So I finally managed to get a work placement for my sandwich year, on my mechanical engineering course at portsmouth uni, at a company called RP Aero Systems in Littlehampton, West Sussex which means I will be having some income, which means I get to build!

I've been planning it out religiously, gonna buy a talon flat pack and try and get as far as I can putting it together over the easter holidays at home in hertfordshire.

I've been looking at lockups in littlehampton and they are around £50 per month so once I have one of those I can source the donor and get it driven there. Then I can methodically strip it

I'm thinking take the engine + gearbox out to make it lighter, strip the interior then jack it up and remove the suspension. I was then thinking of screwing onto the bottom 4 adequately weight tested castor wheels to move it on so it doesn't become a 200kg dead weight

Then the usual 'cut off the chassis number and vin plates' and scrap the rest. Once I've got to the stage where I have a lock up full of bits I can bring the chassis down on a trailer and depending on what stage I got completing the chassis, it might just be a case of bolting everything in.

I've worked out to strip the car I'll need a trolley jack, 2 tonne draper one available for £30, draper axle stands pair for about £20, sockets and spanners and other stuff I already have. I'd need to rent an engine stand from somewhere as well.

I've been looking at the Ford DOHC and apparently it has higher MPG than the pinto and CVH engines but I'll have to lose some footwell area because it comes with an MT75. My reasoning is these are easier to get hold of, and from what I read, I can't understand why more people don't use them!

I have to admit I have never taken the engine out of a car before but there is a first time for everything!
It'd be awesome if by chance there was another haynes roadster builder in littlehampton but I guess it'd be a slim coincidence!

I'd love to hear what everyone thinks!

Pete
(Very excited!)

[Edited on 8/3/12 by vanepico]

firstly congrats on the job.
if this is your first attempt? expect things to take 3/4x longer than planned. unforseen issues always crop up.
i think being open to powertrains based on availability and cost is very wise.
get an engine hoist rather than a stand/cradle. be easier to take engine out then sit it on wood, hoist it up to do sump work etc.
guys on here have lots of knowledge and are very willing to help.
best of look

I'm hoping my teenage enthusiasm and youthful body will put me in great stead

Hi have think about all this look on the bay for 2.3 or 2.0 from rs 2000 or scorpio gearbox typr9 or mt75 hanynes roadster chassis will take both cortina uprights are way better than sierra look at rally design you dont need a doner if you dont mind a q plate q plate has lots of advantages at mot time 2.3 scorpio will make 200 bhp without to much trouble if you want to ring me 07933787810
Cheers Ali

quote:

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Originally posted by vanepico
I'm hoping my teenage enthusiasm and youthful body will put me in great stead

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I'm thinking of the donor because it will end up being cheaper, gonna be needing quite a lot of parts from it, like all the electronics and stuff.
I also want to keep it as close to the Chris Gibbs book as possible with the sierra uprights. I assume the engine mounts, sump height etc for the DOHC will be that same as the pinto?

Nothing saying I wouldn't upgrade the engine later on though! I'm kinda trying to get away from the Q plate cause I'm debating getting a personalised number plate

My dad had a Granada Scorpio v6 auto a while ago

out of interest, what you expecting cost to be?

hmm from my understanding they were normally like ~£3000 max (unless you go crazy) but I don't intend to have any other hobbies draining my resources!

Having said that I'm going to do all I can to keep the costs down, be nice to be able to afford to insure it as well!

So how much you spent?

The pay for this job isn't astonishing because it is mostly for experience but it's more than I got without a job!

[Edited on 9/3/12 by vanepico]

probably stands me around £3-4k. not much money for the speed

Just read the book again, if I go with the DOHC I'll have to mod the mount and it is taller but I can't find anything online to say how much taller it is, i'm trying to find a pdf of the haynes manual

i vaguely remember a site that gave all engine dimensions, let me have a look

no sorry i must have deleted it. put a seperate post on, someone will know

i work in crawley can always stop by on the way home from work if your stuck with something. will have to see what i can remember as my roadster has been on the road for 2 years now making it three years since i built the chassis.

To littlehampton? hmm thats quite far out of your way according to google maps

Sounds like an excellent plan.

I was a little behind you in that I didnt start looking till I was a few months into my placment year and even though it was a 15month placment by the time I had got organised realised there was not chance I was going to get it done in the time, and didnt want it to over run into my final two years much (M.Eng) so ended up buying a tidy 'functional but in need of some work' narrowbody.

Given the cost of a used zetec (£85 tops) and a type 9 (about the same) I personally would be very tempted to stick to the common ground and less the doners powertrain on on the basis that its not an easy to change once its been done, and all else being equal you might as well make life easier than harder, while maximising the resale value should the time ever come.

Sussex is miles from me, but anything I can do to help in terms of support and advice, feel free to u2u me.


Daniel

if you want to save the hassle of stripping a donor,

I have one already stripped..

complete rear axle (drum brakes)
handbrake lever
steering column and shroud
front hubs and brakes
mk2 escort steering rack
v5C and tags
no engine and box though


u2u me if you interested

You might consider taking the engine and box out from underneath the body. That's how I did mine and avoided the need for a crane. I took the wheels off and lowered the car to the ground on the discs, with a crawler trolley under the sump with blocks, removed the cross member and gearbox mount then jacked and blocked the body up enough to wheel the engine out from under.

just to go back to the opening post - well done on getting your placement. My son, studying business enterprise, also at Portsmouth has had no luck so far finding his placement for next year (anyone on here able to help out ). Secondly I am not too far from Littlehampton and certainly happy to help with any tools that you may need - just ask.
Chris.

quote:

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Originally posted by dhutch
Sounds like an excellent plan.

I was a little behind you in that I didnt start looking till I was a few months into my placment year and even though it was a 15month placment by the time I had got organised realised there was not chance I was going to get it done in the time, and didnt want it to over run into my final two years much (M.Eng) so ended up buying a tidy 'functional but in need of some work' narrowbody.

Given the cost of a used zetec (£85 tops) and a type 9 (about the same) I personally would be very tempted to stick to the common ground and less the doners powertrain on on the basis that its not an easy to change once its been done, and all else being equal you might as well make life easier than harder, while maximising the resale value should the time ever come.

Sussex is miles from me, but anything I can do to help in terms of support and advice, feel free to u2u me.


Daniel

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quote:

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Originally posted by gavin174
if you want to save the hassle of stripping a donor,

I have one already stripped..

complete rear axle (drum brakes)
handbrake lever
steering column and shroud
front hubs and brakes
mk2 escort steering rack
v5C and tags
no engine and box though


u2u me if you interested

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quote:

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Originally posted by JeffHs
You might consider taking the engine and box out from underneath the body. That's how I did mine and avoided the need for a crane. I took the wheels off and lowered the car to the ground on the discs, with a crawler trolley under the sump with blocks, removed the cross member and gearbox mount then jacked and blocked the body up enough to wheel the engine out from under.

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quote:

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Originally posted by HomersDouble
just to go back to the opening post - well done on getting your placement. My son, studying business enterprise, also at Portsmouth has had no luck so far finding his placement for next year (anyone on here able to help out ). Secondly I am not too far from Littlehampton and certainly happy to help with any tools that you may need - just ask.
Chris.

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Not personally, I always use my mates, but I can ask if you don't get sorted.

Congratulations on getting a placement, will be very beneficial. I had one between 2nd and final year and really benefited all the work in the final year.

Sadly never managed to start my project while at uni but now, 2 years after graduating, it is started and very luckily being kept in the warehouse at work with a second, more completed kit car as reference.

Gavin174 U2U sent about some of the parts listed if vanepico has not taken you up on your offer.

Matt

A little off topic but, is John Bishop still lecturing?

what topic? It doesn't ring any bells, got david sanders, he's been there for ages apparently

Another question, if I were to get a twin cam sierra but use a zetec, could I just remap and plug in the dohc's ecu to avoid having to get the zetec ECU? are these old ECUs reprogrammable?

The one thing that is phasing me about getting a zetec outside of a donor is gonna be locating ancillaries like pumps and the ECU etc.
If I did get the zetec ECU would it be a straight plug into the current loom?

Cheers,
Pete

Another question, if I were to get a twin cam sierra but use a zetec, could I just remap and plug in the dohc's ecu to avoid having to get the zetec ECU? are these old ECUs reprogrammable?

The one thing that is phasing me about getting a zetec outside of a donor is gonna be locating ancillaries like pumps and the ECU etc.
If I did get the zetec ECU would it be a straight plug into the current loom?

Cheers,
Pete

My first expenditure :p A shop down the road was closing down so i got 50% off

Check out this tiny Stilson!

This lot cost me about a fiver
I'm having trouble resizing them on photobucket :s(sorted now )

[Edited on 16/3/12 by vanepico]