The work continues...

I had a productive weekend.

As it turns out, I needed to cut away two rear structural members in order to fit the engine. For lack of less than an inch, I had to make the modifications. That's okay, though, because now, since I'm going to have t redo the fiberglass shell for the back part of the car anyhow, I have free license to upgrade the geometry of the car. The structure has been cut, and will stay that way until I have the engine installed. I'll build the structure around the engine.

The cut tube will be replaced with two horizontal tubes that tie into the mid-point of the roll hoop, roughly 18 inches from the bottom. These tubes will fully triangulate the rear section, with an included bolt-on frame member that will attach with close-tolerance AN bolts. That's probably overkill, but it sure can't hurt.

Project updates:

• Wiring harness has been sent off to Hyper Racing  be modified. Total cost, including shipping, $200.

• Oil pan has been sent off for modification to Dan McMahan. Dan will also be providing everything I need for a remote oil filter kit to be installed. $425 for the pan and oil filter hardware.

• I've determined the footwell is just too small to support a third pedal. The front suspension ties in in the same spot, so I can't move anything outboard of where it sits now. I've opted for a combined paddle shifter / paddle clutch setup. I'm engineering it now, with a lot of help from the kindly folks at formula500.org. On the plus side, that eliminates some cost. Scratch $200 from the budget.

• For now, I've decided to go with the stock gauge cluster. I'll add in some data logging later, but for now, my budget dictates I cut out the upgrades. The stock cluster gives me water temp, warning lights, a tach, and a gear position indicator. I actually gain some functionality. Added bonus: I can read problem codes right off the cluster.

• Dan McMahan also quoted me a VERY reasonable amount for creating a custom stainless steel exhaust header. The man has earned my respect, admiration and, most importantly from his perspective, my business.