car got hot in the sun and the sound deadening stuck to my helmet bag, my feet, and anything else it touched. I left it on in a rally-x car once, the car got cold in the winter and the sound deadening shattered. I drove home with dozens of coin size tar triangles at my feet. I try to learn from my mistakes.

Undercoating lifts and bubles around seams, creating the perfect environment for rust.

I am using a high build epoxy paint in an attempt to create a surface less likely to suffer from erosion. When it erodes, a new coat can be applied. It will adhear to itself quite well. I've had no luck getting paint to stick to the partially eroded undercoating. The epoxy paint is white. If you've ever spent any time at night, working under a shell that is painted white you'd understand the benefit. The same goes inside a wheel arch.

the seam welding is mostly unnecessary on a Subaru.
Why take chances? Because it's easier not to do it? That's just not my style.

The main reason I seam welded (my first) car was to learn how to weld. The FACT :waving:that the shell is safer, is cool a bonus.

And how much weight are you going to save taking off the undercoating and sound deading material?
That was never a goal or a concern. ;)

And how will you feel if after putting all this time into the body and you roll and total it on the first or second event [...] ?
Probably like everyone else who destroys a labour of love - TERRIBLE!

This is not a show car you’re building
Do you know the name of the forum you just signed up for? :FU:

ask on SS what experienced people think of what I’m saying if you don’t believe me
You no doubt found this thread because of a question I asked on SS.

When I have a question to ask, I ask it. I make descisions based on my best judgment of the facts and oppinions I collect. I have a very skilled group of racers I'm proud to call friends. When they can't answer a question of mine, or when I would like more oppinions, I ask everywhere I can. If I haven't asked, chances are I've made my descision, or I'm in the process of gathering more information.

Daniel B

[409industries]

This thread is not a tutorial... If anybody wants to learn how to build a GC Impreza in the quickest, cheapest way, BUY RANDY ZIMMER'S BOOK.


I have his book. BTW did you know his car is for sale? Its on SpecialStage.

and yes. his book is worth the $ :)

[Daniel B]

I have his book. BTW did you know his car is for sale? Its on SpecialStage.

I'm not so interested in the car, but the spare package would probably be awsome!

[HeathyVT]

A passion of subie love right there! The shell looks great, the amount of time put into it will pay off in the end.

[Jordanh]

i'm a little curious on your choice of mud flaps. what are the benefits of this design of flap over a basic design like rally armor flaps. ive been curious about this for a while. i've seen this style on a few cars, mostly being evos.

[Daniel B]

what are the benefits of this design of flap over a basic design like rally armor flaps.

I've got a couple reasons for choosing a design like this. I should say first though, the design has allready changed a bit, and when I'm done, although similar to what I've sketched out, it will look very different... ;)

First: Tire clearance. I have had mudflaps rip off plenty of times (in my car and others). It happens more frequently in the snow (and mud). Either snow accumulates behind the flap, pushing it toward the Tire, or sliding into a ditch or through a ditch can push the flap into the Tire. This design moves the flap almos 2 inches further back from the tire.

Also, The wheel arch (in the rear mostly) is actually a half moon shape. That means that the outer edge of the flap is pushed toward the tire (if you fasten to the OEM sheet metal). The design I'm using allows for the outer edge of the mudflap to point directly out from the car - less flap, doing more work.

Second: This Is related to the first reason. I've never liked anything accumulating... Like the mud or snow behind the flap. So, with this design there is less space for debris to become trapped behind the mudflap.

Third: This is related to the second reason. I HATE RUST! Erosion leads to rust (among other things). Having the flap tucked in tightly to the sheet metal, should protect the metal better.

Fourth: Having the outer portion of the mudflap attached to the bumper skin makes it more accessable for repair or replacement - I don't like fidling with little clips and fastners in tight spaces.

Generally speaking... I stood back and looked at the car before I started work on the mudflaps. I wanted the mudflaps to do three things: protect spectators and workers, protect my car (wheelwells and underside), and (this has the most to do with the design) I wanted them to eject the gravel and mud away from my car... Traditional mudflap designs cup the gravel and deposit it back into the wheelwell or directly below the wheelwell. The gravel bouces around and sprays out wherever it can. I want the gravel to escape from my wheelwells with as little violence as possible. having the modflap further back from the tire and as parallel to the tire tread as possible was the best way I could think of to accomplish my goal.

[Jordanh]

i appreciate you taking the time to fill me in on all of that!

oh, and any updates on that cage yet:lick:

[Daniel B]

i appreciate you taking the time to fill me in on all of that!

NO PROBLEM!

oh, and any updates on that cage yet:lick:

No work has been done on the cage. I met with my cage builder yesterday, there should be some cage pictures in two or three weeks. But... There has been alot of behind the scenes progress - ALOT.

Things are happening in the engine department... :twisted: (pictures to come shortly)

And the wheels department. Alot of local teams (including the one I co-drive for) have had good luck with certain OEM Subaru rims. I've been driving all over the place in the past couple weeks to track these things down. I'll be driving 5 hours tommorow for a set of four. But, at ~$100 to $150 a set, they meet my needs! :lol: (pictures to come shortly)

Spare parts have been slowly accumulating. I've scrapped a couple cars in the past 3 years and I finally took the time to sort through all parts, and box and label them. (see pictures)

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a1.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a2.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a4.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a5.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a6.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a7.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a8.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/a9.jpg

The shell will NOT be complete once the cage is in... I have one more set of goodies :tongue: (see pictures below). I allready have an engine stand :mrgreen: but... I bought two more the other day... what for.... :headbang:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b1-2.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b3-2.jpg

I've also ~started~ to dismantle my spare shell.

EDIT: This post is still in progress...

[Daniel B]

Here it goes...

5 years ago, I had no idea how to work on a car. I had just bought my first Subaru, a beautiful 1996 Impreza Outback Sport. The car only had 10,000 miles and soon become my pride and joy! I lived on a farm at the time and 3 months after buying the car I center punched a tree at the side of my driveway thinking I was Petter Solberg :oops:. I spent alot of money I didn't have to fix that poor car.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/96.jpg

At the time, my wife to be, Sara (She's awsome by the way) was driving a 1991 VW Cabriolete. It was a fun car but we were both worried about her safty in the winter driving such a small car. So... she sold the VW and took my (very proffessionally $$$) fixed up Impreza as her new car. I went out and found a mechanically sound 1997 Impreza Outback Sport - Manual Transmission! The car was in excellent shape but had many, many more miles than the first one (and was worth less $$$).

In November of that year (2004), I attended my first rally - The Rally of the Tall Pines. I was hooked. I was 100% addicted to rally. I did not know the first thing about rally cars - I mean NOTHING. I'll admit, I even called the local prep shops and told them that I wanted a cage. I didn't know for what series (they asked) or by what event (all I knew of was Tall Pines) and I wanted to keep the car as a daily driver... Needless to say. The shops never called me back. I didn't get discouraged though. I read everything I could online, asked all the nOOB questions, and tried my best to figure out anything and everything about this awsome sport.

In May 2005, sitting at my desk for lunch I stumbled upon the Maple Leaf Rally Club (MLRC) forum and I found out about RallyX. I signed up for the next event. It was more fun than I could have expected. Everyone was so friendly. I'm pretty sure I came in last in class :D but I couldn't wait for the next event.

Well, 5 days before the next RallyX I drove through a deep puddle and blew my starter. I called one of the local Subaru shops and they said they were too busy to fit me in, but that I should try it on my own. This freaked me out! Other than changing tires, I'd only done an oil change (once). I was making plans with Sara for us to take two cars to the event - hers to bump-start mine, and mine to compete :crazy:. A day later I bit the bullet and bought a starter from the local part store. I also bought a Haynes Repair Manual (FTW!). On friday night I did my first repair on a car - EVER! That was August 2005. We made the event that weekend and I placed in the middle of my class.

The RallyX events in my area were one month apart. When I had replaced my starter I noticed that I had a tear in my CV boot and in the boot on my tie-rod end. Feeling all hyped up from the starter replacement :headbang:I decided to replace the CV and tie-rod end. It went well. The next (and final for the year) RallyX was in September. I took first place in my class :mrgreen:...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/97green.jpg

That's where thing's really got going. After that event I stuck around and met a few new people. I found out about TSD rallys and it was suggested that I volunteer at the next Tall Pines Rally instead of spectate. Sara and I volunteered that year and finally saw what a rally was all about! We also ran the Ontario Winter Rally (OWR) that year. The OWR was a TSD run overnight at "brisk" speeds on many of the roads used for Tall Pines. It was the first time my wife got a chance to really participate as a co-driver, she was absolutly hooked!

The next RallyX season was bitter-sweet. It was a championship format. Your best scores from 3 of the four events would be calculated at the end of the year. I had a great runs at the first three events. I won my class at all three and in doing so, I secured the championship. On October 7th, a few weeks before the last RallyX event, there was a "Test and Tune" day at a new facility. I was having a blast all day, the track was awsome. In the afternoon we started running the track backwards. On my first run through - I was runing it on memory - I cut a turn too much (at a pretty good speed :shock:) and I cliped a tire (that was used to mark the edge of the track) with my inside front tire. The car rolled. I can still remember being upside down, we were still rolling, and Sara was shouting "I'm OKAY!". We had a deal. We had discussed the possibility of a crash many times before and we both agreed, nothing matters other than our safety so the first thing is that we tell each other if we are okay. She did :crazy: and she STILL can't wait to get out on the stages with me.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/roll.jpg

The car was toast and I started looking for another one immediately. I found one with a Rally history. It was a 1997 Impreza L. It was bought as a RallyX/TSD toy. It also served as the 99 car (stage closing car) in a few local rallies. It has been beat up a little. Before I bought it, it met with a snowbank at the OWR and the airbags went off. So the dash needed to be replaced so I could safety it and the front end looked a little crooked :?.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/223_2008_05_24_4263.jpg

I converted it to a track toy and spent the next year learning how to go quick on road courses. All the while I was learning to work on cars. I learned how to work on suspensions and brakes and a little bit about bodywork.

In an attempt to save some money on gas and insurance (I was driving ~200km a day to work and back) I bought a 1994 FWD 1.8l Impreza L. This car was boiught with the intention of turning it into a rally car!

In the fall of 2007 I went to TARGA as part of a service crew for two Subaru's. When I came home I made up my mind. I was time to get serious about building a stage rally car. A couple weeks after I got home from TARGA, one of the other crew members, another Subaru nut named Nuwan, sent me an e-mail. He had built his own Legacy Trubo rally car a couple years earlier and he was looking for a Co-Driver for Tall Pines 2007. I said something like "HellsYeah" and a couple weeks later I was strapped into the silly seat having the best ride of my life. I've been Co-Driving for him ever since.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/IMG_0124-1.jpg

In early 2008 My wife and I bought our first house. It had a one car garage :headbang:. And I had a plan. I decided that the first car to go in the garage would be my Rally car. At that point, I hadn't competed on the loose stuff in many months. I figured that I'd better get back out and see if I could still drive. So, I converted the Track Toy over to RallyX Toy and went out to the first RallyX of the season. I took first in class and third overall that day. A week later, I took the Track Toy off the road and put it in storage.

From then on there has been no real compeditive driving. All the money and time I can spare goes toward Co-Driving, or building my car. Six months after I parked my Track Track toy, this journal begins...

[Slim]

Great introduction. It's always fun to read the stories that leads everyone to this niche motorsport. Good luck with the build!

-Slim

[Daniel B]

Well, for some reason it seems that the Stage Rally Gods don't want me out there just yet. My cage builder is taking his sweet time with my car. It's a really crappy feeling! It's sort of a trade off; I want a cage built by this particular builder, but he takes his time and the line of customers is out the door and down the road... (I'm trying my best to be patient :?)

I've been collecting neccesary parts for the build (and some not so neccessary ones as well). I needed a set of rear hubs, gas tank, rear dif t-bar, and others for the AWD conversion. I've tracked 95% of the parts down. And, anything else I can alwasy strip from my track car/rallyX toy.

Speaking of the track car/rallyX toy, it has a lot of the parts I'll be using. The most important of which is the transmission. I spent some time last weekend pulling the engine and transmission. The engine is most likely shot and I needed the STi engine mounts, clutch, flywheel, and WRX pitch-stop anyway, so out it came. It felt good to be working on one of my cars again! It's been too long.

Also, I've bought two SOHC EJ25 blocks from 2002 TS wagons. I've got the engines and ECU as well as the other parts. But, I'm missing a wiring harness. If anybody has a harness to run a SOHC EJ25, please let me know, I'm sure we can work something out. If I can't find a harness, I'm just going to run the 1.8l for a while.

I hope to be updating with some cage pictures soon! The Tall Pines Rally is only 4 months from today and I have LOTS to do on the car :unamused:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/r1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/r3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/r4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/r5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/r6.jpg

[Daniel B]

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture192.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture153.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture190.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture172.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture176.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture175.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture168.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture201.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture185.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture166.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture147.jpg

[daywalker007]

...finally lol

[Daniel B]

...finally lol

I could not have said it better! :mrgreen:

[kturner]

...finally lol

what he said.

Looks good. A few more gussets and it should be ready to go right?
The whole a-pillar section is a little different then what I am used to seeing.... but I'm not a scrutineer.

awesome

[Daniel B]

what he said.

Looks good. A few more gussets and it should be ready to go right?

Sort of... I was at my cage builders shop last night for a couple hours, we were fitting the seats and discussing some of the smaller details (mainly gussets).

He has offered my some free 'extras' for my car because it has taken so long. So, the car will most likely be there for a few more days. I'm hoping to get it home by this weekend... :headbang:

The whole a-pillar section is a little different then what I am used to seeing.... but I'm not a scrutineer.

awesome
Actually, it's not all that different from the JR design:
http://lh5.ggpht.com/subyspawn/SH7sPUjNefI/AAAAAAAAB5U/sSUkRuy4kZU/s800/IMG_0867.JPG

My cage builder has been doing that way - although a bit more pronounced - for almost 10 years:
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/robcageroof2.jpg

For my cage, we have reversed the position of the widshield support tube, so that I'm in compliance of the rule requiring that the a-pillar support intersects the front half-lateral no more than four inches from the windshield support tube. In my case, the intersection is at the same spot:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture185.jpg

[Daniel B]

Oh, and the car looks soooooo sexy now. The cage has been welded directly to the shell in a dozen or so spots, the dash tube is in, the through-firewall supports are in and a few other little things. Pictures to come on tuesday... :muhaha:

[kturner]

ok, I like the design, it's just different than what I've seen before. again the car looks good. glad to see that it is going to finally come home.

too early to ask about the first event?

[Daniel B]

too early to ask about the first event?

I'm aiming for a spring event. I'd love to make it out to Pierce-Niege. It's a true winter event at the beggining of February. But, it would be more expensive than one of the one day local events later in the year. either way, I'd like to have the car ready before the snow melts.

[Broken Motorsports]

Congrats!!!!

[Daniel B]

I love it! Every time I open the garage, all I smell is freshly welded metal :D

I'll keep it short today. I'm waiting to get this car logbooked (I'm nervous right now). When that's done, I'll have a serious write-up.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture014.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture025.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture027.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture045.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture032.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture047.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture048.jpg

[carl]

pics blocked at work, but i imagine it looks great!

[Daniel B]

Well... The car is Logbooked!

It took just over 8 months and the shell spent 4 months and a day at the cage builders... :-(

But, She's back in my hands - the rest is up to me. I couldn't be happier!

I don't recommend that you copy this cage design without talking to your scrutineer first, but here are some up-close pictures of the cage:

The roof bars...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture107.jpg

Rear view...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture091.jpg

A-Pillar tie-ins...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture097.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture112.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture141.jpg

B-Pillar welded to the Half-Lateral support tube...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture098.jpg

Half-Lateral tucked in close to the A-Pillar...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture100.jpg

Door 'x' gussets...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture114.jpg

Upper door-bar tied to B-Pillar...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture131.jpg

Through firewall 'x'...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture132.jpg

Half-Lateral to front strut tower (through firewall)...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture136.jpg

Front strut tower...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture160.jpg

Rear shock towers...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture147.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture149.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture150.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture153.jpg

Logbook!
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture082.jpg

Budda Frog!
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/Budda-Book.jpg

[Rallycat66]

Just out of curiosity, what elements of the cage design did the scrutineer balk over?

[Daniel B]

Just out of curiosity, what elements of the cage design did the scrutineer balk over?

NONE!

My scrutineer had no problems at all.

Another RA scutineer (after seeing pictures) had an issue with the windshield bar area.

[Carl S]

I would think that this is the part of the FIA regs that could cast doubt on that design:
"In order to build the safety cage, the connections of the transversal
members to the lateral rollbars, the connections of the longitudinal
members to the front and main rollbars, as well as the connection
of a semi-lateral rollbar to the main rollbar must be situated at the
roof level."

The windshield bar is called a transverse member in fia speak.

The only thing I dont like are the ground-down welds on the door bar gussets. Grinding down welds is usually a no-no when strength is required. But I'm no scroot'neer.

But congrats on getting your logbook! Now get the rest of it together and get out on the stages!

[jmc94gsx]

Daniel B. -nice job!

[Daniel B]

So I had a couple hours to get going with the car. I spent some time setting the seats and harnesses up so they fit 'just right'. My goodness... I took some time to figure out how to make accurate adjustments to the sub-straps! The looping of the harnesses is very involving :oops: (lol) but I got it all figured out.

Now I'm starting to figure out where all the little things need to still be welded to the shell. I want to get all of the welding done before I paint. I know I'll forget something, or I'll need to change something, but this should be easier.

In another couple days I'll be stipping the shell bare againg and starting on the 'bobins'... :muhaha:

Pin Stands:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture194.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture196.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture200.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture202.jpg

Seat positioned and Harnesses sized, they're removed again, but they're ready when the time comes for final assembly...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture205.jpg

I'm planing to mount the extinguishers in front of the Driver's and Co-Driver's seats. If anyone has pictures of where and how they mounted theirs, I'd be interested in seeing them...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture209.jpg

[kturner]

looking good!

my extinguisher is mounted in the same place on the drivers side. The other is forward of the spare wheel well in the trunk; allows for access from the trunk and possibly the back seat.

what type of jack are you using? (the one with the michelin sticker)

[subyspawn]

It is not recommended that the fire ext is installed in the drivers foot well (or anything for that matter), if you take a rock under that thing and it comes loose you don't want that between your brake pedal and firewall.

They might give you grief at tech.

just passing on someone's advice to me. :)

[Daniel B]

what type of jack are you using? (the one with the michelin sticker)

I got it on sale, with a pair of jackstands for about $80 (I think). Back before I had an engine hoist, I used a pair of the jacks to lift the front of my cars OVER the engine, so I could slide the engine out... :mrgreen: The jack says 21" lift, but I think its just a little over 19". Whatever it is, it's just tall enough to get the car on the pinstands.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/mjack.jpg

[Daniel B]

It is not recommended that the fire ext is installed in the drivers foot well (or anything for that matter) [...]
They might give you grief at tech.

just passing on someone's advice to me. :)

Thanks, I'll keep it away from there. One less thing to worry about at tech.

[Daniel B]

So Last night I stripped the shell bare again. It feels good to be looking at a clean slate.

Today I got started on the 'bobbins' - These guys:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/b1-2.jpg

There are a few captured nuts on the chassis that were not used when the car was FWD. Some of them (that I need now) are rusted and rotted beyond a simple tap repair. So... I'm installing bobbins. I've got a set for the entire car although I'm not sure I'll use all of them (24 in total).

Here's how it works. You find a nut that you want to replace with a bobbin and you drive a spike into it to mark the floor above it.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture005.jpg

Then you drill a small hole and make it bigger. I'm doing it that way so I can ensure that the hole is directly above the nut.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture001.jpg

Then you bank the spike through the hole.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture003.jpg

Then using holesaw, you drill out two holes.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture008.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture009.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture006.jpg

Test fitting the bobbin:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture012.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture010.jpg

Final welding:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture020.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture034.jpg

And, I wasn't going to share this :oops: I haven't welded in months :oops: and the first thing I did was blow two BIG holes in the floor :crazy: so the welds you see here are filling those holes and are a result of me forgeting how to set the welder :mrgreen: ... Look, silver bubblegum! :oops: (I got it figured out later)

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture046.jpg

And this is what I was replacing:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture043.jpg

[WRX2FFU]

Awesome!

Yeah, I have a love hate relationship with welding and subaru sheet metal.

I always forget to turn my settings down for the subaru... :)

[Daniel B]

Well the first full set of bobbins is complete. The ones I need to replace due to rust are: Rear Sub-Frame (4), DriveShaft Bearing Bracket (2). But, Because these add so much strength to the mounting points, I'm tempted to do some others. I have bobbins to do the front LCA rear mounts (4), trailing arm mounts (6), and the dif. carrier (2). We'll see. Right now I'm virtualy broke :roll: so I have some time to do some fab work while I let the funds recouperate.

Here's what they look like in the shell:
(before grinding)
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture003-1.jpg

(after grinding)
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture035.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture037.jpg

Here's what they look like under the car:

I'm really proud of these welds :mrgreen:. I had a terrible time learning to weld under the car when I was seam welding. But this was allot better. if only it went so smoothly in the shell :roll:.

(before grinding)
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture027-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture023.jpg

(after grinding)
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture039.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture044.jpg

[Daniel B]

Here's my list of things to do before I paint the shell:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture058.jpg

I'm trying to figure out what welding/fabrication I have to do:

- 2 or 3 Fire Extinguishers
- Jack
- Lug Wrench
- Spare Tire
- Bags behind seats (for warmer clothes/jacket/snacks/etc...)
- Brake Lines (some way to mount them)
- Fuel Lines (some way to mount them)
- UHMW Underside Protection (weldnuts)
- UHMW Wheel Arch (weldnuts)
- Mud Flaps
- Skid Plate
- Rad Support Tube
- T-Bar Doublers (the plates that attach the rockers to the dif carrier, my mounting oints are rusted out)
- Jacking points (I want to strengthen the rockers a bit)
- Tow hooks/bumper beams (making new ones)
- Wire Harness under fender (trying to figure out how to protect it)
- Tool Kit
- Hydro Handbrake/Proportioning valve mounts (for future use)
- Co-Driver's footrest
- Gas tank skid plate
- Bumper skin mounts
- Tow strap


So, what am I missing?

[rollo]

Battery mount, assuming you're relocating it?

[Daniel B]

Battery mount, assuming you're relocating it?

Forgot about that!

I'm on the fence about it, but I'll probably end up doing it...

[Jard]

Most teams that I've been hanging out with these days carry a battery-operated impact with them on the stages. It is really nice if your jack bolt and your lug nuts are the same size. When you have a puncture, you put the jack under the car, jack it up with the impact and then go straight to your lug nuts without having to change a socket.

Tow Straps:
http://www.offroaders.com/tech/Tow_Straps.htm
Most rally cars I've seen are going to need a tow strap with a hook on at least 1 end. Make sure that your tow strap has hooks with the little safety catches, like the one pictured there. We had to yank something on stage and had a ton of trouble getting our strap to stay on since it just had hooks and no catches.

[Jard]

Does CARS use the smaller size road book or the full size road book? The NASA events on the east coast here are starting to all use the smaller size road book (same size as the time card, just more pages). It's nice as a co-driver to have a place within reach to put the time card and road book while you are on stage. A little pocket on the door? A little pocket/bin under the dash (saw a car this weekend with this)?

Talk to your co-driver!

[rollo]

Some other very random thoughts:

Light bar/light bar mount points
Roof vent(s)
Intercom mount (? don't know if that's a thing or not really)
Door skins
Safety triangle
Maglights

Probably someone who has actually built a rally car would be better equipped to answer this question than someone who just hangs around them a lot :D

[rollo]

Most teams that I've been hanging out with these days carry a battery-operated impact with them on the stages. It is really nice if your jack bolt and your lug nuts are the same size. When you have a puncture, you put the jack under the car, jack it up with the impact and then go straight to your lug nuts without having to change a socket.

+1

Saw Keith doing that with the scissor jack at Gorman, very cool idea.

[Jard]

Intercom mount (? don't know if that's a thing or not really)


Usually attached to the roll cage bar between the seats behind driver and co-driver. It's nice if you can reach it while strapped in in case you have to adjust volume.


Door skins


Good call...need to do something even if it's hacking up your stock door skins to make the bars fit. You'll probably feel like you have more room in the car if you fab up "skins."


Safety triangle


1 needs to be within reach for the co-driver. Most cars I've been in have them attached to door bars of roll cage.


Maglights


You mean co-driver map light?

[rollo]

You mean co-driver map light?

No, although I thought of that too. I mean literally flash lights - he has a jack in the list so it seemed pretty comprehensive, and it's not a bad idea to have a couple of maglights mounted somewhere easy to reach.

[Jard]

No, although I thought of that too. I mean literally flash lights - he has a jack in the list so it seemed pretty comprehensive, and it's not a bad idea to have a couple of maglights mounted somewhere easy to reach.

Yeah, I carry a mini mag in my co-driver bag. Head lamps are also a great idea for things to carry in a tool box in a car.

[Daniel B]

Most teams that I've been hanging out with these days carry a battery-operated impact with them on the stages. It is really nice if your jack bolt and your lug nuts are the same size. When you have a puncture, you put the jack under the car, jack it up with the impact and then go straight to your lug nuts without having to change a socket.

Good call, but right now I can think of other ways to spend the money. I don't want to get a cheap gun, I'm going to get a Dewalt HD when the time comes. In the mean time, it's a lug wrench for me.

Tow Straps:
http://www.offroaders.com/tech/Tow_Straps.htm
Most rally cars I've seen are going to need a tow strap with a hook on at least 1 end. Make sure that your tow strap has hooks with the little safety catches, like the one pictured there. We had to yank something on stage and had a ton of trouble getting our strap to stay on since it just had hooks and no catches.

I'm a farm boy at heart (lived on a tree farm for years) and I've gotten all the motorized eqipment you can imagine stuck in the wort kind of ways. Jard, your piont about the safty catches is extremly important. It can be down right dangerous without one. In a pinch Ive used electrical tape to keep hooks from slipping. If the catch gets sideloaded it can/will bend.

[Jard]

Good call, but right now I can think of other ways to spend the money. I don't want to get a cheap gun, I'm going to get a Dewalt HD when the time comes. In the mean time, it's a lug wrench for me.


Yep, it's certainly a "nice to have" setup. Ideally, you keep 1 in the car, 1 in the service rig and have 3 batteries so something is always charged.

We don't all have that luxury though ($$$$).

Keep up the great work...this thread keeps me inspired.

[Daniel B]

Does CARS use the smaller size road book or the full size road book? The NASA events on the east coast here are starting to all use the smaller size road book (same size as the time card, just more pages).

All of the CARS events I've co-driven in (that had organizer supplied notes) had the full page routebooks and stage note books. (8.5" x 11")

It's nice as a co-driver to have a place within reach to put the time card and road book while you are on stage. A little pocket on the door? A little pocket/bin under the dash (saw a car this weekend with this)?

The car I co-drive for has a stretchy net (bungee chord material) the size of a file folder attached to the doorbars - I LOVE IT! I'll do something similair to my car.

Talk to your co-driver!

Seeing as how my wife will be Co-Driving most of the time, that's easy! :mrgreen:

[Jard]

The car I co-drive for has a stretchy net (bungee chord material) the size of a file folder attached to the doorbars - I LOVE IT! I'll do something similair to my car.


I guess I didn't realize you were already co-driving. Awesome!

I should have known since you seem much smarter than just a driver (any monkey can push pedals and turn the wheel). ;)

[Daniel B]

Some other very random thoughts:

Light bar/light bar mount points After paint - Hood Pods FTW! Although... Foglights...
Roof vent(s) After paint (except a bit of touch-up to prevent rust)
Intercom mount (? don't know if that's a thing or not really) Yup, that's a thing. I'm going to mount mine with clamps to the cage.
Door skins I'm going to try and keep the UGLY doorskins. I like that they are designed with impact protection in mind.
Safety triangle Strapped to the cage.
Maglights Flashlight? If so, I'll have two bicycle tool bags (they are made for attaching to tubing) in the car, attached to the roll cage. each will have a flashlight. Maplight? If so, good call. That ~may~ require welding...

someone who has actually built a rally car would be better equipped to answer this question than someone who just hangs around them a lot :D

Nope! Between you and Jard, we're getting somewhere...

[Daniel B]

+1

Saw Keith doing that with the scissor jack at Gorman, very cool idea.

I've said it before and I'll say it again... If you weld a nut onto a Subaru scissor jack, keep an eye on the worm gear (threaded thingy in the middle). When it starts to wear out, it wears out fast! Like one or two more tire changes arter you notice play. At that point the worm gear jumping around all over the place makes your impact wrench work double or tripple duty. It takes forever to get the car up!

I was holding the triangle while my driver was changing a tire last year. I was up a hill and around a corner and I could hear the impact wrench going and going and going... I thought there was a serious problem (dead battery or siezed nut) but it was just that the jack was worn out. He's got a pretty heavy duty impact gun though, so that may have contributed to the wear and tear...

[Daniel B]

I should have known since you seem much smarter than just a driver (any monkey can push pedals and turn the wheel). ;)

:twisted:

[Broken Motorsports]

(any monkey can push pedals and turn the wheel). ;)

hahah so true.

im a monkey!

[kturner]

- Jack - use the pin jacks and get a pin jack for a Mercedes or old Bug
- Brake Lines (some way to mount them)
- Fuel Lines (some way to mount them)- search Cable Tie Holders on Mcmaster
- Jacking points (I want to strengthen the rockers a bit) - I welded a 3/4" square tube to the rockers, lets you jack from anywhere

the build is still looking good. I would go ahead and paint the shell now. the list looks to me alot like finishing work rather than initial prep. once its painted -> reassembly -> rally!!!

[Daniel B]

- Jack - use the pin jacks and get a pin jack for a Mercedes or old Bug
I'm a 'what-if' kinda guy, so... what if I hit something, smash the rocker before flating a rear tire and can't use the socket?
- Jacking points (I want to strengthen the rockers a bit) - I welded a 3/4" square tube to the rockers, lets you jack from anywhere
I like this idea! I was thinking about doing something like that, but leaving access to the (reinforced) pinch seams on the bottom of the rocker. Or, creating a "U" bracket that fits on the OEM jack allowing it to grab the tubing. How did you weld it? Inside or outside of the pinch seam? flat to the rocker?
- Brake Lines (some way to mount them)
- Fuel Lines (some way to mount them)- search Cable Tie Holders on Mcmaster
Awsome! :headbang:I forgot about those things. I have a box in the basement somewhere, leftovers from when I was redoing the wiring on my friends boat.

once its painted -> reassembly -> rally!!!

Very Motivating!

[Daniel B]

I think I 'what-if' too much...

once its painted -> reassembly -> rally!!! :headbang:

[kturner]

but if you've hit something hard enough to smash the rocker and the pin jack point you wouldn't have a rocker left to use a scissor jack on.... carry a hi-lift?

I think I 'what-if' too much...


hadn't noticed :crazy:
I do the same thing though. then I try to put improvements and fab choices into "need" and "like to haves" along with "reasonable" and "the bestest solution eva!"... maybe after the next race. because something else is going to break. I am a huge proponent of the K.I.S.S. philosophy.

[Daniel B]

When my cage builder fit our seats, he let me get a little TOO comfortable. I'm a big guy, and I wanted some clearance between myself and the cage. We found that for me to be most comfortable, the transmission tunnel would need some 'work'. Well, when my cage builder cut into the transmission tunnel like this:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture009-1.jpg

He went a little too far, just a little, but too far none the less.

Bonus points if you can figure out what is supposed to bolt in here here:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture003-2.jpg






The driveshaft bearing is supposed to bolt in there, but it doesn't fit :cry:

So... :mrgreen: time to play with the welder:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture027-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture019.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture034-1.jpg

I've now installed half (5 of 10) of the bobbins needed to run AWD in this chassis. I'm getting there :eek:

[Jard]

That makes me happy that my shell is AWD to begin with. At least it will be a simple replacement if I do bobbins.

[Daniel B]

At least it will be a simple replacement if I do bobbins.

:shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

Starting with an AWD drive chassis is a plus, for sure. But a rust free chassis would be even better!

[Broken Motorsports]

both FWD and AWD chassis have all the holes needed to be either.

Rust free would be nice!!! Cali/texas cars FTW!

[Daniel B]

I remember reading a thread a couple years ago about a guy in California that replaced his front LCA (10 year old Impreza) in the middle of January, in his driveway, using nothing but open-end wrenches...

(NO FAIR)

Salted roads SUCK!

[Daniel B]

I got one fire extinguisher mounted, sorted out the spare tire mounting, and finished the bobbins.



Fire extinguisher:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8134.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8159.jpg

Thanks to a welding tip from SoCalBoomer, I feel comfortable with welding the fire extinguisher to the floor :waving:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8154.jpg

I didn't want the mounting bolts exposed under the car. So I cut three sided boxes in the floor under the mounting holes and made some (very crude) minature skid plate boxes.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8136.jpg


I forgot to take pictures of the rear sub-frame bobbins from under the car. But here they are in the trunk with the spare tire mounting hardware. I'm going to use an old bolt in 4-point harness to hold the spare tire down. It's click together and easily adjustable.

plates for bolting the harness to the trunk floor:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8126.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8129.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8145.jpg

:)I'm getting a hold on this welding thing:)
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8151.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8146.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8147.jpg

Rear sub-frame bobbins sticking into the trunk:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8143.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8142.jpg

[Daniel B]

At least it will be a simple replacement if I do bobbins.

Jard, I do have to say; If I was comfortable with welding, the bobbins would be a very straighforward process. The rear subframe bobbins took a while to get just right, but they went smoooooothly...

[Daniel B]

- Jack - use the pin jacks and get a pin jack for a Mercedes or old Bug

Kevin, do you have one of those jacks? If so, how do you like it? And, what's the diameter of the pin?

once its painted -> reassembly -> rally!!!

^^^Inspired by that, I'm not doing any more bobbins. I've done the ones I had to - I'm done with them (for a while at least).

[kturner]

Kevin, do you have one of those jacks? If so, how do you like it? And, what's the diameter of the pin?


I have one from an mid 90's Merc E320 or something. It has a 3/4" dia and lifts to about 17.5"

it works fine. a little slow though. could do the welded nut thing. I carry a piece of 3/4" ply to go under the foot that is cut to fit inside the spare rim.

very similar to this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MERCEDES-BENZ-CAR-JACK-C-CLASS-E-CLASS-no-resereve_W0QQitemZ150378713696QQcmdZViewItemQQptZM otors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories?hash=item2303451 260

[rollo]

I remember reading a thread a couple years ago about a guy in California that replaced his front LCA (10 year old Impreza) in the middle of January, in his driveway, using nothing but open-end wrenches...

(NO FAIR)

Salted roads SUCK!

Wow... not a torque wrench even? :crazy: Do you remember his SN, I wanna make sure I never get in his car :D

But yeah. Desert states cars FTW. That's one thing about my VW, it's never lived anywhere but down here, so there's just a single tiny patch of rust on it despite it being >20 years old. You still fight bolts but it's nothing like salted roads bolts.

Car is coming together nicely... the idea of using the old belts for the spare is pretty ingenious, be interesting to see that when it's complete.

[Daniel B]

Car is coming together nicely... the idea of using the old belts for the spare is pretty ingenious, be interesting to see that when it's complete.

That's not really my idea. I read on another forum about a couple people using 2-point belts from older cars. I just progressed it to 4-point. And, to be honest, I'm not 100% sure I'll like it. If you notice, I welded the bolt plates in non-symetrically. I was figuring that if I don't like the 4-points, I'll just use a ratchet strap triangulated between three bolt plates.

But, I hope it works :D

[Daniel B]

I thought these were cool so I'm including a picture. They are weldnuts, and they are what I used for the fire extinguisher mounting bolts and what I'll use to mount the underbody protection. You just weld them to anything and BANG, threaded hole :mrgreen:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture197.jpg

And here's a picture of one of the rear sub-frame mounting bobbins (no reason other than I have one):

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture202-1.jpg

[Daniel B]

So I was having fun making and welding the mounting plates to the trunk floor... So I made four more. Now I have 'Tool Kit' and 'First Aid Kit' mounts crossed off on my list.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture237.jpg

Okay... You'll need your imagination for this.
The Purple Box represents the Tool Kit and the Green Box represents the First Aid Kit. The Yellow Lines represent the tie-down straps. I'll use ratchet's represented by the Blue Circles to keep everything secure. :crazy:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture237b.jpg

[Daniel B]

The list is getting smaller! :headbang:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cPicture247.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/terp.jpg

Second Fire extinguisher will most likely will be mounted like this:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture217.jpg

Done:
- 2 Fire Extinguishers
- Spare Tire
- Tool Kit
- First Aid Kit

Still To-Do:
- Jack – Probably the OEM one for now in the OEM location just with some extra support/safety welded in
- Lug Wrench – pending decision
- UHMW Underside Protection – Lots of weldnuts
- Front Mud Flaps – mount on rocker and support for fender
- Skid Plate Support Tube – This may wait until after paint
- Rad Support Tube - This may wait until after paint
- Jacking points (I want to strengthen the rockers a bit) – I think I’m going to use KTurner’s square tubing idea
- Proportioning valve mount – should be simple
- Co-Driver's footrest - pending decision
- Gas tank skid plate - pending decision
- Bumper skin mounts – should be simple
- Tow strap I’m most likely going to keep it in a bag in the trunk one more mount required

No Welding Required:
- T-Bar Doublers (the plates that attach the rockers to the dif carrier, my mounting points are rusted out) – I have to try re-tapping the holes before I cut/weld anything
- Bags behind seats (for warmer clothes/jacket/snacks/etc...)
- Brake Lines (some way to mount them)
- Fuel Lines (some way to mount them)

Not a Priority:
- UHMW Wheel Arch (weldnuts)
- Wire Harness under fender (trying to figure out how to protect it)
- Hydro Handbrake

After Paint:
- Tow hooks/bumper beams (making new ones)

[RyanH]

Dan, next time you're at the shop, have a look at my craptacular weld job on my handbrake mount. You may want to do something similar before you paint the interior.

[Daniel B]

Dan, next time you're at the shop, have a look at my craptacular weld job on my handbrake mount. You may want to do something similar before you paint the interior.


That's a great idea. I didn't want to spend much time on it, but... since you allready have it figured out :mrgreen:

And, I wanted to ask, where did you get your roof vent?

[Jard]

Since you are so handy with the welder you could put a few more weldnuts where the back seat should be and secure a cheap plastic toolbox there for jackets/snacks/water bottles. That way you'll have something secure that can be closed and kept closed.

What are you doing with the battery?

[Daniel B]

Since you are so handy with the welder you could put a few more weldnuts where the back seat should be and secure a cheap plastic toolbox there for jackets/snacks/water bottles. That way you'll have something secure that can be closed and kept closed.

What are you doing with the battery?

Because of all the bars in my cage and the wings on the seats, easy access to the 'rear seat' area is pretty limited. I'm thinking that I need to have my stuff in a bag I can pull out easily to get into, then zip it up and put it back. Maybe something that can be easy secured with tie-down straps (I bought a few this weekend).

I was originally thinking about the area behind my seat (in front of the main hoop), but all the tubing is making that difficult. I like your idea... I'll have to asses that area (behind the main hoop) some more.

As for the battery, for now it's going to stay in the stock location. I need something to do later ;-). But at some point I think it will go in car.

[RyanH]

Dan, vent was from here:

http://www.rustrepair.com/app2/onlinecat.htm?r=ms&p=wi

Click Vents and fans, go to category, item D, M1217

It was on sale when I got it, actually cost me more for shipping than the vent itself! Simple, effective, and a craptonne cheaper than that Prodrive thing!

[Daniel B]

Last Thursday I started work on the bracket for the co-driver's footrest:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture002.jpg

MMMmmm... Weldnuts...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture007.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture013.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture015.jpg

The footrest needs to be about 8 inches back from the OEM footres/ECU protector. I'll probably build a bracket that bolts to the OEM footrest and to the top of the new footrest. The bottom of the new footrest will bolt to the tube in the pictures.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture003-3.jpg

[Daniel B]

I had some rust in the rear driver's side rocker. The local gravel roads had worn the metal at the rear of the rocker almost paper thin and completely through in one place. so...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture004.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture009-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture028.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture033.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture037-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture038.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture071.jpg

[Daniel B]

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture073.jpg

[Daniel B]

I drilled 36 holes in the floor... :shocked:

:lol2: But, they're for mounting the underbody protection...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture086.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture088.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture090.jpg

Under the floor, upside-down welding practice...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture098.jpg

Shackles to strap down the "Uh-Oh! Bag". I'll use that mostly for winter rallies. It will be a place to store a couple blankets, winter boots for me, and some large trash bags/duct tape to seal up a broken window. Or, a safe place for fluid storage. Maybe a couple containers of oil, brake fluid, coolant - should a leak be unfixable at service.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture096.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture105.jpg

And, I finally got around to tapping the dif. hanger doubler plate, bold holes. It seem to have worked. I torqued them down without any issue last night. Man, those were rusted!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture104.jpg

More red Check-Marks!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/auntitled.jpg

[Daniel B]

Well I took a couple weeks break from working on the car.

I got back to it last Friday.

I'm getting really close to paint. Here's where I'm at:


If you remember way back, a bolt holding one of the gas tank straps broke off in the chassis. I faught it out, but damaged the threads in the process. So, I fixed it - it's a removable stud now...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture229.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture232.jpg

I rolled the rear fenders.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture235.jpg

Drilled out those angle tabs in the spare tire well. They get in the way.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture244.jpg

Added D-loops to secure the tow-strap.
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture245.jpg

Painted the pinch seams... :mrgreen:
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture253.jpg

In preparation for...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bPicture257-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bIMG_8499.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8507.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8521.jpg

And now I'm playing with this...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8551.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8553.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8556.jpg

Can't really decide if I like it like that, or how I'll mount it and gusset it. But I'll figure out something I'm sure...

[kmount]

Put subfram back in and butt the bar up to it. gusset mid way from bend to end weld sirectly to body. ours is not in the way when we work on the motor
And now I'm playing with this...
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8551.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8553.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8556.jpg

Can't really decide if I like it like that, or how I'll mount it and gusset it. But I'll figure out something I'm sure...

[Daniel B]

Put subfram back in and butt the bar up to it. gusset mid way from bend to end weld sirectly to body. ours is not in the way when we work on the motor


Gusset where I drew the red lines?

Is your bar in a similair location?

Do you think I'll have enough room to work on the engine if I weld it in where it is in the pictures?

Thanks!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8553.jpg

[kmount]

our car's = http://www.specialstage.com/forums/showpost.php?p=300161&postcount=27


your angle is to shallow for my taste. I don't think the welds in the back would hold up to the constant shots. the red marks looks like a fulcrum point to me.


by the way, this is one fantastic build and write up

[kmount]

Did I miss the part about the spill kit and mounting it?

[Daniel B]

Awesome!

Thank you. I was just looking at Logic'c WRC rebuild thread and noticed that thier bar is farther back. I see what you mean about having access to the engine... That would have been bad :shocked:

[Daniel B]

Did I miss the part about the spill kit and mounting it?


No spill kit required in Canada... That being said, the mounts for the tow strap are to hold a tool bag that has enough room for a spill kit and the tow strap.

[Daniel B]

your angle is to shallow for my taste. I don't think the welds in the back would hold up to the constant shots. the red marks looks like a fulcrum point to me.

I've had the same feeling all day... oh well, back to the drawing board...


by the way, this is one fantastic build and write up

Thanks!

[409industries]

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/bIMG_8499.jpg

Fantastic! Ever since i saw this done on the Audi Quattros at Team O'Neils, i've been wanting to do this. Its such a great idea, i'm glad to see you think so too.. :)

[Tim.Flat4]

Great work so far Daniel!

I'm glad that you didn't let that guy a few pages back get under your skin. He could have just said that he doesn't beleive in stripping the undercarriage but to go to the extent that he did was just silly. It's good insurance and plus, it's not like you didn't have the time with all the cage builder's setbacks!

Although I only have a little experience I too love doing chassis prep work. I wish I could afford stage rally so I had an excuse to build a car like yours. Sadly I've got a rallyx budget to work with so unless I was to go overkill and prep my car for a "Prepared" class I'll just have to wait.

I look forward to more updates!

Oh! I have a question too. Why didn't you build a rotisserie for flipping the chassis upside while prepping the underside? I would think that would be much easier than sanding and welding on your back.

[Daniel B]

Thanks!

The reason I didn't make a rotissary was because at the time, I had no idea how to weld :oops:

I figured that I'd learn as I went, and I did. But, I didn't want to build something that could break and injure the shell or more importantly, injure me.

I'm still tempted to build one, It would make painting the shell allot easier, but it will cost a good chunk of $$$ to build.

I'll build one before I do the next chassis...

[bone_1113]

I love it! One of the best build documentations ive seen! I think its things like this that get others motivated to get out there and get started on there own project. I cant wait for when i get out of the service and get to be home long enough to start into subie project :)

I did a very similar project with my B13 Sentra...its a great way to get to know your car and gives you a whole new level of understanding and appreciation for you rides :)

[Daniel B]

The Rally of the Tall Pines is this weekend!

:mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen: I can't wait! :mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen:

I spent most of last weekend getting ready for Tall Pines, but last night I spent a bit of time playing...

The Skid plate bar as it sits now:
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8583.jpg

How it will fit:
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8587.jpg

I kinda like playing with tubing... I want more practice :muhaha:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8577.jpg
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8578.jpg

The red and purple will be another set of tubes and a bolt-up area, the green will be gussets. I want to build it like this:
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8587b.jpg

I like the tubes wher they are for peace of mind. They will be bolted to the frame still in the crumple zone. But as kmount mentioned, that puts the tube in the way of the engine. So I'm making it removable.

[Daniel B]

I think its things like this that get others motivated to get out there and get started on there own project.

I got really motivated after reading through Aaron's journal for the first time. I liked his approach. Good, solid build. And since then there have been sooooo many great jurnals on this forum. It's hard not to be motivated.

When it gets hard to keep building, I just read through some of these threads, Carl's, Erik*a's, kturner's, subyspawn, UP2MTNS, All of the threads that Kyle has a part in, Logic's fantasy land builds, and all the rest I'm not thinking of now, or the new ones that have just recently started - They're so very awesome! They keep the ball rolling.

[Daniel B]

Fantastic! Ever since i saw this done on the Audi Quattros at Team O'Neils, i've been wanting to do this. Its such a great idea, i'm glad to see you think so too.. :)

Good to know that this is a 'tried and true' method. Although, if I could have found u-channel steel, instead of the square tube, it would have saved me allot of time. Probably would have been just as, or almost as strong too.

[RS MN]

subscribed!
fantastic buld and great write up of everything!
very very thorough.
someday i will have the resources to do a build like this...

[Daniel B]

Spent some time playing yesterday! :mrgreen:

Main tube, support tubes and gussets are 1.25"x0.120 DOM, bolt brace tubes are 1.5"x0.120", flat plate is 2"x0.125", and chassis plates are 2"x2" angle iron. Nuts are OEM lugnuts, bolts are from the rear (FWD) subframe.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8615.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8619.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8626.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8630.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8637.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8639.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8644.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8649.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8657.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8659.jpg

[1999_SilverStreak]

I like to see people have Project/Rally Cars. I got a 1979 Dodge D100 that I would like to do stuff to.

[Bubba02sti]

Nice work man...

ps reading your journal is like playing wheres waldo with the budah frog

[Daniel B]

I strengthened the Rad cradle last night...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8693.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8695.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8696.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8700.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8703.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8704.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8706.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8712.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8758.jpg

And, a while back I cut off the front tow hooks and capped them off. In hindsight, I didn't like the sharp edges at the front. So I fixed it...

From this:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/u2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/u3.jpg

To this:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8726.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8731.jpg

[Daniel B]

I added mounting points for the front mud flaps:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture332.jpg

I finished up the Co-Driver footrest base:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture307.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture310.jpg

And, I figured out how I'm going to mount the new battery. I got a small Deka/Bass Pro Battery. CARS rules require the battery to be mounted in a non-conductive, sealed box. So I e-bay'd a 'pelican' case. The battery Fit's perfectly. The case has a nice groove in the bottom. I made a mount to fit in the groove. Here it is:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture316.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture317.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture318.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture319.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture320.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture323.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture324.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture326.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aPicture331.jpg

[Not All There]

nice! great progress with the car

[RS MN]

looks great man!

[Jard]

I think the battery will be okay since it's not mounted directly to the floor. Leave a tiny bit of slack in your cables. :lol:

[Daniel B]

Yeah, I hope so. The 'D' loop that's welded to a plate on the floor - I turned the welder up to the highest setting to weld the plate to the battery brace :shock: so... It's on there pretty good and it shouldn't flex (even if hit).

I'll just have to wait and see I guess. I'm not too worried, the reason for the dual straps was so that I had a redundant system to restain the battery.

I'll take a good look at it this weekend with hits from the bottom in mind.

In hindsight (and if I ever redo it) I'd use a tube that runs from rocker to transmission tunnel to stand the battery on.
(next shell... :twisted: )

[1999_SilverStreak]

Nice Progress.

[Daniel B]

In hindsight (and if I ever redo it) I'd use a tube that runs from rocker to transmission tunnel to stand the battery on.


Well... I just couldn't live with it. I'm sure if I'd left the battery mount where it was, I'd regret it at some point.

Out it came:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8874.jpg

Patched floor where I cut out the 'D-Loop":

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8875.jpg

And, this is the new setup:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8880.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8882.jpg

[Daniel B]

The Shell is DONE!

I had one last thing to take care of, the holes that the e-brake cables pass through had rotted out. I patched up the area and now... It's time to prep for paint :headbang:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8892.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8884.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8901.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8908.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8910.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8917.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8923.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8929.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/cIMG_8934.jpg

[daywalker007]

That looks great! you seem to be getting very comfortable with your fabrication skills

[Daniel B]

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/what.jpg

;)

[bone_1113]

lol...ummm didnt even make it out the garage and its already on its side?!?!?! lol jk LETS SEE SOME PAINT!

[Daniel B]

Well, I rolled the shell on it's side today. It took a lot of logical thinking and very little physical effort. Tomorrow I start preping for paint. It should go like this:

1. grind down sharp welds/edges
2. clean away loose rust
3. paint bad rust areas with por-15
4. prep/apply seam sealer to seams
5. allow seam sealer to fully cure
6. scuff and re-clean all surfaces
7. apply Macropoxy 646

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8936.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8949.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8952.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/what-1.jpg

[RS MN]

haha i read the new thread title and was like
"huh, i didnt even think it was rolling yet..."

[lminette]

Well at least you got the first one out of the way!!;)

[Daniel B]

Yesterday marks exactly one full year from the start of this build and exactly 8 months of me working on the car (it was at the cage builders for 4 months :roll:).

I welded up some seams that I had missed, started removing the primer and cleaning the seams. And then, I started with the POR-15. I want to cover the really pitted metal with POR-15. I figure, if the paint I'm using sticks to seam sealer (it has been proven to) then it ~should~ stick to scuffed up POR-15. It's a bit of a gamble, but if I'd left the rust, I'd be constantly dealing with issues anyway. Have I mentioned that RUST SUCKS? :crazy:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8976.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8975.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8974.jpg

[Daniel B]

A couple days ago, I spoke to someone had had a bad experiance with POR-15. They said that after a while it began to peel off. Well, I thought about it and figured I'd sacrafice a small patch of it and I put the wire wheel to it. Sure enough, it came off in sheets. So, I wire wheeled the rest off. In the process, I removed 99.999% of the rust on the uderside of the shell.

Here's what it looked like after a few hours with the wire wheel, sandpaper, Scotch Brite, and some degreaser/surface prep chemicals:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8982.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8989.jpg


Before painting, I had to protect all of the threaded holes. I cut clear tubing and slid it over the threads on larger bolts, for all of the small bolts I just used tape. When the bolts are threaded in, they seal off the threaded hole:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9003.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9007.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9011.jpg


The next step was to prep the MacroPoxy 646. It's a 2-part Industrial coating. the first part is a thin viscosity and white, like Milk. The next part closely resembles caramel, both in consistancy and colour. The two parts have to be mixed and then 'sweat-in' for 30 minutes. Funny part is, when you mix them, the caramel part turn white almost right away.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8994.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_8997.jpg

[Daniel B]

I still have some touch-up to do and once I flip the shell back over, I'll still have to do the Co-Driver side rocker and front wheel-well. So here it is, after first pass:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9023.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9024.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9025.jpg

[Daniel B]

BEFORE

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/pro7.jpg


AFTER

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9039.jpg

[Not All There]

Awesome, great way to protect the life of your car too

[TOI]

i wish i had a garage.... but it looks great!

[Daniel B]

UHMW-PE sheets have been cut. I've had this stuff longer than I've been working on the car. It was nice to use it.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9069.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9070.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9071.jpg

[Daniel B]

In the last two weeks I painted a second coat and a touch-up coat to the underside of the shell, I sanded own any rough/sharp spots in the coating, I sanded down the area around all the captured nuts or bobbins, or weldnuts, I played a bit with seam sealer (still have some to do), and then I made a cardboard template for the UHMW-PE sheeting.

I'm ready to flip the shell back over. I just need to co-ordinate some help to do it.

I still need to coat the Co-Driver's side footwell and rocker with MacroPoxy. Then I have a couple little loose ends to tie up. The next thing after that is paint... :headbang:

I cannot wait to start reassembly!

[Rex_Saugerty]

when i saw your idea of U profiles welded on sides of car, i thought, that that's is a good support for aluminium plate, as shield all over car. i even figured out, how to place one on my s13 :) but this looks good to :)

[sniper1rfa]

Wish i had come in here earlier.

The trick with POR-15 is that you MUST use their primer spray on absolutely bare metal first. The paint relies on iron oxide to stick.


Anyway, looks nice. :)

[strat]

it's not a good sign if you roll the car in the garage before it's even assembled. ;)


great build! love how detail oriented you are! should make for a great car!

[Gnome]

nice build man i wish i could

[Daniel B]

The car has been flipped back over...

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9109.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9127.jpg

[Daniel B]

I did some 'seam sealing'. Kinda boring stuff, but here's an idea. I just filled all the gaps I thought water could get into and left the ones where water could get out of...

Before:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9078.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9079.jpg

After:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9092.jpg


Before:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9083.jpg

After:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9097.jpg

And the seams in the rear wheel wells. I didn't want crud to get stuck in here and grind away the coating.

Before:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9081.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9082.jpg

After:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9100.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9103.jpg

Like I said... kinda boring, but needed.

[Daniel B]

I still need some creative rust preventative solution to deal with these. They're in some difficult to reach areas:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9154.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9162.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9165.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9170.jpg

[Daniel B]

Almost forgot...

I got the Co-Driver's side wheelwell and rocker coated:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9115.jpg

[Daniel B]

I spent a few hours sanding the cage in prep for paint. That oily black coating that's on the tubing is not easily removed.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9260.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9280.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9293.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/AIMG_9265.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9266.jpg

And, I added a circut for the air compressor:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9300.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9301.jpg

[KevinWelker]

It's gonna be too pretty to subject it to the flogging it rightly deserves out on the stages ;)

Nice workmanship.

[GravelCrewMedic]

well done this is wonderfull!

[Daniel B]

It's gonna be too pretty to subject it to the flogging it rightly deserves out on the stages ;)

Nice workmanship.


I will flogg her GOOD! :headbang:

She owes me nothing and I owe her the same.

[Rex_Saugerty]

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9301.jpg


that's funny looking socket

[Daniel B]

that's funny looking socket

It's a 230volt 15amp socket. You can see a lot of the different plugs here:
http://www.levitonproducts.com/catalog/dept_id_963.htm

Different plugs are used for different Amps so that the unit can't put an unsafe draw on the wiring. I.e. I can't plug my N6-50 welder plug (50amp draw) into this 15 amp recepticle. And, so I can't plug my N6-15 air compressor plug into the 50amp socket and fry my compressor (if it decides to pull too much).

[Daniel B]

I layed down a fine coat of self-etching primer. I got quite a surprise afterward... Overspray! Lots and lots of overspray hanging out on the shell like fine dust. So I had to clean it off. It gave me a chance to wipe things down one more time with grease/wax remover. Then, I pluged the threaded holes with bolts or covered them with masking tape.

The new-to-me toy (10CFM!):

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9303.jpg

Etch Primer Overspray:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9317.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9315.jpg

Wiped clean for the last time and preped for paint:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9356.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9360.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9365.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9346.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9333.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9335.jpg

Everything in the garage is covered to protect it from overspray:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9339.jpg

[Daniel B]

I primed the interior last night. It was a big job, it kinda caught me off guard. It was hard for me to get things coordinated. Figuring out how to reach all of the little tight spaces in the shell (without being able to get in the shell) was difficult!

I am really, really glad this is a rally car! Every time I caused the paint to run or sag, or bumped the fresh primer with the hose, I just kinda giggled and thought "eff-it, it's a rally car :headbang:"

I kind felt like I did when I was learning to weld. There are a lot of things going on all at once, hand eye coordination, dwell time, forthought, surface preperation and gun settings. But, just like welding, I'll get the hang of this I'm sure.

I'm going to lay down the topcoat tonight. There is one spot I know I didn't get, that I'll need to adress later, but with a little luck, that's it.

I used a shop-vac with tho hose attached to the outlet to pull the air out of the garage. It did a GREAT job of filtering the overspray and keeping the air mostly clear. Kind of ghetto but, it works.

I didn't snap any pics because I didn't want to open the garage door again. I've got a small fan pulling air out of the garage door when I'm not in there. It does a good job, but when I open the door, the house smells gross!

Pics to come tonight, or tomorrow...

[Daniel B]

Primer Pictures:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9369.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9378.jpg

[RS MN]

wow looks great man, what is gonna be the final color of the interior?
it looks really good white.

[Daniel B]

wow looks great man, what is gonna be the final color of the interior?
it looks really good white.

High Gloss White!

Just finished painting an hour ago. The paint has lots of shine to it, it looks even better.

[RS MN]

i love white rally car interiors, they look so perfect.

[Rex_Saugerty]

so so so white :) what the colour will be the car itself? i would paint my rally car interior in some sick colour :D

[Daniel B]

so so so white :) what the colour will be the car itself?

It's going to be the same white as the interior.

[Daniel B]

Okay, the interior is painted!

Here's a pic of my dessicant filter setup. Each filter only flows 5CFM so I used two. You can see that the Dessicant has turned almost completely pink - It did it's job!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9379.jpg

And now the paint:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9384.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9388.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9398.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9404.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9407.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9408.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9421.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9423.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9436.jpg

[Not All There]

looks great man!

[RS MN]

wow, looks awesome man!
so bright and shiny...

[409industries]

Looks awesome Daniel!!!

I love A-pillar gussets like this:
http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9421.jpgI am stoked for you!

[TOI]

that is amazing! can you paint my subie? :mrgreen:

[RSti_Andy]

wow, you have spent soo much time on this build! i remember when you started this. and now im back on the site and your still updating! love how its turning out soo far!

[Fireweed]

Amazing build

[Daniel B]

The shell is painted:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9442.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9445.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9446.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9454.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9462.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9471.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9473.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9475.jpg

[RS MN]

looks great man!
so shiny!

[bone_1113]

Lets see some part install pics! :P

I cant wait to see it all put together!

[tyler_S18]

holy crap!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this is amazing i just saw this thread a bit ago and wow!!!! very encouraging and exactly what i am going to do to my car:) i keep wondering what happened to the roof lol? is it goin back on? and how could i get that book you talked about at the beggining for someone that wants to do their own car? keep it up man and she is looking absolutley georgeous!!!!! almost a shame to go thrash it lol but totaly worth it and worth doing the job absolutley correct. it seems like you are doing a higher quality job then crawford perf on ken blocks cars lol. major props

[Daniel B]

Yup, the roof is going back on. It's just that with it off, I can see so much more in the car. The ceiling lights light up everything.

That book I was talking about is this one:

http://www.randyzimmer.com/

"Rally on a Budget - The Subaru Rally GC Manual" has arrived.

100's of tips and tricks, sizes and settings.
The thought behind the process and real-life examples.
Price $200.00
Comes as a 100 page PDF with text, pictures and captions.
Updates and communication.
E-Mail or call me for more information.

randyzimmer@verizon.net

Don't forget, I'm sepending WAY more time on this car than is necessary. I just like to build things - I always have.

If you want to go out and rally with a reliable car, follow exactly what Randy's book says. You probably don't need anything more. I've raced against Randy, he drives quick and is pretty hard on his car. It puts up with everything he does to it.

[Daniel B]

Well I haven't really done anything on the car for almost two weeks. I'm working around the house on some other building projects, but I did spend last Saturday afternoon finishing the last of the shell painting/sealing.

There were a couple spots I couldn't get the paint gun, so I bent a metal paint brush and painted those areas by hand.

I also sealed all of the open seams and then rattle canned the sealer so it doesn't stick to anything that touches it.

Here's some pics:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-1.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-5.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-4.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-3.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-8.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-6.jpg

[Daniel B]

before and after:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9454.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-7.jpg

[Daniel B]

I also did some quick coating to protect from rust forming later:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9162.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-11.jpg


http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/aIMG_9165.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-13-9.jpg

[Daniel B]

The car is going back together!

(slowly)

Trunk gasket and spare tire 'harness' got installed:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-9.jpg

Rear shifter stay bushing is in:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-2.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-6.jpg

My :unamused: project for the day:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-3.jpg

Replace the above sub-frame with this one (and yes, there is less rust ;)):

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-7.jpg

First, I made sure the steering rack was worth using - it was:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-4.jpg

This was really nasty! There was dried up grease under the steering rack bushings. It was over 4mm thick in some spots. I had to use a large machinists file to grind it off so the new bushings would fit. It took over a half an hour!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-5.jpg

Cleaned up and ready to go on the 'new' sub-frame:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-8.jpg

The old Subframe was 35 and 3/8" between the front mounting holes... This one was just under 35 and 1/2". It wouldn't fit. So I figured out which hole to elongate to keep everything squared up. Here it is installed (with help):

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-10.jpg

Signs of progress:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-11.jpg

This always comes in handy:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-12.jpg

Teaser:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-1.jpg

[bone_1113]

New e-brake??? :)

[Daniel B]

New e-brake??? :)


Actually... Everything BUT an e-brake.

[bone_1113]

lol...ohh ok

[Daniel B]

I do things backwards sometimes :D

[409industries]

Yeeeah! I was about to say... where's the budda frog?

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-20-10.jpg

That old grease under the steering rack bushing was nasty! Keep up the great work!

[Daniel B]

Yeeeah! I was about to say... where's the budda frog?


I was afraid I'd paint him the same colour as the car (like everything else I left in the garage).

[Daniel B]

I'm learning new things! It's interesting to put the car back together from scratch. There's no reference points.

For example, I went to install the front lower control arms, an it seemed like they'd shrunk... They didn't fit!

Turns out that when I reinstalled the front subframe, I had it pushed as far forward as it would go (there's a bit of give). Anyway, I finally got it figured out (AFTER thinking I'd warped the shell with all the welding).

Lots of lessons are being learned, this is going to be an adventure!

I didn't know that there were multiple sizes of sleves in the front LCA front pivot bushings. Only the smaller one would fit my subframe - at least I figured it out now and not at a remote service:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-4.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-4.jpg)

A good friend of mine donated some 'like new' outer tie-rod ends to me a couple years ago. They look a bit better than mine so I decided to swap them in:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-2.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-2.jpg)

Using some penetrating oil to 'soften' the rust and a wire bruch to persuade it off the threads, I was able to get full adjustabilty for my tie-rods. Here it is with the jam nut run all the way back (by finger :headbang:):

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-3.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-3.jpg)

Control arm are in:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-8.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-8.jpg)

I'm so glad I bagged and tagged everything a year ago! I'd have been in big trouble if I didn't:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-5.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-5.jpg)

Pedals are in:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-1.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-1.jpg)

Booster is secure and the throttle cable and cluch cable are waiting for something big:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-7.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-7.jpg)

Now, I just have to figure out how to make this fit (actually, I think I've got it figured out):

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-23-6.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/?action=view&current=2010-03-23-6.jpg)

[bone_1113]

OMG...lol...I want to see more! :P

I was wondering if you were going to plan on doing some touch up painting on the parts you are installing? I know its going to be taking a beating and all that, but the rest of the car looks SOOO great it just seams sad to put old rusted stuff back on it...just my thoughts...either way I LOVE the progress!

[kturner]

progress looks great! What size wheels are you going to run?

[tyler_S18]

http://www.southernrods.com/categories/heating-and-cooling/heaters/southern-air-1.html

i think they used the bottom one of these in the cusco car. its smaller so might fit better

[kmount]

couple of pointers:

1. weld up the holes in the lower control arms. less bent control arms that way.
2. grind down the those longer bushing ones that don't fit.
3. replace the rear bushings on them to something like the whiteline anti lift kits. stockers die quick.

I know how to rally on a budget...kind of

[bjk]

This project is soo inspiring! Can't wait to see more. Looks like a winner in the making!!

[daywalker007]

it certainly looks like it was a good decision to go all white on the shell. I'm sure it makes assembly mush easier.

[Daniel B]

I was wondering if you were going to plan on doing some touch up painting on the parts you are installing? I know its going to be taking a beating and all that, but the rest of the car looks SOOO great it just seams sad to put old rusted stuff back on it...just my thoughts...either way I LOVE the progress!

I hear what you're saying! But, like you said, it is a rally car... :headbang:

I'm going to destroy most of the (rusted) suspension and sub-structure parts prety quickly. I actually have parts with hardly any rust. I'm waiting to put those on the car - I'll use them when I do my first full overhaul. This is going to be my first time on the left side (driver's side) of the car. I figure that the first few rally's will see the most 'silly' mistakes, so I'm saving the best parts for later.

I've got lots of spares, no point in making them look good. There was a lot of function to be gained by making the shell clean, but there's little to be gained by making the suspension components look better. I want to get on the Stages! ;)

progress looks great! What size wheels are you going to run?

15" OEM Legacy wheels, the 6-spoke design. I have ~20 of them. I paid little to nothing for them, so they fit my criteria :)

http://www.southernrods.com/categories/heating-and-cooling/heaters/southern-air-1.html

i think they used the bottom one of these in the cusco car. its smaller so might fit better

That will fit for sure. On the JR Flagship (;)) they run something similair - Mojave Heater... I think.

I'm going a bit of a different route 8). I should have it done in a week or two, maybe less.

couple of pointers:

1. weld up the holes in the lower control arms. less bent control arms that way.
2. grind down the those longer bushing ones that don't fit.
3. replace the rear bushings on them to something like the whiteline anti lift kits. stockers die quick.

I know how to rally on a budget...kind of

1. I'm trying to resist every urge to do that! :lol2: I'm sure that early on I'm going to benefit from the 'flexible' OEM arms...

2. GOOD CALL!

3. Yup, I've been looking for some used ones. I forgot to post pictures, but before I put the control arms on my car, I checked the bushings. I found a monster sized crack in one of them:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/crackedLCAbushing.jpg (http://s471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/?action=view&current=crackedLCAbushing.jpg)

On the LCA note... It feels WIERD torquing the rear bushing bolts to 150+ ft/lbs!!! But, I guess thats because the bushings are housed in alluminum (I think?).

This project is soo inspiring! Can't wait to see more. Looks like a winner in the making!!

:mrgreen:Thanks!:mrgreen:

it certainly looks like it was a good decision to go all white on the shell. I'm sure it makes assembly mush easier.

Actually, it was a bit too bright with my work light! If you look at the picture of my front control arm an tie-rod end, you can see that I covered my work light with a piece of paper to tone it down...

It's really, really nice to work with a clean slate.

[sammyk]

Man what a cool build! Hats off!

As I looked through your journal I could not but notice your hate for RUST :angryfinger:! I work in a body shop so I completley agree! Here are couple of products that you can still apply to your car and the will help a ton with slowing down the rust you have left:

1st is SEM product called RUST-MORT article# 69508, you apply this over rust spots with a brush and let it sit for 24h before you apply anything over it (this product etches into rust and locks it in!)

2nd is WURTH product called BODY WAX article# 0892 081-U (800) 346-4198 (Ontario CA) this is a wax that you can apply in every opening like cowl tray, inner quarter panels, door shells, is says tackey and repells moisture.

Hope these products help and here you can get them at any place that sells auto paint!

Awsome build and don't give up!:headbang:

[Daniel B]

Man what a cool build! Hats off!



Thanks!

And thanks for the heads-up on on those products, I'll look into them for sure!

[Daniel B]

It would have been so much easier to just buy one of those heater kits! :machinegunleft:

But, I wanted to save some money and go woth something that I know will work at -30degreesC...

So, I spent most of the weekend here:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-2.jpg

I was trying to make this fit under the dash tubes:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-1.jpg

It took a lot of work. I had to cut a bunch of plastic this weekend. First I worked on the blower motor. The support tube that runs from the the foot of the half-lateral tube was in the way, so I profiled the fan to fit:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-8.jpg

I wanted to get air from outside the car because fresh air does a better job of defrosting the windshield in the winter. The intake is under the wiper motor on the Co-Driver's side.

I couldn't get the blower motor all the way over where it was originally, so I had to redo the way it was mounted. Here's the lower bracket:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-7.jpg

The upper brackets mounted to studs. That wasn't going to work for me because there was not enough room to slide them on. So I drilled them out and added a pair of weldnuts instead:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-10.jpg

Next up was to mount the Main heater core. I had to remove all of the brackets off the top and the entire portion of the bottom thats used to heat the feet area. Then I cut off the two 'horns' that mount the dash tube to the transmission tunnel. I'll figure out how to get them back later.

With less plastic and mare room, I was JUST able to slide the heater core into position:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-4.jpg

JUST!

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-9.jpg

This setup allows me to maintain the OEM defrost ducts in the dashboard, the OEM blower controls and wiring harness. It won't be good for anything but defrost (and warmth) but I've got a roof scoop for the summer.

Here's the setup. You can see where I cut the connecting tube (between the blower and the heater). I needed to remove an inch as the heater cor sits 1/4 inch to the right and the blower sits 3/4 of an inch the left of the original position. I was able to keep one mounting point though (but just one).

Theres still more work to do, like rivets and zip ties, but the lion's share is done.

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-6.jpg

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr78/123124125/rally%20car/2010-03-30-3.jpg

[tyler_S18]

that looks good!! and if anything goes wrong with it you can still get parts over the counter

[bone_1113]

Nice and snug!...lol

[Dan McGinn]

That all looks super nice, what a nice attention-to-detail build! I wish I'd taken a little more time to keep/modify my stock heater core in my GC. I have the actual core with the blower, no ducting. It keeps it defrosted, but just barely on those 100% humidity/rainy days!

[mrsharp]

Great build. One question, why did you paint before you fixed the rear quarters?

[Lincx]

Wow!
All i can say... It just AWESOME!!!!
One of best builds i ever see!
Quality and details is almost like in WRC car...
keep up the good work...
Haven't hear from you in a while... Hope are ok! :)

[Greg Donovan]

this makes me want to go tear into our car right NOW. just bought a 95 sedan for a project.

[Guero]

This is a really great build to follow! Great attention to detail, I really like the dry erase board, that's a great idea! I just read through all of it very quickly and plan to thoroughly go through it tonight over dinner. The car I plan to build will probably have a lot of rust, so seeing you being able to learn to weld is good news to me! What kind of a welder do you have?