LocostUSA.com

Learning how to build Lotus Seven replicas...together!
It is currently March 29, 2024, 5:32 am

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 47 posts ]  Go to page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4  Next
Author Message
PostPosted: August 6, 2014, 10:22 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: October 24, 2008, 2:13 pm
Posts: 5326
Location: Carlsbad, California, USA
Welcome back. I think there are many of us who wanted to build, but had to put it off due to real life obligations, career building, marriage, moving, children, etc., etc. Hopefully, this restart will be the real deal for you.

There is at least one other BMW-based build going on now, perhaps 2.

Cheers,

_________________
Damn! That front slip angle is way too large and the Ackerman is just a muddle.

Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=5886


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: August 7, 2014, 6:25 am 
Offline

Joined: April 7, 2009, 5:47 pm
Posts: 23
Good to see your back at it, i am nearing the end of a M44 based locost building in Australia.

Blog here (must be reg to see it): http://www.ozclubbies.com.au/index.php?/topic/3383-taffys-tf7i-bmw-e36-based-locost-build/
Or you can just check out the pdf updates that i sometimes get around to doing:
https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B64orUhbOtS_X3NxRDI4WS1nYkU&usp=sharing
Would suggest download to view, as they seem to have some issues online viewing on google drive.

I used the E36 318IS M44 and tried to use the BMW as a complete donor.

If you have any questions let me know.

Cheers,
Taffy

_________________
EV Locost Blog
http://www.oz-clubbies.com/forums/blog/ ... /index.php?


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: August 8, 2014, 10:47 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Thanks! While I am known to have ADD combined with OCD with my projects, I am committed with this one regardless of what happens. I will haul it with me wherever job opportunities may come up.

As it stands now, I have agreed to the terms of sale for a 1996 BMW 318ti. It is high mileage (300,000+ km) but I had driven it not long before the throwout bearing let go. My friend has already 'scrapped' the car according to the license bureau in order to transfer his reg fees to his new beater, but I am still free to use the important bits. I'll probably use the rear seats to make a sofa and the best front seat as a desk chair too.

I am looking at a heavily modified frame (can't remember how much I've already explained previously as I type this). This will be right up my alley as I am currently preparing my senior design project on the Formula SAE chassis and will be bringing composites back to the program that was pioneering this stuff back in '89-'90. Also, given my light class schedule and current employment at a Euro/Race shop, generic parts will be cheap and design/manufacturing time somewhat plentiful.

Taffy, those pdf are great! Still reg'd on the OZ site to have another reference source.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: August 10, 2014, 11:43 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
While the driveway is too hot to work on this morning to diagnose my main seal leak on the Rabbit commuter project (east side, direct sunlight until noon) I started doing some more research on the E36 318ti... and proved my theories! The 318ti was basically an E36 with E30 rear suspension and could be easy to integrate into the chassis. However, I might do it differently as I am a bit of a suspension packaging geek. I'll let you guys weigh in...


You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: August 10, 2014, 1:15 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: October 24, 2008, 2:13 pm
Posts: 5326
Location: Carlsbad, California, USA
Are you thinking about using a trailing arm setup modeled on the BMW gear or just using some other independent rear suspension design and the BMW differential?

I'm curious as to what the inside (car centerline side) of the BMW hubs look like and how easy they could be adapted to another IRS design.

Cheers,

_________________
Damn! That front slip angle is way too large and the Ackerman is just a muddle.

Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=5886


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: August 10, 2014, 2:17 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Not very adaptable for custom IRS at all as they are a cast and stamped steel welded assembly. Pic for reference http://www.dedericms.com/images/fs/trailarm1.jpg

I'll be doing some research and finding out the tendencies of the local inspection station for custom cars. If I can have it 'my way' with custom uprights using the BMW bearings/hubs/brakes both front and rear, then that is the route I will go. Welded steel units are what I have in mind, but cast aluminium units are not out of the question due to the contacts I have. Anyways, that's for a later time... lunch break over, back to the Rabbit.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: September 21, 2014, 12:42 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Donor car has been acquired... hello rust!!! The decision has been made to do a quick strip of the parts I want to use with the rest going to scrap. I'll be using only the engine, trans, driveshaft, differential, wiring with cluster and designing custom uprights/knuckles in order to run 4x100 and therefore more lightweight wheel options (as well as being a lighter assembly with less inertia). I will also be converting one of the seats to use as an office chair.


You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: October 4, 2014, 8:38 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Well, dis-assembly began on Friday evening and continue today, but mother nature had other plans with a bit of a deluge in the morning. Managed to free up some other bits under the car to make engine removal easier when it let up momentarily. It's incredible how the E36 has been built more for mass-production than my E34. It has also become apparent how intrusive and integrated the electronics are in these cars. Looks like I'm reconsidering how much of the electronics I will keep.

Pics as it sits:


You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: October 20, 2014, 4:57 pm 
Offline

Joined: September 24, 2013, 4:06 pm
Posts: 854
Location: Charlotte, NC
I am using an M42 from a 92 E30 318iC for my build. So far it seems well suited for a Haynes chassis. Check out my build and i hope it will help you with yours.

_________________
Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: October 21, 2014, 11:56 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Thanks, Mnot. I have read through your thread and agree that the M42/44 is a very compact engine.

Just pulled the engine/trans and rear subframe with diff so that the rest of car is out of the driveway ASAP... currently sitting on a trailer and on its way to the scrap yard in the morning. Might decide to pull off the front knuckles at the last minute.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: October 28, 2014, 11:52 am 
Offline

Joined: September 24, 2013, 4:06 pm
Posts: 854
Location: Charlotte, NC
When I was in the early design phase of my build, I wanted to use the trailing arm setup from the E30 but it would make for a really long wheel base or the pivots would have to be located inside the cockpit so I bailed on that idea and went with the T-bird setup. I will use the driveshaft to translate German to American :P

If you know of any engine mods that are worth doing, please let me know. I would like to ditch the Air Mass Meter for a MAF but I can't find any conversions. I plan to use COP setup to clean up the engine bay and because it costs less than new coils and new wires.

Good luck on your build, I will be following it closely (and stealing a few good ideas on the way)

-gavin

_________________
Gavin

My build: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16005


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: October 29, 2014, 2:10 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Thanks Gavin! I have a couple of options on the table for the engine and almost none of them involve the stock setup... but I did keep 99% of the engine bay harness, so the option is there should I feel the need. I really like the idea of a standalone ECU with matching display as a dash, but I have filed electrical as the last thing I do before interior and body finishing. Even the thoughts of a custom intake or ITB setup has crossed my mind to lower the height of the engine. Beyond cams and tuning, there isn't much out there that isn't invasive. Most of the stuff I've seen includes diesel cranks with shortened pistons, porting and polishing, etc.

My goals for the upcoming winter are:
- test and teardown of engine (oil leaks)
- model engine to some degree is CAD
- do some overall vehicle dynamics calculations
- validate suspension kinematics
- design and simulate chassis (FEA and other)
- spec components

So, basically I will be focusing on the theoretical stuff for the next couple of months as I will already be doing the same for my senior design project (FSAE chassis) and then using some of the contacts I already have in certain industries. I don't want to have anything large and cumbersome built (chassis) until I know that I won't be moving for a job for a few months after graduating next May.

As for vehicle design, I will be putting my own touches and taking cues from a.moore's chassis. I can see how we both have FSAE backgrounds! :lol: My goals:
- integrated rollover structure with removable side-impact 'cage' members
- custom suspension from A-Z, incl knuckles, a-arms, etc. while using E30 BMW hubs but keeping it closer to a production car (i.e. Delrin or poly bushings instead of rod ends) to keep costs down.
- Undecided about brakes, but I have a full set of Tilton MCs in a closet somewhere and a full F/R caliper set from a mk2 Jetta that I will try to incorporate into my designs.

Beyond that everything is up in the air...

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: January 3, 2015, 11:12 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
I've been building FSAE stuff over the holidays... I hate this thing as I'm dealing with people not willing to change the design all while being too complicated and overweight and, as I discovered, poorly designed. Fit is great due to the CNC notching, but beyond that I'm stuck dealing with serious design flaws and some torturous Tig-welding. Luckily I'm not welding this one, but I've got another set of these tubes to cut and notch manually (over 80 tubes), weld them, so that I can bond some structural carbon fibre panels in order to compare chassis stiffness.


You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: January 31, 2015, 12:06 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Still working on the Solidworks model for the 7, but I've been working on my manufacturing skills. While I have not mastered MIG welding, I finally got around to TIG welding with some regularity in our SAE shop. I've previously messed around with the machines and welded square tubing, but this is the first time I've put in a decent amount of continuous hours with the torch... so I jumped straight to 4130 CroMo (logical, no?) with some T-samples which were tested to destruction to support the research for my senior engineering project (and prove that I have no qualms letting my teammates drive the FSAE car when I'm done with it). With my first 'production' parts, here are the results:


You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
PostPosted: May 21, 2015, 10:02 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: September 17, 2007, 10:36 pm
Posts: 209
Location: Montreal, Canada
Well... it's been a whirlwind the past few months:
- finished of the FSAE chassis for my final project (180+ hrs of tube prep and welding, and I've reached the point where I think the above welds are crap )
- spilled a Monster, a Pepsi and a coffee on my laptop, so that should explain most typos
- crammed for about 2 weeks for my last 2 classes, getting a BEng out of it
- unlike many in the aerospace industry in my area (and some 4.0 graduates, which I am not), I landed an engineering/technician job at a small industrial automation company... already put in crazy hours, and most of the guys working there are total petrolheads.

While I might be busy and travelling quite a bit, the resulting overtime nets me more days off which can, no, WILL be used to get this project rolling. Engine is on the engine stand waiting for disassembly and degreasing...

_________________
Concordia University FSAE - Chassis
00 Impreza OBS - RIP
81 Rabbit 1.6D
95 525i


Top
 Profile  
Reply with quote  
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 47 posts ]  Go to page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4  Next

All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 44 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Jump to:  
POWERED_BY