Joff's Nova Turbo Project

[joff-turbo-nova]

Right all,

I have used the bit of spare time over the this festive period to sort out, collate and put a bit of a story together of how
I am getting on with my Nova. I have been off the show scene for a while, really down to having no show car as
in February 2003 I decided that it was time to pull the trusty Nova off the road as it really needed some TLC after
13 years of use abuse and 4 different engines (1.3, 1.6, 2.0 16v and a C20LET). It hasn't helped that my wife
gave birth to our son in September 2003 and this summer I have had to refurbish my second house I rent out when my
previous tenants trashed the place prior to their eviction.

Anyway, to jog your memory, my nova looked something like this just prior to the rebuild - pic was taken
in September 2002 at Well Lane Turbo where it made 213bhp on the day - I was quite happy with that as
it was basically standard bar a K&N filter:
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIPStart.jpg

Well then, the story begins with the engine being pulled out:
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP1.jpg
and I started stripping all the years of crud and underseal off the front end :
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP2.jpg

On closer inspection of the front cross member it was clear that the tin worm had taken a chunk out of the offside
and a large strengthening plate was require - I have also taken the opportunity to put on a proper strengthening
kit. The plate around the tie bar holes is basically a U shape that goes around both top and bottom :-
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP3.jpg

Once I had got the cross member sorted out it was time to concentrate on the underside and floor pan, Having now stripped
the shell of all the doors, glass, wiring and suspension it was quite light, so with the aide of a few tyres and a large post,
1 person (me!) could lift the shell on one side without any problems :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP4.jpg

Moving along the floor pan from front to rear I have welded up all the drainage holes as these seem to be attracting rust
? I had also noticed some strange bulges in the seams in the rear arches and was greeted by quite large rust areas which
were plated accordingly. I also seam welded the area around where the shock absorber and rear strut brace will be
mounted for extra strength. As I progressed the work was sealed with 3 coats of black hammerite just to make sure!
The rear outer skins of the arches are rotten from the inside out so when the shell gets to the bodyshop these will be cut
out and repair panels professionally welded in. The rear suspension pickup points also got a strengthening plate welded
on as per the group A/N spec

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP5.jpg

After lifting the carpet under the rear seats some of the floor came with it! It turned out that one of the holes for the vent
pipe from the petrol tank had been letting years of crud & salt splash up onto the underside of the floor and rotted from
the underside up ? again plated and sealed and sprayed over with primer. The general crud on the floor would be removed
at a later date.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP6.jpg

Thats it for tonight, more to follow tomorrow! Thoughts and comments appreciated

Joff

[Riggy]

looking good mate i remeber you telling us you had a lot of work to do when i bought my interior of you last year .

so how far have you got then ?

carl

[Matt Nova]

looks like you've put the effort in mate well done nice car

[GT-Dub]

Jesus, I remember that First pik... i was there with Fenix afink in his Beaslty 1.2 Black Saloon :D

Look's like thats gona be some Project for ya fella. . . Keep up the good work man

Once it's Finished you will be :lol:

[Jules]

Hello Joff - not spoken for ages!!

I was wondering if you were still plodding on with the rebuild and it seems you haven't lost interest in it!!

Get some more of those pics up!!

[joff-turbo-nova]

Next job was to sort out the inner wings in the engine bay. This required stripping a couple of layers of hammerite to get
to the original bodywork ? Nitromors to the rescue! I then started smoothing the inner wings where the joint
between the upper and lower sections had been seam welded. The whole lot was then sprayed in primer to see if there
were any blemishes. Whilst I was there I started smoothing off the bulkhead panel infront of the battery tray &
interior blower fan. I had to weld up the hole that was cut for the 2.0 16v wiring loom as the C20LET loom goes round
the suspension turret. My clutch cable is slightly modified and hence a new strengthening plate in this area on the
bulkhead was required.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP7.jpg

The other inner wing was also smoothed and on both sides new suspension turret strengthening plates were
welded in. Also you can see where the front chassis legs have been seam welded to the bulkhead. This was done both
on the inner wing side and under the wheel arches for double strength.


http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP8.jpg

And heres a pic of the full bare shell sitting in my garage ? the front valance you will note has a slight kink
in it (argument with a small tree a couple of winters ago!), however this area was where my attention was
soon to be focused :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP9.jpg

On wondering around the car I noticed where the wiring loom enters the tailgate a blemish which turned out to be
a large rust hole!!! Anyway with a quick grind, plate and skim it was sorted :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP10.jpg

Next job, back to the front end, I trial fitted the panels as I needed to see how they fitted and also where I would
need to cut the front end because ?.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP11.jpg

?.. I needed to fit in my new intercooler that I had Radtech make up for me to the right dimensions to fit in
the front bumper aperture :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP12.jpg

This job looked quite easy to begin with but after looking and measuring and due to the fact that Nova front ends are
pointed to a V shape the front panel had to be ?trimmed? back slightly!!! In fact quite a lot! ? It was good to see
on the inside of the cross member very little rust so this area got hammerited before it was welded up .

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP13.jpg

Trial fitting of the intercooler ? didn?t realise it would be quite so big but it will keep the charge temps down!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP14.jpg

With everything now fitting it was time to weld in some new plates and a 40mm box section right across the
front for extra strength .Again eveything was primered.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP15.jpg

Next job to trial fit everything again ? on the whole the front bumper fits round the intercooler quite well ? still needs
a coupe of tweaks but will do for now!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP16.jpg

More to follow soon!

Joff

[-=VanMan=-]

Looks well, some nice pics there. Big respect for undertaking all the work yourself, mine would be in a smilar state if our garage was full of tables, chairs and other household cast-off's :roll:

[m.d.]

love it mate, got a bit worried when i saw the pic of the front pannel that you had cut away, but then you said about putting box section in there,

seing pics like these make me want to get the engine out of mine and really spend some time on the bay, (and fit an let lol)

[NovaNeil]

Wow!!! I've just waited 40mins for this page to download, but its safe to say it was defo worth the wait! Thats going to be well sweet when finished mate! Love the Intercooler filling the whole of that Kingdom bumper :D What are the plans with the rest of the car? is it being stripped out? or are you keeping the interior? I notice a nice cool lurved bonnet in one of the pics.... is this replacing your other one with the big vent?

Loving the pics, keep um coming.

Well done.

Neil

[5_door owner]

8) thats lookin mint. nice to see it all coming together mate.

another winter minter

[burgo]

good work fella keep it up, nice to see someone doing all there own work aswell

[joff-turbo-nova]

Just to answer a few questions ?.. I was a bit concerned about the strength of the cross member so I
decided to add the box section which is seam welded from one chassis leg to the other and stitched to the
cross member across its whole length.

The bonnet in the background is a Cool Louvres one ?.. in fact it?s the second one I have had made up,
the first arrived bent so collected the replacement in person from the Cool Louvres workshop near Winchester
earlier this year. I have had some reverse vents pressed into the bonnet which will pull air in above the air filter.
I am still keeping the GTI-R scoop as this is the only one I have seen which is an exact replica of the Nissan one.

Anyway on with the mission ??. Next job was to sort out the floor pan of all the crud ?. Nitromors was great
in peeling all the muck away. All the drain holes that had been welded up were also sealed with seam sealer
on the inside. Also took the opportunity to relocate the filler to the door shut where the vent normally lives.
Although this looked an easy job ? it actually took hours to look right :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP17.jpg

As you can see I give the filler areas a top coat or red to check smoothness and I think it has come out very well !!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP18.jpg

Next on the list was the back panel which was more like a seive !!!! Rust had really got hold in the lower seam
and the only way to get rid of the rust was to completely replace the whole panel. Cutting it away was the easy part :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP19.jpg

As the pictures show the panel was in serious need of attention.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP20.jpg

The new back panel was a big jigsaw in how to attach it as it was longer than both side panels as one end would
slide in but not the other . This pic also shows my nice dolly I made up from a cash trolly from work (I work in a Bank)
so my shell was back on 4 wheels but not really going anywhere ? at least I could push it in and out of the garage!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP21.jpg


I finally figured out that the rear panel needed to be slipped in from the inside of the shell. It was then spot welded
into place and seam welded onto the floorpan and seam sealed on both the inside and outside as I didn?t want it
rusting again!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP23.jpg

Well that?s it for this update.

Joff

[krobinson]

Superb Joff. I remember reading the older full story of your car, and how it was reshelled quite early on. Always been a fan of the car! Glad your putting so much effort into it!

Eta?

Keith

[joff-turbo-nova]

Yep, I did a reshell in 1989 when I originally bought my nova as a written off car with 392 miles on the clock -
it had been bought new on 18.11.1988 and written off on the 23.12.1988. I bought it June 1989 and have
owned it ever since! See pic of original condition below :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/novabang.jpg


The only useable panel was the tailgate - the rest of the shell was scrap - I bought a brand new shell off GM for
?1200 - those were the days!!

eta = ????? I really don't want to rush this project - hoping for the back end of next show season to be realisic -
it would be nice to get it ready for April 2005, but I think this will be a bit unrealistic!

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Ok, we are now nearly up to date ?.. you will recall that I have already smoothed the inner wings in the engine bay,
but after a couple of months the sealer started cracking so I had to strip it all off and onto plan B ? inspired by
Keith Robinsons green/blue nova with the ultra smooth inner wings I thought I would have a go plating the
wings with some quite thick guage metal. The idea was to weld as much as possible and use as little filler a possible .
With a weld/grind weld/gring regime I think I have cracked it! The photo shows where the second plate is
welded in ? the first is already in situ and partially smoothed.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP24.jpg

I was now getting a tad bit bored of all this grinding and sanding lark so I turned my attention to a few more jobs
that needed doing. The rear mount needed strengthening up and the mount bolt holes had turned into an L
shape so I started welding on some strengthening plates I acquired about 6 years ago!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP25.jpg

I also beefed up the lower part of the mount and then gave the whole kit a couple of coats of hammerite

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP26.jpg

I spent most of a day stripping all the crud and cr@p off my GSI petrol tank ? I then gave it a couple of
coats of hammerite to make it nice, clean & tidy.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP29.jpg

I also have bought a brand new rear GSI bumper from GM ? my local bodyshop have done a sterling
job of filling in both the number plate light and also the towing eye recess ? nice and smooth!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP27.jpg

For the interior I am only going to hint at my plans ? the fronts are Sparco Torino?s which I have had recovered
in Grey and Blue alcantara ? they guy who did these is more of a perfectionist than me !!! He had these
over 12 months but boy was it worth the wait!!! Spot on fit with no creases at all!!! It?s a lot better than some
of the so called professional retrims I have seen over the years ? this was done as a guvvy job as well!!!!


http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP30.jpg

And finally these arrived just before christmas .....

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/WIP31.jpg

These are a couple of alloy pulleys from SBD which cost about ?75 which run a multi groove BMW belt ? gets rid of
the central rubber insert as seen on the GM one as mine was knackered and Vauxhall wanted silly money for a new one!

For the next few weeks the main jobs are to smooth off the inner wings and get the front bumper fitting right and
fill any small marks or scratches that are present.

Hope you have enjoyed this trip and I will keep you up to date with the developments when they happen!

Joff

[Nick]

That is fantastic work

joff, your an absolute Beast !

i wish i lived next door to you

[Jim]

I always enjoy reading peoples work in progress. Did you ever think of buying a new shell, as it seems the current shell had one or two rusty areas. I understand if you are sentimentally attached to the shell as I am with mine.

Good luck with it all, keep the pics coming. Could I suggest possibly resizing the next set of images so that you dont need ADSL or a 22" monitor to view the pics ;)

Jim

[nuno_gt]

What a rebuild. Can't wait to see the Nova ready on the road, although i know that it'll take plenty of time...

Keep up with the work and post here the updates.

[fearless]

Do I sence a colour change coming your way (Blue and grey seat retrim !)

Not seen much of you at shows this year - now I see why !

If your ever bored of your project - you can come and make a start on mine.

Keep up the good work

Dave

[Franny]

If your ever bored of your project - you can come and make a start on mine.


:lol: :lol: :lol: How many years have I heard that!! START! :lol:


Colin

[krobinson]

If your ever bored of your project - you can come and make a start on mine.


:lol: :lol: :lol: How many years have I heard that!! START! :lol:


Colin

Lol..

Will it ever happen?

Keith

[Ste_Nova]

eek... i cleared out my garage yesterday and today..... now i can start work on my car again :lol:

[yellow nova]

If your ever bored of your project - you can come and make a start on mine.


:lol: :lol: :lol: How many years have I heard that!! START! :lol:


Colin how long did it take you to do yours he he he he

[Ben]

Nice one Joff.

Took me nearly an hour to read it, i think the wholes companies network slowed down.

Great work.

[fearless]

If your ever bored of your project - you can come and make a start on mine.


:lol: :lol: :lol: How many years have I heard that!! START! :lol:


Colin

Lol..

Will it ever happen?

Keith


Goin to make it a new years resolution to start on the project - but you all know how long you keep to those !!!!

[karl Rowntree]

looking good Joff, i wondered if all was going well with your rebuild as i hadnt seen anything up for awhile. Its damn pain how life gets in the way!

I spy a relocated fuel filler cap! :wink: What cap have you used?

Dave, if it means you get started on your own car i am on my way up! :lol:

Karl

[NickWalliams]

Looks mint mate.

What front bumper is that? A standard gsi one or one of them kingdom ones?

[joff-turbo-nova]

The front bumper is a Kingdom Big mouth bumper - its made out of fibreglass but is quite rough and needs a lot of work to get it anything like.

Thats the next job after sorting the inner wings in the engine bay!

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Hi,

Another quick update, been smoothing off the front wings, but had a problem with the rear dolly the shell sits on -
basically becuase of my crap design it collapsed!!!

Anyway after a bit of searching I found a nice shopping trolley in a skip near where I work - thanks Tescos!!!!

After a bit of chopping and welding I now have 2 nice & strong dollys that allow 360 degree movement!!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/dolly1a.jpg

Enjoy!

Joff

[-Bruce-]

The re build is looking realy good. Theres alot of work been done allready but still so much to do. It will be great when its complete im sure.

LOL at the trolly wheels, now you can call a nova a shopping trolley!! hehe
good idea though using them for moving the shell about.

TOP work there matey.

Bruce

[krobinson]

lmao.. thats a better use for a trolley!! :d

Keith

[Riggy]

lol @ the trolly

but keep up on the car cant wait to see it :lol:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Right !

A bit more of an update, I've been spending a bit more time smoothing off the inner wings.
These are now almost complete!

Heres the passenger side :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/innerds1a.jpg

And heres the plating for the drivers side - as mentioned before I tried to weld & grind a few times to keep
any filler to a minimum - i.e less filler = less chance of it cracking - I'm looking at trying to get less that
0.5mm filler which should be OK!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/innerns2a.jpg

And this is how it now looks after a bit of smoothing .... still needs a bit of attention here and there but its getting there!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/innerns1a.jpg

I've also invested in a Corsa dash to go in - it looks at though I will need to trim the windscreen edge by a
considerable amount and from talking on the boards I think I will have to move the steering column over
an inch or so in order that it comes through the dash in the correct place.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/corsadash1a.jpg

Thats it for now ... I'll post some more pics of how I get on with the dash shortly.

Cheers

Joff

[krobinson]

Looks good Joff, I remember when my bay was like that! I got mine smoothed after seeing Karls (showed bodyman PNG mag pic), his was the first i'd seen with it done. Now there's a fair few doing it. Looks ace :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v37/keithrobinson/enginebaynew.jpg

I've had mine out a few short journeys, and to be honest i cant see it cracking easy! Mine was welded same as your's before hand, then fiberglass for shape, and filler for smoothness.

Keith

[Nick]

Engine Looks Amazing there Keith

and joff, that's coming along well, Should be amazing as well once it's done. I like the corsa dash idea, What clocks are you going to use ?

[mikey14sr]

Thats looking fannytastic mate, but with the weight of all that welding wire and extra plating will there be a turbo upgrade on the cards?

[krobinson]

You honestly think that little bit of extra weight will make it slow? lol

No chance!

Keith

[Nick]

will there be a turbo upgrade on the cards?

joff-turbo-nova

[mikey14sr]

will there be a turbo upgrade on the cards?

joff-turbo-nova

yeah worked that out at donny the month it was featured in TV, wasn't turbo in the feature cause it took'em so long to print it after taking the pics if I remember correctly.

[Riggy]

:D looking really good joff

looks like its getting there

[joff-turbo-nova]

To reply ..... the clocks for the dash is going to be a 8v digi dash with custom films to change some
of the colours.

I have a C20LET being rebuild shortly which will run a hybrid turbo (brand new from Wallace NOT cheap!)
- you can see the Turbo Techincs box in the back ground of some of the pics! I have some ARP bottom
end bolts, a steel gasket and an ARP head stud conversion to go on. I'm looking for extra power but trying
to keep some reliability - hence all the inlet cooling! ECU will be on Phase II EDS with a big FMIC and a
chargecooler as well - I also have a NOS system to plumb in with 50bhp jets - an extra bit of plating won't
make too much difference!!!!!

Cheers for the comments - I'm sure it will be worth it in the end - LONG LIVE THE NOVA !!!

Joff

PS I have no plans on selling this once its finished before anyone asks!

[Ian]

cant wait to see it on the road

[nova_kev]

engine bay is looking sweet chap, should be a minter when she's done. look forwardto seeing some more pics 8)

[5toprjepog]

i think your doin nova drivers proud

[RJM25R]

Good on ya jofff.... Race ya to the finish line????

[nova ian]

looking all good mate, alot of work going into that.

and keith that engine bay is gleaming :o

well done to the both of you :D

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well,

After making a template and doing a lot of hacking I have managed to get the dash to fit in my nova .
As you will see from the following pic I have had to cut away 3 dash vents and a lot of the underdash
venting in order to get it in :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Dash1a.jpg

However after a bit of fiddling and some tempory side brackets being made up it fits !!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Dash3a.jpg

The wife didn't seem too impressed!!! Anyway as you will note the steering column comes through to far towards
the centre of the dash. I am planning to go to the scrappies next weekend and get a corsa column to see if it fits
better - I will need to move over the 2 brackets which holds the column in place - another job to do.

Hope this helps any one trying to do this!

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Update on the steering column - I think I will have to use a corsa column - picked this up from the local
scappies for a right bargain - its from a X reg Corsa B - so should fit no problems. Its power steering
that uses an electric motor - these go for big money on ebay!

Might need a bit of guidance on the wiring as my Corsa manual only goes to 1997!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/column1a.jpg

Joff

[SRimon]

you're a brave man, i've always pondered about a Corsa dash, but that looks like to much of a ball ache

[burgo]

nice work fella, looks really good

[5_door owner]

coming along very nicely mate.

it's goin to be one hell of a nova when finished.

its come quite far since i saw it on its side held up by a huge peice of wood lol.

are you going to spray the dashboard or just smooth the cuts out?

are you planning to tune the LET you've got for it?

p.s i want a lift in it when your finished :wink:

[Glytch]

Very Nice Joff, comendations for keeping up witht the updates also,
It's stuff like this that first attracted me to Novaload.

How hard would it be for u admin to convert this to the tec section?

I think this is inspiration to start taking pics whenever im doing work on the car.

One question though, I'd heard that it was better not to seamweld the engine bay but rather to stich weld it. Looking at the pics, theres a LOT of seam welding. Ecellent job on the smoothing by the way, ive never seen that done before.

Seen the pic of ur engine bay loads of times krobinson but never noticed.

[Ricks]

well done joff looks ace. are u a member of hullcruise?
im from brid so hopefully when you finish this project i can come see it cause it looks like one of the best novas on ere 2 be. mkaes me want to get my engine bay smoothed but it will never happen does anyone wanna teach me the basics off welding then? :D

[5toprjepog]

Hi did you use a gas welder and also what grade metal sheet did you use

[joff-turbo-nova]

Thanks for the comments ..... as for the welding I have a professional mig welder (250 amps) which takes the
big bottles and the 15kg wire rolls. I am on my 4th bottle of gas which is a mini-mig argoshield type bottle.

The steel plate I have been using is about 1.5mm thick which is about the right thickness to give enough strength
to the areas I have been working on. I could have gone thicker but it would have been a nightmare cutting
the plates to shape!

On another topic - Ricks - I haven't really been into the Hull cruise scene but if you are passing from Brid pop
into Long Riston on the way!!


ALSO - any one got any wiring diagrams for these corsa power columns as there are 5 wires I don't really know
what to connect them to!

Cheers

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Right,

I have had the day off work today and have finally sussed the steering column situation.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/column2a.jpg

Firstly I have had to cut off the nova column bracket and then trial fitted the corsa one cut down a bit.
After a lot of trial & error (i.e tacking the column on putting the dash on, making some adjustments and
then trying it again!!!) it now fits fine and the column cowl sits snugly into the dash like in the OEM situation.
The bulkhead looks a bit messy 'cos of all the welding and cutting I have done. Needs a bit of grinding flat
and a coat of primer!

As I am going to be running the EPS (Electric Power Steering) I have had to cut the support bar running behind
the corsa dash and put in some extra bars up to the steering column bracket for stablity.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/column3a.jpg

I have checked the clearance on the pedal box, close but enough room. I've also had to extend part of the
column at the bottom of the column between the two universal joints .

Next job is to weld in some permanent support brackets for the dash at each end and also a support for
the passenger side shelf and possibly for the glove box.

Enjoy

Joff

[burgo]

good work fella should look really good when its done

[scott.parker]

All i can say is WoW

I carnt belive how much you manage to get done on this car every time i see the progrees..well done keep it going mate,good luck.

Scott

[joff-turbo-nova]

Right , only been able to do a little bit of work this weekend due to my family feeling a bit rough with a bug!

Anyway been able to sort out a rear strut brace which I have made removable - bolts to either side of the
suspension turrets.

I'll probably have the brace chromed as I have found a local contact who can do some stuff for me.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Rearbrace1a.jpg

Cheers for now

Joff

[scott.parker]

Good idea,i need a "proper one" in mine once the cage go's in.

Scott

[mr_05]

fair play thats definetly startin to cum together well worth the wait to see the car,keep it up

[whitty_nova_1300sr]

sweet as m8 fucking top class work, cant wait to see what it looks like 8) 8)

[mark1astramad]

where did u get the inner wings,rear slam panel etc from as ive tried n no has them!!!!!!1

[Ricks]

i mite av to come see it sum time joff.i saw a pic of it the ova day and i think it looks ace well better then bodykitted novas anyday :lol:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Okay chaps,

Been reading a few posts on migweb and had an idea about the heater matrix pipes clearing the back of the inlet manifold on 2.0 16v conversions so I came up with this :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/heater2a.jpg

A couple of flexible pipes from screwfix which cost a couple of quid for the pair, rated to 200 psi so they should do the job!!!!

Full story here :-

http://www.novaload.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=456639#456639

Cheers

Joff

[scott.parker]

Cracking idea mate i will have to do this at some point in the near future

Scott

[5toprjepog]

Well done again and again and again you keep pulling good shat out the bag i think everyone will agree

[Ricks]

its gettin better and better :lol:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Had a another idea when I was off this week - how to mount a video camera for strip and track action
which won't wobble or vibrate!

I am going to be using harnesses with my sparco seats so the two seat belt points on the B pillars are
now redundant, until now.....

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/cameramount1a.jpg

I have made up an additional bar which bolts onto the two seat belt points on each of the B pillars. I then welded
a flat plate to the bar in the middle and arranged a fixing for the video camera. The lens sits dead centre
of the car and I have a small amount of movement up and down so I can set the position of the camera and
then lock it off by nipping up the bolts on each side! Just need to send it off to the chromers to make it nice and shiney!


http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/cameramount2a.jpg

My camcorder although a Sony Hi8 is now getting a bit long in the tooth as it is analog and is a real pain to
down load footage from onto the PC. Anyone got any recommendations for a new one?

Enjoy

Joff

[J4MES]

two great ideas there, you're really cracking on, cant wait to see the finished car!!!

[Snowface]

nice.

How you going to make it anti-vibration?

[joff-turbo-nova]

I've even thought of that as well !!!! - Neoprene !!! - Your probably leaning on some - yep a mouse mat - turn it over and you'll see some spoungy stuff - thats neoprene rubber !

I'm going to mount some of this between the plate and the camcorder to take out some of the vibrations.

Joff

[srs1]

that is a top idea matey, just wondering thou.

rear view mirror?
you not having one as the camera will be taking a good shot of that.

[benji]

try fitting it there with a cage in.

my camera is a nikon coolpix 5200(might be a 5300?) it's a digital camera that will also do movies, it will film as long as the card lasts, the vid's i've done have all been on the lowest setting so i get 25min to my 256mb card, but a 1gig card will do 25mins on the highest setting.
I mount it on my cage, on the passenger side just above the dash, this means i get a uninterupted view of the track(no shot's of the back of your head) i use a tripod/table clamp from jessops, it cost me ?12.99 the next thing i am getting is a downloder for the iPod, this will let me film a session on the track then empty the card ready for the next session. it's around ?50 and holds as much as the iPod has space(ours is 40 GB)

[joff-turbo-nova]

Hi,

Not been up to much lately but these rolled up today from my contact in Greece called Dimos
(email on : gedim@hotmail.com )

They are corsa dash parts, nova door handles and sparco seat handles

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Chrome1a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Chrome2a.jpg

Well chuffed with the results - the pics don't really do the finished product justice!

Joff

[Riggy]

BLING BLING :lol:

looks good mate hows the dash conversion comin on :lol:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Regarding the corsa dash I have done sufficient work to the bulkhead and mounting brackets to get it to fit snugly, once I have got the shell back from the spray shop and sorted the electrics I will have to start playing again.

I have had some flock made up to my own formula and I will have to blend in some new screen ducts and sort out the housing in the centre for my PDA for satnav! This will be quite a while off yet!!!

Been working on a Kingdom big mouth front bumper for the last few days - the overall condition is OK but the final finish is quite poor - loads of little bubbles and marks everywhere - seems I have given the bumper a bad rash of filler!!!!

Once I am happy with the final finish it will be bubble wrapped and stored ready for the spray shop!


http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Bumper2a.jpg

More to follow soon!

Joff

[5_door owner]

8) this is goin to be one crackin nova. some nice original idea's going into it. cant wait to see the finished item,

when are you hopeing to unveil it? :?:

[Novadex]

I cant wait to see it all finished! your doin a great job and its lookin great!

[ANDYRACER]

Wat a nova that will be all properly done as well.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well, this weekend I have been on with getting the front bumper to fit correctly around the intercooler.

I have had to build up the lower lip in order for it to fit around the bottom of the intercooler. This was my
first real go with fibreglass and I am please with the initial results. The bottom lip needs smoothing and
sanding smooth but it is the right shape and profile.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/front1a.jpg

I'll also need to trim some of the aperture for the intercooler in order that I can fit the mesh around the
intercooler to give it a bit more protection.

I also got a bargain on ebay this week which I picked up yesterday after the grand prix from a guy in
Rotherham - 4 almost new and 1 new Michelin 195/45 16's for ?98 :o

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/tyres1a.jpg
Well more updates later !

Joff

[Nova-Flair]

this car is going to be awesome!

[SRimon]

keep it coming! :D

[sdn2004]

looks sweet so far keep up the good work!

[coxie]

this rebuild looks absolutly amazing mate, was considering the corsa dash my self, but think ill give it a miss after seeing that lol


very nice mate .. some great work has gone into that 8)

[joff-turbo-nova]

More smoothing of the front bumper this week - but GOOD NEWS - I can now finish off the inner wings as I needed a die grinder to sort out some welds in a corner - this arrived !!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Compressor1a.jpg

It means that I can now run an air powered die grinder, PLUS I now have an impact ratchet gun, shultz waxoyl gun, tyre guage and air gun!!!

More updates after the weekend

Joff

[leebo]

absalutly amazin man lookin forward to following your progress

[joff-turbo-nova]

Bit more of an update - not much really happened this week end due to famly illness - I've had my rocker cover,
nos bottle and camcover acid dipped to get rid of the powder coating :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/aciddip1a.jpg

I've also now made up some brackets welded onto the rear strut brace to hold the nos bottle ...

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/bottle2a.jpg

Should fit nicely above the planned ICE install ....

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/bottle1a.jpg


Cheers for now - I'm off to be I'm knackered!!!

Joff

[Riggy]

looks excellent mate

how much did you pay to have the rocker and cam cover acid dipped as im trying to get mine cleaned up at the min :lol:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Got the three items acid dipped for a tenner from a mate on a guvvy job - they also do powder coating which is going handy for the rear beam!

Joff

[srs1]

looking good joff.
how much is now left to do?

[joff-turbo-nova]

Up date on things to do prior to the spray shop -

- finish off the inner wing smoothing behind the drivers side headlamp
- finish off the front bumper so it fits round the intercooler and ensure the mesh fits OK
- fit front wings so panel gaps are acceptable
- finish off rubbing down accessories for sprayshop - wing mirrors, handles etc

These jobs should take another few weeks so should be off to the spray shop by beginning of June!!!

Cheers

Joff

[J4MES]

getting along really well, looks amazing already, cant wait for the final piece....

[joff-turbo-nova]

Had a thought this morning - I have done away with the front towing eye so I can't strap down the front for transportation to the sprayshop or once I am up and running hold the car down on the rollers at Well Lane Turbo.

Therefore I have made up a couple of additional brackets with two new towing eyes - one at the end of each of the chassis legs- I've lowered them sufficiently to enable the straps at the rolling road to hook up under the front bumper.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/hook1a.jpg

Lots of weld to keep them in place and another job sorted - just need some new Argoshield as my bottle now only has about 50psi left!!! (should be c2500 psi when full!)

Joff

[ANDYRACER]

Thats a good idea that.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well ........ success ...... Ive now fitted the front bumper complete with mesh and grille surround.

The stainless steel mesh is very thick and was a real pain to shape round the corners of the intercooler at the two bottom corners.

A couple of bits of box section, a vice and some brute strength sorted it out!!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/mesh1a.jpg


Should look great once the shell has been to the spray shop!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/mesh2a.jpg

enjoy!
Joff

[ANDYRACER]

I want. That looks sweet. Is that a gsi bumper or a kingdom one?

[Riggy]

looks really good mate

the towing eye idea was a good one aswell :lol:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Its a Kingdom one thats been modified with a bigger mouth to fit the intercooler in!!!!

The quaility wasn't brill and has taken me ages to get all the nicks and marks out of the bumper ready for spraying.

I'm quite pleased with the results but are unsure of how low the front end will be in relation to the ground clearance! Time will tell - its a bit late now to change!!!

Joff

[burgo]

looking good joff when do you think its gonna be out?

[srs1]

looks like some good thoughts gone into that.
atleast you thought of the problem before you came up trumps at a later date.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Another update.......

Been making the final preperations on the shell ready for the spray shop in a few weeks time .... whoooow !!!!!!!

Been looking at the chargecooler kit I have aquired ..... I needed to find somewhere to mount the pump
and header tank. Had a bit of a brainstrain on this and decided to mount the pump behind the wiper motor
next to the blower motor and the header tank fits nicely behind the offside suspension turrett.
Also cut a couple of holes to route the pipework through the bulkhead as seen in the pic .....

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/pump1a.jpg

And heres the header tank .....

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/header1a.jpg

I need to get in contact with radtec who sorted out my intercooler as I need a front radiator with an
additional small integrated radiator for the chargecool system - more money .... ho hum!

Cheers

Joff

[Nick]

hmmmmmmmm chargecooled 8) *drool*

[Rick Draper]

Why are you fitting a charge cooler as well as your big FMIC? All it will do is restrict the airflow and speed.

[joff-turbo-nova]

FMIC and chargecooler ....... I want to crank the boost up a bit but still keep a fair bit of reliablity - a cooler charge should help - I think this will be a try and see exercise - if it doesn't really work then I will use the header tank for use in a intercooler spray system.

Joff

[Rick Draper]

Joff i will be running a big fmic and about 2+ bar or boost. I dont expect any problems with boost temps. PS a charge cooler begins to act like a charge warmer as the engine gets hotter and your boost temps will rise.

[Breeny]

Amen to that...

I remember my charge cooler being very poo after 2 minutes of hard driving.. lol!

That was Courtenay's twin core one.. I was told it wouldn't cope with much increase in boost hence why I decided to bin it.

[joff-turbo-nova]

We have a date for the spray shop ........

18th June 2005 !!!!

So its all hands to the pump to get the shell ready. I've prepped the bonnet, drilled holes and a cut out for the scoop and mounted it with the help of my mate Chris :drinking: cheers! First time the cars had a bonnet on in 2 years :P !!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/shell24a.jpg

Need to hoover out all the crud from the shell especially in the sills as theres lots of metal dust in there from the grinding I've been doing around the shell.

Made sure the scoop fits - looks OK with the pressed in vents!
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/shell23a.jpg

Been thinking about the chargecooling issue - I'm going to try it to see how it goes but will possible consider a large second header tank to increase the coolant capacity which may help>

Joff

[RJM25R]

How much was the stool-type intercooler in that bottom picture? :idea:

[joff-turbo-nova]

About ?3 from Ikea - cheeky!!!

:2gunfire: :grab:

[Snowface]

there's a little mans that sits on it and pushes his feet along the ground flintstone style lol.

[Matt2107]

this is gonna be one hell of a car.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well we're in the final stages of prep work - heres one of my alloys prepped up - just another 3 to go (and the centre caps!!) !!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/voodoo1a.jpg

The Pirelli's are getting binned as they are really crap in the wet and they are so old the rubber is now cracking - not good!

9 days to go !!!!!

Joff

[RJM25R]

9 days.... don't put yourself under any pressure mate!!!!!

[Riggy]

nice one joff hope it all goes to plan for you :lol:

[m.d.]

cool mate, cant wait to see the finnished work.

just wondering tho mate, you say you want to charge cool it now, that will mean that all those chassis mods you have done to the front pannel to fit you intercooler will be a waste as surely your not going to use both an intercooler and a charge cooler.

[joff-turbo-nova]

I'm going to trail run both intercooler and chargecooler and run some inlet and outlet charge temp sensors to see the results, if they make little difference I'll bin the chargecooler and use the header tank for a water to intercooler spray kit - so some of the kit will get used either way!

Anyone recommend some water jets that would be suitable - just as a back up!!!

I hoovered the shell out last night. When I started the bag was empty and when I was finished I emptied the bag again to discover that I had hoovered up just under a 1kg of crap!!!!

There was loads of cr@p in the sills which I sucked up using a long pipe - these sills have never been cleaned out since I got the shell - back in 1989 .

Order of events are now :-

- Spray shop
- Apply sound deading
- Waxoyl shell
- Pedal box and heater matrix
- 1st fix of wiring loom
- make up all brake pipes
- petrol tank and pipes
- rear suspension

And thats the first few jobs - sounds easy but the wiring loom needs LOTS of work before putting in the shell.

Cheers

Joff

[Matt Nova]

amazing car mate you're really putting in the effort with it

where abouts are you

i live in scarborough sounds like i'm not far from you if you live near beverly

[fearless]

Anyone recommend some water jets that would be suitable - just as a back up!!!




Give Lisa and Laurence a ring - Laurence has just fitted this set up from a ********** intercooler spray to his corsa C20LET -Works off a washer pump/bottle and cost less than 20 quid from the main dealers !!!

Produces a fine mist of water from the three jets !


I'm sure he'll tell you the car and part number

http://www.corsasport.co.uk/carimages/2675/dcp_0776.jpg


Cheers

Dave

[karl Rowntree]

Looking good Joff, always great to see someone taking so much pride :wink:

I was going to say mate, could you not just make a set up using the washer bottle and the rear wash pump? At a guess you will be doing away with the rear wash/wipe. Bit dodgy using water from the header tank.

Good luck mate. Karl

[joff-turbo-nova]

amazing car mate you're really putting in the effort with it

where abouts are you

i live in scarborough sounds like i'm not far from you if you live near beverly

I'm in a small village called Long Riston, just off the A165 road to Hull about 16 miles from Brid. If your passing pop in and kick some tyres!


Looking good Joff, always great to see someone taking so much pride

I was going to say mate, could you not just make a set up using the washer bottle and the rear wash pump? At a guess you will be doing away with the rear wash/wipe. Bit dodgy using water from the header tank.

Good luck mate. Karl


I was referring to the alloy header tank that could be used for the chargecooler system - not a good idea using hot coolant!!!


Give Lisa and Laurence a ring - Laurence has just fitted this set up from a ********** intercooler spray to his corsa C20LET -Works off a washer pump/bottle and cost less than 20 quid from the main dealers !!!

Produces a fine mist of water from the three jets !


I'm sure he'll tell you the car and part number

Cheers Dave , not been in touch with Lisa & Lol for a while - must give them a bell - I take it they have a C20LET now??

Cheers

Joff

[karl Rowntree]

:lol: I did wonder. :oops:

[-=VanMan=-]

Laurence with the corsa?

[fearless]

Laurence with the corsa?


Yep - Lives right across the road from me !!!


Dave

[-=VanMan=-]

Ahright, small world

Was talking to him only last week about an exhaust for my let van also he's just sold his old xe to a mate of mine :wink:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well, for the first time in 2.5 years my car has now left my house !!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/bcc1a.jpg

It was collected at 08:30 this morning and followed it up in my vectra to the spray shop with all the bumpers etc ....

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/bcc2a.jpg

When we got there it did generate a bit of a stir as they haven't seen a nova in for repairs in years!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/bcc3a.jpg

Well it will be about 2-3 weeks before she is ready but I'm popping in on a regular basis to see how things develop! This is where I left her .... :lol:

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/bcc4a.jpg

More to follow soon.............

Joff

PS I trust this brightens up your monday morning Mr Penn !!!

[scott.parker]

Nice one joff,what colour is getting done in then,a straight red or something diffrent,or is it a sceret :P

And i bet the main talk point was your home made boggies :lol:

Scott

[joff-turbo-nova]

The colour will be revealed shortly .... suffice to say its a Vauxhall colour and its blue!

The dollys were mentioned and I kindly thank Tescos for donating such a useful item as a old shopping trolley!!!!

Joff

[ANDYRACER]

Looks sweet. Cant wait to see it finish.

[krobinson]

I'm loving the trolley idea mate, very funtional!

Looking forward to seeing the results!

Keith

[joff-turbo-nova]

Been sorting out the suspension this week whilst the shell is at the spray shop. I've looked at the tie bar
mounts and I thought they needed a bit of a beef up .

So out came the mig welder and lo and behold - some beefed up tiebars!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/tiebar1a.jpg

They are off tomorrow with the rear beam, tie bars, roll bar and bottom arms to be shot blasted and
powder coated - also nipping in to see how the shell is progressing - I hope that the rear arches have
been put in but all will be revealed tomorrow !

Joff

[ANDYRACER]

Looks like a good idea. Get some pics of the shell when u go down tomorrow.

[mad-driver]

WOW! :o I dont think iv EVER seen anybody quite so precise and thorough! Good on ya mate i cant wait to see it when it has a new coat

:D

[scott.parker]

Got any other pics before and during them tie bar pics??

Scott

[joff-turbo-nova]

Scott,

The only pics I have is when they were in situ taken a couple of years ago...

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/tie2a.jpg

.... complete with poly bushes and spacer blocks. This mod was done more to get the tie bars to clear
the end of the F28 gearbox than for an anti-dive kit.

Joff

[Matt2107]

Awesome.. again you impress me with your dedication.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well I'm sure you will be all pleased to know that in the true tradition of body shops things haven't
progressed as far as I would have hoped. In fact, its moved from one side of the bodyshop to the
other corner!!! Well not going to mither as its taken 2 years to get to this stage - another couple of extra
weeks won't make that much difference!!!

Anyway, I've now got the loom out of storage for a tidy up and a new fuse box (the corsa one) and this is
the mess I have to sort out .......

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/wiring1a.jpg

For those who can't read wiring looms ...... here's the subtitles!!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/wiring4a.jpg

Well I think I have a few hours of work to sort this out!!!

Joff

[krobinson]

Thats always been a fear of mine, removing a car loom :o Its something i'll probably attempt at some stage tho!

Keep us updated Joff :)

Keith

[burgo]

i love doing looms, im tackling me mates one from his celica gt4. you gotta love japs and there electrics :o

[scott.parker]

I think i would have to have massive big stickers on it all before i took it out,els i would just through it in the bin if i couldnt remember where it all when't back :lol:

good luck mate hope all go's well.

Scott

[Jack]

i love doing looms, im tackling me mates one from his celica gt4. you gotta love japs and there electrics :o
Feel free to come and take a look at mine then! :lol:

[mad-driver]

i love doing looms, im tackling me mates one from his celica gt4. you gotta love japs and there electrics :o
Feel free to come and take a look at mine then! :lol:

Do you trust Burgo enough lol :lol:

[Projectjordan]

Hi,

I have a few quiriesabout these dash/column mods as i'm currently fitting a corsa B dash to a nova myself:

1. how have u wire the speed pulse sensor of the PAS?, have u used a digi dash transducer?

2. did the column fit straight onto the new support bracket? or have u shortend it at all?

3. what are u going to use to demist the windscreen?, i'm opting for the heaters to blow permenantly down (heating the cabin) and a Uroglas (iirc) heated front screen...

good luck, keep up the good work and updating the WIP pics

cheers

Ryan

[joff-turbo-nova]

Ryan

Regarding the EPS steering system I am going to try three options starting with the easiest option first! -

1. Try running the speed sensor from the digi-dash ]
2. Try running the speed sensor from a piggyback gearbox unit from
a 1.2/1.4 nova/corsa
3. cobble together an ABS sensor on the front hub (most difficult option!)

Having sorted the position of the colum bracket I had to extend slightly the collapsable link bar between
the two U/J's but it seems to fit and work!!

Regarding the screen demisting situation I am going to smooth in a new vent from a F*rd Escort which
should give a reasonable flow!

All,

Been to the body shop again this weekend - still no work has been done - aparently they have had
staffing issues - not going to worry too much - its taken 2.5 years to get this far - another couple of
weeks is here nor there!!

Joff

[Riggy]

sounds and looks excellent joff cant wait to see it


as for looms there not really that bad once you take one it its straight forward really

[joff-turbo-nova]

as for looms there not really that bad once you take one it its straight forward really


I know what most of the wires do - its just remembering to patch in new wires for the following :-

- outside temp sensor
- nos set up
- chargecooler pump
- new alarm system
- inlet & outlet temp sensors
- abs sensor
- re-routing the nearside headlamp wires

and thats just the engine bay!!! - Also need to sort out a new corsa fuse box - thats going to be REAL fun!!!

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Right ...... its been a bit of a wait but the bodyshop has finally got its finger out and got on
with sorting out my shell. HURRAY!!!

They have welded in a new arch on the nearside and pulled it out by about 5mm to accomodate
my 16" tyres more easily.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/arch3a.jpg

The offside has now been cut away showing what was hiding in the seam, a bit of rust but not as bad
as I thought it would be! The rust is going to be cut out and a new strip put in and then the arch
insert put in and again pulled out by 5mm.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/arch2a.jpg

I have also had the bodyshop sort out some shotblasting and powdercoating of the
suspension components which are the rear beam :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/axel1a.jpg

The track control arms :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/track1a.jpg

and the tie bar mounts :

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/tie1a.jpg


Some more updates will appear hopefully in the next week or so.

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

At last the bodyshop seems to have got on with the job !! This week they have sprayed the shell matt black, then
matt white and are now rubbing down the shell to find any inperfections, sort these before the final coat of primer ,
then lots of lovely colour and lacquer!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/spray1a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/spray2a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/spray3a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/spray4a.jpg


Well the first coat of the colour should be on by next weekend all things being equal!!!

Enjoy

Joff

[benji]

looking good, what colour are you going for?

[joff-turbo-nova]

All will be revealed shortly ......














but as a clue .........













its blue...............
















and its a Vauxhall colour!

[benji]

not the zafira gsi blue is it?

[joff-turbo-nova]

Nope,

I'll narrow it down a bit for you ...... its seen mainly on Astras!!

Joff

[oggy]

is it the same colour as most of the astra coupe turbos r in, if so thats a really nice colour, have 2 say your car is looking in better shape than mine is at the mo, keep up the good work fella

[bob]

im guessing it will be arden blue...or another blue i dont know name of :(

[novacabrio]

europa blue?

[joff-turbo-nova]

In one !!!!

and bullys special prize!!!!


Yep as seen on the Astra 888's and Astra Coupe Turbo's - Europa Blue !!!

Can't wait - I've had the nova red for 16 years - will be quite a sight in a new colour!!!

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well ...................................

she's had the final coat of lacquer today !!!!!!

Here she is ...........

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/blue1a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/blue2a.jpg

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/blue3a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/blue4a.jpg


Just needs flattening down and then mopping with a polisher and she'll be ready!!!!

Enjoy

Joff

[Jim]

Very nice Joff, are you happy with the results?

Jim

[Jos]

:o looking fantastic!

[joff-turbo-nova]

Really chuffed to bits, pics don;t do it justice and it was under strip lights, will look great in natural light.

Theres a couple of marks on the paintwork in the lacquer at the moment, but these will come out with the final flatten and then will be buffed up to a mirror polish!

Seems strange with the colour on as its been red for 16 years!!! I decided on the colour at PVS 2002 so have been waiting 3 years to see what it would look like on my nova - I now know!!!

I love it !

Joff

[Lee H]

Who's doing the work as that looks really good? Also what sort of cost are you looking at for something like that if its a stripped shell? PM me if you prefer.

[Ian]

looks really good

[peester]

joffs away! very special indeed.

[Jules]

Looks awesome Joff!
:+:

[krobinson]

Looks absolutely superb mate, loving that! Looking forward to seeing it complete now :)

Keith

[Mike.]

great colour, that is going to be one awesome car when rebuilt :+:

[Nath]

wow love that colour keep up the awesome work m8

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well I've been able to take delivery of the shell tonight and she's now sitting in my garage -
its been flattened and mopped - just needs another cut and polish to get it gleaming!!!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/BLUE6A.JPG
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/BLUE7A.JPG
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/BLUE8A.JPG
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/BLUE9A.JPG

Next job is sound proofing then waxoyling everywhere!!

Joff

[burgo]

let the rebuild commence. this is one nova im looking forward to seeing

[m.d.]

was going to say make sure you waxoil under the arches and under the floor, paited chassis looks good but wont last long on an everyday car,
cant wait to see how your going to finish this car off now,

[Projectjordan]

excellent glad to see you've finally had her back.

*off topic*
i've just remembered an image of a modded heater matrix (room for XE/LET mod), and iirc, it was one of yours - would i be correct if so, could u please point me in the rught direction of the thread/ image i'm after.

cheers

Ryan

[novamadcars]

wow never seen this post befor and was just having a flick throu well im spechless i cant belive how much work has gone in 2 this project must be costing you fortunes hope you have a good job lol. Keep us posted with pics and cant wate 2 see this beast of a nova finished hope your pleased with it keep up the good work mate :D

[scott.parker]

excellent glad to see you've finally had her back.

*off topic*
i've just remembered an image of a modded heater matrix (room for XE/LET mod), and iirc, it was one of yours - would i be correct if so, could u please point me in the rught direction of the thread/ image i'm after.

cheers

Ryan

Mate i think you are looking at it :wink:

Scott

[joff-turbo-nova]

excellent glad to see you've finally had her back.

*off topic*
i've just remembered an image of a modded heater matrix (room for XE/LET mod), and iirc, it was one of yours - would i be correct if so, could u please point me in the rught direction of the thread/ image i'm after.

cheers

Ryan

The full link is here :-

http://www.novaload.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=456639#456639

Hope this helps any mods you may plan!

Joff

[Projectjordan]

cheers, i just found the thread, and has convinced me to do the mod', are these the pipes you used?:

http://www.screwfix.com/sfd/i/cat/81/p1718581_x.jpg

also just noticed that you've remove the clutch cable/bulkhead sleeve, what type of mod are you applying here?

cheers

ryan

[scott.parker]

I think they are just the same pipe you would use if your extending pipeing from the main feed to the taps on a house sink,if so nice and easy to get hold of and fit etc...

Scott

[joff-turbo-nova]

cheers, i just found the thread, and has convinced me to do the mod', are these the pipes you used?:

http://www.screwfix.com/sfd/i/cat/81/p1718581_x.jpg

also just noticed that you've remove the clutch cable/bulkhead sleeve, what type of mod are you applying here?

cheers

ryan

Ryan,

Those are the ones - to fit 15mm copper pipe! The olives on the pipe on the heater matrix may be a bit tight - I sanded the pipe a bit and tapped on the olive.

As for the clutch cable, this comes inside the bulkhead so you don;t have to do the bending of the bulkhead mod to fit round the back of the inlet manifold. This is done primarily to keep the cable from rubbing the outer sleeve due to the angle it connects to the back of the pedal. However it also means I need to run a spacer adapter at the gearbox end to keep the overall length the same!

Cheers and hope it goes OK

Joff

[ade]

watch that newely painted bonnet in that garage m8!

Last thing you want is some choips or dents or scratches as peeps walk past it.

I'd wrap the fecker in bubble pack or cling film. Those "prone" parts.

[Rob-16v]

went to see Joffs shell at the bodyshop and it really is amazing! Good work Joff.

ROB

[Nick]

stunning, fancy doing mine :-D ?

Any idea of a predicted finishing date, or is there still a long way to go ?

[joff-turbo-nova]

I'm aiming for Doncaster 2006 , but if its not really ready then I'm not rushing it - I'll probably then go for either PVS in June or Billing in July.

It depends how everything goes back together, especially flocking the dash, the ICE install in the boot and the engine rebuild!

Joff

[DANN1NOVA]

WOW WOW AND WOW..that is one hell of a rebuild....love it

[Hughsie II]

Excellent work mate,keep it up!!
Cant wait to see it finished!! :D

[Ste-V]

Excellent work mate, can't wait to see it finished!

I've just read through all 13 pages of that, and I'm tired now :p

[Mr-G]

this car has never failed to amaze me, keep up the good work fella cant wait for the next batch of pics :D

[joff-turbo-nova]

Well,

Not much really been happening here that you can see. I have now finished the loom and retaped it all up.

Its been a bit of a major job (like I haven;t had any of those with this rebuild!!) as I have :-

- installed a new corsa fuse box which has given me extra relay points and fuses
- put all the wiring in for the nos system and progressive controller
- re-routed the offside headlamp wiring round the back of the bulkhead
- wired in all the alarm , immobilser, total closure and carjack system
- wired up the ignition swich and starter through relays in the fuse box
- mated all the nova plugs up to the corsa equivalent so they fit straight on to the swiches
- wired in the EPAS power steering

these were the main jobs - also had to sort out some bodges I had made to the wiring loom about 10 years ago & removed the old alarm

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/LOOM2A.JPG


Next job - sound proofing the floor and panels then wayoyl

Joff

[novacabrio]

thats amazing!

[mk1nova]

GENIUS.

[burgo]

lol you gotta love wiring. gd work fella

[shy witness]

great stuff mate......just liking this car more and more as it progresses..........




keep up the good work

[joff-turbo-nova]

Right,

Been busy the last couple of days putting on the sound proofing to make the interior experience a little less tiring :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/SOUND1A.JPG

Its a bit of a back breaking job but seems to be working as the floor panels no longer resonate and return a nice thud when you bang on them - done about 1/2 of the floor pan - just need to do the passenger side, rear 1/4's and passenger door.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/SOUND2A.JPG

Enjoy

Joff

[srs1]

looks like you are getting there matey.

[Ste L]

looks like the finsihing point is getting very close now,

very nice work, keep it up fella

[Rob77]

How heavy is the sound deadening?

(Keep it noisy - she will be lighter!!!)

Looking great though Joff.

Always look forward to seeing the latest pictures of this beast!

:+:

Rob

[m.d.]

mate you really will have it spot on there,

id love to have a fast fun and quiet when you want it to be nova,

if you extended the heights of the turrets you could have had longer suspension travel, therefore a smoother ride too, bit late now tho,

keep up all the hard work mate, 8)

[joff-turbo-nova]

Been wayoyling this afternoon - its a smelly mucky greasy business but its got to be done for the longevity of the car !!.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/waxoyl1a.jpg

I've used about 4 litres doing both doors, the panel behind the dash, the passenger sill and passenger side rear quarter.

Need to do the drivers side sill, drivers side quarter, roof panel and the rear panel!

I then need to do the chassis legs (front and rear) which I will tackle at a slightly later date.

Cheers for now

Joff

[scott.parker]

Jesus this is going to be one of the best rebuilt novas around soon,and probably out last most the way you treating ti mate,fair play,good job done to mate.

Scott

[Ben]

Jesus this is going to be one of the best rebuilt novas around soon,and probably out last most the way you treating ti mate,fair play,good job done to mate.

Scott

Was one of the best built nova's before the rebuild :!:

[joff-turbo-nova]

Been doing a bit more work to the shell this week - I've finished all the sound proofing and
interior waxoyling (thank goodness it stinks!).

I've now put the first fix in for the wiring loom :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/loom3a.jpg

As you can see I have also put in the pedal box and have also attached the servo on the otherside :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/Bay1a.jpg

Also partially finished the tailgate - just awaiting the handle from the spray shop as it needed
respraying as the paint had reacted on one corner and also the tailgate catch is awaiting chroming
(nudge nudge Rick Marland!!!!!) . The spolier will also need respraying as its been damaged in transit
as the paint has come off on one corner and there are a couple of big scratches on the underside
- I have fitted it to keep it out of the way!

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/tailgate1a.jpg

Lots more work still to do!!!

Joff

[Riggy]

as always joff looks stunning :lol:

when do you hope to have it done for ?

[scott.parker]

Getting there now mate,looks like a nova again :wink: stuning job.

Scott

[novaco]

this must be one of the biggest rebuilds!!!!

and i realy cant wait to see it finished!!!

looks superb

Karl

[Benn]

dudeeeee
i looks great
one thing tho,when you get your boot catch chromed? or do u mean the pin?
cause when you get the catch do it becomes sooooo striff its unreal..
i know mine is...lol

[Chris]

looks great Joff, cant wait to see the finished article

Chris

[joff-turbo-nova]

No pictures this time, just an update on things.

- I have now replaced fuel lines and hoses.

- I have put in new brake pipes & unions complete with goodridge braided flexihoses

- Undersealed under the fuel tank and put in the fuel tank (hammerited silver) and sorted out the feed for the fuel filler which now lives in the drivers door shut.

- Bolted the fuel pump up (assembly also hammerited)

- Rebuilt both doors complete with glass but are still await a return of certain items, namely the door catch and lock - RICK MARLAND - CAN I HAVE MY PARTS BACK

- put in sunroof assembly

next jobs are -

- Put in new sunroof glass when I find one!

- Fix in the new bespoke blue headlining and trim B pillars with vynal

- replace rear windows

- build up rear axle with new pipes & cables and hammerite rear discs, calipers and backing plates and fit with new Bilstien suspension.

More pics to follow when something interesting has happened.

Joff

[RJM25R]

Aha!! You shoud have your metal bit's back any time. I took them to work ysterday and they went to the post office wioth all the other stuff.....

[Mike]

OMG :o

Thats a serious rebuild! how many hours of work have gone into that car!

To think, im about to undertake the same thing! oh bugger, i may live to regret to this???

[boredbloke]

To think, im about to undertake the same thing! oh bugger, i may live to regret to this???

er probably...

[Rob-16v]

Went to see this during the week, it really is amazing,nothing has been left out or missed, up-close detail is mind boggling, more wires than a Jumbo Jet. if you know its going to a show, get yourselves there. Nice work Joff.

[Gunzi]

Thats fuckin mint!
'Nuff Said

[joff-turbo-nova]

Now finished the fuel filler situation and got all the brake pipes connected to the servo :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/fuel1a.jpg

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/servo1a.jpg

Got a bad cold at the moment :( so I think the garage will be binned off this weekend. :cry:

Joff

[Snowface]

nice.

this thread has had 14000 viewers in 11 months!

[paulocutts]

Hey, been following this post for ages seein it come along. Some very good work gone into this look forward to seein it when complete.

Has there been any progress???? love to see some more pics

:D

[joff-turbo-nova]

Hi,

Yes I know this thread has been somewhat quiet of late, mainly due to lots of pre-christmas events, christmas & new year , a bout of bronchitis and a nagging wife on new years day who has blackmailed me into decorating our hall stairs and landing (which will take a couple of weeks to sort out!!)

Anyway in between all the mayhem I have now put in all the fuel lines and pump, pulled my steering rack apart and put in a quick rack and bolted it up to the bulkhead with poly bushes, sorted all the brake pipes and the pic below shows the rear beam (which has been powder coated silver) built back up with poly bushes in situ and a stud conversion in and ready to go :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/beam1a.jpg

Just need to sort out attaching the hand brake cable and putting in the roll bar (with poly bush) - thinking of putting a double roll bar on - anyone got any thoughts or has tried this????

I have also sorted out the sunroof glass problem - I've used a mk4 Astra one which with a bit of filing and grinding now fits fine!

Next job after fitting the rear beam is putting in the headlining , rear and front window and then the BIG job of fettling the dash. Think corsa dashboard, bespoke digi clocks, toggle switch ignition and push button start with in dash SatNav and the whole dash flocked !

It's going to be very interesting!

Joff,

[Primie.uk]

Sounds major!

Keep us updated fella, there has been some serious man hours put into this project, hope it's all worth while :lol:

[paulocutts]

Cheers for the update joff, I love following the WIP threads seeing all the work that goes in. and this is one of the best!

Unlucky on the decorating haha, this will definately be worth it when its done!!!

keep up the fantastic work mate!! look forward to seeing her complete!

[Will F]

START A NEW THREAD FFS!!

Take the pics and put it into a new thread! :D

[NOV4_SPORT]

i love this thread , been following this for while , and really look forward to seeing it in real life, its givin me a lot of inspiration to get on with my nova sport rebuild.

[lj]

shit man....

thats one hell of a project ur doing, love the detailing ur doing... the fuel caps a fab idea, a friend done it to her pug, only thing was it took ages to fill it up. keep up the good work though mate, hope to see it at pv show...

[Jules]

Nice Joff, I remember when I parked next to you at VBOA donkeys years ago - was stunned by the quality of your Nova in it's previous guise then and this looks like it's gonna be one of the best about once it's finished!
:+:

[m.d.]

if i had a garage i still dont even think id have the man hours to do this, im dam well going to try tho

[DIB]

First time I`ve seen this feature is today.Just read it from page one to 15 and loved every minute of it :lol: .Excellant updates with great pics!!.great to see someone doing all that work to keep a great car alive!keep up the good work!

p.s.I can`t wait for the next update :lol:

[leebo]

Speachless :shocked!:

[BigStan]

WOW ! Cant wait for the final result

[joff-turbo-nova]

Glad to see novaload is up and running again and bonus my thread is still here !:)

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/axel2a.jpg
Finally got the back axel mounted - tried my newly refurbed alloys and I am pleased to say that there is loads of clearance between the tyre and the arch as when I had the inserts put in I asked them to pull the arch out by 3-4mm.
Also Waxoyl undersealed both arches to prevent the tin worm getting in :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/axel3a.jpg
Also been able to fit the new Bilstein suspension on the rear. The rear dampers have a 9 setting in car adjustment and the rear springs sit on an adustable platform for height adjustment - they are set on the lowest at the moment but once I have got some weight in the back I may raise it up a bit. The rear beam was powdercoated same time as the respray and is a 1000% improvement on the scabby rusty one that came off.
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/axel4a.jpg
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/axel5a.jpg
Fronts are the billy coilovers I have waiting to go on. Just need to plumb in the rear brakes and handbrake and the rear axle is finshed.
Enjoy
Joff

[fearless]

The rear dampers have a 9 setting in car adjustment

In what way are they in-car adjustable - not seen 'billy's' with this capability before :confused:

Car's coming together well - looking really good


Dave

[craig green]

Rear beam set-up looks juicy. I take it the suspension is all part of the Bilstein coilover set-up?

[Spudly]

OMG!!!

Sawa few shots of this on bridcruise site, and was impressed as hell, but ive only just seen this thread and im speechless youre not a nova owner/driver youre a god lol id love to come and have a nosey at her im in hull so if u dont mind someone comin to dribble at her let me know lol!!!

[joff-turbo-nova]

In what way are they in-car adjustable - not seen 'billy's' with this capability before :confused:

Car's coming together well - looking really good


Dave

Dave,

See the pic below - the damper has a 9 point adjuster on the top which changing the valve settings in the damper to make it harder or softer depending on the conditions at hand.

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/adjust1a.jpg

The height adjustable bit is under the spring on the ream beam - works just like a coilover - the spring platform moves up and down which adjusts the ride height.


Sawa few shots of this on bridcruise site, and was impressed as hell, but ive only just seen this thread and im speechless youre not a nova owner/driver youre a god lol id love to come and have a nosey at her im in hull so if u dont mind someone comin to dribble at her let me know lol!!!

SRSpudly give me a PM and I'll give you the details - feel free to pop round sometime when you are next around.



Rear beam set-up looks juicy. I take it the suspension is all part of the Bilstein coilover set-up?

Craig the suspension is part of the Bilstein coilover set up for a nova apart from the yellow spring rubbers which have come from deflex and a poly bush material so they will last longer and have less compression.

Cheers

Joff

[Ben]

Joff, one of your tyres is dirty!

Looking ace as always!

[buster12345]

is there any thing you dont no about novas lol bet there ant cant wait to see the rest of this amasing mission just sat at my pc reading all of what you have done and now i want to do something like this to mine but dont no where to start this is just the best thing to ever happen to a nova well done very good work :) :) :) :thumb:

[joff-turbo-nova]

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/piston1a.jpg
These arrived at the weekend as well care of Steve off Migweb who did me a great deal. They are JE low compression pistons with a 86.5mm bore. Came with all the rings necessary and a head stud conversion kit. Just need the rods from Sweden (a group buy off migweb again!) and we'll have all the bits for the engine (already have the following - hybrid Turbo Technics KKK turbo, reprofiled cams, upreated head gasket, ARP rod bolts, Z20LET oil pump to name but a few bits!)

Also got my mate Chris White to make up an insert so my quickshift gear linkage will work with my odd sized nova rear mount. All hammerited and ready to fit
http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/mount1a.jpg
Thats it for now
Joff

[RJM25R]

Hang on----there's dust on that last pic, i'm certain!

[Spudly]

Your mate chris white as in used to drive a red SRi a few years bk, that guy is a genius lol (if its same guy) never met him but his SRi was mint n ive got the ol homemade kit off that for mine now!!!

[buster12345]

iz likes the look of them one lol

[buster12345]

iz likes them pistons lush

[CP@Novaload]

:D Good work

[joff-turbo-nova]

Been able to spend a bit of time in the garage this weekend .

I have been trying to decide where I will be mounting the oil cooler rad as things being the grille and bumper
are going to be very tight as the water rad needs tilting forward to clear the turbo directly behind it. i have
taken an idea from Rick Draper (cheers Rick) and have mounted it under the front offside wheel arch.

I have made up some brackets and have ensured the tyre will clear the rad, however I may need to make up
a shield from perspex or the like to protect it from flying debris kicked up from the tyre :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/oilcool1a.jpg

Also sorted out my new brake discs - the are 308mm from an Vectra GSI but as I understand they are also used on
Saabs hence the disc being stamped Saab not GM. They are 5 stud and needed 2 holes drilling and two holes
filing out (I used my die grinder which is a lot easier!)

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/disc2a.jpg

Also didn't have to make the holes huge, just big enough to clear the stud conversion I have fitted
to the front hubs :-

http://www.elsamak.karoo.net/disc1a.jpg

[Ben]

Ive always loved those discs,

[cruisingscotland]

well done to you mate for all the progress u have done i take my hat off to you! lol :D

[novamadcars]

looking lovely joff

[Riggy]

looking stuning as always fella :thumb:

[novamadman]

I have just spent just over an hour going through this thread. Absolutely unbelievable. words cant describe. Well done and wish you all the luck in the world with the car.

shane

[novamadman]

I have just spent just over an hour going through this thread. Absolutely unbelievable. words cant describe. Well done and wish you all the luck in the world with the car.

shane

[Adam]

I've just read through this whole thread, absolutely amazing rebuild mate.
Not one detail has been missed on the car.

Great thread.

Keep up the good work :thumb:

[SRlew]

thats going to be an absolute beast, well it is already!

[Timmy]

i Just stayed up for an extra hour and half than i wanted to reading this lot, look's the nuts will have to come and see it when its on the road. so what if it will take me 4 hours from london the work and effot would be worth the travel. Top job dude
Long live the Nova

[jamie gsi16v]

as the above people i have just spent an hour and a half reading this thread and could hardly believe my eyes, i have done 2 complete bare shell rebuilds to date and have been very precise and pickie about what i have done but it seems nothing to the extent yours is, some of the ideas you have come up with are completely amazing and un thourght of. i can certainly say that this car is going to be the best novas i have ever known of. a few cheeky questions tho? will the car actually be driven on a regular basis or is it purely a show car? what callipers are you using and have you fitted any kind of bias valve for the rear brakes? is there going to be any sort of cage incorporated in the car? what is your actual job? and once again a big pat on the back from me and it will be a pleasure to see this car when its finished.:thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

[joff-turbo-nova]

as the above people i have just spent an hour and a half reading this thread and could hardly believe my eyes, i have done 2 complete bare shell rebuilds to date and have been very precise and pickie about what i have done but it seems nothing to the extent yours is, some of the ideas you have come up with are completely amazing and un thourght of. i can certainly say that this car is going to be the best novas i have ever known of. a few cheeky questions tho? will the car actually be driven on a regular basis or is it purely a show car? what callipers are you using and have you fitted any kind of bias valve for the rear brakes? is there going to be any sort of cage incorporated in the car? what is your actual job? and once again a big pat on the back from me and it will be a pleasure to see this car when its finished.:thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

Jamie,

Thanks for the support and comments - I have always had the motto "if the jobs worth doing - do it right" so I am. Unfortunatley due to family commitments this project is taking way longer than I expected and some people may say after 2.5 years aren't you sick of the work??? Well because I get to spend only a small amount of my non-working time on the nova the time is quite precious and still gives me the urge to keep at it!!

As for time scales when it will be finished - I have just purchased a ticket for Pv2006 in June so fingers crossed!

In answer to your questions :-

1. As I now run a Vectra Estate for the family and also still have the wifes corsa the Nova will become more of a show/track car. I do intend using it in anger and will by no means be a trailor queen. York is on the cards for the 1/4 mile sprints and some track action will be in order - will defo do Silverstone at Trax!

2. The brakes are sourced from a Vectra GSI (also same as Saab Aero) which run a 308mm front disc. The calipers are V6 items but the caliper brackets are also Vectra GSI items. I am also running Mintex M1144 pads which I have heard good things about.

3. The brake bias on this set up should not be an issue with Novavan proportioning valves on the master cylinder and the 308's on the front.

4. I have considered a cage but I have kept down the sport/luxury theme at the time being and a cage will be a little too hardcore motorsport for this theme. In the future it may be an option.

5. My job...... well thats a good one ...... mechanic ....... trades (sparky/plumber etc) ........... rocket scientist ........ maybe not! I am actually a financial advisor for a high street bank. Job pays well enough to do the things I like in my spare time! Having oily dirty hands that don't seem to want to clean is sometimes a problem on a monday morning!!!

Hopefully more updates soon - my son is off to stay with Nanny & Grandad over half term so I have 3 full days to play in the garage!!! Hurray!

Joff

[jamie gsi16v]

financial advisor lol lol lol probably the last thing i expected u to be! im glad your going to be using the car as it would be a complete waste if you didnt, anyway well done and il keep my eye on the updates and hopefully see you at pvs.

jamie