1981 S3 V8 conversion

[Simon350S]

Nice one dude.....

Gotta get cracking on mine this weekend.....

[hilly]

As promised, a weedy update this week as the Lotus got carted away on Saturday to have the exhaust system fabricated.

Here is the truck driver working out what to do as the battery for the winch was flat.

A set of jump leads fixed that.

This is the first time the Esprit has moved more than 10 feet in the last 9 months.

Nothing else got done on the car this weekend apart from tinkering with the dash a bit.

Hilly

[sandwer]

So apart from the exhaust and the dash, whats left to do? [Correct answer is - there will always be something to do...lol!]

How long do you reckon before she gets fired for the first time?

I bet you can't wait Brilliant work.

[hilly]

So apart from the exhaust and the dash, whats left to do? [Correct answer is - there will always be something to do...lol!]

How long do you reckon before she gets fired for the first time?

I bet you can't wait Brilliant work.

Yeap, you have got it, it will never be finished...........

Actually Richard, I don't need the dash to start it, I can monitor all that stuff using the ECU via a laptop.

I should have the dash recovered and ready to go back in this week as I haven't got a lot else I can do at the moment.

All I need to get it started is the exhaust (in the shop as we speak) and wire up the power to the ECU.

They won't be able to begin making the exhaust till Wednesday this week earliest so I probably won't get it back till the weekend after this coming one.

However, once I get it back it should be idling within a couple of hours, expect a noisy video clip.................

Hilly

[t70]

aural and visual auto porn.... mmmmmmmm I can't wait

[silverfrost]

Andy great news I expect a video posting straight away on the this site

so we can hear the this baby run cant wait! not much progress on mine

at the moment but things are slowly taking shape as all the bits come in!

regards danny

[hilly]

No update last week as the car is away having the exhaust made. Due to be getting it back this weekend.

However, as is always the case stuff, the exhaust fab has hit a snag.

It turns out the laser cut flanges I waited weeks for had too much material machined off of them and hence bent when bolted up to the exhaust manifold.

Another pair of flanges are being laser cut pronto, but it means I won't be getting the car back until next weekend at the earliest, phooey!!!!

So, to give you your fix of updateness, here is what I have been up to while the car has been away..............

As the dash instruments mounting had been pretty much done, it was time to finish the dash pod. The rake of the windscreen on the Esprit is quite shallow and so the leather on the old pod is a nightmare for reflections from sunlight and street lamps. To get around this I will replace it with black Alcantara.

My first attempt was a dismal failure as the pod is a complex shape with lots of internal and external curves. The Alcantara I bought is foam backed and not very stretchy and so bunched up in a load of places and looked a total mess. The only way to get this to work was to peel off the backing then cut and tailor the material to fit. Sewing machines are way out of my league so I tricked my mother into doing it

First job was to make paper patterns from which to cut the material, this was done by sticking it to the pod and trimming till it kind of fitted.

The paper was then removed, the Alcantara cut around it and then sewn together with double stitched seams.

After many hours of sweat and tears, my mum handed me this.

OK, time to bite the bullet and stick it on with contact adhesive.

Looking good so far, phew!

A bit more stretching, pulling and gluing and this is what I end up with.

Next back to the carbon fibre faces. The side panels were cut for the switches and the heater control graphics painted on.

I also made a bezel for the alphanumeric LCD display to balance out the gauges a bit.

So here is what the finished article looks like.

Not having the car to fit it to I had to take the pictures in my back garden, hence the laundry basket.

The switches and face vent.

The heater control and light switch

The whole thing.

The lurvley McLaren carbon fibre is a real pain to photograph as the twill reflects the flash, so I had to take this at an angle.

One final shot of the finished thing with the screen demister vent fitted.

My mum did a stunning job with the sewing machine, so a big bunch of flower are on their way...................

Hopefully the next update will have an exhaust in it !!!!!!

Hilly

[silverfrost]

Andy sorry to hear about the flanges chap

But on the bright side your dash looks ******* awsome, it looks like a

production car dash from a reputable firm! your mum did a great job

and all the detailing you have done i.e the carbon and lettering has

finished the console of nicely

I feel i need to pull my finger out and get some done on mine :yes

regards danny

[punky]

Nice one Hilly! That looks stunning mate

Good luck with the exhaust, Hope its quieter than mine.

[hilly]

I feel I need to pull my finger out and get some done on mine :yes

regards danny

Yeap...........................

Hilly

[Simon350S]

Looks fab dude.....

Sorry to hear u got a problem with your flange.... pain in the ass when that happens....!!!

Simon

[arbell9]

Looks fab dude.....

Sorry to hear u got a problem with your flange.... pain in the ass when that happens....!!!

Simon

Havent you got flange problems Simon???? But you know a new supplier very local!! HAHahha

[USAndretti42]

That dash looks fantastic. Love the carbon fascia with the white dials.

[Setras]

Looks fabulous........ Will keep an eye for you next time i am in the area...... Think i recognise the guy with pushchair..... Used to drink in Thames Court and frequent the School of Spice in my Alcohol years.....

[hilly]

Drop me a PM next time you are heading Shepperton way and I'll put the coffee machine on

I see you have got a Silver 'S'car, the reg doesn't end in LUD by any chance as I see this car quite regularly up near St Peters Hospital in Chertsey.

Hilly

[hilly]

OK, been a bit quiet with updates over the last weeks because:-

1) I have been busy with other stuff that has just caught up with me

2) Waiting for the exhaust to be finished.

So just a quickie to you lot posted.

After mucho fiddling about I finally got the car to do this..............

As you can see from the Video it is pretty late, hence the dark grainy image.

I haven't had a chance to even begin to start tuning the VEMS ECU map, so it just about idles currently, but IT RUNS!!!!!! which is a major mile stone

I can't even rev it for a second vid as and I have also now run out of petrol !!!!!

Also for some reason the sound recorded by my camera makes the engine sound very rattly, it sounds nothing like that in the flesh.

Any-ho, a bigger, more fuller flavored update to follow soon when I have got a bit of time and petrol.

Hilly

[t70]

AWESOME!!!!!! Fabulous to hear it run!

[Guy W Johnson]

Sounds good.

Guy :)

[silverfrost]

Andy,

now hurry up and put some fuel in her and lets hear the beast rev

Well done Andy its great to hear it running, not like my silent creature

look forward to more posts Andy of the engine bay and more vids also you can

start on me loom

looking forward to your next posts regards danny

[hilly]

Danny, I have yet to test all the ECU functions work such as crank sensor timing, variable inlet manifold control, knock sensing, radiator fan output etc.

So when I have got a more stable idle I'll be able to confirm all the auxillary stuff works and then I'll get your loom modified and sent back ASAP.

Hilly

Edited July 30, 2007 by USAndretti42
Removed quote

[silverfrost]

Cheers Andy,

your a star, i bet you had a grin on your face like a cheshire cat

when that baby fired up more vids and pics needed

regards danny

Edited July 30, 2007 by USAndretti42
Removed quote

[sandwer]

Congratulations - thats a huge milestone, isn't it? I know what you mean about the sound quality on camera recorded video, mine sounded rougher than a vultures crotch when I started it.

That does sound a bit civilised though - I was expecting something closer to a formula 5000 soundwise. Hope the rain stays away this weekend for you.

EDIT - overquoted a bit....

Edited July 27, 2007 by RichardS3

[fenton]

Nice one Hilly. Be up soon.

shane

[Simon350S]

Not able to run the vid on me dads laptop but i bet it sounds fab....

Dead chuffed for you mate, your a real inspiration.....

Simon

Edited July 28, 2007 by Simon350S

[M Blur]

Nice on Andy.. it'll be great to have a wee sound gallery of all these different conversions - idle, revved standstill, drive-by and in-car under load,,,