| VRSPEED |
| Interior Build |
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The passenger's and driver's fans were bolted directly into the plastic ductwork and sealed with electrical tape and silicone respectively.
The driver's (my..) fan is only 0.25A, but it still makes a decent breeze. The low profile fan was necessary for packaging under the headlight
selector switch which I am keeping in place. Sets of four 3.6V blue LED's have been installed in each duct for back-lighting.
The driver's (my..) fan is only 0.25A, but it still makes a decent breeze. The low profile fan was necessary for packaging under the headlight
selector switch which I am keeping in place. Sets of four 3.6V blue LED's have been installed in each duct for back-lighting.
Since the car was essentially gutted, all of the normal features that I would like to retain need to be built back into it. This section documents
what has been done with the interior of the vehicle, including electrical, panels, trim, gauges, and lighting.
The most obvious place to start for me was to get the basic ventilation functions working again in the absence of the OEM climate control unit.
12V DC fans were built into the existing ductwork for the (2) passenger air vents, the driver's air vent on the left, and the left and right defrost
ducts. The fans were picked up surplus and made to work given the sizes readily available.
The defrost fans are 0.3 amp units. They required oddly shaped adapter plates in order to fit the ductwork. These plates were machined out
of some scrap Delrin. Ironically wood screws and black silicone turned out to be alright for attaching them.. (see "new paint" section).
what has been done with the interior of the vehicle, including electrical, panels, trim, gauges, and lighting.
The most obvious place to start for me was to get the basic ventilation functions working again in the absence of the OEM climate control unit.
12V DC fans were built into the existing ductwork for the (2) passenger air vents, the driver's air vent on the left, and the left and right defrost
ducts. The fans were picked up surplus and made to work given the sizes readily available.
The defrost fans are 0.3 amp units. They required oddly shaped adapter plates in order to fit the ductwork. These plates were machined out
of some scrap Delrin. Ironically wood screws and black silicone turned out to be alright for attaching them.. (see "new paint" section).
All of the interior ventilation fans draw from the space under / within the dash, In light of this, a 'main' cabin air-intake fan was built into a
panel in the firewall. The panel is 16G aluminum cut and bent into shape. There are four threaded inserts crimped into the panel to allow it
to be bolted on blind from the outside of the car (I think that this is less awkward, although if this panel needs to be removed after the car is
all back together it will be awkward anyways...). The fan is a 6" 12/24V unit that seems to cook along pretty well. I would have preferred to
mount a fan 'pulling' air out of the cabin in order to have a slightly more efficient system, but this does not seem to be practical. With the
'pushing' setup, the air enters below the front windshield like the OEM setup, into the dash, out through the fans / gaps, through the cabin,
through the rear window sill vents (where the OEM speakers were), through the trunk and out of the flap vents on either side of the lower
part of the trunk cavity. There is a regular ring-style automotive air filter around the fan inlet, and a stainless steel cover plate will cap it off.
panel in the firewall. The panel is 16G aluminum cut and bent into shape. There are four threaded inserts crimped into the panel to allow it
to be bolted on blind from the outside of the car (I think that this is less awkward, although if this panel needs to be removed after the car is
all back together it will be awkward anyways...). The fan is a 6" 12/24V unit that seems to cook along pretty well. I would have preferred to
mount a fan 'pulling' air out of the cabin in order to have a slightly more efficient system, but this does not seem to be practical. With the
'pushing' setup, the air enters below the front windshield like the OEM setup, into the dash, out through the fans / gaps, through the cabin,
through the rear window sill vents (where the OEM speakers were), through the trunk and out of the flap vents on either side of the lower
part of the trunk cavity. There is a regular ring-style automotive air filter around the fan inlet, and a stainless steel cover plate will cap it off.
The central vent has been permanently removed in favour of using that space for two AEM universal guages, shift/warning lights, and
switches. Below is my cardboard mock-up, along with CAD files of the intended design. Most of the panel components are being laser cut
from stainless steel because it is easier (for me) to weld thin sections in SS compared to aluminum. I found that the gauges should be tilted
towards the driver by about 25 degrees, and 'up' about 20 degrees in order to be able to see the faces completely. I did not want the gauges
to just be pointing up into space as the so often are seen 'custom installed'.
switches. Below is my cardboard mock-up, along with CAD files of the intended design. Most of the panel components are being laser cut
from stainless steel because it is easier (for me) to weld thin sections in SS compared to aluminum. I found that the gauges should be tilted
towards the driver by about 25 degrees, and 'up' about 20 degrees in order to be able to see the faces completely. I did not want the gauges
to just be pointing up into space as the so often are seen 'custom installed'.
The bottom panel is straightforward. There are eight toggle switches in a row, with blue LED illumination above. The interior lighting will all be
blue. It might be cool, but even if it sucks and is annoying at least it's something different.
blue. It might be cool, but even if it sucks and is annoying at least it's something different.
The panels were fabricated from laser-cut stainless steel pieces and welded together (in the case of the embedded AEM Universal gauges).
For the switch panel, LED's have been inserted into drilled holes in Lexan strip in order to distribute their light more evenly across the panel.
Finally, the assemblies were primed and covered with the same 3M DiNoc covering used on the exterior... I've got a huge amount of this stuff
so it will probably end up all over the place (including my phone, etc :P).
For the switch panel, LED's have been inserted into drilled holes in Lexan strip in order to distribute their light more evenly across the panel.
Finally, the assemblies were primed and covered with the same 3M DiNoc covering used on the exterior... I've got a huge amount of this stuff
so it will probably end up all over the place (including my phone, etc :P).
In order to complicate things unnecessarily, I decided to incorporate a small flasher system that would double as a 'fake' alarm light as well.
The circuit is a simple 555 timer, and is triggered by the EMS grounding different pins based on some condition. The four LED's are green,
red, orange, and yellow - corresponding to shift, knock, oil pressure, and general malfunction indicators. In the case of knock, the circuit also
sounds an alarm buzzer.
The circuit is a simple 555 timer, and is triggered by the EMS grounding different pins based on some condition. The four LED's are green,
red, orange, and yellow - corresponding to shift, knock, oil pressure, and general malfunction indicators. In the case of knock, the circuit also
sounds an alarm buzzer.
I decided to remove all of the original ignition key switch system and after dismantling it I found that it could not easily be modified for a cleaner
appearance. Instead, I got some more laser cut stainless steel parts cut out, and made a new bearing housing for the front steering shaft and
lever cluster. The plates were welded together and bearing pressed in. Overall assembly went smoothly, but despite knowing better I should
have machined the bearing bores AFTER welding... So now they are a bit tight, but should wear in over time.
appearance. Instead, I got some more laser cut stainless steel parts cut out, and made a new bearing housing for the front steering shaft and
lever cluster. The plates were welded together and bearing pressed in. Overall assembly went smoothly, but despite knowing better I should
have machined the bearing bores AFTER welding... So now they are a bit tight, but should wear in over time.
Just a shot of the interior starting to get rewired. You can also see the central console and gas pedal covered with DiNoc. The picture on the
right shows the Command Window Module (Zytek) installed onto the relay bracket (white). This unit is crap and I would not say that it works as
advertised.. but for the price (<$50) it is a good source of small relays that I believe can be made to work with a few modifications.
right shows the Command Window Module (Zytek) installed onto the relay bracket (white). This unit is crap and I would not say that it works as
advertised.. but for the price (<$50) it is a good source of small relays that I believe can be made to work with a few modifications.
The 'heater' system is shown above ready to install. The core was originally going to be my main IC unit, but I decided to get a bigger one that
would fit more efficiently within the front bumper. The stock switch-valve will be used to divert the flow so it travels through both cores in case
heat is desired in the interior, or alternately in the interest of increasing the IC cooling capacity.
would fit more efficiently within the front bumper. The stock switch-valve will be used to divert the flow so it travels through both cores in case
heat is desired in the interior, or alternately in the interest of increasing the IC cooling capacity.