Project 'Deathwish'

[Taggy]

I havent been on the forum much lately and It was great to read all the updates, glad to see you have got a bit more time to put towards the project. I will be busy my self tomorrow putting my engine together to put back in the car (did a forged 5e) So looking forward to gettting it back in!!

Cracking work as usual, keep up the good work!!

[Fro]

Haha OCD ftw!! Good job on the lights/indicators, looks great

[drongo boi]

awesome work as usual pal

[Starlet__SR]

Glad to see this still going:)

Day

[Amjad]

Lights make it look really fresh up front! Keep those orange bulbs too

[jason_l]

Thanks Guys, really starting to come along now. Yes i like the orange bulbs in there so just going to leave them.

Been really busy the last week with it being half term so haven't really done anything at all to be honest but have ordered a few bits up. Thottle cable end, relay box, relays, clips, wiring etc. Sarah has to work late on wednesday and thursday so i will be staying late to work on the wiring and hopefully get a few bits sorted. Going to start with wiring up the horn and fans on a thermostat switch. Then move onto indicators, lights and gauges. Sounds easy i know but when you are making a loom from scratch with little electrical knowledge then its not going to be straight forward.

Will let you all know how i get on.....

Jason

[Steve GT]

Getting close now jase may be done for Japfest next year?

[jason_l]

Thanks Steve. Prob wont be ready and on the road till 2014. Looks like its almost there but still a long way off and i still have to strip it completely down and have it powder coated yet.

[Taggy]

when i look at the original pictures of this buggy, i still cant believe its the same one! Its come along way from the beginning, you certainly were ambitious!

[jason_l]

Thanks buddy, it seems to be dragging for me as i just do little bits here and there and never really spend much time on it as my life is pretty hectic at the moment but i crack on when i can. I know what you mean though, when i look back at the pics of when i first bought it and compare them to how it is now im amazed at how far its come. Its getting there slowly but most jobs take time.

Been pretty busy but there are a few little updates.........

Started looking at starting the wiring, this may be easy for some people but wiring is not my strong point. However i am determind to do as much of the wiring myself with the exception of the engine side of things which was done by JDModified, although i know a little of it. I have a book on basic wiring for kitcars and it does have some very good circuit diagrams, although they are generic diagrams and some have needed changing to meet my needs it gives me a starting point. One thing that none of the books/manuals/diagrams seem to show is how to go from the large main battery size cable down to the smaller gauge stuff to run the lights, dash etc. The simple circuit diagrams don't show any of this so i had to make something up myself. After looking through the internet i found a couple of idea's but nothing seemed right and it just seemed a bit of a bodge. I looked at some connection blocks that go down to a slightly smaller gauge but it still wasn't ideal. Then i found some 'bus bars'. These are perfect and allow masive battery size wire to go right down to small bore stuff. I decided to buy 2 of these and have one connected directly to the battery to run all the permenentaly live circuits, such as fans, horn etc and then another one to run the switched circuits such as lights, dash, gauges etc They have lots of take offs which mean that there is room for expansion at a later date should i need to add more gauges etc. Plus it tidy's everything up as well.

You can see from the pictures that the main battery lead connects and then each smaller wire comes off the bus bar and goes through the fuse box and then to the relay box or elsewhere.

Started doing the wiring and have so far done the horn circuit (nice easy one to start with) wired up both fans independantly, most way through the brake light circuit and have started wiring up the speedo unit.

Then wednesday i had to go to get a few things sorted on my eunos but while i was over there i popped round the corner to the local scrappy and picked up some golf calipers for the rear. I already have some brand new calipers for the rear but they are not really suitable as the fixing point for the brake lines foul on the driveshafts. Not a problem on a golf as they are front wheel drive but on the buggy its not going to work. I spent ages looking around the scrap yard and looked at the mk4 and mk2 gold calipers. I have been told the mk4 calipers should be ok but looking at the position for the takeoff it still looks like it will foul on the driveshaft gaiter so i just decided to go for the mk2 golf setup. Slightly different but the brake lines fit in a completely different position that will be so much more suitable and i won't have any issues with them fouling. They do have some wierd rubber bits on them that i may cut off as they looka bit strange. They need a good clean up but they are mechanically sound so once i have worked my magic they should be fine.

The last picture shows the brake lines fit to the side of the calipers so won't foul on the driveshafts. yay.

and finally i bought a few more little parts, some 32-28mm reducer bends for the coolant pipes, hopefully one of my next jobs after the wiring when i get some time and a bung for the fuel regulator so i can start it up without the fuel pissing on the floor, not sure if its the correct thread but will see soon.

Im off work at the moment working on my house but in a week or so i go back and then i can carry on with sorting through the list of jobs. I do have the nosecone back in my garage with the aim of doing some more fibreglass work in the next week but i have so much to do on the house i doubt i will get time but its there now so when i get some free time i can just get it done.

The work continues....................

Jason

[_shaun_]

good to see your still cracking on ive been wanting to start my wiring and although mine will be easier than urs its actualy just finding a place to start lol. bus bars seem like a nice tidy solution never seen them used in a car application tho lol

[jason_l]

good to see your still cracking on ive been wanting to start my wiring and although mine will be easier than urs its actualy just finding a place to start lol. bus bars seem like a nice tidy solution never seen them used in a car application tho lol

Yes always easier wiring up stuff when you have a base to work from. When your starting from scratch its a nightmare, found the bus bars and it just seemed like the obvious choice. Was about the neatest and cheapest way around the problem lol

[jason_l]

Holy crap i haven't posted on this for flippin ages! Didn't know if the topic was kept with the move but looks like its still here,

Doesn't mean i haven't been working on it as i have just forgot to add up the updates. Almost at the point where i might start stripping it down for paint/powdercoat and hopefully start the final build now.....

Jason

[jason_l]

Its that time again, another update......

Well the last few months have been manic! Work has been hectic and it just hasn't eased up at all, just feel destroyed. Then spent some time getting the Roadster cleaned and sorted for JAE which was awesome. Then unfortunately i had to sell the car to put some extra money into the house. Really didn't want to sell it but it was either that or sell the Buggy!!! So the mazda went, will miss it loads but had to be done really. Now have £2k change to put into the house.

Will miss it though, was an awesome car......

Picked up my new beast on monday evening, S reg Nissan Micra 1.0. It really doesn't compare to the 5 but is still fun to drive, its nice not giving a dam about the car and just drive it like i stole it. Just folded the rear seats down and im using it like a van and throwing all my building materials in the back. As its reduced my car running costs as well i now have more money to put into the house and the kitcar. and as its a bag of poop i don't need to keep cleaning it or looking after it i should have more free time as well.

Anyway thats slightly off topic, now for some pictures.......

Started looking at coolant lines. Decided to just go to the local scrap yard and pick up some 28mm hoses. After going through 3 honda civics i ended up with these....

Honda civic bottom hose's, they have some really good bends and are in not bad condition either, got all 3 for £5 which was a bargain i thought. Cut them up slightly and they look like they will work well to join the pipes at the front to the middle of the buggy.

placed roughly to check they will work, will need to drill some large holes through the frame and add some protective edge trim....

Then have been continuing with sorting through the wiring. Not been doing too much with this as ever time i get some free time i spend ages trying to work out where i had left it. Anyway i have done a little more, brake lights almost there, speedo 1/4 wired up and started cleaning it up more.

wiring.....

Bought some new mini gauges, only 37mm across the front, should look nice when i have them all bought and fitted. So far have voltage and water temp and will be adding oil temp, oil pressure and boost of course.

voltage gauge....

water temp gauge and seperate hose adaptor.....

and where they will be getting mounted......

and then i have been continuing with a little bit of fibreglassing. All the resin i had ended up going off so had to be binned but have bought some new good stuff and some gelcoat also. Got one of the old windows from the house and slapped a few coats of fibreglass over them. When its set it will basically peel off and give me a completely flat sheet that will be used to join onto the bottom of the front nosecone. I may add a sepearte splitter piece later but not sure yet.

Also have had some slightly bad news, i have to move the kitcar out of the work workshop. Space is getting really tight at the moment and i can't expect them to let me keep the car there. I have decided to do this before i am told to move it but to be honest it would only be a matter of time anyway. This means i have to try and find somewhere to store the car now and work is going to probably slow up on it, unless i can get it into my parents garage as then i can do more on it probably. To be honest im not happy at work at the moment so a change in jobs may be on the cards before long?!?!?

Driving around in the Micra is making me want to get it built even more now so maybe i will work more on it to get it done..........

Jason

[jason_l]

Well i haven't posted in a while but that doesn't mean i haven't been working away at it. Work has been pretty hectic as always but i have found time in between work and building my house to do some more on the Demon.

Been spending most of my time sorting through the wiring. Now im not really that good at automotive electrics so its been a bit of a learning curve. Especially creating something from scratch but i have been sorting through it bit by bit and throwing myself in at the deep end has meant i have learnt loads.

So far i have......

Horn circuit done

Both fans wired in

Reverse lights done

brake lights done

indicators done

Engine wiring almost done.

Speedo part way wired in (fuel gauge sorted, speedo sorted, sorting revs and it also illuminates as well)

currently working through main lights

Started it up on friday after finally getting the battery charged and fuel in the tank. Just hearing it start up makes it seem all that more closer, even though in reality im still a long way off.

After wiring up the indicators i had a little test and it seems that something wasn't quite right. No matter what way i indicate all lights seem to flash. I spent a little while trying to get to the bottom of it and finally found that the mini hazard switch was the culprit. I got the wiring diagram from CBS and it looks like their switch's work differently. Was planning on using the standard mini style switch's but rather than redoing all the wiring i have decided to buy some new toggle style switch's that will now replace all the mini ones. Hopefully should be here monday/tuesday this coming week and i can continue sorting through the wiring.

I have added 2 mini gauges in already and looking at the other gauges available i think im going to go for boost, oil pressure and oil temp. This will mean i will need to add a sandwich plate on the oil filter housing so i can have the gauge sensors mounted to it. I have a larger oil filter also that currently doesn't fit as it fouls on the frame so im thinking i will buy a oil filter relocation kit so i can move the oil filter to better location. Im planning on adding a oil cooler at a later date so this will help with that as well.

Have also found a little time to contine with cleaning up the nosecone piece. Started by taking it into work and getting the flat piece i made trimmed to the size of the bottom and generally sanded it down, good ol Micra means i can now just fold the seats down and use it like a Van.

Then it was taken back to my garage for the messy stuff to take place. Got the bottom piece bonded to the nosecone, was a little tricky with the shape of it but got it sorted in the end. Then started adding the Gelcoat, the main of it is now all covered, I still need to add some to the bottom of it but i have ran out so need to order some more. I need some for the rear cycle wings anyway so won't go to waste.

adding the Gelcoat.........

completely coated......

and once it was all dry, thrown back in the Micra ready to go back into work for sanding down.......

Looks a bit rough but after lots of sanding, filling, sanding etc will look nice and smooth

I have a few things to sort on the Micra this week, mainly lots of welding to try and get it through its MOT but i will be back on with it soon

Jason

[jason_l]

Well its been a manic week with work and getting ready for half term when work goes mental, what with all the kids visiting and smashing up the exhibits meaning more work for me! Probably won't get much done this coming week but will try my hardest to get somewhere with it.

Not really much of an update but always good to try and keep this regular and keep myself motivated to crack on. Been busy this week trying to get the micra ready for its MOT, one word RUST!!! and lots of it, but majority has now been welded/replaced and undersealed so fingers crossed it passes and i can get back to getting on with the Buggy.

Got a few more parts ordered this week, seem to order a few parts now on a regular basis. Posty says that it won't be long and he will have delivered ever part of it. After the issues with the indicators i ordered some new switch's for hazard, rear fog and lights. Decided to go for toggle switch's as they look different and go with the buggy well. Ordered them from CBS and have got a special one for hazards and lights. Also ordered some loom tape as well.

also ordered a dash sticker sheet so i can label all the switch's up properly so i know whats what, this was nice and cheap but has loads of stickers on it, alot i won't be using of course. bit hard to see in the photo....

Then laser cut a rough panel for the switch's and got them fitted loosely in place, the centre consol will be completly covered at a later date but this is just to see location of switch's more than anything...

and in place.....

I got a red cover for the hazards to make it stand out from the others and then got the stickers added to them....

Next job is to continue with the wiring of the switch's, lights, rear fog etc.

Also Paul from work continued with cleaning up the mk2 golf calipers, one done one to go....

i removed the VW logo and sanded the front part down smooth as well for a better look.

Then started getting a bit of paint onto it, has come along loads.....

Ordered a load more wire, relays and some loom wrap that should be here in the next few days. Also have a small sheet of abs on order to see what its like as a material for making the centre consol and panels from.

And thats pretty much been it for the moment, not much but at least its something i guess. Hopefully get the micra in for MOT this week and if all goes to plan i will be back on the buggy soon.

Jason

Well, not really much of an update but it keeps me motivated and keeps everyone in the loop as to whats what.

Been continuing with the wiring and its going well, engine side of things are pretty much there, needs a clean up and wrapping but its starting to come together now. As im off this week i may go to the local scrappy and pick up a few parts like clips, grommits etc that i need for a few jobs.

Bought a component box to house the ecu and wiring block to help keep them away from the elements. Just need some large sized grommits to get the ecu clips through. Has a waterproof seal round the lid as well that should help.

Also bought a set of laser cut steel tabs from ebay, using these to weld to the frame for things like engine cover, wheelie bar etc

Also while we where sorting out a load of scrap stainless that got sold off at work i managed to salvage a small stainless box, even has lock and waterproof seal around the lid. It has a few holes in it but these will be sealed and the plan is to use it as a lockabke storage box that will be fitted somewhere in the buggy. Probably go at the back next to the fuel cell i think.

Apart from that i have just been doing the odd bit here and there, nothing much but a lot of planning and working parts out. Have the nosecone back in the garage to look at adding more fibreglass to the inside to strengthen it up, hopefully get it done sometime this week with any luck.

And just for reference here are a few more up to date pictures, looking at the rear of the buggy i think i will add another structual bar to the rear quarter so i can add a side panel and covr the sides of the engine a little. Going to just tack weld alot of the brackets and parts on now and then look at welding them in for good when it gets stripped down later on.

Jason

[Josh@TunerLifestyle]

nice work dude! feels like i have been watching this for yonks!

be sweet when its all done!

[pick1]

Good work mate there's light at the end of the tunnel

[jason_l]

Ha, thats funny it feels like i have been building this for yonks!

Thanks guys, will be done one day.

Jason

[Taggy]

this thing is just so cool, one day it will be done

[jason_l]

Right then, update time i guess.

Now where do i start with this one! Have done a little more but has been hard frustrating work and have been so close to just packing it in and walking away at one point.

So i was off work all last week, i have built up so much lieu time over the year that i have lots of time off now. So i take a week off work and spend it working on the house, got a bit done but would have liked to do more. Then Thursday last week i get a phone call saying that all the other technicians are on holiday on the Friday and there is nobody in the workshop. They wanted me to go in to cover, after a quick chat i decided to go in but spend the day working on the kitcar and only be there if the brown stuff hits the fan. Was a big mistake to be honest, everyone was told only to bother me if URGENT and i had people in and out all day with stupid requests. Needless to say i got hardly anything done. The only real thing i did get done was fit one rear caliper and get the brake lines measured up.

Started by trying to fit the brake pads to the caliper, needed a rewind tool as the piston was too far out, bought that then attempted to fit the caliper and it doesn't fit! The hand brake mechanism actually fouls on one of the rear tie arms, was not a happy bunny. So i tried fitting the caliper on the other side of the car and it won't work either. At this point i was getting more frustrated! Then compared the handbrake mech from the mk4 calipers and the difference is clear......

MK4 is the bottom one and mk2 is the top one.

So i fitted the mk4 mech to the mk2 caliper and everything is spot on and looks like it will work well. Still would prefer to use the mk4 caliper and i think eventually i will be going back to the mk4's. I have taken parts off them now and they are not worth much if i sell them so going to keep them and sort them out later. Think i will get take off point for the brake lines moved and remachined in a better location so they are useable, plus they are a third of the weight of the mk2 versions.

So that was my day Friday, went home really frustrated and Sarah could tell i was pissed off. Then late morning Saturday Sarah got called into work so i thought now is my chance to make me feel better. Went in to work and just got on with it without any distractions. Got the rear number plate lights, rear lights, dipped beam, sidelights and main beam all wired in. Went home that day feeling so much better than the day before Wiring is getting more of a mess but will be fine when wrapped and cleaned up later.....

Monday i got on the phone to Russ at Furore Products. He was so helpfull and i can't rate him highly enough. Got the rear brake lines and 2 of the front inside chassis lines ordered up from him in lime green of course. Im still unsure if i should do all the brake lines in braided or switch to copper?!?!? Then a day later these arrived at work......

and at lunch i got the front chassis lines and the rear fitted to the buggy, length is spot on and i just need some chassis clips to hold them in place. I haven't fitted the other side yet as i still have the other caliper to clean up and paint first.

Also got the headlight wiring cleaned up, they look a mess so made sense to get them wrapped and cleaned up. This is what will happen to the rest of the wiring loom when its finished.....

Im now in and out of work all over Chrsitmas so i may get a few more little bits sorted here and there if im lucky. I need to go by a scrap yard at some point for a few parts and if im lucky i may get a few bits for Christmas.

So do i do the rest of the brake lines in stainless braided hose or do i switch to copper? I reckon im looking at about £100 for the braided lines.

Sorry for the HUGE essay this time.......

Jason

Edited December 7, 2012 by jason_l

[jason_l]

Hi All,

Time for some pictures i guess.

Well been all over the place over Christmas and working on a few projects here and there but got a few hours put in on the buggy. Thought its about time i get it to a moving state so have started looking at the brake lines and coolant routing.

First thing was to get a brake bias valve so i can install this when i sort the brake lines. This will be mounted in the centre tunnel behind the passengers seat, out of the way. I specifically bought it as it stated it was 3/8 fittment so would keep everything the same but it turns out its m10, not a huge problem but bit of a bugger.

Also got the other caliper cleaned up and have begun painting it up.

Just waiting till i can get over to my mates house now so i can borrow his brake pipe tools so i can get the brake lines bent up. Going to go for copper for the remaining lines i think, might upgrade to braided after iva but probably won't bother....

Then it was on with routing some coolant lines. I want to make sure that there are no joins inside the main cabin area in case a hose splits or leaks as its going to get messy. Been looking at using 28mm copper pipe and simply soldering the joins so everything is solid within the cabin area. Now i originally thought i was going to have to remove the engine to get the pipes in the cabin but if i jack the rear up i can just about get them in. Started running the hoses from the engine and down into the rear section and im happy with the results. I have started running the copper pipes down the middle and im just waiting on a new blow torch so i can solder the joins.

started routing from engine.....

pipes down to centre section, the copper pipes will be covered with high temp sleeving so you won't see the copper at all.

side view....

and down the middle......

Got some hylomar on the thermohousing after a good clean and its now bolted up to the engine with a new thermostat in place.

Also while working on the engine area i went off on a slight tangent and decided to knock up a heat shield for the manifold area. Plan is to make another one to defelct some heat from the coolant pipes as well. This was made from a side panel from a 2008 Honda F1 car. Bought a pair of these a while ago and have been thinking what i can use them for and it worked out pretty well. I have a few carbon F1 parts lying about that im going to use here and there.

Firstly got it trimmed down to shape.....

added some expensive heat shield material to the underside....

and then fitted in place....looks rather good if i do say so.

Now im just waiting on a few more connections and the blow torch and i can hopefully find the time to finish off the coolant pipes and be a tiny bit closer.

I have also been working on the nosecone and have re-enforced the inside and started sanding it down but its going to take ages before its done.

Work continues! Looks like this thread has almsot reached 1000 replies also, flippin heck its been going on forever Ha

Jason

[_shaun_]

cutting up f1 carbon fibre car parts to build your build somes it all up realy EPIC

[jason_l]

Haha. Well sort of, i still think of it as bodging on parts from other cars. Its just those parts are from VERY expensive cars.

[Fro]

Still just as epic as the first time I read about this!