John Bonnett
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 06:59 PM |
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Ginetta G15 BMW Restoration
Before embarking on the Austin Seven Special, I have to finish the current project; a G15 powered by a BMW K1100RS bike engine. The restoration is now
into its second year with just the reassembly and finishing needed to complete it. The car first registered in 1971, has been off the road since the
early eighties. The previous owner bought it as a project so he had never seen it run. Although he had bought a new chassis, it had been stored
outside under a leaky tarpaulin and had rusted through in several places. The fibreglass shell had been stripped back and to a cursory glance was in
good condition. However, it had suffered the ravages of time and weather as my painter would point out later in the build.
The car which was originally Imp powered, came with a lot of Hillman Imp engine parts but no complete engines. The cost of building a 998 (875 pistons
are almost unobtainable) ruled it out of my budget so early on, the decision to go bike engine was made. The decision was made so much easier by Clark
Dawson, an extraordinarily talented engineer who has master minded the installation of the unloved (and therefore very cheap) BMW K series engines
into Davrian, Clan, G15 and of course the Imp. And I believe into a Midget. Amazingly, the engine is dimensionally similar to the Imp, same weight and
produces maximum power at seven five. In fact the engine is more like a car engine than a bike engine even down to the clutch. Clark developed a bell
housing which, with an adaptor plate, allows the Imp transaxle to fit the engine. There are three engines in the range; K1000, 1100 and 1200. On
Clark's advice I chose the 16 valve K1100RS which produces 100 BHP and pulls strongly from 500 rpm. I purchased the engine complete with the
throttle bodies, ecu and loom. Clark's auto electrician friend takes the bike loom and modifies it to connect directly to the car loom so
nothing could be easier.
I'll not bore you with too much detail of the works carried out but I'll try to attach some photos showing the progress. The chassis took
a long time to repair taking three metres of new tube. It's not a great design it has to be said but I imagine it works with the body to achieve
sufficient stiffness. Unfortunately, it was made just before Ginetta went into liquidation and there were faults with it that I have had to rectify.
This included the caster angle which I went to a lot of trouble to get absolutely right at 6 degrees. The chassis has Triumph front suspension and Imp
rear wishbones. After the Imp cross members dried up, Ginetta made their own which rely on very accurate welding and positioning of the components
that make it up. I discovered toe in on one side and toe out on the other; non adjustable. So I decided to modify it to accommodate the MX5 cam bolt
arrangement to adjust the toe.
So where are we at the moment? The chassis is finished, shot blasted and powder coated, the body painted and mounted on the chassis which is on a
rotisserie. The wiring which i made a bit of a meal of is completed apart from connecting the engine loom which will happen once the engine is
installed.
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HowardB
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 07:08 PM |
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that looks good - I know of a nice white one with an Imp engine,
I'll follow this with interest and look forward to the A7 Special - are you in the 750MC?
Howard
Fisher Fury was 2000 Zetec - now a 1600 (it Lives again  and goes zoom)
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 07:14 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by HowardB
that looks good - I know of a nice white one with an Imp engine,
I'll follow this with interest and look forward to the A7 Special - are you in the 750MC?
Not at the moment Howard but probably will join once I've embarked on the project. I'm certainly going to the 750 extravaganza at Beaulieu
in the Summer.
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ianhurley20
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 07:15 PM |
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Good to see you getting a G15 back on the road. I built one in 1969??? ish with a 998 Imp engine. I've also had the BMW engined bike. Nice to
see them coming together as it isn't a pairing I would have thought to do but is a really good idea.
The G15 was a really nice everyday use car that performed very well in the time it was around, it's one of those cars that I wish I had kept.
Keep us up to date with how it goes :-)
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craigdiver
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 07:46 PM |
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free tax and no mot required?
If it ain't broken, fix it anyway (just because).
Building - BMW powered Haynes Roadster/442E hybrid.
Volvo C30 T5 Polestar
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Sam_68
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 08:21 PM |
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Pity the old Imp engines are getting so rare and expensive, but great choice of replacement!
Looking forward to seeing more of this project.
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HowardB
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| posted on 20/2/18 at 08:42 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by John Bonnett
quote:
Originally posted by HowardB
that looks good - I know of a nice white one with an Imp engine,
I'll follow this with interest and look forward to the A7 Special - are you in the 750MC?
Not at the moment Howard but probably will join once I've embarked on the project. I'm certainly going to the 750 extravaganza at Beaulieu
in the Summer.
Beulieu is great, Dad came back with a door handle for his 28 tophat,.. random
750MC is great for all things Austin7 and the run some fantastic events too
watching with interest
Howard
Fisher Fury was 2000 Zetec - now a 1600 (it Lives again and goes zoom)
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nick205
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| posted on 21/2/18 at 05:25 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by HowardB
quote:
Originally posted by John Bonnett
quote:
Originally posted by HowardB
that looks good - I know of a nice white one with an Imp engine,
I'll follow this with interest and look forward to the A7 Special - are you in the 750MC?
Not at the moment Howard but probably will join once I've embarked on the project. I'm certainly going to the 750 extravaganza at Beaulieu
in the Summer.
Beulieu is great, Dad came back with a door handle for his 28 tophat,.. random
750MC is great for all things Austin7 and the run some fantastic events too
watching with interest
Ditto - I like Beaulieu as well, it's not hat far from me and I've had some good days out there over the years.
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 28/2/18 at 07:43 AM |
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I've started plumbing the brakes and wondered if a couple of pics of a simple press tool I made a few years ago to form clips might be of
interest. Punch or drill a 3mm hole and then sandwich the strip of aluminium between the two plates. Squeeze up in the vice. This forms a double clip
but can be trimmed to make a single.
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Angel Acevedo
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| posted on 2/3/18 at 12:14 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by John Bonnett
I've started plumbing the brakes and wondered if a couple of pics of a simple press tool I made a few years ago to form clips might be of
interest. Punch or drill a 3mm hole and then sandwich the strip of aluminium between the two plates. Squeeze up in the vice. This forms a double clip
but can be trimmed to make a single.
Worthy material for the tools and techniques forum.
Thanks for posting.
Beware of what you wish.. for it may come true....
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 5/4/18 at 12:15 PM |
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I've made quite a bit of progress and the engine is now installed although the rear mounting has yet to be finalised. The driveshafts bolted up
easily which came as a big relief. More photos to follow.
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 7/4/18 at 03:48 PM |
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I felt the engine could be a bit higher at the rear to put the drive shafts parallel to the road at ride height. To this end, I made a new rear
mounting which has done the job nicely. A combination of a bespoke machined adaptor plate and Hillman Imp oil filler elbows, the throttle bodies are
turned through 90 degrees. All fitted.
[Edited on 7/4/18 by John Bonnett]
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jeffw
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| posted on 8/4/18 at 05:37 AM |
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Looks great John.
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 8/4/18 at 06:36 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by jeffw
Looks great John.
Thank you Jeff. It's coming together now and I'm sure you can relate to the feeling of increased energy levels when you have reached a
certain point in the build and the finish is in sight. Still a lot to do but hopefully no unpleasant surprises in store.
regards
John
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cliftyhanger
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| posted on 16/4/18 at 09:25 PM |
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Found it!
Looking like you are on the home straight. I very much like what I see.....
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 17/4/18 at 06:25 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by cliftyhanger
Found it!
Looking like you are on the home straight. I very much like what I see.....
Clive, very good to hear from you. And thank you for your kind words. All is progressing very well but still a fair way to go before start-up. But,
since the last offering, the master cylinder reservoirs have been installed and clutch and brakes bled. I've opted for silicone fluid because I
had some but mainly to avoid possible damage to the paint in the event of a spillage.
The loom is connected to the engine and fuel pipes connected. I've yet to fit the very nice pump given to me by a very good friend. I'm
unable to swage the ends on the 8mm copper fuel pipes so I have soldered on olives which have done the job nicely. A few photos below.
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 26/4/18 at 01:33 PM |
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Many of you may have come across and even use peel back rivets but for anyone not familiar with them they are especially designed for use with
fibreglass and not only spread the load but also pull up really tight. I've used them to attach the ecu mounting plate to the body. The ecu
fixings are reduced head M5 rivnuts.
[Edited on 26/4/18 by John Bonnett]
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 26/4/18 at 01:36 PM |
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nick205
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| posted on 27/4/18 at 10:08 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by John Bonnett
Many of you may have come across and even use peel back rivets but for anyone not familiar with them they are especially designed for use with
fibreglass and not only spread the load but also pull up really tight. I've used them to attach the ecu mounting plate to the body. The ecu
fixings are reduced head M5 rivnuts.
[Edited on 26/4/18 by John Bonnett]
Wasn't aware of these rivets, but a useful one to know for fixing to GRP!
Thanks.
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 2/5/18 at 06:40 AM |
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I may have to abort this thread because I'm having difficulty loading more than one photo. This shows the injection panel wired and
installed.
[Edited on 2/5/18 by John Bonnett]
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JC
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| posted on 2/5/18 at 05:09 PM |
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I forgot about this thread!
I fancied a Beetle kit but with a BMW oilhead mated to the VW transmission.....I think the clutch arrangements are very similar.
Looks great though - a former colleague used to tarmac rally a yellow G15.
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 2/5/18 at 05:20 PM |
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I think you're right. It should fit a beetle.
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yorkshire_spam
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| posted on 9/5/18 at 12:54 PM |
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Yay! I tracked you down, great to see the continued progress on the Ginetta John. Keep up the good work!
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John Bonnett
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| posted on 9/5/18 at 01:26 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by yorkshire_spam
Yay! I tracked you down, great to see the continued progress on the Ginetta John. Keep up the good work!
Excellent. Well done. This site isn't without its problems. I'm having trouble loading multiple images.
But work is progressing really well with the fuel system fully plumbed and the tank held in place by stainless steel straps.
Part of the fuel feed runs in half inch stainless steel tube and to prevent the hoses from coming off, I've TIG welded olives at either end
which is simple to do and effective..
None of the photos loaded this time so please visit my photo gallery to view them
[Edited on 9/5/18 by John Bonnett]
[Edited on 9/5/18 by John Bonnett]
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yorkshire_spam
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| posted on 9/5/18 at 01:31 PM |
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The forum thinks the images is at: http://https//www.locostbuilders.co.uk/gallery/IMG_8375.JPG
But I think the proper address should be: http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/gallery/IMG_8375.JPG
Cheers,Sam
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