Winter mods finished (Piccys 56k warning)

[Dar]

I've finished my modifications on the car for now so I thought some of you might be intrested in seeing whats been done.

First of all I get rid of the dash, heater matrix and heater motor. I built another dash up which is loads lighter that the origonal. I am still looking in to a digital dash with datalogging facilitys at the mo, so the standard clocks will go at some point.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04563_800x600.jpg

Then I got one of these to play with
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04515_800x600.jpg

Which meant that I had to test it out, so I decided to cut out the brackets in the car that I wasn't using.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04514_640x480.jpg

However the main reason for borrowing the plasma cutter was to cut away the unwanted metal on the bulkhead.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04522_640x480.jpg

The reason for this was that I have two air filter options, one is loud on the drive by test and the other one is a tad quiter for more sensitve tracks.
So the metal was cut away and the bulkhead seamwelded back up.

It went from this
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04509_800x600.jpg

To this
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04541_800x600.jpg

Since the windscreen wiper bracket was one of the victims of the plasma cutter I decided to get a single wiper motor from a Fiat Uno and bolt that on. Piccys of the two air filter options
Loud
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04551_800x600.jpg

Not so loud
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04543_800x600.jpg

Since the windscreen was out I decided that the cage could do with tagging in to the A&B pillars. This should greatly improve the stifness of the car and make it handle even better. This has been annoying me for a while now because it should have been done when I was building the car.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04562_450x600.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v485/DPursey/DSC04565_450x600.jpg

So I just need to get a heated screen fitted now and im ready for this years trackdays and sprints. I have lots of other plans for the car but this is it for the time being.

[novamadcars]

looking good mate keep up the good work

[Mike.]

great stuff mate, the cars comming along nicely :)

[Rob-16v]

That is ace!, it jst looks cool.

[jayzer]

thats wicked m8 good work gotta love the plasma cutter :P

[-Bruce-]

As i said before dar its looking like you have done a job. Would be interesting to see if you can feel a difference in twist/stress in the shell with the cage taged to the shell more!!

Bruce

[Rob77]

Looks awesome man.

Keep meaning to do that with my cage!

Rob.

[dhdev (Oli)]

Awesome!
workshop at the moment for much of the same, except i don't have a plasma cutter so its the old fashioned spot weld drill for my brackets :lol:
Welding my cage in as well whilst its off the road, i noticed as i drove along if i wedged my finger tip between the cage and shell you could feel the flex over bumps, so hopefullly welding it in should show big improvements!!!
The dash looks lovely BTW, much nicer than my bodged attempts

[Stuart]

i want a plasma cutter.... id spend my days ramdomly cutting shizzle up lol.

dash is nice. the ETB digital data logger is a good buy (if a little pricey for the most uptodate one)

[Adam]

The dash looks great, very tidy.

Nice work.

[Dar]

Thanks all 8)

Bruce/Oli - Im sure that the tagged in cage will make a difference. Dunno if I will actually feel the difference when driving, I also noticed that the shell was felxing with reference to the cage. Although I haven't driven the car yet, but just by grabbing the cage and yanking it, it feels so much more solid and apart of the car (before you could notice it wasn't tagged in).

If anyone wants to copy the dash or know how it was put together, I will be happy to tell you how it was done. To be honest it came out alot better than I thought it would.

Dar

[orange_andy]

looks crap mate!!! proper crap!!! im embarrassed for you!!!! i tell you what seems as though your car looks sooooo crap, i will let you take my SR and i will bear the embarrasment of having to drive your car,


looks good mate, but seriously if you feel to downhearted i will swap with you i dont mind!! really!!

[Jack]

Carpet in the footwells! Pfft, what luxuries :lol:

[Dar]

Thanks orange_andy but I think I can put up with the car ;)

Razorjack, everyone says about the carpets :lol: I like having carpet in the car. Plus the floor looks horrible and it covers it up nicley ;)

[Rexy]

I Love dar... hes my idol.

[Dar]

I Love dar... hes my idol

Really - But your my HERO! :lol:

[m.d.]

lovin it mate, did you not think of getting the strips that they sell in deamon tweeks for welding in cages to the pillars,

then again ill be prob making my own for the fiesta

[Dar]

m.d. - Thanks - I didn't know that Tweeks did the plates, but then again if I did I would have still done it the same way. My little bro (whos done all the weldinding on the car) is a welder and fabricator so I can get whatever size metal I want for free, so I don't bother looking anywhere else.

[dan23]

is dar still around
would like to see updates on your build

[novalew]

This must be the most historic post dragged back to life

7 Years old.

Drop him a pm mate

[Will F]

Well he's def still alive, I saw him at Combe last weekend lol.