This entry is in reverse order, as I wanted to use this rather spiffing pic of the newly painted airbox.
As I said before I’m trying to get the car to be all one colour this season, (I take a bit of good humored stick for turning up to race looking like an old for Cortina with each panel a different colour). So anyway this years nominated colour is Subaru World Rally Blue (paint code 02C, P60322). The first thing to do was the airbox, as I had previously stripped the old paint off it, and I spent a good deal of time on Saturday and Sunday, filling and flatting it to get read for painting. It then went through a cycle of high build cellulose primer, then 2 x 1 pack acrylic top coat and 1 x clear lacquer. As you can see above it is by far the best bit of painting I’v ever done. And I’m quite chuffed with it. Also it was imperative that I get it finished this weekend. February the 14th is getting very close now, so I wanted the airbox refitted to the car… and to do that I had to get it painted.
On the subject of paint, the plan it to livery the car with a couple of painted silver stripes on the blue base coat., as per this test section…. however time will tell
If I have time to do this before the season is upon us. The silver and blue together really makes each colour sing, although you can’t tell in this pic.
I can refit the airbox this week, and then the engine bay work is complete bar a few odds and sods. Complete? Yes indeed a new chain wheel turned up yesterday from B&C Express who make them to my specification for very reasonable prices. I could then set about refitting the drive line, so a new sprocket, newish chain, new front sprocket, reverse gear, Clutch slave cylinder, new engine bay wiring and so forth all went together to complete the last major incomplete system… the drive line.
While I was taking apart the diff, Duncan was doing another one of those jobs which he is much better at than I am… Aluminium fabrication. He spent two or three hour banging away on various bits of Ali to produce the inlet tract and protective shroud for the new radiator. A fine piece of work. Once I’d completed the engine bay I cut the appropriate hole in the right hand side pod… and voila a new air intake system to feed cold air from the high pressure area just in front f the rear wheels to the new radiator.
In order to clear the garage for spraying the airbox I fitted the rear floor, put on the wheels and dropped the car off the axle stands. This is always a moment that indicates the winter work is coming to an end. And each year (having got used to the car being high in the air I’m amazed how low it is when on the ground, then when I get to the paddock I realize that it is much bigger than many of the others.
However it was nice to rollout it out of the garage on it’s on wheels and sweep up the 1000 of rivet mandrels and cable ties that had found their way underneath.
Major jobs still to do are corner weighting and chassis alignment, Spray the other four panels on the car, fit new headlights, fit new body catches and Dzus fasteners all round.
Finalise and fix front floor… so still a considerable amount of time pressure before Feb 14th.
Then before the race season starts, reverse, handbrake, head lights, rain light etc etc
But by next weekend she’ll be drive able which is a huge plus 