The Enduring Saga of the Speedstah Chronicles

Haven't been reporting on the new build on here, so thought I would bring you all up to speed.

The pan was totally reconditioned. The only thing kept was the central tunnel - everything else was replaced with new stuff, including the IRS diagonal arms from a 924 (they're VW units, after all). It also has dual fuel lines to allow for the EFI return line for the Subaru engine. I had a Kafer Brace ordered but the place I got it from no longer is selling them so I'm going to another source. I felt the brace was good anti-wheel-hop insurance for the 300+hp that Chris wants to run.

The pan was finished just before Christmas and the body was prepped and mated to the pan in early January. Since then, the pan-to-body seam has been totally sealed, the tail lights are installed (I needed something to do one afternoon and they looked easy), the steering column was fitted and I've just, today, finished aligning the doors for even gaps all around. Next is to fix the rear clip droop. Got everything I need to do that, and should have it done tomorrow or Friday, then on to the shine-up light and headlights. After that I'll be mounting the windshield (not looking forward to that) and getting the wiring harness in while I search for some 924 gauges (I have the CMC gauge set but will be swapping them out).

It's been a couple of years of setbacks, mostly due to health issues, but it looks like I'm finally rolling on this build. Sure wish I had Pearl here to ride around in, but I'll hopefully have this car ready to head North for it's engine transplant this Summer.

I'll see about some pictures in the next few days.

gn

Excellent news!

Good luck,and Git er dun!!!

Well, let's just see where we're at, more-or-less in order:

Fixed the rear clip droop over a month ago and now all door gaps look mint. Moved on to installing the engine cover but haven't yet installed the latch assembly. Couldn't find the cover latch pin and worried about it until I saw a local Beck and realized that the pin is nothing more than a 5/16" bolt. Got PLENTY of those, so I'm good to go on that - should be done tonight.

Mounted the hood hinges and a few test fits showed that they had to be bent to match the angle of the frame mounts. This is a trial-and-error process which takes time, but if done right the hood goes up and down properly and will consistently land in exactly the same spot, allowing a nice, even 1/8" gap around three sides. The top edge has to be slightly wider to clear the body when initially raising it, and that's now OK, too, and the front latch is installed and working right.

I wondered if the cable was installed to actuate the hood latch - wondered that after I had pushed the plunger into the latch assy. Gave a pull on the release knob in the cockpit and SPROING!!! the plunger assy went sailing across the shop and landed 10 feet away. Guess the cable works....

On to the door latches, and still working out how many more wires are needed for the harness from dash to engine for the ECU and other management. I did Pearl's schematic on a CAD system, but doing this one on paper, starting with a CMC harness and mating it to a Toyota Paseo fuse/relay block, then adding more wires for engine management and such. Beginning to think it might be easier just to run a 10 wire bundle from the dash along the passenger side to the rear, but we'll see.

Busy, busy, but it's starting to look like a car, now.....

Atta boy Gordon! Full Speed Ahead!

Can't wait to see it! Sounds like you are really making progress---

All us mortals are going to see, Jack, is a red blur.

It's been a slow month, build-wise. Dragging my feet so Wolfgang will actually finish his kit before me. After all, I think they were both delivered in 1988, or something like that, even though I didn't get mine until 2009. Actually, I had a bunch of family visits and stuff which were all much more fun than working on a CMC build ;>)

Anyway, the hood and engine cover are both mounted. Hood latch mechanism works mint. Engine cover latch has become the "latch from hell" and I should finally have that adjusted later tonight. Needless to say, the manual doesn't tell you much, and when you think you've got it right.......the cover latches about 3/8" higher than it should be. So, out comes the saber saw and rat-tail file and we go to work making slots out of holes and screwing with it until it fits right. Like I said - Later tonight.

I'm waiting for parts for the windshield assembly, so I'll spend the time getting the door latches installed and adjusted this weekend. When I'm not staining my 3,000 sq. feet of outside deck. And after that I need to paint the front of the house before we head North. Getting to be a busy Spring!

After the doors, I think the windshield parts should be here, or I'll move on to the headlights and installing the (somewhat modified) wiring harness.

Onward. Ever Onward.......

gn

Pictures?? ya know we love pictures, and really don't believe a thing you say unless we see the pictures. Do you have a camera? Know how to use it? I'm just sayin' . . .

Gordon,
Youz' got my phone number, feel free to all during the windshield installation.

Gordon---will you bring it to Carlisle? I am anxious to see this bad boy.

Jack - Is that a Freudian slip "bring it to Carlisle?" With your miles driven, would think you'd say "drive it to Carlisle". Appreciate the slow down to accommodate my build. I may end up "dragging mine to Carlisle".

Once again, for all you chronicle followers, my job in this project is to get the body done and ready for the drive train. At that point it gets trailered North so Chris and his friends can install the Suby engine and related technicalia.

Got massively delayed this year with two operations so I'm running about 12 months behind schedule. Can't make this Carlisle anyway, since the car is here (Beaufort) and the trailer is there (Massachusetts), due to geriatric thought processes understandable only to old, recovering Geekoholics, so it looks like it'll get up there by next Christmas at the earliest.

Kelly: the camera is currently crammed with pictures of the kids and grandsons from two (2) recent trips to Disney World. Once I get them uploaded I'll see about some of the car but, if you've seen one Speedstah under construction, you've pretty much seen'em all.......

Currently doing random stuff, like installing the horn grills (had to wait for the Porsche rubber gaskets from International Mercantile), then the door latches and then the windshield, but in between all that I'm trying to paint my 3,000 sq. ft. deck out back (they grow decks BIG in the South - like those wrap-around, two-story porches).

Keep putting one foot in front of the other, Gordon! Glad to hear you're making progress on your car. It's good therapy!

Gordon, glad to hear your back in the shop making progress on the new car. Which Suby engine are you and Chris thinking. What happened to the Mitsubishi(was it) engine that you where originally looking at.

Wow......Pete! That takes me back a bit!

We had been looking at an Audi 1.8l, in-line 4-banger which was gonna fit, but I had this thing about a boxer engine and spotted a complete Suby mill at a salvage yard for $1,500 bucks and thought, WTF? WHY am I even thinking of a measily 150 hp aircooled for something North of 6-Grand, when I could have 300hp from a Suby for about 25% of that????

WHAT WAS I THINKING?????????????????????????

Chris and his racing friends want to take this on as a project and dump some plasma-breathing Suby into it, so all I have to do is make sure the chassis/pan can take the heat, so to speak. Plus, I really want to do something modern under the covers and Worcester Polytechnic Institute didn't want my car as a test mule for their fully electric program so here we are.

Besides....I'm better with fiberglass than mechanics, anyway.

;>)

Gordon, you should bring it up this year, while Chris's little boy is growing, before they have another one and Chris is super busy being Dad again......

I'm just sayin'(U-Haul one-way trailer rental)

How bout one of these?

...or maybe room for a Subie Flat8?

...or maybe one of these (twin turbo/dual plug/911)...




or this...

I think the guy at Carlisle that was selling the blown speedy, wanted $14k. It was a ten second thought then reality struck me cold and I walked on...

OK, so some of you have been looking for pictures of my current project, code-named,

Look'n good ..and the shop sights are a bit familiar too !

Yeah, I REALLY wish the shop had A/C as it's already hot down here and promises to get worse (mucho worse) but that'll have to wait. Adding all that insulation and ceiling is a bigger job than I want to tackle right now.

Also, in the couple of years I've been working on this I've passed up three cost-effective Speedsters (I really should have scooped Nick's from Ottowa, or the 5 year old Beck here in town for under $15K), a couple of classic pickup trucks and a Hudson Commodore now owned by a local doctor, any of which would have cost less than what I'll drop into this build.....

I know that you've got the right idea: Find 'em cheap, put what you need into them to make them sell for a reasonable profit to cover parts and labor and move on, with no more than 3-4 months of time into any of them. If you're a good mechanic and going to spend time in the shop, you might as well get paid for it.

Moving along nicely since I saw it in Feb. You've been very busy with bathrooms , decks, and painting the house. You must be going 100mph all day long!

Gordon---the pictures were sensational. What fun to follow your build.

Great work----as usual by the Speedstah Guy in Beaufort!

You know, Gordon, it wouldn't be a bad idea to have two Speedsters, one North and one South!

Actually, THAT's the idea!

Get one on both ends, get rid of the truck and trailer, sell the house in Massachusetts and fly back and forth a little more often. Then, when we're down South (which is most of the time), Chris can tool around in whichever one ends up in the North. Plus, it would be nice to have A/C in ONE of them (and maybe decent heat, too!! if it's the one up North)

It's all part of a master plan. I don't do master plans all that often, but one where we get great weather most of the time and Disney World for the kids within an easy day trip is one worth treasuring.

Al! LOTs going on here in the "Secessionist South". Just trying to get everything done that I've been putting off since we got here. The B'rooms went super well and the house painting is.....Well, it just has to get done (sure wish I could do the entire place in Vinyl siding).

JACK! "Mister Speaker" for the second time!! Wicked cool!

This build is going reasonably well. Just got done installing the door latch mechanisms and they both just fell into position. Wow... Believe me, on CMC's, THAT doesn't happen very often, so I'm deep frying a Pork Roast to celebrate. Should be ready for the BBQ sauce and foil wrap in about 30 minutes and ready for the table around 7-7:15pm. YUM!!!!!

gn

Attaboy, Gordon!!

Gordon, that's gorgeous work!
I like your Yankeemobile, too, but I think you'll look a tad less genteel driving THAT mofo!

Working, working, working........Seems I'm always working.....

Door latches, outer and inner handles are mounted and everything works. Getting the door inner workings to fit together and work smoothly was a two-day job, but they work really slick now. Latches for the hood and engine cover now work with the release knobs (Whoo-Hoo!!)

The big job for this week has been getting the windshield in. Yes, this is, without a doubt, the most stressful part of a CMC/Fiberfab build, not because of the fear of breaking the glass (you can always get another windshield) but because the instructions are so poor and there is so much to do. I borrowed Alan Merklin's corner post placement tools and I hope that everything likes where I put the holes 'cuz that's where they'll stay. Now have the bottom trim piece riveted in, along with a piece of VW fender welting to dress it off and seal it up. Wicked cool idea Dr. Clock! Was just about to drill the dash hole for the center strut when I saw Alan's notes and they call for installing the dash upholstery before the windshield is installed. That means getting the vinyl ready, drilling the center strut hole, routing the defroster slots, drilling pilot holes for the tonneau snaps (which I think I have in stock) and a few other things before I can even THINK about putting the windshield in.

One step at a time......

Hope to have the windshield/dash cover/snaps/center strut/corner posts/and anything else related that needs to be done by the end of the weekend, if the temps stay down. Been almost too hot in the shop to work, lately, although I get a nice breeze off the river if I open all of the doors (and then the no-see-ums get me).

Then, I plan to get holes cut for the gauges, get the steering column back in, the wheels back on and move it to the other side of the garage for a while.

Working, working, working........

Gordon, where is the VW fender welting, under the aluminum, between it and the fiberglass?

Mike: Exactly. It finishes off that intersection between the aluminum and fiberglass nicely AND provides a watertight seal AND it looks very professional. The stuff I got is, basically, a rubber extrusion with a 1/8" bead along one side and a rubber flap on the other. You fit it under the aluminum trim piece and then rivet the trim down and that's it. Wish I had done that on Pearl! You finish it off by wrapping it around under the corner posts and then under the inside flap of the windshield's bottom rubber gasket to finish it all off (although I'm not quite that far along yet). Looks like they all should have this.

Want a picture?

gn

It sounds good but it is too late for me. My aluminum is fastened down already.

It will be interesting to see at Carlisle.

I suspect that Dr. Clock has done this trick on some other cars.

When you see one done at Carlisle I'm sure you'll say; "Ah-HA! THAT's what he was talkin about!!"

And then you think; 'Why the hell didn't we ALL do this??'

I couldn't have done unless it was mentioned more than 20 years ago.