Arosa 1.4 16v Sport - My Trackday Project - '09 End of Season Report from Page 29

[driveforward]

Yup, I've bought another Arosa!
Having previously owned an Arosa 16v Sport back in 2002 (my 'old' 02-reg car is still in the family and is actually parked next to my 'new' 52-reg one as I type!), I've been longing to get another 1.4 16v as a track project for quite some time now.

Yes: to all the 'old-timers' on here, I've finally stopped talking about doing this and am actually DOING THIS - a proper track bitch project :D

Hopefully all will be ready in time for my monster year at the Nurburgring in 2008 - starting at Easter.

So, here it is, my project for the Winter.. a 2002 (52) silver SEAT Arosa 16v Sport with 31K on the clock:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/ad01.jpeg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/ad02.jpeg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/ad03.jpeg


The Plan:
Strip out interior
Fit custom FIA spec weld-in cage - Recommendations on where to get done?
Uprate brakes
Suspension
Manifold
BMC CDA
Buckets & Harnesses
Bodywork bits and bobs
Rear spoiler - (I know, but I like them)
Relocate battery to boot
Remove airbags and fit nice steering wheel
Replace wheels with lightweight options - Any suggestions?
Sell whatever I can off the car to save my kidneys..!



..Oh, and I hope to make the SCN Cadwell park track day in early Feb for a shakedown test before I drive all the way to Germany..

Yikes!

Wish me luck, lots of time, think about my knuckles and join me in hoping I get my xmas bonus! ;)

Ian

[Boo]

Crumbs seems like a tall order for February - although anything is possible and you have a nice basis there :D Good luck with the project and keep us posted.

[mrcoyote]

Goodluck! :thumbup:

[m0rk]

Cool project.

what width are the OE wheels?

You can easily disable the passenger airbag, so saves removing it (a pig of a job)

[lunalupi]

Sell those wheels - they're a popular but rare option, should go like hot cakes! :)

[ZBOYD]

Nice project Ian, look forward to seeing the results as you progress with it.

[F2 Stu]

I'll let you know how good the OMP cage is to fit soon enough :headhurt:

[driveforward]

Cheers for the comments guys :thumbup:

m0rk - I don't know the width of these wheels tbh, will find out and post up.

I'll let you know how good the OMP cage is to fit soon enough :headhurt:

Didn't you already have a cage in your Cordy!?

[RobT]

Ian Carvell on club gti knows more about race prep lupo's than most - having won vw cup in one !

[WeeJase]

your cars are getting smaller and smaller mate.i remember seeing one at alconbury ,being driven on its door handles for most of the day.fun little chariot.you know where i am if you need a hand,taking things apart ;)

[Fl@pper]

just look at the arosa projects 'racer' was the best one imho

cracking little car

[tashacupra]

hi, thats a smart little project you got there, i'm in the middle of doin a bare shell rebuild with my mk2 polo G40 to be used in exactly the same way:thumbup:, with regards to some of the parts your after (track wheels, rollcages etc) have a word with Erick at advanced autosport technologies, he has always been good to me and has a backround in rallying and other motorsport.:)

[F2 Stu]

Didn't you already have a cage in your Cordy!?

I'm fitting a cage to an Arosa over the Christmas period:)

[cardaft]

Very nice :p

Love those wheels, i want them :lol:

[WeeJase]

have a word with Erick at advanced autosport technologies, he has always been good to me and has a backround in rallying and other motorsport
opinions vary :whistle:

[tashacupra]

:lol: yer i know wot you mean, but i've dealt with him quite a lot, give him a bit of time and he is spot on and usally offers very good prices (from my experiance), also he has some good conectoins in germany which for me running a G40 is very usfull:)

[driveforward]

Ian Carvell on club gti knows more about race prep lupo's than most - having won vw cup in one !
Cheers mate, I'll look him up at the weekend. The cage is the first thing that needs to be sorted, most other stuff can be done in my garage :)

your cars are getting smaller and smaller mate.i remember seeing one at alconbury ,being driven on its door handles for most of the day.fun little chariot.you know where i am if you need a hand,taking things apart ;)
Thanks mate, I'll give you a shout! A mate of mine is popping round at the weekend (who has a lupo gti) to help remove the interior.. can't afford to waste any time!)

Driving it back from London reminded me just how much fun these little cars are, the engine is a cracker considering it's only pulling 946Kg around as standard.. I wonder how much I can remove!

just look at the arosa projects 'racer' was the best one imho

cracking little car
Thanks again mate, this may end up looking a little 'arosa racer' stylee ;)

hi, thats a smart little project you got there
I certainly hope so :p

I'm fitting a cage to an Arosa over the Christmas period:)

Ahh.. is this ArosaRacer's?

[ArosaRacer]

yep its mine !

[Ant FR]

Mark Fish motorsport is where my mate just a got a very nice 6-point roll cage for his Reno 5, its a 6-point one and i believe its a weld in one, but can also be done as bolt in. Made by safety devices and has about 100 or so options for extra bits to add to it

[driveforward]

One Busy Weekend!

Well, to begin with the 'new' car received a decent exterior and interior clean which even included some clay-bar action to remove some engrained tree-sap from the roof (don't anyone say this car won't be loved!):

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/FirstClean/clean1.jpg

Note the gap between rear wheel and arch in this pic for later :P
http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/FirstClean/clean2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/FirstClean/clean3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/FirstClean/intstd1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/FirstClean/intstd2.jpg

[driveforward]

Today was D-Day for the interior.. My mate and I quickly got stuck in but uncovered several problematic items along the way. Nevertheless, a careful approach meant no damage was done to any of the items we removed :D

11am to 4pm was spent mostly:

Stripping out the interior..

First came out the front seats, then the rears. Then the boot lining and rear side trim. Then the centre console to enable us to remove the carpet and HEAVY sound deadening (we were both surprised just how heavy this matting was!). We then turned our attention to the headlining, which after some persuasion and difficulties with the sun-visors (!) it came out, only to reveal something neither of us expected. A dirty great patch of cardboard stuck to the roof with 15 times more glue than was necessary!

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip1.jpg


This was a right PITA and took ages to remove - taking great care not to damage the roof itself. Here's Dan still at it and a view of how stripped the interior got:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip2.jpg


Then it was time to start putting things back in. By this time we were tired and cold, and it took about 30 minutes to get the centre console back in as we had to do it twice having forgot to put in a metal support (which was predictably only noticed once the whole lot had gone in and I turned around only to notice it lying where the rear seats used to be. Oh cock.)

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip3.jpg


We then cleaned up all the crud and dust in the rear:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip4.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip5.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip6.jpg


..and did the same in the front:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip7.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip9.jpg

[driveforward]

Noting at this point all of the excessive glue still to be removed at a later date from the roof:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstrip8.jpg


Finally, how much stuff did we remove?

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/intstripout.jpg


And what effect did it have on the rear suspension? I now have a chelsea tractor:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/afterintstrip2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/afterintstrip1.jpg


So, there we have it, the work has begun. Next up I need to start ordering parts, although there are still a few things that need removing ;)

[WeeJase]

no pictures of you doing any work i see ;)

[driveforward]

no pictures of you doing any work i see ;)

:whistle:

Damn, busted :p

:redface:

[lunalupi]

What colour was the carpet, headlining and other trim bits you removed? ;)

EDIT: Went back a couple of pages - is that a black carpet I spy? I will be after a few bits from you later - bagsies!

[m0rk]

at least being light & a hatch stuff will be easy to bolt on & off.

lemme know if you want a suspension day again

[F2 Stu]

I too was amused to that dirty great big piece of Cardbourd stuck to the roof when we stripped out the interior of Arosaracers Arosa, its there to stop the whole car sounding like shutting a door on a van:)

You shouldent of worried about damaging it, after me yanking on it geting the cardbourd off the roof popped back into place:D

[ArosaRacer]

that was fun!

do you want your top door cards as im after some

[driveforward]

What colour was the carpet, headlining and other trim bits you removed? ;)

EDIT: Went back a couple of pages - is that a black carpet I spy? I will be after a few bits from you later - bagsies!

Indeed, black carpet, black door cards, black/red seats, black plastic trim :)

The vultures are gathering..!

at least being light & a hatch stuff will be easy to bolt on & off.

lemme know if you want a suspension day again

Indeed, cheers mate, I will do.. once I've decided (read: looked) at what kit I'm gonna use!

I too was amused to that dirty great big piece of Cardbourd stuck to the roof when we stripped out the interior of Arosaracers Arosa, its there to stop the whole car sounding like shutting a door on a van:)

You shouldent of worried about damaging it, after me yanking on it geting the cardbourd off the roof popped back into place:D

Yup, the card wasn't even in the centre! With it removed I have that genuine van feel to every door closure :p

that was fun!

do you want your top door cards as im after some

I'll be keeping the doors as they are mate - it needs proper handles/armrests and storage given it'll be driven to Germany many times. The rear cards will be available later tho

[ArosaRacer]

ok no problem might make a carbon one up instead

[driveforward]

The more I work on this car, the more I realise that the previous owners were either off-road fanatics or serial festival goers; as I keep finding mud, twigs and leaves everywhere!

Today I had the simple aim of swapping a few tyres around and removing damaged wheel-arch liners.. little did I know it would turn into another day of jet-washing and immense loss of weight for the little Arosa! There was clay-like mud behind the wheel arch linings, up the suspension turrets (on top of what I'd previously removed!), on top of the entire length of the exhaust, steering arms and across the rear beam.. it was everywhere..

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/MudRemoval/mud1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/MudRemoval/mud2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/MudRemoval/mud3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/MudRemoval/mud4.jpg


I reckon I must have shaved another 5kg off easy!

[m0rk]

thinking I need to give some advice on safe ways of supporting your car :)

wishbones aren't one of the places I'd have chosen!

great idea to get it cleaned up though, especially up the turrets

[WeeJase]

that jack will never fail :D
i don't think i would lie under it.

[driveforward]

that jack will never fail :D
i don't think i would lie under it.

:blink:

I wasn't about to lie under it either.. especially not in all that crap on the floor!

[WeeJase]

:blink:

I wasn't about to lie under it either.. especially not in all that crap on the floor!

you know that if you did,yer dad would be out like a shot and drop the jack on you :D

[ibizacupra]

Custom Cages made Ian Carvells VW Cup wining Lupo Gti cage. (saved his bacon when he tested its strength in a big roll @ Snetterton sadly.

http://www.customcages.co.uk/corekits.htm

They're doing badgerwagens muchos tubey integrated cage on 7th Jan

We the cheapest I rang round too.
good luck.. fun project

[ArosaRacer]

my OMP one was 400 quid in all and its not a bad fit concering

[ibizacupra]

bolt in or weld in?

[F2 Stu]

Bolt in, looks a bit heath robinson with the connections tho.....

[driveforward]

Armed with my new heatgun, today I set about removing (minimal) weight and gaining style :whistle:

First to go were the side rubbing strips as door-dings will be the least of my worries with this car!

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/HeatGunDay/nodoorstrips1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/HeatGunDay/nodoorstrips2.jpg


Next up, a de-badged rear (lots of weight saving there......)

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/HeatGunDay/debadgedrear.jpg


And finally, I started to tackle the stupid glue on the underside of the roof left from removing the cardboard. I'm about 2/3 done - gave up when my arms were hurting and my fingers burnt!

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/HeatGunDay/roofglueremoval.jpg


I've got some more work planned for tomorrow, but as you can tell, I'm running out of steam on things that can be done without ordering any parts - that's the Christmas shutdown for you!

[driveforward]

Bolt in, looks a bit heath robinson with the connections tho.....

Got any pics? I'm pretty certain that I'll be going for a weld-in jobbie

[F2 Stu]

Check out 'very good news' by Arosaracer

Both bolt in and weld in will require welding of the shell but ones capable of coming out

[driveforward]

Cool project.

what width are the OE wheels?

You can easily disable the passenger airbag, so saves removing it (a pig of a job)

Mark, the standard wheels are 15x6 ET43.

How do you disable the passenger airbag - via vag-com?

[m0rk]

6J rims will be about right for the Arosa, too wide will be too much grip (and less fun?) for the weight perhaps. just get some 195/50 tyres :)

However, moving to ET35 rims will push the wheels out 8mm per side, and fill the arches nicely - and will weight up the steering a little.

Disable airbags on vagcom yes.

While not sitting in the car.... go into the airbags module, change adaptation, find the correct channel & disable each bag independantly. Save.

[ArosaRacer]

im running my 17's for road use and trailer entry then onto 15's for attacking the rear or lesser mortals on track

[driveforward]

Disable airbags on vagcom yes.

While not sitting in the car.... go into the airbags module, change adaptation, find the correct channel & disable each bag independantly. Save.

If this is done, when the airbags are unplugged (I'm thinking side airbags in the seats when they are removed), will it prevent any faults being logged/indicator lights on the dash?

[driveforward]

im running my 17's for road use and trailer entry then onto 15's for attacking the rear or lesser mortals on track

I'm gonna stick with 15's.. it'd be nice to find out how much the standard alloys actually weigh without tyres.. that'd help in selecting replacement wheels

[ibizacupra]

6J rims will be about right for the Arosa, too wide will be too much grip (and less fun?) for the weight perhaps. just get some 195/50 tyres :)

However, moving to ET35 rims will push the wheels out 8mm per side, and fill the arches nicely - and will weight up the steering a little.

Disable airbags on vagcom yes.

While not sitting in the car.... go into the airbags module, change adaptation, find the correct channel & disable each bag independantly. Save.

MrsB lupo is running my 7x15 ET35 pro race 1's ok... some arch rolling done as she wants is very low (read - one sump later low!) :)

R888's 195-50-15 on it

[ArosaRacer]

Mrs B's lupo is just mental, first road car ive seen with disks glowing

[lunalupi]

Let me know when you start wanting to get rid of some of the interior bits and I will place my order and mosey on over ;)


p.s. you forget the rear wiper, thats a good few grams of weight saving there :happy:

[m0rk]

If this is done, when the airbags are unplugged (I'm thinking side airbags in the seats when they are removed), will it prevent any faults being logged/indicator lights on the dash?

Airbag light will go off, even if you have no airbags

[driveforward]

MrsB lupo is running my 7x15 ET35 pro race 1's ok... some arch rolling done as she wants is very low (read - one sump later low!) :)

R888's 195-50-15 on it
I don't think I'll be going that low! Not looked at TD wheels, will give them a look..

Let me know when you start wanting to get rid of some of the interior bits and I will place my order and mosey on over ;)


p.s. you forget the rear wiper, thats a good few grams of weight saving there :happy:
Lol, another vulture! Don't you have a cage, buckets and no rear seats!?

Rear wiper is staying, I can remember how quickly the rear window mucks up and you can't see anything!

Airbag light will go off, even if you have no airbags
Cheers mate, I'll disable them all and unplug the seat ones asap.

[lunalupi]

Lol, another vulture! Don't you have a cage, buckets and no rear seats!?

Rear wiper is staying, I can remember how quickly the rear window mucks up and you can't see anything!


:whistle:

I was being a vulture earlier actually! But I have a half-and-half interior at the moment between pale and dark grey - I need to get a headlining, carpet, boot lid trim, sun visors and window winders to complete the set, and was making sure you don't forget about me ;)

And I don't know if its having mudguards, but my rear window really doesn't muck up too quickly

[driveforward]

:whistle:

I was being a vulture earlier actually! But I have a half-and-half interior at the moment between pale and dark grey - I need to get a headlining, carpet, boot lid trim, sun visors and window winders to complete the set, and was making sure you don't forget about me ;)

And I don't know if its having mudguards, but my rear window really doesn't muck up too quickly

I certainly have alot of that stuff! Once I get the buckets (need cage first) I'll 'catalogue' what I have and give those who have posted in my threads on here and Club Lupo a heads up on the items first :)

Mud-gards - that explains it, they'll add drag and about a kilo though, so a may as well stick with the wiper!

[WeeJase]

Lol, another vulture!
i think you should by a new mac myself :whistle:

[driveforward]

Today I was determined to remove the last of that damned glue on the roof, but quickly found I'd left 'the best 'til last'! However, my heatgun and newly discovered tool for the job (plastic ice-scraper) got the job done. I do think that once the car has been caged, I'm going to end up re-spraying the roof along with painting the cage as all the marks still look quite messy:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/HeatGunDay/roofglueremoval1.jpg


The eagle eyed among you will have noticed from early in this thread that my Arosa is suffering from the usual VW group problem of misty headlight syndrome on the passenger side. The cause of this was a poorly fitted clip, however, I simply couldn't get my hand in to sort the problem out; so off came the entire front bumper to allow me to remove the light cluster:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/HeatGunDay/nofrontbumper.jpg


I now hope to have sorted the problem and fitted some nice LED sidelight bulbs whilst I was at it. Removing the bumper unveiled yet more mud and crud on this car, so once again I put the Karcher to work.

Now that the bumper is off (it will be staying off for a while) I have also removed the front fog lights from the front bumper. These won't be going back so have been added to my parts collection, now rapidly filling the garage! I have a plan for the lower area of the grille that they used to occupy.. details to follow ..plus I've saved a good 0.5Kg :lol:

I also took the opportunity today to draw up a list of bits that I need to order from my local stealer, and whilst doing so I discovered that the boot doesn't actually lock :( After a bit of investigation it's just a bit of broken plastic so hopefully their parts dept will be open tomorrow.. 'Hmm' ..but in the meantime I've disconnected the locking mechanism and now the boot can only be opened from inside.

That's all for now, hopefully the next few weeks will involve fitting nice, new, shiny bits :D

[driveforward]

i think you should by a new mac myself :whistle:

:headhurt:

I have the brick next to me, gonna test now :whistle: ;)

My G3 800 is feeling the strain, but so is my bank balance! Let's see what shows up at MacWorld in a week or so, the Arosa has priority though!

[ibizacupra]

And I don't know if its having mudguards, but my rear window really doesn't muck up too quickly

Jans lupo dirties its rear screen very fast.. no mudflaps on it.

[lunalupi]

Jans lupo dirties its rear screen very fast.. no mudflaps on it.

I knew there was a reason I fitted them! Not just for looks ;)

[mrcoyote]

My G3 800 is feeling the strain, but so is my bank balance! Let's see what shows up at MacWorld in a week or so, the Arosa has priority though!

Give me a shout if you need a discount code/page for the Apple Store and can't remember it from the last time I sent it to you. ;)

[driveforward]

Give me a shout if you need a discount code/page for the Apple Store and can't remember it from the last time I sent it to you. ;)

Cheers mate ;)

[uniamboman]

Might be interested in buying your OEM alloys driveforward.... Will they be up for sale? If so, are they damaged at all? Rough idea of price?

Cheers :)

[sssstew]

this is a great diary, i havent been on in a few weeks so got to see it from the start till now, keep the pics coming, will be great to see how it progresses.

Welcome back to the big silver S fold :) try not to crash it on the first outing ;)

[driveforward]

Might be interested in buying your OEM alloys driveforward.... Will they be up for sale? If so, are they damaged at all? Rough idea of price?

Cheers :)

They are not damaged and will be for sale a little later down the line :)

[driveforward]

this is a great diary, i havent been on in a few weeks so got to see it from the start till now, keep the pics coming, will be great to see how it progresses.

Welcome back to the big silver S fold :) try not to crash it on the first outing ;)

Cheers mate :)

When have I ever crashed anything on the FIRST outing!? ;)

[Stu B]

OMG .... I have missed this ...... up to now.... Hmm got some reading to do I see... 4 pages worth....


Good luck Ian.... you can do it when you .. well you know what I mean lol....

[Stu B]

Give me a shout if you need a discount code/page for the Apple Store and can't remember it from the last time I sent it to you. ;)


I can help there too Ian .... If MrCoyote's fails....

[driveforward]

Cheers Stu :)

There will be a bit of B&Q engineering (SPT EVO II Style) to be done..!

[Hindey]

My word, I hadn't seen this until you posted on my thread about binning the Cupra.

I am so jealous, let's just leave it at that! :D

Planning to do my ARDS test this year and then get out there. When either me or my bro has a bigger house with garage, we'll be having a track car. Probably not an Arosa Sport mind, but still. Your Arosa looks like an awesome project! If you need any experienced Arosa Sport test pilots, let me know ;)

[driveforward]

My word, I hadn't seen this until you posted on my thread about binning the Cupra.

I am so jealous, let's just leave it at that! :D

Planning to do my ARDS test this year and then get out there. When either me or my bro has a bigger house with garage, we'll be having a track car. Probably not an Arosa Sport mind, but still. Your Arosa looks like an awesome project! If you need any experienced Arosa Sport test pilots, let me know ;)

Cheers mate.. What's in the running for a project for you?

[andyj]

Coming along nicely Ian ;)

Going to be keeping an eye on this thread :thumbup:

[Hindey]

It's all very much pie-in-the-sky until either of us has somewhere to keep it, but if it was my decision tomorrow, I'd be looking for a Saxo VTS or a 106 GTI.

[uniamboman]

They are not damaged and will be for sale a little later down the line :)

Lovely, will keep an eye on this thread then! Keep me in mind, cheers!

[ArosaRacer]

two track day arosa's together will be fun

[driveforward]

two track day arosa's together will be fun

Indeedy :)

Prob is I can't book the Cadwell day until I master squeezing blood from stones (read: get a date for my cage fitment) :headhurt:

[driveforward]

The first of many deliveries arrived on Friday, one by Mr TNT as I was leaving for work and another by means of collection from the local stealer at lunchtime..

Here's all the stuff:
http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/newstuff050108.jpg


The obvious bit is the BMC CDA kit for the 1.4 16v from KAM Motorsport, the rest may or may not be so obvious ;)


Today I have removed the standard airbox and all associated pipework and fitted the CDA. Although a straighforward job, it was more tricky than I had expected due to the lack of clearance for the bonnet and getting the hose fitted securely onto the inlet using one of the two supplied reducers. Here's a shot with the hard work done:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/cda1.jpg


Where's the intake pipe going I hear you ask.. or maybe not. I wasn't happy with the feed coming from the top of the wheel arch, so decided to route to the front to get a nice supply of cold air:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/cda2.jpg


As you can see, I cut a hole in the plastic in order to run the intake pipe down to there. This should provide a nice supply of air through the left grille next to the headlight:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/cda3.jpg


All that was left to do was to tighten everything back up and put the engine cover back on, leaving me with the finished product:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/cda4.jpg


As you can just see in the two pics below, I pushed the remaining reducer from the CDA kit into the hole that I had made, then fitted the offcut from the 90-degree silicon hose (once cut to a suitable angle) onto the back of the reducer. I then simply duck-taped the end of the BMC hose onto the silicon hose and it was job done:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/cda5.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/cda6.jpg


Should the pipework ever need moving out of the way (manifold fitting etc), all I'll need to do is push the plastic reducer out of the hole, and then pull it back through when the other job is finished. You may also notice how I'm missing a jubilee clip from the right side of the CDA - I had to use this to secure the other end of the silicon hose onto the inlet. I'll get a clip and some padding for the tube to protect it from the vibrating engine shortly..


Another job I got done today was re-fitting the front wheel arch linings. I removed these to jet wash great wads of mud out from behind them, but discovered the right one was quite mangled when doing so. I now have a new lining for the passenger side and have re-fitted the drivers side lining (they don't weigh much!):

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/archlining1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CDAFitting/archlining2.jpg


Tomorrow I'll attack some of the other new bits that I have collected from SEAT, many are boring, a few are interesting..!

[lunalupi]

I had an arch liner spare! Can't remember which side though...


And I know what that long thing is I reckon - I have one for my car too ;)

[driveforward]

I had an arch liner spare! Can't remember which side though...


And I know what that long thing is I reckon - I have one for my car too ;)

The liner only cost me a tenner so not too bad. I need to create a spreadsheet to keep track of all of this!

What long thing do you have..!? :p The thing in the white box or the thing in the plastic bag?

[lunalupi]

Hehe, the one in the plastic bag!

[m0rk]

if it's an LCR splitter :gay:

[WeeJase]

if it's an LCR splitter :gay:

i had hoped it was an arb.but i think you are right :gay:

[mrcoyote]

Nope. It's definately a LCR splitter as he admitted it last night. So you're both right.. he is :gay:

[m0rk]

i hope he has enough strength in his arms to turn the wheel after the immense downforce it'll produce pushing the front end into the ground

[mrcoyote]

He'll be fine after all the :w4nk: over the splitter. ;)

[driveforward]

This may well be the shortest 'diary entry' I make in this thread..

Today I have:

Fitted the extra jubilee clip to the CDA
Replaced a dodgy electric window switch so that the passenger window can go down as well as up from using the drivers door switch (!)
Fixed the forward folding mechanism on the drivers seat (needed new washer)
Fitted new front wiper blades


Next week I should have some more parts arriving, and maybe, just maybe, may actually get to speak to someone useful at the rollcage place (unlike the 6 times I phoned last week) so I can get the car booked in :headhurt:

[driveforward]

Hehe, the one in the plastic bag!
I think you're right..

if it's an LCR splitter :gay:
Er, it might be..

i had hoped it was an arb.but i think you are right :gay:
Ok, it's a gay LCR spiltter..

Nope. It's definately a LCR splitter as he admitted it last night. So you're both right.. he is :gay:
Thanks for confirming my gayness Ken :think:

i hope he has enough strength in his arms to turn the wheel after the immense downforce it'll produce pushing the front end into the ground
I think that with the aid of the power steering, my gay arms may just cope :rolleyes:

He'll be fine after all the :w4nk: over the splitter. ;)
:wtf: I'll leave that all to you Ken!


The splitter will be part of some more extensive dremel-ing of the front bumper.. I'm amazed by how closely it fits against the Arosa bumper - I thought I'd have to cut a chunk out of the middle of it but it's virtually a perfect match to the bumper.

[Stu B]

I think you're right..


Er, it might be..


Ok, it's a gay LCR spiltter..


Thanks for confirming my gayness Ken :think:


I think that with the aid of the power steering, my gay arms may just cope :rolleyes:


:wtf: I'll leave that all to you Ken!


The splitter will be part of some more extensive dremel-ing of the front bumper.. I'm amazed by how closely it fits against the Arosa bumper - I thought I'd have to cut a chunk out of the middle of it but it's virtually a perfect match to the bumper.


LOL - what a read hahahah

Good work Ian .... Like it .... ;)

[driveforward]

Having been struck down with manflu all week, I was never going to get much done the first day that I was actually feeling more normal!

I've fixed my boot lock mechanism using parts off the lock I bought from a ClubLupo member and fitted a screenwash nozzle for my rear wash-wipe so it no longer sprays into the face of following cars (but still need the cap to cover the nozzle)

I've also checked out my shiny new 4-2-1 manifold that arrived this week, and got a quote for its fitment sorted.

Finally, as no-one guessed what was in the white triangular box I'll spill the beans.. Today I did a trial fitment just to make sure all was OK with my genuine SEAT rear spoiler :rolleyes: :p

Ok, ok, but it's not at the same level of :gay: -ness as the LCR splitter, quite.. :rolleyes:

For an example of how the spoiler will look, here's a pic of our other Arosa Sport (my old baby):

http://www.driveforward.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Arosa/arosared2.jpg


..and whilst I'm pimping that, here's a pic from the front.. Flash Red is gurt lursh :yes:

http://www.driveforward.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Arosa/arosared1.jpg

[Hindey]

Red Arosa :(

The handling was pretty crap, but oh, DK51 LWY where are you?

[driveforward]

Red Arosa :(

The handling was pretty crap, but oh, DK51 LWY where are you?

Handles better than what I bought after it.. but then, you're selling one of those to get better handling too ;)

[Hindey]

Heh, to be honest the Cupra handling on smooth roads (i.e. France) is pretty good. The levels of grip available are far higher than the Arosa. Where it falls down though is in Britain, on bumpy B-roads; the damping isn't good enough and you're always a little bit worried that a conspiring set of sharp undulations is going to catapult you in to the hedge.

The handling on the Arosa was fun though; you could play with it's limits because you'd be going that much slower. The Cupra's limits are quite high in comparison.

The Arosa Sport was 200% more fun though, for the reasons above and mainly the engine. Plus am I allowed to say the interior is much better too? :)

[driveforward]

It's been a week or two since the last decent update, so this weekend it was time to make up for a bit of lost time!

First off, Dan and I headed to Demon Tweeks on Saturday in the A2. Virtually a whole day later and I'd spent some serious cash, but returned with some much needed parts in the boot and some even more essential ones on order..

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/SteeringWheel_NewStuff/dtnewstuff.jpg

On the table:

2x Intake scoops
Cool tube (see later..)
Grille Mesh (to be painted black)
2x 6-point harnesses (see below)
Momo Steering wheel (thanks to Tom on SCN)
Some bananas



Here's the harnesses:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/SteeringWheel_NewStuff/harnessesonfloor.jpg


Also ordered:

KW Varient 1 Coilovers
OMP 6-Point bolt-in cage (the date on offer from Custom Cages was simply too close to Easter)



So, along came Sunday and I had a few jobs to do. First up I fitted the new steering wheel:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/SteeringWheel_NewStuff/steeringwheel.jpg


Next up, I needed to remove the exhaust manifold shield in order to get at the exhaust gas sensor:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/SteeringWheel_NewStuff/manifoldsheild.jpg


This revealed the rather crappy designed standard exhaust manifold:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/SteeringWheel_NewStuff/originalmanifold.jpg


The reason for all of this? So that I could remove the exhaust gas sensor which will need the cable lengthening (and wrapping the the cool-tube I bought yesterday) in order for it to fit my new 4-2-1 manifold. The sensor is located right down near the join with the CAT on the new manifold as opposed to up near the branch on the existing manifold:


http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/SteeringWheel_NewStuff/exhaustgassensor.jpg


I also disabled all of the 4 airbags using VAG-Com. I have also been working on something else, but details of that can wait until later.. ;)

Thanks for reading...!

[WeeJase]

i got a brand new harness here you could of had for bugger all mate.never been used

[driveforward]

i got a brand new harness here you could of had for bugger all mate.never been used

Lol.. cheers mate - why didn't you say when I saw you in the week :p :rolleyes:

[WeeJase]

because you were too busy showing me this

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/0903/jason-p/Gaysplitter.jpg
his royal gayness the splitter:D

[mrcoyote]

LMAO!

I wondered how long it would take before that came out. :D

[WeeJase]

its all about down force ;)

[mrcoyote]

its all about down force ;)
So it pushes back? :gay:

[Stu B]

lol - love my weekly read ups .... Keep it coming guys ...

Ian - looking good - But hey knew it would ....... So keep up the good work ...

[lunalupi]

I want to know when you will be starting to get rid of interior bits so I can get the stuff I need to finish mine! ;)

[driveforward]

because you were too busy showing me this

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/0903/jason-p/Gaysplitter.jpg
his royal gayness the splitter:D
Git.

LMAO!

I wondered how long it would take before that came out. :D
Nothing's "coming out"..!

its all about down force ;)

So it pushes back? :gay:
:ban:

:doh:

[driveforward]

lol - love my weekly read ups .... Keep it coming guys ...

Ian - looking good - But hey knew it would ....... So keep up the good work ...
Lol.. cheers mate, February should see big change [B)]

I want to know when you will be starting to get rid of interior bits so I can get the stuff I need to finish mine! ;)
Well, once the cage turns up and is fitted the front seats won't be needed anymore.. I'm kind of waiting until the whole lot is available but the lack of space in the garage is becoming an issue now!!

[lunalupi]

Headlining, black carpet, black bootlid trim, black window winders, black sunvisors, black grab handles - I gots everything else (well, 'cept the dash but thats too big a job to change) ;)

Nice to see the splitter goes on well too - how have you fixed it on, just chopped a bit and screwed?

[driveforward]

Headlining, black carpet, black bootlid trim, black window winders, black sunvisors, black grab handles - I gots everything else (well, 'cept the dash but thats too big a job to change) ;)

Nice to see the splitter goes on well too - how have you fixed it on, just chopped a bit and screwed?

Headlining - got
Black carpet - got
Black bootlid trim - staying on car to protect the locking mechanism
Window winders - (!?) everything's electric
Black sunvisors - mine aren't black
Black grab handles - again, not black :(

Splitter fits well, chopped and screwed.. won't do any more in case it gets ripped off!

[lunalupi]

Well, can I have the carpet and headlining please? :) I'll just have to get the little bits from VW or keep my eyes open :)

[F2 Stu]

Going to need extra tubing too for the additional door bars/ rear cross brace too,

decided on seats?

[driveforward]

Well, can I have the carpet and headlining please? :) I'll just have to get the little bits from VW or keep my eyes open :)
So long as no one wants the entire job lot, certainly :D

Going to need extra tubing too for the additional door bars/ rear cross brace too,

decided on seats?
Yeah, I also still think it'll be a good idea to 'rebuild' the entire rear cross-beam assembly. Gaz's idea of bracing the rear strut does seem an ideal use for the existing cross-bar

Seats: priced up what I'd like at the weekend.. all I'll say is, think of the price I mentioned for the cage and add £100 :whistle:

Something along the lines of Sparco circuit pro, pro adv.. these were by far the most comfortable and grippy seats that we tried at the weekend. Problem is: Kerchiiing! I may have something in the pipeline though, just need to see how it pans out ;)

Fingers crossed!

[sssstew]

still got the cordy plates for sentamentality in the garage i see :p

[Tom B]

I saw that too, but I thought everyone kept the plates of their write offs, I have the plates to the Polo I killed at 17!

The wheels looking good ;)

[F2 Stu]

www.sportseats4u.com

Its where I got my corbeau seats from

You can get OMP 40mm tube from tweaks but its only supplied in 1.2m lengths...

[mrcoyote]

I saw that too, but I thought everyone kept the plates of their write offs, I have the plates to the Polo I killed at 17!

I've never written a car off so wouldn't know. :confused:

[driveforward]

still got the cordy plates for sentamentality in the garage i see :p

I saw that too, but I thought everyone kept the plates of their write offs, I have the plates to the Polo I killed at 17!

The wheels looking good ;)

Indeed.. couldn't let the surviving plate go :( :cry:

[driveforward]

www.sportseats4u.com

Its where I got my corbeau seats from

You can get OMP 40mm tube from tweaks but its only supplied in 1.2m lengths...

Will check them out..


Hmm.. 1.2m - that's not gonna be enough for the continuous diagonal is it?

[F2 Stu]

Nope, the closest thing I can get is 42.4 tube but its 2mm thick (heavyish!)

[driveforward]

Nope, the closest thing I can get is 42.4 tube but its 2mm thick (heavyish!)

Erk.. any ideas where I could look for 40mm 'lightweight' tubing?

[F2 Stu]

CDS tube is said to be anything between 1.5 - 2.5 thick, the tubing on mine is 1.5 ish for example, trouble is aquiring 'proper' stuff as its ridiculess in price per metre and getting it in lengths that are usable.

42.4 x 2mm would do the job but depends how fussy you are, it is only £9 for a 6 metre length;)

[driveforward]

CDS tube is said to be anything between 1.5 - 2.5 thick, the tubing on mine is 1.5 ish for example, trouble is aquiring 'proper' stuff as its ridiculess in price per metre and getting it in lengths that are usable.

42.4 x 2mm would do the job but depends how fussy you are, it is only £9 for a 6 metre length;)

Hmmm... :think:

I suppose that the 'extra weight' would at least be over the right axel.. it would be joined by the battery - just been told that my 2awg cable is on the way - just need to figure out how and where the battery can be mounted (not helped by the odd shape of the wheel-well)!

[Fl@pper]

if its in the cabin - BOX IT !!

battery acid isnt nice when upside down - believe you me

[driveforward]

if its in the cabin - BOX IT !!

battery acid isnt nice when upside down - believe you me

Good advice mate, was looking at boxes at the weekend but given I don't know where the batt is going yet, decided to hold off buying until I have more of an idea..

[driveforward]

This weekend I've continued with what I've been working on behind the scenes - the front bumper. I have built in two air intake scoops where the fog lights used to be that will eventually be used to duct cool air towards the brake discs. As you can see, I have also been quite active with a Dremel, some fibreglass and filler as well as fitting my LCR splitter (awaits usual comments!).

I fully expect the new diagonal bars to develop cracks at the base given they will not flex with the plastic of the bumper, I have an idea about how to disguise this at a later date. Obviously, at the moment, everything has just been primed and then rubbed down ready for spraying body colour. I'm in no hurry to get that done, but did need to get the bumper back on so that the car can go on the road as of 1st Feb.

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Bodywork1/frontbumper1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Bodywork1/frontbumper2.jpg


Whilst I was busy priming things, I have also primed and fitted the genuine SEAT rear spoiler:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Bodywork1/rearspoiler.jpg


I've a few nice new shiny things to order this week and hopefully a few outstanding deliveries may turn up.. ;)

[ArosaRacer]

remember the roll cage may take 6 weeks to arrive then Royal mail will feck about with delivering

[m0rk]

what's on 1st feb?

[WeeJase]

my usual piss taking aside.i think that will look spot on when its finished ian.front end looks kinda mini leon cupra R

[driveforward]

remember the roll cage may take 6 weeks to arrive then Royal mail will feck about with delivering

I know.. I've got to phone DT on Wednesday as when I spoke to them last week they said there should be a decent status update by then.. fingers crossed Royal Fail don't screw things up :rolleyes:

[driveforward]

what's on 1st feb?
Start of insurance, road tax and hopefully an appointment with my local stealer to get the new 2nd remote key (car only came with one key) programmed up..

The stealer won't do a key programming on a Saturday, they won't do it between 12:00 and 14:00 weekdays and they won't do it between 8:00 when they open and 8:45.. therefore so long as I can get a lift from the garage to work and a lift back at lunchtime I'm alright.. otherwise, I'll have to take the advice of the service dept and 'take a days holiday' :wtf:

my usual piss taking aside.i think that will look spot on when its finished ian.front end looks kinda mini leon cupra R

Lol.. cheers mate, I'm pleased with the look

[lunalupi]

I like that! Wish I could do something similar with mine....

[driveforward]

Today I had my first drives in the Arosa on the road since I brought it back from London in December, and obviously, a fair bit has changed since then!

The BMC CDA has really opened up the mid-range, stamp on the throttle in any gear and it just takes a vast gulp of air and picks up very nicely :) Being so much lighter now also improves the acceleration and obviously, braking too.. overall the car even on the standard suspension feels more planted and you get alot more feedback from the road (and noise!). The Momo steering wheel is nice and chunky and really inspires you to chuck the car into bends with more confidence. After my first drive in the car since before I stripped it out and started working on this project, I returned home in order to fit this:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/RearARB/reararb1.jpg


My nice new 22mm JabbaSport rear ARB, chosen after reading up on peoples experiences of other ARBs and the positive comments about this one. Once fitted my aim was to then head back out to guage what effect this would have had on the cars handling. It's certainly bloody heavy, but reassuringly solid.. all I had to do was brave the icy winds and get the fella fitted:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/RearARB/reararb2.jpg


During my first drive, I did a fair bit of circling local roundabouts and found the car to understeer quite substantially when attacking the corners (my A2 was certainly miles better), but then, that is why I had invested in the rear ARB.. I was a little sceptical, would I suffer as many people do when modding, from a placebo effect and imagine things to be much better when in reality little has changed...?

Answer: No f***ing chance! The rear ARB has absolutely transformed the handling.. using the same roundabouts as before I tested the car in the same way, with the ARB I was able to not only travel at higher speeds, but it has almost totally eradicated the understeer that was present before.. now the weak link is the tyres as the chassis just holds on. The transformation is quite simply amazing; but that's not all, with the ARB fitted understeer has been replaced by the ability to produce nice levels of entertaining oversteer when desired.

If you have an Arosa/Lupo and haven't fitted one of these ARB's, go and order one now.. it'll be amongst the best £200 you could spend on your car.. No joke.


I think you get the picture, I like it :) Something else I like is my new tax disc holder, a quality eBay special but the logo on it looks totally genuine. I had to get rid of the crappy vinyl one and put my new tax disc in something more in keeping with the look of the car:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/RearARB/taxdischolder.jpg


I wonder if anyone would like to take a guess at how my project's going to end up looking... ;)


This coming week will be a busy one:
Monday - Full service and cambelt change
Tuesday - Coding of new remote key (I only have one key atm)
Friday AM - 4-2-1 exhaust manifold fitting, de-cat and mid-box removal
Friday PM - Trip to Stealth Racing (http://www.stealthracing.co.uk) for a run on the rollers and depending upon what gets revealed, some possible custom ECU remapping with track use in mind

Additionally, my KW Variant 1's should turn up as they have now been despatched, my OMP cage should find it's way to SCN's Stu so that he can start to adapt it and finally (for those in the know) my bloody seats might actually materialise (fingers and toes crossed), although I won't hold my breath :wacko:


That's all for now folks, thanks for reading :D

[WeeJase]

the road from kidder to yours is a freaking mare,it's not arb's you need its monster truck dampers :D

[lunalupi]

I want bits - gimme gimme gimme :p

PM sent

[driveforward]

I want bits - gimme gimme gimme :p

PM sent

Replying to your PM's now Nic :p

[lunalupi]

Hehe, thanks - I have a list of all the bits I need and am working my way through slowly. So if someone takes it as a job lot I will just have to keep looking

[Boo]

Your wee project is progressing nicely and rather quickly. I'd love to do half the stuff your doing but, I dont know what any of it does/is for - doesnt mean Im not impressed though :D Going to be great fun watching it on the track when it gets out there :clap:

[driveforward]

Following my earlier moderation :whistle: :ban: I can now confirm that loads of bits from my Arosa are now catalogued, priced and ready for sale!

Please see here if you're interested:

http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=156804

[Ant FR]

this thread is really good, love watching the transformation. however i prefer to find these once they have all been done, that way you have'nt got to wait for the next installment. lol

Can't wait till we get to the 1.8T transplant chapter........

[ibizacupra]

am liking the rear arb for mrsB lupo - not liking the price tho. - Ker-ching!

[driveforward]

Your wee project is progressing nicely and rather quickly. I'd love to do half the stuff your doing but, I dont know what any of it does/is for - doesnt mean Im not impressed though :D Going to be great fun watching it on the track when it gets out there :clap:
Lol.. given how it handles now, great fun it certainly should be!

this thread is really good, love watching the transformation. however i prefer to find these once they have all been done, that way you have'nt got to wait for the next installment. lol

Can't wait till we get to the 1.8T transplant chapter........
Hehe.. trust me, you won't have to wait long on this project! (Well, unless you're expecting a 1.8T conversion!!)

am liking the rear arb for mrsB lupo - not liking the price tho. - Ker-ching!
Tell me about it - there's no room for movement on the price either. People on ClubLupo are trying to arrange a group buy and with 10 buying the most they can save is a tenner. Worth it though!

[lunalupi]

am liking the rear arb for mrsB lupo - not liking the price tho. - Ker-ching!

I know - I want one too, try and tidy up the Arosa's rather wayward handling......but at that price, ouchies! :cry:

[F2 Stu]

Today the rollcage arrived at my work and promptly chopped into 100 pieces :)

[m0rk]

am liking the rear arb for mrsB lupo - not liking the price tho. - Ker-ching!

Eibach set (F&R) is only £169 I think

[ibizacupra]

I think Eibach one from memory is front only.. never did a rear when I spoke to them some while back. Front one is also smaller than GTi lupo one, as they designed it for the 1400 sport before the gti came out (so say)
MrsB runs the GTi front one.. no rear one (not even in beam)
I would like the rear to dial in the rear end on hers, but I aint paying JS £200 for one..

Looked for a Whiteline one.. but not listed. That would be better value. If only

[F2 Stu]

£200 is £200 if no one else does one.....

[driveforward]

I know - I want one too, try and tidy up the Arosa's rather wayward handling......but at that price, ouchies! :cry:
It is a hefty price to pay, but I don't regret it.

I think Eibach one from memory is front only.. never did a rear when I spoke to them some while back. Front one is also smaller than GTi lupo one, as they designed it for the 1400 sport before the gti came out (so say)
MrsB runs the GTi front one.. no rear one (not even in beam)
I would like the rear to dial in the rear end on hers, but I aint paying JS £200 for one..

Looked for a Whiteline one.. but not listed. That would be better value. If only
That's bang on Bill, hence..

£200 is £200 if no one else does one.....

Yip.



Today the rollcage arrived at my work and promptly chopped into 100 pieces :)
Lol.. 'Cheers' :p

Get some pics up :)

[driveforward]

Today the car went in for a much needed service. Oil & filter (oil was low), brake fluid change for dot 5.1, cambelt and tensioners changed, fuel filter change, water pump and coolant change, and a general once over. The service was due and timing belt had never been done.

I've taken it for a drive and it feels much nicer - tighter, smoother and more lively :D

Also waiting for me when I got home was:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Deliveries/kwv1s.jpg

:yes:

More stuff tomorrow.. (unfortunately, that means more ££ too :( )

[F2 Stu]

Lol.. 'Cheers' :p

Get some pics up :)

sure thing boss.

[driveforward]

Today I had a spare key coded up at the local stealer, and got them to make up some new GB number plates :)

When I got home, I had something else waiting for me:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Deliveries/seats.jpg


Very Nice :yes:


Next up, I need to order more stuff.. yikes.

[ArosaRacer]

only thing is with the cage and those seats a quick exit is going to be hard

[lunalupi]

I want to have enough money to get stuff like this doing :( I need a job!

[m0rk]

Not really... if you need to move, you move.

[ArosaRacer]

well i do sit with seat as far forward as possible

[driveforward]

I want to have enough money to get stuff like this doing :( I need a job!
You're putting stuff back in though!

Not really... if you need to move, you move.
I'd move..

well i do sit with seat as far forward as possible
But I'm taller than you!

:whistle:

[F2 Stu]

Not really... if you need to move, you move.

Correctomundo.
I might be a fat f##k, but I can get out of mine pretty sharpish even with the wheel still attached...

[F2 Stu]

http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/nascar-frame.jpg

Ians cage will sort of look like this once Ive added a few extra tubes here and there - he'll get out no probs:)

[driveforward]

http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/nascar-frame.jpg

Ians cage will sort of look like this once Ive added a few extra tubes here and there - he'll get out no probs:)

Haha.. good one Stu :D

[WeeJase]

well i do sit with seat as far forward as possible

i can get through an air vent when my ass is on fire

[mrcoyote]

i can get through an air vent when my ass is on fire
I did warn you about the soup and to adjust the quantities...

[driveforward]

Friday
A day off work allowed me to go and get my Raceland 4-2-1 manifold fitted, the catalytic converter removed and the mid-box removed.

Here's some pics from before, showing the standard manifold and exhaust system:

Manifold:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Exhaust/standard2.jpg

What a mess!


Exhaust System:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Exhaust/standard1.jpg


The work took about 3.5 hours, but the end result is this:

Manifold:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Exhaust/4-2-1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Exhaust/new3.jpg


Exhaust System:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Exhaust/new1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Exhaust/new2.jpg

Obviously, the engine now runs with minimal restriction and, you can tell! It not flies around the rev guage much more readily :) I'm not quite sure what that kink's all about though... :rolleyes:


After this, I headed to Stealth Racing to have a run on the rollers and to investigate whether there would be any merits in remapping the car. This turned out to be a bittersweet experience as I was quite impressed with the results given the BMC CDA and Exhaust mods; although it seemed the car is running lean in the mid-range, but a bit too rich at the top end. Unfortunately no serial port mapping was possible due to the ECU not being a reprogrammable Bosch unit. However, further investigation revealed that the ECU could be mapped but this would require de-soldering the chip. After a long conversation with Vince the decision was made to re-visit the possibility at a later date when I could afford to leave the car with them for a while whilst they took their time over the matter, thanks to the problematic location of a couple of small resistors on the ECU.

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/RollingRoad/stealthrr.jpg


Therefore, the results of 116.6bhp power and 106.3lb ft torque stand:

Power:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/RollingRoad/rrresults1.jpg

[driveforward]

Torque:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/RollingRoad/rrresults2.jpg


When I got home, my Sparco side mounts for the seats and the adjustable runners had arrived:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Deliveries/seatrunners.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Deliveries/sidemounts1.jpg



Saturday

Today I had an appointment at m0rksport in Northampton ;) to fit my KW Variant 1 coilovers. Given there was no interior to remove in the rear, this was a relatively straighforward job, and we were probably done inside 2.5 hours. The rears are wound right down, with a road to arch distance of 58cm, whilst the fronts are set with 57.5cm from road to arch.

Work in progress: Rear's done:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Coilovers/inprog.jpg


The car handled great before, but now that it's on stiffer springs and much lower, to quote Mark: "there's no understeer and it's totally glued to the road".. this was during his drive to Tesco, which I believe he enjoyed very much :D Once again, thanks to Mark for his help :thumbup:

All done:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Coilovers/done1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Coilovers/done2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Coilovers/done3.jpg



Tomorrow I have got to do some prep work for the cage, thin out some internal wiring, remove the passenger seat, investigate possible heat shield vibrations against exhaust and WASH MY A2!

[Stu B]

You've been busy Ian - impressed ... Well done mate....

[Fl@pper]

i can get through an air vent when my ass is on fire
i squeezed out past a window safety net when mine was once :)

looking good ian - sat right and sounding right now :)

[driveforward]

Cheers both :)

Here's a Comparison:

Before:
http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorRemoval/afterintstrip1.jpg


After:
http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Coilovers/done2.jpg


:lol:

[m0rk]

it handles so well now though. I think it's going to be a lot of fun

[WeeJase]

ian did you notice how thorough mark is about wheel nuts ? he checks,checks,checks these days :D

[driveforward]

ian did you notice how thorough mark is about wheel nuts ? he checks,checks,checks these days :D

Haha.. yup, kept mentioning "i've tightened those up" :p

Best be safe than.......

[F2 Stu]

Going well:)

Shame I'm going to incinerate it :lol:

[WeeJase]

Best be safe than.......
than find out 200 yards up the road,asking wtf is that knocking noise :D

[UncleFester]

Looks very smart that, i can only assume the addition of the rear arb makes as much difference to the arosa as it did to the Leon when i got mine done. Really looking forward to seeing the finished product. That's the great thing when you have enough spare cash to throw money at something all at once, no scrimping and saving required - the biggest complaint i had when modifying cars in the past was that it took almost the life of ownership to get it how you wanted it.

[driveforward]

Looks very smart that, i can only assume the addition of the rear arb makes as much difference to the arosa as it did to the Leon when i got mine done. Really looking forward to seeing the finished product. That's the great thing when you have enough spare cash to throw money at something all at once, no scrimping and saving required - the biggest complaint i had when modifying cars in the past was that it took almost the life of ownership to get it how you wanted it.

The ARB has made a world of difference.. not sure about the spare cash - that's all gone now :p Throwing money at it is the only way to make the deadline! I'm looking forward to having the finished product as despite it being great fun doing the project, it's all I'm doing at the moment.. and in it's present state it's neither one thing nor another. Once it's done I'll be able to enjoy it, and have the time to do other stuff other than work on the Arosa!

Bring on Easter!! :D

[WeeJase]

whats the possible output of a remap ian?10-15%?

[KP]

Really liking this project :thumbup: really interested to see the finished result, should be a cool little pocket rocket. Good power aswell seeing its only a 1.4

[driveforward]

whats the possible output of a remap ian?10-15%?

With the mods that I've done, the most that I've seen reported on this engine is nudging 125bhp, so it'd probably reach 120 or just over, so there's not that much more left in it..

[driveforward]

Today I headed off to get a full wheel alignment done following the coilover fitting yesterday. Once again, I can't fault the chaps or equipment at our local chain of Chemix autocentres, the branch in Stourbridge has recently been renovated and boy have they got some trick kit.. shame I forgot my camera as this was the most sophisticated 4 wheel alignment equipment I have ever seen! (Moreso than my usual Halesowen branch and that's good)

I now have a nice bit of camber and a fraction of inward toe:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/Coilovers/4wheelalignment.jpg


Ignore the steer-ahead, I've now adjusted the position of my steering wheel by a few notches :) Needless to say, the handling is now about as sharp as it could be! Very positive indeed.


Next up after cleaning my A2 it was time to prep for the cage install and remove some unnecessary wiring whilst things were still 'easy' to get at:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/cageprep1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/cageprep2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/cageprep3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/cageprep4.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/cageprep5.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/cageprep6.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/noaerial.jpg

[driveforward]

..and for a laugh:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePrep/interior.jpg


I've now only put one front seat back in (the drivers one before some smart arse say's summit!), so, fingers crossed for next weekend as it's gonna be a busy one :)

[F2 Stu]

Some of that Tar needs removing further away from the plate is going - weld tends to not stick that well to it:)

noticed that OMP have supplied us with 2 sets of front feet and no middle ones :rolleyes:

Busy weekend indeed, its going to be a mission:headhurt:

[ArosaRacer]

so thats how you take paint off!!

Whats that blood like liquid?

[ArosaRacer]

We made a mock up of cross door bars as well its a mission to get in and out off, noticed your seats are on runners, can i offer some advice and get stu to fix the seats like mine as those runners break after 6 months.

[driveforward]

so thats how you take paint off!!

Whats that blood like liquid?
Haha.. that stuff is wax, god only knows :confused:

We made a mock up of cross door bars as well its a mission to get in and out off, noticed your seats are on runners, can i offer some advice and get stu to fix the seats like mine as those runners break after 6 months.
I think I'll still be up for a bit of cross action :rolleyes:

Erk.. doesn't sound promising about seat runners.. will have to see how things go together, prob is, as I won't be the only driver they need to be adjustable

[ArosaRacer]

ask stu to drill the side mounts for adjustment, i would'nt use those, i have a set in my workshop and i decided they were as strong as paper

[ArosaRacer]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y280/Dieselracer/ARosa/DSCF0273.jpg

hope this helps you decide

[LEO LION R]

Crumbs seems like a tall order for February - although anything is possible and you have a nice basis there :D Good luck with the project and keep us posted.

amazing what an extra day in a leap year can make


did you consider a 1.8T transplant on higher miler car ?

[YIN]

What do Chemix in Stourbridge charge for laser alignment?

Cheers

[woop]

hey soo happy I found this as Ive been recently thinking of doing a project like this albeit over a longer time period, was first thinking of a mini then went through all the other small cars and a mk1 arosa sport is the answer, so Ive got lots of questions,

first of all where else could I find a 1.4 16v engine from the sport other than the lupo and arosa, would the 00-02 polo 1.4 engine go in just as easy, whats involved in putting it into a original 1L? like would there be much loom work, ecu,etc?

[ArosaRacer]

im building a diesel track car as well

[driveforward]

This weekend was always going be a big effort, but the outcome would see lots of preparation and parts collection all come together.. and come together things have!

At 4:15 on Saturday morning I headed down to Kent and SCN's Stu's workplace in order to get the rollcage fitted.. We started work at about 8:00 and worked solid through to past 21:00 on the evening :blink: This allowed us to get the cage in for a trial fit, remove it, sort the mounting plates out and also sort out the seat mounts. The cage then went back in for it's final fitting. Sunday started at 8:15 (I was late, thanks to lots of frost and something I just had to take a pic of in the hotel car park - see my post in the general section!), and saw the fitting of door bars, finishing the rear turret mounts and the final fitment of the seat runners, side mounts, seats and harnesses.

There were a fair few fires along the way as the underseal caught alight, but none more spectacular than the one in a rear wheel arch where the CO2 extinguisher ran out, the powder extinguisher covered the arch, floor and me win horrid stuff that tasted bloody vile (!), but still ended up needing a damp rag and jacking the car up to properly control it!

Big thanks go to Stu for doing prep work on the cage after I had it delivered to him, helping get it into the car and then for all of the superb fabrication and welding that he's done :thumbup: Also thanks to Stu for dedicating his weekend to this work, and to his employer who provided the workshop and tools with which to get the job done.


Here's what you're waiting for, the pics!


Trial fitment:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/trial1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/trial2.jpg
"What the hell are we doing to this car!?"


Fitting:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/fitting1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/fitting2.jpg
Stu behind bars "How the **** am I gonna get out!?"


Seat Mounts:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/seatmounts1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/seatmounts2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/seatmounts3.jpg

[driveforward]

Finished:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/finished1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/finished2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/finished3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/finished4.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/finished5.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CageFitting/finished6.jpg



I think you'll agree that the cage/seats look just the job, and being fixed into the car by the buckets and harnesses means that as a driver you can now feel everything that the car's doing. A top weekends work, that's really moved this project forward.. makes my deadline seem achievable!

[driveforward]

What do Chemix in Stourbridge charge for laser alignment?

Cheers

Think it was £60 mate - worth it tho :)

[ArosaRacer]

Next you'll need to paint it!!

Did you change your mind on the door bars!

[YIN]

Think it was £60 mate - worth it tho :)


Thanks for that.Cars looking good will keep an eye out for it.

[F2 Stu]

Next you'll need to paint it!!

Did you change your mind on the door bars!

I mocked it up what it would be like and decided a singular bar would be better

[ArosaRacer]

sprayed mine with rattle cans, took 2 large primers, and 6 colour cans plus a blast of clear coat

[driveforward]

I mocked it up what it would be like and decided a singular bar would be better

As I could only just get in, let alone my dad have half a chance!

[ArosaRacer]

Stu and I did say you'd change your mind

[F2 Stu]

This weekend was always going be a big effort, but the outcome would see lots of preparation and parts collection all come together.. and come together things have!

At 4:15 on Saturday morning I headed down to Kent and SCN's Stu's workplace in order to get the rollcage fitted.. We started work at about 8:00 and worked solid through to past 21:00 on the evening :blink: This allowed us to get the cage in for a trial fit, remove it, sort the mounting plates out and also sort out the seat mounts. The cage then went back in for it's final fitting. Sunday started at 8:15 (I was late, thanks to lots of frost and something I just had to take a pic of in the hotel car park - see my post in the general section!), and saw the fitting of door bars, finishing the rear turret mounts and the final fitment of the seat runners, side mounts, seats and harnesses.

There were a fair few fires along the way as the underseal caught alight, but none more spectacular than the one in a rear wheel arch where the CO2 extinguisher ran out, the powder extinguisher covered the arch, floor and me win horrid stuff that tasted bloody vile (!), but still ended up needing a damp rag and jacking the car up to properly control it!

Big thanks go to Stu for doing prep work on the cage after I had it delivered to him, helping get it into the car and then for all of the superb fabrication and welding that he's done :thumbup: Also thanks to Stu for dedicating his weekend to this work, and to his employer who provided the workshop and tools with which to get the job done.



Glad I could help, I find it all very enjoyable and its helped me take my mind off things latley, would of liked to have done a better job of welding the rear turrets but the stop/start/stop/start becuass of the fire(s) was unavoidable, still it aint coming off in a real hurry Ive flung enough weld on it lol

[ArosaRacer]

what you caused fires ??? Must be a Mk2 arosa problem;)

see the work was spot on again stu, now about that multipoint leon cage............................................................................................:ban ned:

[ArosaRacer]

was there much difference in the fitting between the two cars stu?

[F2 Stu]

Yeah the floors were slightly different and the arches tapered differentl

[ArosaRacer]

good job you did'nt take copies of the herbrosa then!

[Ant FR]

wow, that looks ths business, would liked to have seen a picture from the front qtr with the doors closed though, Did you get any strnage looks on the journey home,

Now seriously needs some graphics,

[Stu B]

Well impressed ........ Hmmmmmm

[driveforward]

wow, that looks ths business, would liked to have seen a picture from the front qtr with the doors closed though, Did you get any strnage looks on the journey home,

Now seriously needs some graphics,

I stopped counting strange looks about 1/2 hour into the journey home! Got even weirder looks on the drive into work this morning! (I had to give it a go without all the luggage/orig seat/tools etc in the back!)

Graphics.. Hmmm.. Wait and ye shall see :p

[driveforward]

Today's main tasks were to get the cage painted and to apply fresh underseal to the car where the cage mounts have been welded to the floor and rear wheel arch - (as the underseal was burnt off). The cage needed spraying asap given some of the welds were already showing signs of rust build up.

Therefore, armed with 2 cans of Hammerite silver spray stuff, I removed the seats and harnesses (a ******* of a job), masked off various bits with newspaper and begun spraying. The end result, and nice silver cage :)

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePaint/cagepaint1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePaint/cagepaint2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/CagePaint/cagepaint3.jpg


It now looks even better, but there are a few areas that will need re-touching and more paint applying.. I'll do this at a later stage when I've enlarged the rear wheel well (including respraying the roof to hide the glue marks, and the floor to hide the tar, wax and other crap). The main thing is, it's now protected and only another perfectionist like me will notice the bits that need more attention!

Next up I jacked up the car (..again) and ground off the long bolts that were used for the cage base plates and the rear ARB mounts. Then I cracked open a fresh tin of black, oily, brush killing underseal and slapped this over the effected areas. Job done :)

Then I had to put the seats back in (******* ******* of a job) and do up the harnesses.


Tomorrow, I'm fitting my in-dash cupholder unit - very racy :yes: and taking the rest of the day off!

I also have a new set of rear light clusters (thanks CL's tiernz) given I melted one of the original ones trying to rid them of condensation - which is still there in the one, so I've given up and bought a new set. Also, I now have my new high level third brakelight given the previous owners didn't notice the screws and tried to replace a bulb by prising it out, then if they wern't special enough, rather than simply unclipping the lens from the unit to get inside and change a bulb, they used a dremel to cut the thing in half and then loctite-ed the lot back together. Nice.

I also need the services of a photoshop expert, get in touch if you are such a genius )

[F2 Stu]

Looks the part dont it;)

[driveforward]

Looks the part dont it;)

It does mate, you did a cracking job :thumbup:

[Boo]

Crumbs you dont mess about do you ?!!! Its looking good and Im liking the silver finish on the rollcage :D

[ArosaRacer]

looks good cant wait to get mine and yours together, SCN arosa racers

[mrcoyote]

looks good cant wait to get mine and yours together, SCN arosa racers

:roflmao:

One Arosa racer, one mobile chicane... :whistle:

How fast does yours go now Gaz?

[Stu B]

Oh boy .... look out Ian's nearly done it ....... Cant wait to see this wee beast some time during 2008....

[ibizacupra]

did you use spreader plates on the seat bars on the outer sill?

[DIFT]

Looks amazing. :)
Just spotted the thread so Ive read upto here in one go. Does look good!

[driveforward]

Crumbs you dont mess about do you ?!!! Its looking good and Im liking the silver finish on the rollcage :D
No time to mess about!

looks good cant wait to get mine and yours together, SCN arosa racers
I'll be at some UK track days as well as the 'ring so when a suitable VAG trackday tour item comes up I'll be there :)

Oh boy .... look out Ian's nearly done it ....... Cant wait to see this wee beast some time during 2008....
It seems like it's been a long haul but..

Looks amazing. :)
Just spotted the thread so Ive read upto here in one go. Does look good!
..when you look through the whole thread it's not that long ago since I collected it!

did you use spreader plates on the seat bars on the outer sill?
Not sure what you mean Bill, are you referring to the box-section for mounting the seats? If so, the bars have been welded straight to the inner sill on both sides, with the rear one sitting on top of the original runners

[ibizacupra]

Not sure what you mean Bill, are you referring to the box-section for mounting the seats? If so, the bars have been welded straight to the inner sill on both sides, with the rear one sitting on top of the original runners

yep thats the ones i mean
no spreader plate on the sill.

mine have spreader on outer sill edge but not on tunnel side as material is thin as on outer sill (inner edge) and thicker on tunnel side.

[driveforward]

yep thats the ones i mean
no spreader plate on the sill.

mine have spreader on outer sill edge but not on tunnel side as material is thin as on outer sill (inner edge) and thicker on tunnel side.

That's a no then.. they're welded along 3 of the 4 sides.. solidly in place but it wasn't something Stu or I thought of doing tbh..

[ibizacupra]

just something to think about.

my ibiza sill developed a 6" crack down that outer sill, from previous rear subframe setup (sparco one) as it had been flexing the metalwork, and thats whilst it was clamped into the much thicker, spot welded runner into which it was clamped.

[Poverty]

Looking really good there. Does the arosa 1.4 have 85 or 100hp standard?

Also how are you insuring it? Just for the days you wanna drive it or just insured like a normal car. I would like to do something like this but cant afford to insure 2 cars if its costing me 1.5 grand a pop.

[driveforward]

just something to think about.

my ibiza sill developed a 6" crack down that outer sill, from previous rear subframe setup (sparco one) as it had been flexing the metalwork, and thats whilst it was clamped into the much thicker, spot welded runner into which it was clamped.
Indeed.. may have to get some more welding done when I relocate the battery so this may be worth revisiting.


Looking really good there. Does the arosa 1.4 have 85 or 100hp standard?

Also how are you insuring it? Just for the days you wanna drive it or just insured like a normal car. I would like to do something like this but cant afford to insure 2 cars if its costing me 1.5 grand a pop.
It's 100bhp standard :)

It's insured under a specialist annual policy - so it can be used on the road at anytime.. it's not costing me anywhere near 1.5K to insure inclusive of all mods tho ;)

[F2 Stu]

Indeed.. may have to get some more welding done when I relocate the battery so this may be worth revisiting.


Shouldent be to too hard to do, run a cutting disc through the welds and wedge in a plate and reweld (roughly what sort of size they done on yours Bill?)

[ibizacupra]

hopefully you can see the squares around the tube as a ref.
http://badger-5.com/bin/badgerwagen/yellow-cage-4.jpg

[F2 Stu]

roughly 60-70x40mm

[driveforward]

Just a mini update today as I'm saving this weekend's stuff for a major update tomorrow ;)

This week I have received the following bits:

3m Silicone Ducting
Lambda Sensor Adaptors (will they make the light go out!?)
15x6" G60 Steel Wheel
Cargo Net ;)
More paint :(
Some LED's (cheers Dan!)

Today I have been sanding, painting, grinding, painting and had a visit from Dan; tomorrow I will be doing some of those things again..

Stay tuned folks, this show's almost ready for the road :D

[driveforward]

..if only! This weekend my main focus has been on getting as near as possible to completing the interior, and bar a few accessories ;) this is now the case!

Saturday started out like the one before - removing the seats and masking off all the bits I didn't want to paint. First off, I sanded the remainder of the black glue stuff from the roof before painting the roof, and touching up the rest of the cage. Then, for the second time in this project, Dan turned up bringing goodies and to lend a hand with some grinding :p

My house was beginning to look like UltimateDubs come early..:

http://www.driveforward.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ArosaProject/InteriorFinishing/snap.jpg


Not in the pic, my Arosa and a SEAT LC 20VT


I need to carry a full size spare wheel, so, as this car's never going to take rear passengers again, a little more weight loss was required:

http://www.driveforward.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ArosaProject/InteriorFinishing/nomorerearseats.jpg

http://www.driveforward.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ArosaProject/InteriorFinishing/wheelwell.jpg


..and then, with a lick of paint:

http://www.driveforward.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ArosaProject/InteriorFinishing/painting.jpg

[driveforward]

With that and some more painting of the floorpan done, our attention turned to another essential item: interior lighting. For a while now, I've been battling with doing up 6-point harnesses in the dark, this is to be no more. Even a track slag deserves some bling, so out came the LED strips!

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/lights1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/lights2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/lights3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/lights4.jpg


Very pimp :p

As you can tell, that was about it for Saturday! On Sunday, I set about tidying up the remains of the internal wiring loom, and then the long and tedious task of using cellulose thinners on all the windows and bits of plastic that had been effected by overspray :( The exterior paintwork is bad too, so I can predict a bit of clay-bar action next weekend :( Anyway, it was a job that needed doing and I took the opportunity to fit my spangly cargo net :) :

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/tidy.jpg

[driveforward]

Then, after cleaning everything up, the seats went back in and they're now STAYING IN!

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/interiorfitted1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/interiorfitted2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/interiorfitted3.jpg


Next up, I fitted my lambda sensor adaptor which may/may not result in my emission light going out, we'll see:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BrakeDucts/lambda.jpg


Then, I fitted my expensive silicone brake ducting from my front bumper intake scoops:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BrakeDucts/left.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BrakeDucts/right.jpg


As you can see, due to the belts on the right side of the engine bay, that was a tricky fit!


Finally, I gave the car a quick pressure wash and took a few snaps:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/exterior1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/InteriorFinishing/exterior2.jpg


Next week I'll be concentrating on the exterior, and hopefully my new brake pads will be here :)


Nearly done folks..!

[UncleFester]

That looks really really smart now mate, love the interior lights and the brake cooling! I think i'll have to sort out the interior on mine having seen that and do something with cooling for the brakes too!

[F2 Stu]

You'll be turning up to a local crooooze to show them LEDs off ;)

Piss taking aside thats really cool:)

[ibizacupra]

looking good
:D

those wheels suit the car that height and colour etc

nice

[RobT]

cracking - leds crack me up (but strangely I like em !)

[driveforward]

That looks really really smart now mate, love the interior lights and the brake cooling! I think i'll have to sort out the interior on mine having seen that and do something with cooling for the brakes too!

You'll be turning up to a local crooooze to show them LEDs off ;)

Piss taking aside thats really cool:)

cracking - leds crack me up (but strangely I like em !)

Lol.. the LED idea started out as a small cluster, but then Dan logged onto ebay and the rest is history! They do look pimp, but the benefit is that the entire interior is lit so that you can not only see in the front, but also when you're using the boot :thumbup: Nice for showing the cage off eh Stu ;)


looking good
:D

those wheels suit the car that height and colour etc

nice

My thoughts too Bill, the wheels are going to stay.. just need to get some centre caps!

[ArosaRacer]

looking good, i need to start organising mine now amanda is getting better

[Poverty]

I think some of those LED strips would look good in a boot install, where did you get them from?

[driveforward]

I think some of those LED strips would look good in a boot install, where did you get them from?

Have a search on eBay - they came from Hong Kong I believe!

[Stu B]

We love the interior Lights .......

Ian thats a great wee beast you have there .... - Just were is the T610 getting fitted lol .

[1litre wonder]

My thoughts too Bill, the wheels are going to stay.. just need to get some centre caps!

if you want the part numbers i can get you them as ive got a spair centre cap somewhere in my room i can get it off of for you mate

[driveforward]

We love the interior Lights .......

Ian thats a great wee beast you have there .... - Just were is the T610 getting fitted lol .
Lol, no handsfree in here!


if you want the part numbers i can get you them as ive got a spair centre cap somewhere in my room i can get it off of for you mate

Cheers mate but got them ordered today :)

[driveforward]

Using my new toy (noise meter) I now have a huge weight lifted off my mind..!

The Arosa produces 84DBa at 4500 rpm, and when revving from idle to the red line it tops out dead on 95DBa.

Phew.. All clear for the 'ring then :D

Stay tuned over the next few days, a transformation is underway!

[F2 Stu]

I wouldent of worried about sound levels at the ring!

[m0rk]

I would..... new for 08

[RobT]

there has always been a sound limit at the ring but so long as you dont make an ars*e of yourself in the carpark and throttle down a touch as you go over adenaur bridge (where the meter is) it'll be fine, too many 911GT3RS's and MR derivatives about who are ok so I think you may be fine in a 1400 arosa !

edit: MR = Manthey Racing.....the daddies of 911's with shop based down road

but yes, its good to be mindful of such things, cannot go to donny anymore with the pickle even with its airbox setup, which was fitted specifically to quieten it down a bit.....may go back to open pipes for sprints LOL

[F2 Stu]

Not dared to be 'on it' around briedschied so owt to worry about

[driveforward]

..indeed. This weekend I've concentrated on finishing modelling the front and rear bumpers - something I started back in January but was then put on hold when my deliveries started coming through.

Saturday was spent filling and then smoothing the front and rear bumpers:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sat1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sat2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sat3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sat4.jpg


Sunday involved masking and then priming the newly filled sections of bumper, and also sealing the spoiler on properly and priming around it. Then I clay bar-ed the entire car after washing it in order to remove the overspray from the cage painting and the general crud that's accumulated over recent months (rusty metal filings included - left over from cage fitting and wheel well enlargement). Finally, I fitted the new rear light clusters (free from damp), centre caps for the alloys, and then marked out a few things for tomorrow ;)

She's looking better..!


http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sun1.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sun2.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sun3.jpg

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/BumperSmoothing/sun4.jpg


More updates tomorrow if I have time! ;)

[ArosaRacer]

looking good now

[driveforward]

looking good now

Cheers Gaz, your's isn't far off now tho either!

[ArosaRacer]

no hope to have graphics layed down this week or an mot

[beattie17]

Been reading this build thread for a while, keep up the good work.

And thanks for the LED strip idea, ive been wondering for ages what to do for a light in my car :)

[lunalupi]

I want a front bumper like that :(

[driveforward]

I want a front bumper like that :(

..you want it now..!? Just wait ;)

[ArosaRacer]

I want a front bumper like that :(

mk2 front end !!! be the first

[lunalupi]

..you want it now..!? Just wait ;)

Fancy making another one, grafted onto the top half of a mk1 bumper? ;)

(I want one with chunkier, more upright struts, more like the Lupo GTi though.....will need some thought....)

[browner01]

great thread mate, keep the updates coming

[driveforward]

Following my efforts at the weekend, my Arosa is now spending most of this week at my local branch of SignsExpress in Worcester, whilst they perform the finishing touches to complete the track slag look!

That's right, this car isn't being painted; but vinyl wrapped ;)

This should help preserve my bumper modifications performed with normal body filler, whilst providing a durable, easily replaceable and deep finish to the exterior. I'm not going to divulge everything, but from these work in progress pics I think you'll get a good idea of the OEM+ racer look that I'm going for..!


Silver matching:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/VinylWrap/wip1.jpg



Spot what's new:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/VinylWrap/wip2.jpg



No? Ok then, look again:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/VinylWrap/wip3.jpg



A bit more done:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/VinylWrap/wip4.jpg



Superb colour match:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/VinylWrap/wip5.jpg



Front almost done:

http://www.driveforward.com/ArosaProject/0708/VinylWrap/wip6.jpg


;)


Me likes :yes:

[F2 Stu]

Didn't go for a chessboard on top in the end then;)

Top stuff!

[beattie17]

You do your spoiler in vinyl too?