My Locost Build

Welcome back - the original thread can be found here (history, background, etc.). Now that I'm actually building this, I decided to start a new thread so I can reserve a few slots, don't want to spread the journal out over multiple pages.

Journal Begins

Total money spent: $4,439.91 (click for link to spreadsheet)
Total time spent (hrs): 55.5

Well, we started up today, got all of the metal cut and all of the angles sketched out so we can go back and hit it with the chop saw, hopefully next weekend. We ordered way too much metal, enough so that we probably have enough to construct a third frame...woops.

Frame Design:


Metal as delivered:


Metal cut for one car. I was really surprised at how little metal there is holding this thing together. Keep in mind, too, that these frames can be build using only 3/4" tubing...I don't see how it would stay together.


Mine and Nicad's piled for storage till we can get back and angle the pieces:


1/14/12
Got the angles cut on the upper and lower main rails, grinded them down so they're ready for welding. Aligned everything up, looking more and more like a car (ish)




1/19/12
More cutting...more angling...more grinding...

1/24/12
Finished cutting / grinding. Mocked up the compound angles to make the front nose cone, measurements and everything are right on. Hard to tell, but the two 2x4's are propping up the bottom, the other portion is on the floor. This is offset top to bottom to allow a little more clearance on the bottom of the car to fit the steering rack and components


2/5/12
Welded the bottom of the frame together. Came out pretty well, unfortunately my build table wasn't completely flat and i had to transfer to the floor. Fortunately, I noticed in time and once I welded the cross supports in, there's only about a half an inch of flex in the back corner (see picture 1). When you flip the frame over, it's perfectly flat on the corners and there's a small bit of flex on one joint in the middle. I'm storing the remaining metal on a pallet on top of the frame on the flat floor to help (hopefully) flatten it out. Keep in mind everything's only tacked, so I can still go back and grind them off and fix them later if needed.

2/12/12
Welded the top half of the frame assembly together. Overlapped the two together - BAM!! Shit's within 1/8" all the way around. I mean, I know it should be as I measured, remeasured, remeasured, one tack, remeasured, etc. so the dimensions were as close to perfect as possible, but with the oversized tubing, the dimensions don't exactly match the plans. However, everything lines up perfectly, so I'll put the final welds on the top and bottom half this week and then weld the two pieces together. Any questions, bring em on.











You can see how short the actual frame is

 

2/15/12 - Did work, son
Got one of the guys in manufacturing to stay after a couple hours today and get the final welds put on the top and bottom halves, got them joined together. Came out amazing, less than 1/8" of flex throughout, spot on in offsets on the front end (hopefully get the front put together toward the end of the week). Anyway, enough of the boring shit - PICTURES

Build Table


Leveling out the H beams (connect top and bottom frame halves)


After the H Beams are welded on, turned the piece upside down to measure how level our cuts are...pretty spot on










Finally, welded them together




This portion of the frame weighs in at 52lbs




2/17/12
Went back during lunch and got the front end tacked together, then mounted on the frame. these pieces were some of the hardest to cut, the compound cuts could only be made in two dimensions on our chop saw, so i had to draw it out and hand grind the third dimension. It took Nicad and I the better part of two hours to get the eight pieces (four per car) cut and angled correctly...looks like it was worth it. The front end is a little wider than the book plans, but I'm thinking that may be a positive trade off as it will allow more more side to side width for the large V8 and will also help widen the front track. No pictures of the process, I only had 30-45 minutes to get things together before manufacturing got back from lunch and snagged the welder back.





2/18/12 - FRAMES DONE
still has some more bracing to go, but the main portions of the frame are done. Tacked together the rear end this afternoon (bigest PITA this far). Weighed in at 72 lbs, actually a little less than what i was expecting.









2/23/12
Frame exoskeleton is completely finished and welded up. The only two pieces that aren't fully welded in are the two G rails, the rails that hold the motor up. I figure if I need to modify the width in these for oil pan clearance or better lineup with the motor mounts, I can easily break the tacks move them around. Frame's weight up until this point is 84 lbs.

 

continued





8/10/12
enter the mullet mobile, the first move i've made towards this project in almost 6 months. Fully running donor car, couldn't have asked for a better opportunity with one exception, which I'll elaborate on shortly. Interior is shit, don't know that I'll be able to recoup much cost parting that out, but he's got aftermarket wheels (with a little bit of tread left on the tires...for now) and aftermarket stereo, which I'll probably rip out and sell. Tranny shifts well, has new clutch. Other than wheels and tires, this thing is 100% stock with 110,062 miles on. Perfect.

The negative...engine has a tick. Not sure what's going on with it right now, as it exhibits symptoms of multiple things. I'll get it looked this next week, hopefully it's something as simple as lifter knock or a bad exhaust manifold gasket. Even if it's rod knock, the motor is still running strong, so hopefully it'll be an easy fix. Took it on a test drive, has solid power throughout the rev band. Just. a. tick.

I picked up the entire running car for less than the cost of the drivetrain package we've been looking for, so even if I break even by selling off the wheels and shell to fix the motor, I'm still happy with the purchase. And it let's me move on, as I'm at the point on the frame where I can't go any further without having the motor / tranny for mock. I'll probably get the motor looked at, drive the T-top mullet mobile while I tinker on the frame, then swap it all over.



8/15/12
crap, so i just looked up the dimensions, then measured the frame, then realized i'm screwed. The dimension from the front of the crank pulley to the back of the bell housing is just over 35". I have about 38" to play with, but I think I'm going to need the space up front, and I need to mount the entire assembly where the shifter is at the point I want it.

I checked out Phil's LS1 build thread (great source for info, btw) to see how he got around this, he ended up hacking one of the main support bars and redoing it. He didn't note this via text, so I never even picked up on it, but when looking at his pictures to see how he did it I discovered this one (hope this works):



8/29/12
Started working on the Camaro. Don't have a bucket so I couldn't drain the radiator, but that's the last of the front accessories to remove, then drop the driveshaft. I was really shocked to discover that half of the bolts under the hood are metric :nuts:



apparently we can only embed youtube videos, not the bookface versions...may have to start using a youtube channel once things get up and running.

9/10/12
Removed coolant, AC and fuel system. Removed intake manifold. Not much longer till she's pulled and we have half the garage back again



9/11/12
Removed engine harness and a few other components. The only thing holding the motor in is the transmission, the exhaust, the motor mounts and the power steering system. I'm torn on how I want to try and get this thing out, if I should pull the block and drop the tranny, drop the drive shaft and pull the motor / tranny together, or some other method I don't know about / thought about yet. The guy I bought it from had this piece you can see bolted onto the middle of the block, it's to help lift it out so you have a single lift point and can rock the motor around...pretty nifty, subaru definitely needs something like this, I hated always lifting the motor via intercooler and alternator brackets. It's getting closer, though...



1/9/13
Engine is removed from car. I need to get the car a little higher so the strut towers can clear the front end, but the car is up in the air, the motor is sitting on the ground.

Underneath view, driveshaft and Y-pipe removed


Raising the car. Front end starts dropped, then slowly raise it up. Not going to lie, this part was a little scary








As you can see, i need about another 6" of clearance on the front.


1/11/13
Removed motor from under car, removed cradle from motor, sold shell as rolling chassis. Will use newly acquired funds to rebuild and powder coat the motor, I'm thinking about doing the shortblock in bright green, not sure what i'll do with the heads. Solo'd the removal, it took about 12 hours start to finish. However, I didn't find the guide I used to complete it until I was about 6 hours in. As an aside, removing the steel hood of a car by yourself is a bitch.





Obligatory inside the engine bay pic


2/15/13
Dropped the motor into the frame. Had to cut out the bar I knew would cause clearance issues. I need to figure out where the engine needs to be mounted. The transmission mounting bolts are sitting about a half inch from the main support beam, so I may try and make sure it lines up close to that so I can just weld the mount directly to it. Time to do research.

Sorry for the crappy quality cell phone picks


Removed brace

 

4/3/13
Brought the car back to the office to work on it in the shop. Got everything lined back up and started working on the motor / transmission mounts. Just finished making the motor mounts with the exception of the vertical support stud.



The piece on the left is the adapter plate I made to mount up under the stock motor mounts


4/4/13
Motor / tranny mounts finished

 

reservation

 

reserve

 

glad to see all my cuts are accurate

 

updated

 

glad the front end cuts turned out good. I consider ourselves pretty apt, and those were a bitch to cut without a compound saw

 

updated

 

first post updated. Reached my first milestone today, the frame is completely finished and welded up. I still have to go back and do some grinding work, but I've now hit a progress wall until I find a suitable drivetrain. Once I get the motor / tranny, I can finish a few interior bracing pieces, start construction on the floor panels and get the motor mounts put in.

Just under 30 hours invested, though about half of this was with the help of a second person. I'll be keeping track of the weight via our shipping scale at work, I'll update what individual parts weigh along with progress steps on the car.

 

almost done.

 

they letting you keep it at work? or are you hauling it back and forth when you work on it? i'm keeping my ear open down here in redneckboro for LS motahs

 

Yeah, i'm just keeping it in the corner of the warehouse. we have about 80,000 sqft of floor space, they told me as long as I keep it out of the way they didn't care.

however, ball now has me thinking more and more about a roll cage. Originally I wanted to keep the roaster appeal, but I also don't like the idea of dying...so...

 

I think I'm going with a roll cage. I want it to be integrated into the frame as much as possible before I get too far along.

the one guy we were looking at had those big hoops that came out the sides. pretty ugly if you ask me.

I figure with the way I will be driving this thing... I'll probably flip it and want to be able to survive

 

Is it just me or is LS1 engines and trans going up in price by a vast percentage? Seems like most are now asking twice as much as they were going for last year.

 

you would be correct. They were anywhere from 2.5-3.5 when i first started researching, looks like they're more in line of 4-4.5 now. It sucks.

I may start looking into other alternatives, like the 5.3L LQ9 (I think), but it'll require a bit more research first.

 

There are deals to be had they are just few and far between.

the 6.0 iron block engines can be found for a decent price. 11.5-12.5 to 1 pistons and good heads and they will make over 500whp.

 

Being iron blocks would you have to worry about heat retention on the track?

 

Not really, when you have all the room you need for a cooling system it isn't really an issue.

 

That is what I am going with in my build. The L33 has some serious sleaves. At .240" thick they are ALMOST as thick as a darton sleave.

 

truck engine?

 

putting the Tahoe motor in the Locost? that don't make no sense

 

nah. it's aluminum.

 

stripper car?

 

That the engine I was telling you about? If so those are some pretty cool motors. Down on displacement at 5.3 liters, but a great motor. It is the same one I am using.

 

nope. 5.7

 

Ls1 or LS6?

 

Ls1

 

enter the mullet mobile, the first move i've made towards this project in almost 6 months. Fully running donor car, couldn't have asked for a better opportunity with one exception, which I'll elaborate on shortly. Interior is shit, don't know that I'll be able to recoup much cost parting that out, but he's got aftermarket wheels (with a little bit of tread left on the tires...for now) and aftermarket stereo, which I'll probably rip out and sell. Tranny shifts well, has new clutch. Other than wheels and tires, this thing is 100% stock with 110,062 miles on. Perfect.

The negative...engine has a tick. Not sure what's going on with it right now, as it exhibits symptoms of multiple things. I'll get it looked this next week, hopefully it's something as simple as lifter knock or a bad exhaust manifold gasket. Even if it's rod knock, the motor is still running strong, so hopefully it'll be an easy fix. Took it on a test drive, has solid power throughout the rev band. Just. a. tick.

I picked up the entire running car for less than the cost of the drivetrain package we've been looking for, so even if I break even by selling off the wheels and shell to fix the motor, I'm still happy with the purchase. And it let's me move on, as I'm at the point on the frame where I can't go any further without having the motor / tranny for mock. I'll probably get the motor looked at, drive the T-top mullet mobile while I tinker on the frame, then swap it all over.

Jesus fuck I miss the low RPM torque of NA V8's, though.

 

Now, shave off, what, 2000lbs....? :drool:

 

I like the high revving torque of the V10

 

but then I'd look like every other pretentious prick in a BMW



Best part about taking 6 months off? The slight warpage I had in my frame has settled out. I just laid it back out and checked the measurements, I'm less than 1/4" off on the diagonals, which should straighten up to less than 1/8" when I can load the members and put some bracing in

 

ticking maybe the usual failing lifter, rocker arm and or push rod. LS6 head swap will fix ALL of that

 

that's what we're thinking. Justin and I went for a ride last night, it's just odd, it exhibits symptoms of everything, but not all symptoms, and it's making it hard to pinpoint. Thinking it's not rod knock because, as Justin pointed out, bearings don't give a shit, they'll knock all the time, and it's not really doing that. I REALLY wanted to drive this turd, but I may play the safe route and go ahead and pull the motor and sell of the rest of it off to help recoup costs.

Decisions...

 

It's an LS1.... they rattle. It may just be the "piston skirt slap" inherent on those engines. My GTO did it from day 1 and was deemed a non issue by the dealership.

 

pull and part it now, that way you'll be 6 months ahead of trying to get rid of the shit piled up in the corners of your house, shop, storage unit, neighbors house...

 

goddamnit, buzz killington

i know...

 

I told him that now. recoup the cost and start rebuilding the motor before he starts driving the turd every day

 

Why drive the turd around when it's possible you can just eff it up? Not like you need the car for better gas anyways.

 

Drive around like this

 

thought that is what the G35 is for when the owner is out of town

 

I know, I know...fucking responsibilities

I've already started the ball rolling, probably won't be driving the camaro at all (outside of a donut or two...because redneck ferrrari). The garage will get cleaned up tonight, I need to rearrange it to get enough space to store the car, the drivetrain and tools, as well as being able to park another car on the other side. Going to pull some IE shit and get everything rearranged so I have optimal access to tools, shelving, storage, etc.

Starting to look into what it takes to get the remaining pieces of the car sold off. I've never done a full part out like this, it's all a new process, and it's on a car I'm completely unfamiliar with. I'm going out of town Friday - Sunday, so I hope to have the garage in order by the start of next week, possibly working on getting the motor out by the end of next week. Need to pick up some extra tools, and I need to get an engine stand to mount this thing to when I get it out of the car.

Guess this means I'm going to have to start drinking again...house rules state you can't work on cars in sober mode.