lownslow

So I decided to bite the bullet and get a complete S13 rear floor pan, and rails.  Sectioned it, and have it sitting in place. Will need custom tubs, but the rails look like they'll mount up nicely. Just need to fold up some pieces to extend the rear rail points. 

Rims have been welded and gave them a paint. They look orange in photos, but gold in person. I was also lucky enough to find two sets of cheeeeap tyres in the sizes I wanted. Had to try the Advans on for a look too. 

Got the barrels finished for my wheels. Very happy with them. Unfortunately he couldn't weld them, will so get them finished by someone in Brisbane. Also have nearly finished the rack and pinion conversion. 

Took the star sharks to work and machined the lips off, and blasted them. Also had a play around with the barrels. 

Just need to find someone that can weld them in Australia, as barrel bros has now closed to customers. 

So did a thing today. 13x6 all around. Looks like I'll be able to squeeze the 8.5s I want under there. 

Now all I need to do is figure out how to fit these under the bed so the missus doesn't see them. 

Haven't done too much on this lately. Managed to pick up a S13 rear end though, so have shortened that up as much as possible. Will just be running the smaller  R180 diff for space reasons. Had to notch the subframe for clearance on one of the driveshaft flanges. Should still be plenty strong enough. Also picked up some AE71 wagon struts, so will get them ready for brake upgrade and coilovers. Just a money thing at this stage. Slowly but surely. 

Printed some mirrors up. Pretty happy with how they turned out. Just need to design the mirror holder piece now. Will sand these back and paint them eventually. Probably stay black, possibly grey. 

Not much progress on this lately, unfortunately. Looks like I'll be changing plans to a different style IRS rear end. If I use the MX5 one, I can't run a rear seat. 

I did however buy a 3d printer. So been learning how to use fusion 360. So far made some velocity stacks for some R1 itbs, and a radio delete plate for the wagon. Will try a flatter paint next time. Was supposed to be satin, but looks too glossy for for my liking. 

Some guard mirrors are next. If anyone has dimensions for either the mirrors, or radio plate, that would be amazing. 

Started on the frame rails over the Christmas break. Ended up using 50x50x2.5mm SHS. Should be plenty strong enough. Especially considering that I can lift the whole rear of the car by hand, with the diff removed. 

Finally decided on how to do the bends. Was going to get them bent, but have heard horror stories about bending square tube. The mitre cuts turned out pretty good, and both rails are exactly the same. Also plated the existing crossmember. This is tied into the original front leaf spring mounts underneath. 

Got the diff and fuel tank out tonight, so started having a quick mock up of things. Seems like everything will be pretty well placed, and not hang too low. It will be getting raised another 20mm from these photos, as haven't cut anything yet. Will be about 10mm above sill height, so pretty happy. Would have to channel the boot floor if I wanted to raise it any higher. Also should be able to squeeze some 13x8.5 wheels under the guards too. 

Last photo is the look I'll be aiming for. (Different model, I know)

So after driving this for a bit, I really found it way too rough. Maybe I'm getting old. Diff hitting floor etc. Was going to cut out where it's hitting and modify it etc, but want new wheels as well. If I'm doing that all that, I might as well 4 link it, and if I'm doing that,  I might as well change to 4x114, and if I'm doing that I'll have to stuff around and shorten the diff to fit the wheels I want. Long story short, shit snowballed and now I'm the owner of a shortened MX5 rear end. (And still have to change to 4x114)

Will build some new rails for the frame to sit under, and run them from the back to the rear seat area, and try tie them in with the original rails. Really wanting to use 40x40x3 SHS, to keep the subframe as high as possible under the boot floor, but everyone seems to use 50x50 for this sort of thing. If anyone has experience in this, will 40x40 be enough? The original rear "rails" are only monocoque, so surely 40x40x3 will be more than enough for a subframe to sit under. I won't be cutting much out of the originals. 

Finally got thing on the road and took it on its maiden voyage to a japday at Queensland raceway. Ran flawlessly and rides surprisingly ok with 3 people in it. Need to get my hands on a k50 5 speed now though. Was probably doing 4k rpm and 80kph. 

Tidied up the front end over the weekend. Painted up the corner bezels with new insert bits. Still on the hunt for a coupe or later ke20 lower grill trim piece though. Trying to get it on the road for a Jap day in April, here in brisbane. Also have a front lip on the way. 

Finally found some front seats for this thing. Ended up with 240/260z seats that were in good condition. Always wanted them in my 1200 coupe. Had to make some custom mounts to suit the wagon rails. Seats sit pretty good, although 10mm further towards the outside because of the way the recliner lever assembly sits. Not noticeable when sitting in the though. Would have to raise the seats 20-30mm if I wanted to get them perfect. 

Finally finished the boot this past weekend. Won't be everyone's cup of tea, but decided to do a spotted gum floor.

Excuse the post, but how it sits on flat ground. 

Got all the tyres on today. Pretty happy with the fitment. Some photos (Sorry about the uneven driveway)

Need some SSR's asap