About time I posted…

It’s been nearly 6 months! How time flies! Well, I’ve been working pretty hard on all fronts hence I haven’t updated the blog. The car has moved on, mostly thanks to Steve but it’s been home for a while now. Steve and I agreed that there would be a few jobs left to finish, and most of them are still to be done. We left it like that because Steve found himself having to rectify so many jobs that we simply should not have had to worry about. This ate-up time and Steve had made commitments to other people so it was only fair that the car came back. Kit Cars eh? Part of the purpose of this post is to force me to make a list of what’s left to do so I can start to tick these off.

Before I get to that, I’ll try to explain what stage the car is at. By the time Steve returned the car, it actually looked virtually complete.

In reality, the suspension is all loose awaiting professional set-up and there are a few jobs to complete and a few remedial jobs for me to do also. Even if Pininfarina had been completing the build, I’d have wanted to amend something so this isn’t a slight on anyone.

The car is in many more pieces now than it was when I got it back. Most of this was to try and get things clean – the aluminium in particular needed some TLC – I’m about half way there with the Autosol. Hence, the seats and harness are out. The radiator is also off and the exhaust has been off but is now back together. The exhaust came off so I could get the cut-out as I like it. The radiator had to come off because in its original position I couldn’t fit the lower hose. The most substantive parts to be removed were the front shocks. The lower bracket isn’t ‘right’ and hence in standard form the two shocks wouldn’t fit together. By taking a little meat off the lower body Steve got them to fit, but I worried that in compression the adjuster knobs would clash. Hence, they had to come off again and get turned around. This meant that the other side of the shock body needed shaving as well. Not ideal!

So, what’s left to do? Jobs to complete 25/05/08

Engine and Ancillaries
Fit thicker foam on fuel tank straps.
Fit new o-ring in filler cap – it seems to have swollen.
Buy and fit hose tail for one-way valve connected to tank.
Consider if I’m going to change the fuel pump mount.
Wire-up steering buttons for Kliktronic shifter.
Get new radiator mounts made from Ali.
Fit radiator and associated hoses.
Fill with fluids.
Replace nasty screws holding-down airbox.
Get tailpipe welded to silencer.

Suspension and Brakes
Drill-out rivets securing brake line from M/Cylinder to Line Lock and have damaged fitting replaced.
Refit brake line
Replace front shocks and tighten all nuts not needed for suspension set-up.
Turn one rear shock around and tighten.
Fill brake fluid and bleed.
Set brake balance bar.
Get suspension corner weighted and set-up by Steff @ Muzz Race.

Bodywork and Interior.
Collect load spreading seat spacers from Lenny.
Clean all Ali. Refit seats and harnesses.
Tidy cut-outs in nosecone.
Refit quick release catches.
Re-make scuttle inspection covers in plain rather than machined ali.
Fit mirrors.
Apply stickers (having ordered pseudo-race number backgrounds.)
Rivet carbon back panel back on.
Paint Ali brackets for rear arches.
Run silicone sealant around chassis tubes to prevent water ingress.
Attach carbon CSR arches with polyurethane sealant.
Attach carbon canards to nosecone.
Attach carbon rear arch protectors.
Apply non-slip tape to pedals.
Clean engine.
Complete template for rear boot cover and get it made by Milson – fit poppers, and then cover.

Yikes – more than I thought. I have my final exam of the year in 3 weeks, after which I will really get stuck in.