so... that was week 1

here was week 2

guy calls me ..the bug body chunks are ready ... original deal was for front half of a 70 standard .. rear half of a 73 super.... he informs me that the 73 super isn't cut yet.... but I can have the chunked shells of the 70 standard and a 70 super while I wait for the 73 super rear half .... no change in agreed upon $200



before getting too involved I needed to make sure that the important areas of the firewall I needed were going to clear.



I'll have to rearrange the blower fans intake, and the blower box, but the heater core and the heater box inside are fine... mastercyl is fine... I MIGHT end up moving the fuse box, not a big issue .

as far back as the windshield is, is where it will live (just sitting lower) creating a cowl from the windshield to the stock firewall.

dropping the body down to line up with the top of the firewall will also basically be giving it a 2.5 inch (ish) body drop.

I'll be using cavalier seats with the headrests removed, giving a very budget procar rally seat... or a bit of a bomber seat vibe.


eventually a 3.4 will be swapped in.... for now I think I'll just freshen up the 2.8 ... I want to play with the porting of the heads/intake ... throw in a Crane 272 cam(if I can lay my hands on one... may end up just a comp 260) and 1.6 rockers .. 4.3 tbi ... headers... etc ... basically just re long block the 2.8 with the 3.4 later (and actually spend some time inside the 3.4) ... maybe throw like a CT26 on the 3.4

my power goals aren't exactly stellar for this build... anything more then 300hp will be wasted, and even 300hp might be a tad much... if it gets turbo'd it'll probably spend most of it's time turned down LOL


at the moment I'm just gathering bits, and waiting for a welder to go on sale. as Much as I want to get it driving, my MAIN goal is to get the major fab and fitting work done by September (college restarts... mechanical engineering) so I can just tinker in my spare time (HA! )

I also intend to embrace the tongue in cheekness of it being a 'fake' 5window coupe .. keeping a v6 (with a nasty cam and exhaust to sound the part) .. gonna build some form of cover/airbox for the tbi ... maybe a fake hillborn injection ...atleast till the turbo. bazooka tube fake nitrous bottle subwoofer (anyone remember those? ) ... etc etc

 

I'm interested to see this turns out.

 

wow, that's something really different. i'm interested too!

 

I think this is going to be awesome and i cant wait to see how it turns out! HOWEVER!! you need to name this mug, something edgy and creative, like cheveettle or.. well thats as far as i got..

 

I love the idea but isnt it going to be really long and really narrow? bugs arent very wide?

just a question, it will probably get answered as you go along!

 

it's gonna end up about 6-8 inchs longer then a late 30's 5 window in the main body... but a few inchs shorter in the nose ...ish ... width wise at the cowl it's .. maybe 3ish inchs narrower ... bugs widen in the middle .. same as the mid late 30's cars ... they really aren't very big in the body ... the fenders and running boards make them look way bigger .. I'll probably be widening the fenders the equiv of 2inchs on each side.

it will end up looking a little elongated ... the joy of being the one with the welder (or atleast the one who will have the welder) ... I can manipulate it some . the body will definately have the 30's coke bottle shape ... wider at the rear and narrow to the front.

I also am not trying to repro a late 30's perfectly either ... I really want at 20ft away or going down the road "hey look a 30's 5 window!" .... then as they get closer ..."hey... wait a minute" ..

I've tried to come up with a name for it ... originally I was going to shove a Twin turbo 3800 in it ... make a play on a name of "38 special" ... so far it's just "the abomination" ... hahaha

basically theres things I don't mind messing with... theres somethings I really don't want to mess with for simplicities sake... the windows shape, size, etc ... or the doors.. the latch and hinge placement ... same with alot of the chassis mechanical things ... mounts... locations.. etc mainly on the maintance side of things for myself or resale later ... it's way easier and nicer when replacement items are off the shelf LOL (like hinges, latchs, glass... mounts, u joints... )

movement is gonna be really slow until this welder cycles back on sale ... so until then I think i'll be focusing on getting the driveline yanked out .. need to check the flexplate and converter (HOPING that's where the knock is ) ... and start on the porting the top end... freshen up the short block... etc etc

once the welder is in my possesion .. get the basic body mock up to make sure its gonna sit where I want wheelbase wise ... then get the floor/body off the frame.... continue it in the basement.... get the chassis back outside and start the clean down/clean up/coated ...etc etc

 

woot! so uh.... this happened today

 

as for the bug body size .... heres an idea of what I was talking about with the late 30's actual body being pretty small



This build was part of my ultimate inspiration .... the actual main body (from windshield to where the back seats would be) is still actually Stock vw bug



anyways... new welder goes brrrrzzzttttt its just a 110V hobby unit ... but it's flux core or gas mig. I won't have any gas gear for awhile so for now I'll be playing with body panels in flux core mode

was $299 canadian on sale ... came with cart, and auto helmet

was only off work today for Kids last day of school ... just happened to notice the sale finally on for fathers day ... so snagged it on the way back home... Days off Sunday/Monday, with any luck I'll have some actual progress to show ... I need to do a little area prep ... my current work area is not ready for sparks flying

 

oh the carnage!

one side is rough cut out ... have the tail end of this head cold that doesn't want to let go, so I can only get through so much.



hopefully tomorrow I'll get the other side rough cut ... get the body front tacked inplace with a temp brace or two ...

I don't yet have the B pillars or rocker panels .. so I can only get so far...

its going to be soooooo fun to incorporate the s10 body mounts into this rebody .. the rear cab mounts I should be able to get in without issue... the fronts, not exactly sure how yet.

 

This is a really cool concept. Good luck on all your fabrication.

 

This is really giving me some ideas for a future build. I never thought of vw body parts for a 30s style build.

 

Thanks guys I'm 'sorry' that I don't have much in the way of big updates ... this is the really SLOW portion of the program LOL ... Layout sucks haha

I'm gonna put this here... oh.. that's in the way... okay move this here... which moves that to here.. and... damnit..

I do have to say... if your thinking about something similar ... it would save ALOT of headaches to start with a complete shell and just trim and move things from there. The guy I got the chunks from had offered me a basically complete shell minus mechanicals for a couple hundred more then I paid for the chunks and bits I got... I declined as not having the funds at the time , and it was very much an easily restorable bug that I didn't want to hack up and take out of circulation ... and as i'm doing this basically alone repeatively trying to move a more complete shell around would have been hell. But in the end I'm easily going to spend more then he wanted for the project shell on all the bits and peices i'm going to need to get these bits operational (not a concern at the moment, but it will be in the future)

As of right now ... I still don't have the rear half that has the good B pillars and rocker panels ... and I have allll the s10 body parts still 'in the way'

doing some measuring though I should be able to keep the leafs on for now (body should end about 1.5-2 inchs past the shackles) .... and I will be able to hide the stock front cab mounts under the front fenders without much hassle.

should also have enough room to relocate the stock tank to behind the axle (not enough room for a bolt in blazer tank far as I can tell ) ...

collecting the bits at work for the engine freshen up ... as much as I'm tempted to just throw performance bits at the 2.8 ... I think i'm gonna keep it pretty basic for now .. make sure I LIKE how the thing drives (interior feel, etc) ... same with suspension/brakes for now ... leave it pretty much stock

... and I'm leaning towards a 3.4/3500 hybrid.. full n/A nasty cam, and custom ITB's , which means the trans will definately need the upgrade work.... and I'll just jump at a 8.8 ford rear end (I'm probably gonna be running spacers anyways, so just make them pattern change too )

converting the front to sealed bearing spindles when I do the drop spindles anyways... so eventually camaro/corvette ls1 brakes up front too.

and ofcourse all the suspension and handling bits... shockwaves all 4 corners, 4 link.... all upgrades are in the future, and ofcourse if I like the feel of the thing after creating it

still wanna try and get this thing "driveable" by september... but who knows LOL ... we've decided an impromptu family vacation this upcomming long weekend which is basically gonna destroy the last bit of real funds I was gonna have before september

 

okay little more progress... don't have the rear section I need with the good b pillars and rockers yet... so can only go so far...

doesn't 'look' like much ... but fairly substantial mock and fabrication wise, everything is built off this placement

but heres how much you have to cut out of s10 floor pan to fit a bug body if you were wondering




heres the front A pillar section all trimmed and tacked into it's new home ... the drivers door can be seen off to the side in the background with a grumpy hinge so it didn't get to be mounted for mock up



and heres shot showing how far set back the front section is from the stock firewall, also shows how much of a cowl it's going to have.



I won't be cutting the firewall to shape till I have the rear section/rockers in place and some bracing.

 

So will the old s10 hinge area become the new cowl area for the 30s style body?

 

The space in which the s10 hinge area now resides, is where the 30s cowl will be built, once the everything that is not within the shape of the 'new' firewall is cut off.

I haven't cut it all away yet because the side peices that are the s10 hinge area is 'holding up ' the s10 firewall with the weight of the steering column ..etc

Im still currently waiting for the rear body peice with Bpillars and rockers... I've still got to yank the engine out to go through it (and the trans) .. I've got the heater blower fan intake to move (and blower fan box to modify) ... so if I run out of things to do before the rear body shows up, I can brace it and pull the steering column ..etc

 

project is not dead! ... I am still awaiting the last 'chunk of bug' (the one with good B pillars/rockers ) ... took the first actual vacation from work I ever have, with the family for 5 days over last weekend.

so While awaiting the body chunk, I still move on to ripping the engine and trans out this weekend and start on the freshen up/rebuild/foolishly spending time and money on a 2.hate v6 (it might make 175ish hp at the flywheel woohoo!! )

 

I don't know if you have already checked, but I see people in my area post fenders and hoods from 20's and 30's cars on craigslist all of the time. You may be able to find some actual 1930s front fenders or other body panels to really make your build look the part. I also noticed your going to have a pretty long cowl. You could make part of the cowl step down like alot of the old cars were, where part of the cowl was under the hood.

 

my advice, and I have done a project like this, is to line up the firewall where it makes sense, then move the body/firewall back, then move the motor back. the stock location for the s10 engine is quite a ways out in front of the axle centerline, you have probably already mocked up a fender and noticed how far the engine will stick through the hood. even in your drawing in the first post, the engine is well behind the axle centerline, you will notice right now its about a foot in FRONT of the axle centerline. if you move the firewall and engine back, you will have more room.

 

to be honest, I'm going for a 'close approximation' ... sorta the whole idea behind it, is to play the part ... try and pull my favorite parts of 30's and 40s coupes, while leaving the important underpinnings of the S10 in place or replaced with bolt on stuffs.

so while your not wrong about the wheels being too far back to be 'proper' .. I'm okay with it .. atleast for this build ... cheap fun ratty rod kinda abomination

it'll look a slightly elongated at portions, I am hoping to make it look a little more proper with the width .. the wheels are gonna be pushed out about 2 inchs on either side. it's kinda hard to explain I guess .... I'm not trying to replicate any specific car ... i'm using hacked bug bits and faking it ... LOL

 

Okay ... Haven't done anything I can physically show on the build, I've been doing alot of planning and gathering type things.

I hadn't seen the above post about adding the step to my cowl like the bit that would be under a hood of the 30s/40s cars... yes that is something that was planned, as I won't be running a hood.... although I MAY build a skeleton hood facsimile later on ...although the aircleaner I'm running on the 2.8 for now will end up above the hood line (I got my hands on a small oval edelbrock aircleaner, that is possibly being phased out, at work ... I'll be modding the base of it to serve my purposes but it'll work well for now )

I got the bits from work to yank the engine

I've also been looking at all the things I can remove, relocate on the motor ... I also want to replace as many of the lines as I can with brass tubing (technically a brass/nickel alloy)

gonna cut down the stock rad support to use stock mounts.... POSSIBLY move it back a little to give the appearance the wheels are farther forward... which will be perfectly fine for my v6 aspirations ... but if sold it would make SBC swapping near impossible without a ton of reworking ...

looking into trans stuffs here and there too .... plans are a simple internal kit (trans go rework if I can get my hands on one) ... and a 4cyl converter ... (same converter... just 2400ish stall instead of 2100ish for the v6... not taking into account the added torque of the v6)

ofcourse all of my plans at this point engine/trans are still sorta hinged on the flexplate being the horrible knock this things got

 

so I did a thing! ...

so ive been procrastinating yanking the motor as I've been waiting for my friend to come pick up all the S10 body parts... cause the box has been sitting on my wheeled pallet that I want to put the motor on to move around until I get my hands on an engine stand and actually work on it

so while awaiting my friend to arrive this past Sunday .... I decided to tackle the heater blower box ... see if my idea to shrink it would work.

so far it looks like it'll work ...

loading the pictures here .. as I've still gotta get off my duff and reload all my pictures from photobucket to flickr or something.

.... still waiting for the last back half of bug body that has the b pillars, and rockers, so that major body work can continue

 

okay .. so my normal 2 days off have been shrunk to 1 day off for the next couple weeks (inventory in a parts store, weeeee all on deck , 6 days weeks) ... which means some extra cash... but less time LOL

so I'm going to attempt yanking motor.. and starting on the front end (cowl/firewall, rad support, grill, fenders) this weekend. and if the weather decides to attempt to play nicer this week (been mid 20's celcius up to this week, now it's mid 30's + this week)

 

okay so things are still moving slower then i'd like. I remembered that I agreed to remove the vent glass/assembly and stock door glass from one of the set of doors I had gotten off a friend (for a cheaper 'decent' door, and I want to do 1 piece door glass anyways)

so had to get that out.

then underside of the motor stuff and jacked/supporting the front end up I had been procrastinating. while I was underneath hacking off the exhaust, and pulling the converter inspection cover (also to have a basic peak at the flex plate)

I noticed this (lessee how long Photobucket still works for me)



I think I found the 'banging' under the hood .... theres not even anything hanging off the harness... it's GONE .... side note I didn't see any obvious damage or loose in the flexplate/converter but I'll give it a proper examine once the engines out ... probably replace it anyways.

annnddddd there was coolant in the oil .... not alot... like half a liter... but it was there ...

I also got a bit more background on this S10 ... about 2 years before i got it ... (so.. add a year) .. the previous owner swapped the motor... about 2 months after swapping it, it starting banging .. so he parked it... it sat for about a year and he had to move, so sold it to my friend for like.. a case of beer... then it sat for another year ...

he's not even sure it's still a 2.8 LOL ... it could be a 3.1 or 3.4 (i'm not holding my breath )

been doing some basic measurements ... looks like I'm going to be pushing the front track width to 66ish inchs the rear width to 70ish inchs ... zq8 wheels... 8.8 explorer rear with 1.25 adapters (2inch spacers front) ... stock bug body in the rear seat section widens to 55inchs at the smallest of the widest part (compound curve) ... I'm gonna see if I can massage/exagerate that widening to 60-62 inchs by the back window without making it goofy/blatant ...

been going through styles and types .. and looks like I'll be doing 38/39 ford/merc front end style .... 39 merc main body... and 38/39 zephyr tail/trunk .... again only the styled idea not exact replica of said cars

 

Okay! ... Engines finally out!

I have a friend that does a bunch of car scrapping and Mechanic work on the side is keeping his eyes out for a 3.4 shortblock for me ... if he or I find one quick enough .. the 3.4 will end up back in instead of the 2.8 .. instead of swapping out later.. meh.. either way

he even basically hinted he might be able to get his hands on a 5.3 LS with trans and harness for me for under $600 (NO idea the condition of ANY parts... it is a truck ment to be crushed ) ... while it's really tempting ... I don't think I'll bother with THIS build ...



the process of pulling this engine, I don't trust anything on this truck chassis anymore.... it's comming apart to be rebuilt/checked/or replaced ...

out of ALL of the bellhousing bolts... 1 .... ONE was tight... 1 was missing completely ... 1 was backed out enough to hit the firewall... the rest were litterally finger tight.. (IE my beat to crap hands, I undid them with just my fingers) ... add in the completely blown out 02 sensor ... etc etc ... yeah... things i was going to leave and take care of later... F*&^ it ... it all gets torn apart (this truck as running and daily driven after the 'engine swap' for a couple months.... sigh ) ...

I'm gonna completely miss my goal of having major fab done ..etc by school restarting in sept anyways ...

the fusebox is gonna need to be moved.... so the whole harness is getting moved inside the truck... I'll have to seperate out the bits that need to go to the engine/trans/front end

I do have to say... I had forgotten the struggle to pull and engine, without a vehicle lift... with out fancy air tools... and while caring NOT to cause an apocolyptic mess on the floor! ... haha ....

next is to get the trans drained and out .. cause I decided mid way through going to yank both at the same time... that I hadn't drained the trans yet... and it was going to make a massive mess under the chassis as soon as it tipped ....

 

teardown is always fun! I usually cut the driveshaft and leave the front yoke in the trans, no leaks!