LocostUSA.com

He should be able to use any Chevy (that has an LS engine) pedal that is drive by wire.

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30 years old, not sure what I want to be when I grow up…

Probably true, but I'm a bit adverse to screwing up big ticket items until at least the credit card bill has been paid off.

That's pretty much it, Lonnie. Here's the long story: The GM crate engines have an "optional" ecu/harness kit.The kit includes the ecu programed for the specific engine, the engine harness with fuse/relay box, sensors and the throttle pedal assembly.The throttle pedal assembly is quite long with the stock pedal, so some shortening is in order, as is some creative mounting. Lokar makes a nice replacement pedal that that shortens the assembly considerably. But here's where the sensor needs to fit to avoid that diagonal tubeAnd the pedal really needs to be positioned to the right about 1.5"So I'll need to make an offset pedal-to-sensor-lever mount that locates the pedal where it needs to be while accommodating the sensor mounting arrangement.

Turns out GM has a family of these pedal assemblies. Different ones for different motors. And Lokar makes a family of nice replacement sensor/pedal assemblies that are very specific as to their use. So not sure that one size fits all LS motors without additional tweaking.

BTW, one of the classic drawbacks to drive-by-wire throttles has been throttle lag. Turns out lag is programmed in by the factory and can be tuned out by tweaking the ecu. (Lokar sez they do it by tweaking the sensor in their product.) I'm also hoping that the idle to WOT ramp curve can be customized in the ecu. 15 degrees of lever movement isn't a lot when you are driving in traffic and don't need/want WOT to creep ahead

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

I made a foam block mock-up of the radiator I was planning, and used it to check nose and plumbing fit. Here's the radiator mock-up with the Spal 14" fan:As the Car9 front wheel centers and the front bulkhead are in line, some practice fit up was required to position the nose and the radiator. This is also an aesthetic issue as the nose extension wants to be "just right" relative to the front wheels leading edge.The radiator will sit forward of the steering rack just enough for fan clearance, lean back about 15 degrees and be up just enough to clear the underside of the nose.
So here's the real one from Griffin A sub-frame of 3/4" square tubing will attach to the front bulkhead to support the radiator:And from the front:Nice and low. The 16" tall radiator provides the option of sectioning the sides of the KV nose an inch or so to improve the nose's blend to the hood line and lower the cars front profile even more

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

Setting the engine low in the chassis and not having the oil pan extend below the chassis bottom were two of my build objectives. The lowest profile LS wet sump pan available is from the LS3 powered Corvettes. With a max depth of only 4 7/8" these pans are actually as low profile as the Corvette dry sump pans. The Corvette pans used to come standard on the GM crate motors, but the crate motors now ship with 2" deeper SS / Camaro pans. So I needed to order a replacement pan and the requisite pick-up tube and dipstick:The new pan should fit nicely in the space reserved under my mock-up plastic block. I've already trimmed off the bottom of the bellhousing to match. Hmmm, the engine compartment floor will need an access hatch to drain the oil and change the filter...To substantially reduce oil starvation, an Improved Racing oil baffle and crank scrapper kit will be installed. Xcarguy gave me the idea for the IR kit. He uses one on his LS Stalker, though he's added an Accusump since he put on racing slicks. As I don't have plans to go beyond DOT rated tires, I should be ok--at least for a while.

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

Thanks for the explanation, Tom. Your build looks stellar. I think your oil pan and gas pedal are going to be more sophisticated than my entire engine. Keep up the good work.

Cheers,

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

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

Woohoo for updates!! That radiator is thick. Can't wait to see the engine the car.

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30 years old, not sure what I want to be when I grow up…

Thanks, Joshua. The updates were a bit pent up, sort of got them out all at once
On the radiator, I went thick instead of tall. Some tradeoffs there. We'll see how it works.
The engine shipped on Friday. Probably another month before I get it home and in the chassis for a fit up. Kind of exciting

Been working on the shock mounts at the rear of the chassis. Been frustrating myself. I needed 4 side plates for the upper br@ck^ts. Had to make 10 to get four usable ones. All my own screw ups or was it the Team Slotus effect?
Anyway, got them tacked in tonight:Still need to add the the top plates for rigidity. That's what the notches are for.

Here's where the LCA will sit at ride height:And at full droop:At full extension of the shock, there is still about 3/4" of clearance between the LCA and the bottom rail. Spacer sleeves will be added the shock bolts to keep the shocks centered.

Now to work on the rear caliper mount and fit up the rear rotors and wheels.

Meanwhile the DBW throttle pedal mount is progressing well. Once done, the throttle pedal extension needs doing.

The front spindles are also ready to complete. Hope to get them done this week as well.

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

If I wuz you, I'd blame us!!!
Excellent work, Tom, the set up in the rear is just amazing. Really nice... Well, except for all those "reject" br*ck*ts...


JDK

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom

Dems br@ck^ts arr perdie DaveW

My brother put an LS3 into his Stalker. He read enough posts about destroyed engines from oil starvation that he bit the bullet and added a dry sump - expensive but highly recommended.

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Midlana book: Build this mid-engine Locost!, http://midlana.com/stuff/book/
Kimini book: Designing mid-engine cars using FWD drivetrains
Both available from https://www.lulu.com/

Thanks, JD, but I need to man up to my own screw ups. I also need to remember "Measure three times and cut once..."
But while I was measuring on those br@ck^ts, I was hearing the Twilight Zone theme in the background...

Thanks, Kurt. A dry sump is the right answer. I'm just running out of bullets I can bite, so hoping IR's baffle and crank scrapper system will do the job until I get my g-forces up there.

Thanks, Dave. I got to play with my french curve on those. Too bad they'll be hiding under the rear fender.

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

You gots a "french curve" AND an "engine guy"???? What does she look like??? Is she cuter than Marcus' beer girl???
Got any pictures??? Nekkid ones, 'specially???? (And NO, not of the "engine guy"!!!)

My shop is decidedly under-furnished, that's all there is to it!!!

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom

Hey JD, Frenchy has nice curves but is a little transparent. Marcus' beer wench is probably a little more versatile.

Oh, and yes, here's some nekkid pictures (even better than of the beer girl):Now I know why they call them crate engines...

This one's an LS3/480 straight off the GM production line and now sitting in my engine guy's shop. Since I'm a one-man operation (no James or Bubba to help out) I farm out some stuff from time to time. But this one is mostly a plug and play deal. It should be in my garage in a month or so.

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

Some seriously good bracket making skills you have there Tom, those shock mounts were not a five minute job so dish the dirt and reveal how much cardboard was murdered making them . That LS engine should be wall mounted in the house, its far to pretty to end up in an engine bay.

Bob

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Build Log viewtopic.php?f=35&t=16640&p=187700#p187700

Mancave http://s1116.photobucket.com/user/mypic ... ow/mancave

Bob, have you seen the rest of his build??? Hell, his engine bay is far too pretty to end up in an engine bay!!!

I bet me, James and Bubba could screw up that engine in no time! After all, we're experts!


JD

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom