Author Topic: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build  (Read 147347 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline eternalproject

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 7
  • Karma: 1
  • 604-219-5164
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #330 on: April 10, 2014, 12:12:44 PM »
my bad now that I have figured out how to work the site, I feel like a tool

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #331 on: April 11, 2014, 12:32:16 AM »
Well, unfortunately the only update is that after some AWESOME miles on the engine...

hahaha, no I didn't blow it up. I had to put the car in storage while I travel the South-Western USA on a 3,000 mile epic roadtrip. Will be back just in time for the Hagerty Spring Thaw Classic car adventure, and I'll post some photos and updates then.

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline Al H

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 380
  • Karma: 2
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #332 on: May 08, 2014, 06:44:32 PM »
Hi dave thx for all your pics and explanation of your 901 conversion I am just finshing mine  What dod you do with the speed drive and gear Ive got the nosecone and just wondering if i should remove the drive and plug and seal the hole ? thx for your advice

Offline amish_rabbi

  • Junior Member
  • Posts: 3
  • Karma: 1
  • AirSpeed Forum Member
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #333 on: May 08, 2014, 06:52:38 PM »
great thread, took me a while it get through it. very awesome.

maybe I missed it, but did that video you were shooting with friends ever make it onto the net? would love to hear/see this at WOT

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #334 on: May 09, 2014, 01:27:02 PM »
Hi dave thx for all your pics and explanation of your 901 conversion I am just finshing mine  What dod you do with the speed drive and gear Ive got the nosecone and just wondering if i should remove the drive and plug and seal the hole ? thx for your advice

Hmmm...that was a long time ago ;)  Without crawling under my car to confirm, I seem to think that the factory speedometer drive gear assembly interferes with the installation of the transmission. I know I left the drive gear inside the transmission, but I'm pretty sure I cut up the factory drive assembly so that I could plug the nosecone without making it permanent. Coming out of the nose cone is the factory speedometer drive output, through a 90deg system. I simply cut it all back and sealed up the internals so if I ever need to sell the trans I can put a stock drive assembly back in and it's as close to factory 901 as possible.

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #335 on: May 09, 2014, 01:28:27 PM »
great thread, took me a while it get through it. very awesome.

maybe I missed it, but did that video you were shooting with friends ever make it onto the net? would love to hear/see this at WOT

Not that I'm aware of, no. In order to match the cable-cam speed I had to drive slower then I'd have preferred, so in the end it looks as though I'm sliding by forcing the car...not because of speed. With the new 2110cc, it sounds way better at WOT then it did before ;)

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline Al H

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 380
  • Karma: 2
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #336 on: May 09, 2014, 08:34:01 PM »
Thx for the info my drive is not angled like yours its straight so i think im just going to leave it as is I dont think there will be a problem with it spinning I may just put a cap over the drive gear ? thx Al

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #337 on: January 14, 2016, 12:32:28 AM »
I think it's probably been a good solid two years since I was actively checking the forum, Classic Car Adventures had gone from Hobby business to my full time gig, and I was just getting ready to launch a big expansion. 2014 was spent planning the expansion, and putting together my plan for the next five years. 2015 was "the year", and I added events in Colorado, Ontario Canada, and Washington/Oregon. Expanding the business with three new events, in a single year, with each of them quite a distance from home was a bit, uh, nuts!

...but, it actually all went really well. Feedback from each of the new events was very positive, and 2016 looks to have a lot of momentum behind it for my events. Should be a good year!

The rally bug hasn't 'suffered' over the past two years, but it's definitely been neglected in the sense that there have been no upgrades...it has literally just been worked on enough to keep it running for my events. I put just over 60,000km on it in 2015, not exactly sure how many in 2014. Regardless, it hasn't been 'exciting to read about' work, just a hell of a lot of oil changes :P

I did pull the bug off the road for the winter this year, the plan is to go over it bumper to bumper and take care of a few things, including some upgrades. With Classic Car Adventures being my primary income, I've had to put my German Look beetle project on hold...I know some of the items I had planned for it will be going into the Rally Bug instead. Sigh...I've somehow aged a bit and become 'responsible' :P 

But, expect some updates coming down the pipeline...

-Dave

--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #338 on: January 14, 2016, 12:33:20 AM »
I considered trying to go through my photo library to find some highlights of the past two years, but quickly realized that it would take me forever, and I’d probably never get around to actually updating the thread. So, instead, I’ll simply start from today and if a project comes up that requires some history, I’ll tell the story at that time.



One such story involves the fairly ambiguous fresh air box seal. From the day I built the Rally Bug, I’ve had a leak I could never find. It wasn’t a big leak, sometimes I’d wash the car and it would have a few drips on the trunk carpet…other times nothing. Sometimes I’d drive in the rain and it would be damp under the trunk, other times nothing. Coming back from our Hagerty Fall Classic event, I hit the biggest rainstorm I’d ever been in. We’re talking 3-4” of standing water on the interstate, and rain just POUNDING down. As I’m considering where I can get off to wait this out (due to 1971 wiper technology) I suddenly noticed my legs were getting wet…REALLY wet. Where is that coming from!?! Oh, it’s only water dripping through the fuse box! I’ve since determined that the seal on my fresh airbox doesn’t actually seal against the hood. So far I can’t figure out why. The seal appears good, the box appears to be at the right height and the hood fits the car extremely well. Ah well, the search for a better seal begins!

Also on the Hagerty Fall Classic, we had some clutch issues. The event began about 5 hours away from my house, and I was  almost picking up my co-driver at the Airport when I had the first crunchy shift. “Hmmm,  that’s odd”, I thought. The clutch pedal felt the same, but it was as though it didn’t disengage the clutch. Visions of breaking cables, the hook on the pedal and a number of other possibilities filled my head the rest of the way to the start location. As the weekend progressed, things got worse. I adjusted the cable, no help. Any shift was a question mark. Sometimes you’d put your foot on the clutch and it would work like butter. Other times you’d put your foot on the clutch and it definitely wouldn’t disengage…but it felt the same everytime.  We finished day two and three with me shutting the car off at each stop, and planned on using the starter to get the car rolling if the clutch didn’t work. The weird part was you’d come to a stop sign, and the car would want to stall with the clutch in. The moment you went to start it, though, the engine would spin freely just fine…even if you never moved your foot off the clutch!?!

We figured it must be the pressure plate failing, but when I finally pulled the motor in November I got a bit of a surprise:



So, apparently the pilot bearing failed. Fair enough, I think it’s the same one from when I built the car in 2012. It’s got a LOT of miles on it. Must have started seizing, and eventually failed completely. I presume, from what I’m seeing here, that the clutch was probably working fine, and the bearing bits were keeping the engine connected to the transmission ‘just enough’.  Bizarre, but the best theory I have.



But that’s a really long around the block story about the next project for the Rally Bug. Adjusting the clutch cable, the fact that over the years I’ve found the 901 to beetle clutch cable isn’t perfect and the fact that I’d like to move to dual masters on the brakes eventually means the clutch cable simply has to go. The ‘big’ project this winter is a hydraulic clutch setup for my car.

Researching it, the early Porsche 901 box I use is going to be a bit of a challenge. I bought the SACO hydraulic clutch kit for a beetle, but quickly realized that I won’t be using it. The external slave would have to either a) be mounted below the frame horn or b) require a bent and convoluted connection to the clutch fork. Couple that with the fact that know the Porsche clutch requires more pull travel vs a beetle setup, and it’s not going to be a simple installation.

So, if its not going to be simple, we should make it even less simple…right?  I don’t mind a challenging initial install, as long as once it’s all setup it works and requires little playing with it. Bending linkages just right, figuring out the ideal spot to drill a new leverage ratio into the clutch fork, etc etc. seemed like the external kit was going to be too much work. So, I started looking at concentric slave cylinders.



A concentric slave cylinder replaces the throw-out bearing, and clutch fork with a hydraulically operated bearing. Once setup, there are no adjustments. It automatically compensates for clutch wear, it feels the exact same from the first shift to the end of the clutch life. There is a Saab unit which is often adapted to transmissions for a cheap(ish) option, but we’ve got a pile of Tilton Racing stuff here for the MK1 Escort project, and I sort of got swept up in using one of those…plus all the dimensions were in the catalog, so I didn’t need to buy one to see if it would work!



After measuring up the 901 Transmission and related clutch parts, the Type 1 Engine, and using the Tilton bearing dimensions, I came up with the following adapter ring:



The ring will require some modifications, as the inside of the bellhousing isn’t flat. What this does give me, however, is all the important locating points and a spot to start modifying from. But, I need the part in my hand…So, bring on the 3D printer. I’ve been meaning to buy one for a few years, but never seem to get around to it. With the technology becoming popular though, I had this one printed for $13 and picked it up the next day.



Before I can start modifying it, though, I need to pull the pivot ball from inside the Porsche bellhousing. On most 901 gearboxes this is actually threaded into the transmission. On the Early-Early 901’s, like mine, it’s pressed in. Okay, easy enough, a slide hammer should pop that out. Hmmm, I don’t own a slide hammer. Fine, went and bought one ($150) and discovered the jaws don’t go down small enough to grip the ball. Hmmm…I need access to a lathe or a mill.



All of this clutch stuff happened pretty much on the Christmas holidays. I just launched the registration for our first 2016 event on the weekend, so I’ve been pretty busy locking that down. For the past 2-3 weeks, though, I’ve been thinking about how I’m going to make the final mount once I modify the plastic version to fit. I don’t have access to good mill, and my skills on a lathe could create the basic disc, but wouldn’t allow me to lay out the bolt holes in an accurate function. Plus the backside has some radiusing on the mount that require a mill, not a lathe. Hmmm… I think I’ve figured out a solution, which I’ll be taking care of this weekend.

To be continued…
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline Russ

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 321
  • Karma: 9
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #339 on: January 14, 2016, 11:27:25 AM »
just reading through this thread wow is all I can say
the wiring alone would have lost me
great job

Offline Bruce

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 2912
  • Karma: -65458
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #340 on: January 15, 2016, 04:24:31 AM »

 the search for a better seal begins!
Before you do that, check the drain tube.
When I got my 69 Beetle, it too had water getting into the car.  I found the drain hose was partly plugged so that in light rain, the water would get through. But in heavy rain, it would back up and overflow.
When I cleaned it out, it was full of black muck.  The remains of dead leaves all rotted away.

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #341 on: January 15, 2016, 01:11:23 PM »
Not a bad thought...though I did measure the clearance with some play-dough (worlds best measuring device for blind clearances!), and discovered there is no possible way the seal is actually meeting the hood. Will explore both options though.

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #342 on: February 15, 2017, 01:01:04 PM »
Catching up to update this thread. Basically copying the posts over from the Germanlook forum where the main build thread has been...

So, completed the machine work on my Version 1 adapter piece. Actually finished that up back in January 2016 but got swamped with other projects.






…and it was at this point that I realized I’ve screwed up. Somewhere in my initial calculations I carried a one, or something equally silly. Bottom line, there is definitely no where near the space I need to make all this work. The yellow line you can see on the splines is roughly where the face of the bearing is. If you look inside the bearing, you might be able to see the pink dot (or the yellow one close by)…yeah, that’s where the pressure plate spring fingers are with the motor installed. OOPS! I’m roughly 0.585” out. That’s 14.7mm for us metric folk, that is a smoking huge error. I went back and dug up my rough notes, and some how had figured I’d be 0.120” (3mm) short of the space I needed, and figured I could make that up with Rev2 of my aluminum mount. But 0.685…yeah, that’s not gonna happen.

So, back to the drawing board…or Google. First stop, Windrush Evolutions aka WEVO. They make the Porsche 901 hydraulic adapter in gold that pictured in my last post. I believe, from internet searching, that it was originally a Tilton product but ended up under WEVO license/control. Regardless, the WEVO unit is part of their full kit that uses a Tilton multi-plate clutch and custom flywheel. The kit is over $3k USD, and since it’s setup for a Porsche motor not an option. They’ll sell me a hydraulic throwout bearing, but the cost is more than I’ve spent on some vehicles…Porsche tax! 

While I waited for the my solutions to ship (which you’ll read about soon), I hammered along on a number of items the car needed. After four years of running, I seemed to have added quite a bit to the electrical system. Heated seats, oil-cooler sprayer, GPS, Phone connections, second intercom system, interior map lighting (red), interior lighting (white), GPS speedometer & antenna, the list goes on. Problem is, each install was done right before an event with the intention of “cleaning it up later”. Basically, zip-tied on top in a hurry. I had a new electrical system to add, and I’ve reached my limit. It was all torn out, and put in cleanly and properly…


The newest electrical system is a dash cam setup with front and rear cameras. I don’t live in an area where fraudulent insurance claims (Russian style) is a huge concern, but I’ve always thought I need one. You see, if I ever DO have an accident…who is going to believe me that I was driving responsibly? Thus, dash cam system. Picked up a used Blackvue 5500 system and did a permanent install. All the wires are tucked away and hidden.


I’ve run out of room for switches on the dash, so the oil-cooler sprayer and interior lighting switch is on the mount for the driver’s seat. Passenger seat has switches in the same location for the red and white reading lamps. The oil cooler sprayer runs automatically with the fan, but I can switch just the liquid sprayer on and off using this switch.


I also tore out the rear shocks and kafer bar, rebuilding as required. Oddly enough, the left spring and right spring were different heights when I pulled them out. So, swapped those out with a fresh pair. One of the Kafer bar ears had cracks in it, so I've started the job of actually rebuilding them all into double-shear mounts. May not be easy to do for each of the mounts, but a good project for later on in the Spring...

And with that, it was back onto the Clutch project. Stop number two on the world-wide-web was much more successful. Kennedy Engineering has a dual-plate clutch system for high-torque applications. Here’s the trick, though: they stuff two clutch plates, and an intermediate plate all into a package that is no deeper than a stock beetle clutch system. Hmmm, that got me thinking. If they’ve squeezed those plates into the same package, the pressure plate must be thinner? A couple of phone calls later, and we worked out that they have a custom pressure plate which is 0.230” thinner than a factory clutch. Kennedy was able to make me one to match the Stage-1 pressure plate I have. So, I’ll use the pressure plate with a single clutch disc by sinking the pressure plate mounting surface 0.230” into the flywheel.


Partway there!

The internet is an awesome, awesome machine sometimes. While looking up the Kennedy double-plate clutch system, trying to work out what the trick was (before I could call them), I found out the current system is actually their Generation 2 system. Get 1 used a standard pressure plate, and a 0.500” spacer between the engine and transmission. Hmmmm…a spacer eh? I knew I didn’t want to go with a full half inch, but I also wanted the proper lip to be machined on either side of the spacer if I’m going to use one. Worked it out with Kennedy Engineering that spacer could be made 0.375”, but probably no thinner. So, I ordered a custom spacer to be made up:


So…
0.120 - Rev 2 of my spacer
0.375 - Spacer
0.230 - Pressure plate
———
0.725”  -> More than enough space. You know, presuming my math is correct this time. :P

For the moment, however, I think I need to shelve the Hydraulic clutch system. My first event for Classic Car Adventures is the end of April (Hagerty Spring Thaw), followed three weeks later by the Colorado event (Hagerty Silver Summit). I have a lot of work to do before them, with route books and other details! Warwick’s Escort Rally Car is project #1, he’s hoping to race it in early April…and as you can see I have a lot of work to do. I’m concerned I won’t have enough time to setup the pedal side of the equation, test it all, and swap back if it’s not working correctly.


Having said that…I can’t stop thinking how quickly I could get the engine and and out to see if there is space. Plus these puppies just arrived. More modifications to be done!


-Dave



June 2016:

Not much new to report! With everything I had going on, I've taken a pause on the Hydraulic Clutch adapter. I've got the engine end sorted (I think), but when it was time to do the pedals I realized I really don't want an adapted-stock pedal setup. I've got my eye on a Tilton reservoir-under-foot floor setup, but the price is hefty. Figure about $1k USD, plus plus. So, with that in mind I tossed it all back together with a cable to revisit it this summer. As these things go, it will probably get pushed back to the winter :P

In the meantime, however, I keep adding to the miles on the odometer. Since Feburary I think I've put roughly 8,000km on it...which for me is a massive reduction from normal. Late last year the motor developed a 'strange rattle' that we couldn't source. When I pulled the motor out and found the destroyed pilot bearing, we figured we had probably found the issue. Problem forgotten, winter passes, and finally I tossed the motor in for the season. Hmmm, the sound is back. And it changes, sometimes its far worse than other times. Hmmmm. It sounds like valve train noise, coming from dead-center in the engine case. We've checked the valve lift (in spec on all eight), and we've checked everything we possibly can without splitting the case. If the motor wasn't 2 seasons, and 90,000ish miles old, I would be tearing it down. But life is busy, priorities are higher in other areas, and thus I seem to start every Classic Car Adventures event with "well, if it blows it blows!" And yet, it still runs like a champ.

I am driving it less though. The odd sounds means I'm more likely to take my truck for a trip around town, or even if I'm zipping into Vancouver. Gotta keep that motor together for as long as possible, still have three more Classic Car Adventures events this year!



This year, for our Hagerty Silver Summit in Colorado, my mom flew out to play co-driver. We enjoyed an awesome three days of sunshine and mountain driving, with only one minor mishap the entire time. Coming into the small town of Mt. Crested Butte, where the event's second night hotel was, the clutch pedal went soft for three shifts...and then the cable snapped. Fortunately we were rolling in 2nd at the time, so I just blew a couple of stop signs and drove it into the hotel parking lot.



That night I discovered I wasn't actually carrying a spare cable, a problem since my setup uses a short one out of a split window beetle. Not going to find one of those at NAPA!

The morning driver's meeting was pretty funny. "Okay," I began, "so today you're all going to wait here in the parking garage while the Rally Bug starts off on the event. We have to blow through all the stop signs, and I don't want to get caught behind any of you. Oh, and while I think of it...do as I say, not as I do. Make sure you drive responsibly!"

We put the car in 2nd (facing down a slight hill), started the car by rolling on the starter in 2nd gear and we were off! I taught mom that coming up to a stop sign she was only allowed to say two things: "Clear Right!" meaning the road was clear to proceed, or "NEGATIVE!" meaning I had to stop.



Normally, I wouldn't be too worried about driving without a clutch cable. You can easily start a beetle from a dead stop on the starter in first gear, but we had a couple of other factors working against us. The car is normally tuned for Sea Level, not the 5-11,000ft we were driving at in Colorado. I had done a re-jet and re-tune, but depending on the altitude it was hard-starting at times. The battery, as well, seems to be getting weaker in the car. Combine everything, and I just wasn't willing to risk it.

We made it 174mi (280km), before I was finally caught by a red-light. The first restart didn't go so well, but once I figured out the perfect throttle position we were laughing our way through the next two stops. At the surprise of many of our entrants, the Rally Bug pulled into the finish with zero damage. Whew!



Now, a wise man would probably toss the car up in the air, tear the motor out and pull it apart on the five days I have home. I've rebuilt complete motors in far less time...but I think I must be getting older. The prospect of the late-night motor tear-downs and rebuilds just isn't nearly as exciting to me at the moment. I mean, it runs currently, right? :P

-Dave



June 28 2016:

Whelp, it would seem that worn lifter-bores are the most likely candidate for the sounds that I'm hearing. Guess I will be pulling the motor soon after all. Not sure whether I should try and build up a backup longblock now, or wait until this one is out of the car. Hmmmm...

-Dave

Editor Note: I didn't end up pulling the motor, and instead used the '58 Beetle all summer and ran the Rally Bug one last time for the GCVW show. Anyone who heard it start up cold probably wondered just what was going on inside teh engine. "clack, clack, clack, clack"...



...and half a year goes by.

Well, I didn't pull the motor in June. At the time I was living in Squamish BC, halfway between Vancouver and Whistler. Housing prices are insane, and while I would have loved to buy a house...there was no hope. About the time I was making my last post, I was looking around at houses for sale in another town (Port Alberni), very similar to Squamish but 4 hrs away on Vancouver Island. The price was right, I worked out that I could actually afford it, and put an offer in. Whelp, there goes the next German Look project budget, my offer was accepted. So in August I bought this:



The house came with this out back, but please note two of those 'doors' are white tarps. It's just a bare shell with 2 pads concrete, one dirt. Still, it's an 800sqft shop divided into two halves. The small door has a single bay, and the two larger doors are one big room with a post in the middle.



I closed in August, but didn't move until October once all the Classic Car Adventure's events were done. The rally bug couldn't be trusted for the final two events of the year, so I ran my 1958 Beetle on the Hagerty Fall Classic in WA, and my Dad's '79 Beetle convertible on our Hagerty Maple Mille in Ontario. October, November and December were spent finishing the shop. I had the floor poured, doors installed, and then did all the electrical, insulation, walls and painting myself. Turned out pretty stellar, and I'm super stoked on it.




Bay One is the "storage bay", I've got my shelves of frequently used items, the '58, my woodworking bench and left over wood supplies in here. I also build a super-hefty storage shelf above the garage door that's 8 feet wide and 8 feet deep. Currently it's unorganized crap, but eventually I'll clean it out and store less-frequently accessed items. In some ways, bay one is a bit of a wasted space. It would be FAR better to have this room set up either as a "clean room" for building engines and assembly of cars, or as a dirty room where all the grinding, welding and other dirty work occurs. But, despite all the space I managed to stumble into, I have a space problem! I'm using the garage in the house to store my best friend's Audi Coupe Quattro, and I'm no longer keeping a storage unit where lots of my 'crap' that I don't want to throw out would be stored. In a few years, once the budget recovers, I will probably close in and insulate one of the car-ports and move all my storage over there, thus giving me a clean and dirty side of the workshop.



Bay two and three, the larger half of the shop, is where my general work will occur. I've also brought my 1975 Standard Deluxe out of storage...figuring that now I have the space to finally decide what to do with it.

Security Cam shot with all three cars jammed in, while I finished out Bay one:


Workbench & Cabinets


FINALLY, this week, I started to use the shop for what it was built for. Pulled the motor on the rally bug and tore it down to find the valve-train noise. Turns out it wasn't a lifter bore, they're all tight and happy. The timing gear on the crank, however, was loose. I've never seen one come loose before, and neither had my buddies. Keyway in the crank was okay, but the key was pretty hammered out. Also discovered that after 92,000 miles on the 2110cc engine, it was time for bearings. Rod and cam bearings all looked worn but not damaged. The crank bearings, however, weren't so lucky. Definitely starved the middle (split) bearing for oil at some point!







So, while I wait for new bearings to arrive, I thought I'd go back to the hydraulic clutch conversion...the new adapter is 120 thousands thinner than the original, and so now I just need to figure out what box I packed all the flywheel, pressure plate and adapter stuff into. I know it's around here somewhere...





I keep looking at this box on the shelf wondering if now is the time to do it...


-Dave

So yeah, that's why I've disappeared off of Airspeed for a while. Closed on a house, renovated a shop, built furniture for the house, and now I'm finally back into wrenching on Volkswagens. I should really get rid of the old-grandma wallpaper in the kitchen, but that can wait...there is fun to be had in the new shop!
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #343 on: February 18, 2017, 09:47:00 PM »
Island living strikes back!

Turns out the new adapter plate I machined is so thin I need to go from M6x20 bolts down to an M6x12 or M6x10. Hit all the fastener places in town, and as expected no one had any in stock. Ordered some, but they could be a full week before they arrive. Sigh. No worries, I'll move onto the fuel tank and pull it so I can thread on a new outlet and get ready to setup the AN fuel lines...

When I built the car I remember there being quite the challenge to setup the fuel lines to my dual fuel pumps and a gas heater pump, but I had forgotten why it was such a challenge. Seems to me, I was thinking last night, that I could have just threaded in a CB outlet Tee and done it very easy. It wasn't until I pulled the tank that I realized why I hadn't done it the easy way. On a 71-73 super you won't find the M18x1.0 outlet fitting that every standard beetle has. Instead, the fuel outlet is a small nipple welded into the tank, and then there is an M20x1.0 drain plug (which appears to be included for the sole purpose of swapping out the in-tank fuel filter). Hmmm.

I can get an M20 to AN adapter, and there is a hole in which to pass it through. Locally M20 to -10AN won't be a problem. M20 to 8AN probably won't be available, but the guys at my old haunt Vibrant Performance list one in the catalog...so maybe I can get one sent out to me. I *think* I can make it work, but tightening the AN hose onto the bottom of the tank isn't going to be fun. 'course, if I was on the mainland I'd just roll over to Rocket Rally and grab what I need from their stock, hahaha.

At this rate I may have to go back to building furniture for the house tomorrow...

-Dave



Was up far too late last night looking at various surge tank setups, woke up today and gathered the parts needed to make a prototype from steel. I find that I usually realize a better way to do things shortly after something is built, so I'll do an aluminium one after I know how, or if, I want things to change. On the top I've got one -4AN to use as an inlet from the Facet pump, there is a second -4AN which I'll use as an outlet from the tank back into the stock fuel tank. The third unit on top is a -6AN for the return line from the engine. I actually put two -8AN outlets on the bottom, at almost 90 to each other, as I wasn't sure which way I'll mount the tank and where I would need the outlet.


On the factory fuel tank, I'm planning on using the original factory outlet strictly for the gas heater. Since I have the drain plug out of the tank it makes sense to clean things up and get rid of the T-Fitting I've been using. I grabbed an M20x1.5 oil pan drain plug, drilled it out and welded on a -4AN fitting. Need the paint to dry before I can test it in the car and ensure it will actually work, but might as well make the bits in hopes that it works out!




-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline 52 split

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 174
  • Karma: 1
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #344 on: February 18, 2017, 10:52:04 PM »
did you try TKS on third ave , Ian is pretty good at rounding up metric goodies

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #345 on: February 18, 2017, 11:11:17 PM »
did you try TKS on third ave , Ian is pretty good at rounding up metric goodies

Indeed! They are just down the road from me, but had to order them in for me. The countersink makes them uncommon. I have to go to Nanaimo on Tuesday to pickup my flywheel & pressure plate from balancing, so I'll check Faboury-Metrican in Nanaimo to see if they might have any.

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline 52 split

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 174
  • Karma: 1
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #346 on: February 19, 2017, 10:26:23 PM »
some how i missed the pic of the front of your house. iam only 3 blocks away in the 2600 block. ::)

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #347 on: February 20, 2017, 09:05:17 AM »
lol. Guess you'll have to swing by the shop for a beer then. Easy walking distance...

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #348 on: February 22, 2017, 11:25:12 PM »
Ugh. These three lines were brutal to install. So, first up is my new AN-4 fuel tank outlet. Turns out the hole in the body underneath the drain plug isn't actually right below the drain plug. Oops. These are the sort of things I should be checking before I make modifications. Fortunately it *just* fit. The other two lines (Feed and Return) are just short, less than 10" long, with horrible locations for actually installing and tightening. Oh please let there be no leaks...


But it does make the trunk area work out. The two -4AN lines will get 45-deg fittings put on them to make the lines cleaner, but they can always be field swapped later...the beauty of AN lines and fittings. Surge tank leads to the high pressure pump via a screen filter. For some reason I mis-measured the pump initially and planned on -8AN lines for the feed, only to realize the pump needs -10. So there is a touch of adapting going on to the high-pressure pump, but such is life. The -6AN line is the return line. One -4AN line is the feed line from the tank via a Facet pump, the other one is the return to the factory tank.

All of this fits underneath the spare tire, as I have mine mounted on an angle with the top of the tire resting on the strut bar. Although, now that I think about it, it's been a few days since I actually double checked it clears!


Feed line comes in just on top of the factory foot plate, which means it's behind my aluminum rally foot plate. It travels down the tunnel to the seat, swaps sides to the heater channel and travels up the back of the car to the firewall. Here it meets a Russell Performance 8" long fuel filter, which is as close to the engine as I can realistically get the filtration.




I still need to decide where to punch the feed line through the firewall to make the line feeding the 1/2 fuel rail conveniently placed while allowing for some movement and vibration. The engine bay side of my firewall is pretty busy, so working out the best place to pass the line through isn't going to be easy!
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #349 on: February 26, 2017, 09:18:52 PM »
Got back to the car today, and was able to solve a number of items towards the hydraulic clutch conversion. First off, I managed to finally pickup some bolts that will work to mount the adapter plate, so in goes the slave cylinder for testing. As suspected, sliding the motor in without the spacer means the pressure plate hits the bearing before the engine meets the transmission, so I popped the spacer for testing:


Play-Dough makes the perfect tool for testing gap spaces. Once the motor is on and in place, simply remove it and carefully slice the playdough to measure the clearances. In this case, it's hard to see in the photo, but I ended up with .100" clearance, the minimum needed for the Tilton bearing. Sweet! So the hydraulic slave is now in (for hopefully the last time), and I pulled out all the cable operated clutch bits.









Started working on getting the pedals setup for hydraulics, which involved making an adjustable clutch stop, cutting up the tunnel (more than I have already) to allow for more clearance to install the SACO slave, and drilling holes for various clutch lines. Once again I'm waiting for Russell Fittings, hopefully I can train Lordco in my new town to start stocking the sizes I use :P

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline mitchy965

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 133
  • Karma: -7
  • AirSpeed Forum Member
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #350 on: February 26, 2017, 09:33:00 PM »
good luck in training lordco lol .....welcome to the island!
1991 964 turbo- 1967 2007cc beetle-01 95" wideglide-2276cc turbo drag bug

Offline silas

  • *
  • Posts: 6822
  • Karma: 20
    • Some cool videos...Check them out!!
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #351 on: March 05, 2017, 04:02:27 PM »
right on dave! nice to see some updates on the rally beetle...love that car!

also, super hearty congrats on the purchase of your home, thats exciting! and on the island, thats cool!



love this pic...



Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #352 on: March 05, 2017, 11:57:23 PM »
right on dave! nice to see some updates on the rally beetle...love that car!

also, super hearty congrats on the purchase of your home, thats exciting! and on the island, thats cool!


Thanks! I'm loving it once again, and enjoying the fact that I have some good upgrades going into it. Fuel injection should be awesome for the Denver trip this year, hopefully far less tuning...and no re-jetting!

------

With the clutch sorted almost sorted, and waiting again on more Russell fittings, it was time to turn my attention to getting the engine ready to drop back into the car. The intake manifolds are back from K-roc heads, having been ported and matched to my heads, so the throttle bodies could be mounted up, and the fuel lines and electrical staged on the car. The rear line, rail-to-rail seemed like the easiest place to start.


Of course, it wasn't until I was finished with setting up the fuel rails, fittings and the first line that I realized I have a problem. The fittings coming off the 1/2 carb would clear a normal firewall, and my firewall is set 3" back so it should have even more clearance...except, I have one of my breathers right near where the fitting will end up. I did some quick measurements, and realized that I was going to have a conflict. So, take it all apart and try again.


The second option is much better, and as with a lot of things I do it seems to take one or two tries before I come upon the solution that I'm really happy with. It's hard to see in the second photo, but the 1/2 side is quite a bit closer to the throttle bodies. It will be clear in some of the photos further down.


For the feed and return lines, things are going to be pretty tight. I wanted them to be clean, not running across the engine, or wrapping around the throttle bodies. Russells 180 tight radius fittings will just work, but I'm not sure how I'll get the line in and secure. There is a good chance I may have to remove the air-filter bases every time I need to pull the throttle bodies out of the car. Annoying, but better than running the lines around the bodies.


Mounting the throttle bodies also highlighted another problem I didn't anticipate. In order to fit the fuel rails and injectors inside a beetle engine bay, CB Performance essentially flips the intakes L/R. With their preferred bar-linkage for the throttle, this isn't a big issue. With my preference for centre-mount pushrod linkage (Vintage Speed), it causes a problem. See, I need to PUSH the throttle bodies open, and with the throttle bodies flipped they want to be pulled open. No worries, you say, simply flip the ball-pivots to the top? Well, I thought it was as simple as that too. A quick bend to the 1/2 bar to clear the alternator, and I was set...or was I? Turns out the first problem is the 1/2 carb won't open all the way...the bend means on the second half of the throttle travel, the ratio changes and 1/2 opens slower than 3/4. It took quite a bit of playing with bends to get the left and right sorted to be equal. I'm probably going to need to buy a new set of bars so I can bend them once and take the waves out :P


Next, was sorting out this mess...


I thought long and hard about how I was going to get the harness from the engine bay into the interior of the car. I was pretty much decided on doing a firewall bulkhead connector, which is basically a weather-sealed multi-pin connector you plug the harness into after installing the engine. On a modern car, when done right, you can pull the motor without disconnecting each electrical connector. After putting some thought into it though, I realized that if I have to pull the Throttle bodies (to clear the body), I'm disconnecting 80% of the connections anyhow...so it's probably better to save the $130 it would cost me to put that trick into the car. Running the wires up over the fender (with the factory harness), isn't an option. I have too many wires in there already, and having removed the passenger side foam on one car...I really didn't want to do it on this one! So, off to the bin of old Audi Harnesses from a previous car life of mine. I found a grommet that looked like it would work, and relieved it from the harness. The CB harness was going to be too long if I'm just dropping it through the firewall, so I cut it and prepped the engine side.


I then prepared my workstation for sitting in the engine bay to join the two halves, now shortened, back together.


And the harness finished. The parcel shelf area of my car is getting a little bit busy these days!


-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #353 on: March 09, 2017, 11:22:45 PM »
Well, Sh**. Got some good practice putting the motor in and out over the last couple of days. Worked out the hydraulic clutch spacing, fuel lines, wiring, etc. Went to go spin the motor...flywheel is hitting the transmission mount bolts. Bloody hell! Of course I have clearanced the counter sunk bolts I use for the old flywheel setup but the new setup is rubbing. The rub was slight, and it probably would have been fine after the first rotation, but in general I don't like to use the ring gear to do the grinding for me :P Have I mentioned the throttle bodies, all the electrical and fuel lines were all hooked up? Pulled the motor, ground down the bolts, and suddenly it dawned on me; I never considered the starter.

To save you from scrolling back in the thread, the early 914 transmission in a beetle means the starter only engages the flywheel by about half the tooth depth with a beetle starter. I've lathed down the mounting surface of my starter as far as we possibly can, and I get a good 3/4 tooth depth engagement. About 9mm of tooth engagement, based on the polishing on the starter teeth. I've got a spacer between the motor and transmission, to give the appropriate space for the hydraulic clutch system, and that spacer is basically 10mm thick. My starter is going to be just spinning in clean air, touching nothing. F-bomb.

Fortunately the German Look crowd all live in wildy different time zones, and a couple of us put our collective heads together for a solution. Since building the car some new threads have pointed out that the 914 starter actually has 10mm deeper pinion engagement, vs a beetle starter. Problem is, I want a self-supporting auto trans starter. One of the guys down in Australia is using a Vanagon starter in his Subaru conversion, and it turns out it should have the same 10mm longer engagement. A quick phone call with Rob this morning, and he scoured the parts books to see what compatible solutions he could find for me. A SR18X should fit the bill, and if that doesn't work an SR25x is the next one to try.

Hopefully the third time is the charm, though I can't shake this nagging feeling that its going to need to come up for something. lol, when your biggest stress in life is your project car, you're probably doing okay...Right? hahaha.



I've got the 18x starter coming tomorrow, and I've measured the Beetle Autostick starter I have in the car currently. Will be able to connect power to the solenoid quickly and determine if the starter will work, or if we need to try the SR25X. Of course, if the starter will work I still need to lathe the front of it off to sit even deeper...gotta love destroying $250 starters so they only work in a single vehicle :P 

So many things left to button up on the car before I can get it going. With travel and a course I'm taking it's not going to be this weekend, but the next. I suppose it's good I sold my winter tires for the bug, it's less tempting with the dump of show we got today.

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #354 on: March 23, 2017, 10:26:14 PM »
Well, time for an update!

The SR18X is the same as a stock beetle starter, pinion depth doesn't go any deeper. So, ordered the SR25X. Turns out the SR25X does indeed have a pinion depth 10mm deeper than a stock SR18x. So, had I known this when I first did my transmission swap, a stock SR25X is the perfect combination for Type-1 Beetle engine and Porsche 901 transmission. No machining necessary, and you'll get full starter / flywheel teeth engagement. Unfortunately, for me at least, the way Bosch did this is exactly the same way I made the SR17X work...they simply made the nose & mating surface thinner. There is no meat left to machine the SR25x thinner, to make up for my new 10mm spacer.

Hmmmm.

After thinking about it for a while, I went with the only option I knew I could make work. Chris at Hi-Torque starters and I exchanged a number of emails and and phone calls, to ensure that we were on the same page and understood the required measurements exactly. A rather expensive shipping charge later, and this arrived in two days. It's setup to have the pinion depth a full 20mm deeper than a stock beetle starter, which makes it perfect for my current configuration. Dropped it into the car, hit the key and the motor turned over perfectly. Bonus points: All the changes are on the final two plates, so if it dies I can order a standard Hi-Torque starter and swap out my custom machined bits to keep going.






I spent a few days buttoning up various things on the car, while I worked out getting my Mac laptop ready for tuning. Interior is back in, trunk is back setup, burned up my BN2 gas heater and then installed another one, and finally hooked up the laptop to the ECU. Everything checked out, I loaded my starting map, primed the oil system and started the car. Or, rather, I would have started the car if it actually fired up. I had fuel pressure, but no spark. Solved that problem and then spent two hours trying to work out a no start problem. I had fuel pressure, there was fuel on the plugs when I pulled to check for spark. I had spark, there's obviously air...compression? Check the valve timing, all good. Bad fuel? Drive to go and get fresh fuel...and that's when it dawned on me.


You see, the carbureted setup had two fuel pups. FP1 was the primary fuel pump, and FP2 was simply a back-up. If the first pump ever failed on an event, flip the switch and keep going. Except, I removed the second pump to make room for the surge tank. I flipped the switch to the FP2 position, shutting off the pump, while I was setting up the initial timing the night before. So yeah, all that time diagnosing the no-start issue, and I literally didn't have the fuel pump turned on. Oops!

With that sorted, I turned the key and fired it up. On the current map the cold start and initial warm-up is terrible, worse than with the IDF carbs. But needing a base of understanding and settings to start from, I worked the pedal to keep it running and got the engine warmed up to the point where it was running off the O2 sensor and the fuel map part that I know enough about. From there I could set the idle on both the idle speed screws, and in the fuel map. Idled quite nicely, and called it a night.

I cut work short today, headed to the shop and dropped the car down off the axle stands. After torquing the wheels, I opened my garage door, put the car in first gear, stood on the clutch and turned the key. S**t. The car crept forward on the starter, not quickly...but enough that I knew the hydraulic clutch setup was not disengaging fully. S***!  While I warmed up the engine I considered my options, and weighed the possibilities. After the initial panic / thoughts of tearing it all down, I realized that I may have enough adjustment in the pedal stop I welded in. A few wrench turns later, and I can officially call the hydraulic clutch conversion a success!

Well, time for a road test, eh?


The fuel map is rough, and the A/F ratios were all over the place in the first 15min. A combination of a couple of tweaks by me, and the "Quick Tune"'s self-learning program saw things improving over the next two phases of the drive. Did some in-town driving, and then up to the Alberni Summit and back. The in-town section on the way home was significantly smoother and better than on the way out. Quite driveable, I'd even take it out on a road trip right away. Some of the drivability issues are definitely the 009 distributor I'm currently using. It drives like the car did on carbs, before I tuned out as much of the "009ness" as I could. No worries, the CB Blackbox is ready to go on the ignition side, so that will help out. I figured I might as well get the car running and somewhat useable on fuel mapping alone, before adding in the ignition side of things.

Sigh...do I have to work tomorrow? Maybe it's "tuning Friday"?

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline silas

  • *
  • Posts: 6822
  • Karma: 20
    • Some cool videos...Check them out!!
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #355 on: March 31, 2017, 09:12:27 PM »
nice work, big changes coming to fruition for the rally beetle, the fi & hydraulic clutch are cool upgrades!




...up to the Alberni Summit and back...

between port alberni & cathedral grove..? great stretch of road!

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #356 on: April 01, 2017, 01:01:16 AM »
That photo is on "the hump", between PA and Cathedral Grove. Technically just a bit on the PA side of the Alberni Summit...

Took the '58 out last weekend to Ucluelet, another fine driving road. My stipulations for moving away from Squamish were somewhat Unique. Besides the need for a large shop (with sleeping arrangements on site) it also needed to have:

- Great driving roads
- A good hill for engine tuning, preferably about 5min away from the house to allow for 'warm-up'. (but not so far that problems can't be limped home)
- A swimming lake within 15min, no more.
- Wood fireplace

Dave Koszegi was my realtor, didn't even blink at the requests. Considering he's raced Targa Newfoundland and the Canadian Rally Championship, he totally understood the need to look at the garage/shop first, and the house second. :)

-Dave
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...

Offline Hansk

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 1638
  • Karma: 4
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #357 on: April 01, 2017, 08:56:27 AM »
Hey Dave ,   congrats on the shop (with detached house) ! Looks awesome !
Cool updates on the car too
Big fat black fastback

Offline silas

  • *
  • Posts: 6822
  • Karma: 20
    • Some cool videos...Check them out!!
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #358 on: April 02, 2017, 07:13:51 PM »
That photo is on "the hump", between PA and Cathedral Grove. Technically just a bit on the PA side of the Alberni Summit...

Took the '58 out last weekend to Ucluelet, another fine driving road. My stipulations for moving away from Squamish were somewhat Unique. Besides the need for a large shop (with sleeping arrangements on site) it also needed to have:

- Great driving roads
- A good hill for engine tuning, preferably about 5min away from the house to allow for 'warm-up'. (but not so far that problems can't be limped home)
- A swimming lake within 15min, no more.
- Wood fireplace

Dave Koszegi was my realtor, didn't even blink at the requests. Considering he's raced Targa Newfoundland and the Canadian Rally Championship, he totally understood the need to look at the garage/shop first, and the house second. :)

-Dave

yup, the main roads between coombs & ucelet & tofino are great driving roads!! plus there must be some pretty bad ass dirt roads out that way for the rally beetle to get sideways too  :cool:

Offline owdlvr

  • Dave Hord
  • *
  • Posts: 1422
  • Karma: 10
    • Classic Car Adventures
Re: Dave's 1971 1302 Not-So-Secret, Secret Project Build
« Reply #359 on: November 12, 2017, 09:31:28 AM »


Rally bug is up on axle stands for re-prep and upgrades. It's done 200,000km in four years, and as usual I have some ideas for improvements. Started stripping it down and creating a list.$





One of the things I need to change is the stock pedal set. I've done various modifications along the way, but the key point is it has failed twice. One of the failures was the brake clevis pin, leaving us with only the hand brake on a twisty mountain downhill in Colorado. The last modification for the pedals was to convert them from cable clutch to hydraulic, and to do that I stuffed a master cylinder inside the tunnel. It was such a brutal job to get it all lined up and attached, I promised myself the next time it came out I would replace the pedals with a proper pedal box.

Well, the accelerator pedal setup keeps breaking...so out came the pedals.



...and, this is where the problems start. Measuring out the car, there isn't a pedal box made that will fit. Surprisingly it's not the distance away from the seat, or fitting the master cylinders, it's the width. I always figured it would be squeezing in the masters, and I could use the Tilton master-under-foot setup if needed, but it's wider than I thought and won't fit.

I do have an older Tilton setup with the masters behind the pedals, but it's too wide to fit in the car. I could raise it 1.5", above the heater channel, but then my legs don't fit. Well, as a good buddy of mine is fond of saying, "God hates a coward..." and so, here we go!



With 3/4" taken out of the pedal set, I can get it just narrow enough to fit the car. A bonus I didn't expect was the ability to fit a proper dead-pedal in, which is nice. With the dead pedal, however, the pedals do end up 1/2" closer to the driver...so I'm going to have to space out the steering wheel and move the shifter and hand brake. It's not the end of the world, but adds to the work level.



I love a good night in the shop when you lose track of time. Looked up to check if it was dinner time, as I was feeling a little hungry...whoops, it's midnight. :P
--
'71 Type 1 - Rally Car Project
'75 Type 1 - Heirloom
'95 F150 - Unfortunate daily driver...