Another Retro Backdate Thread

[McLaren-TAG]

Great stuff, but I think your definition of limited budget is different than mine! Happy that you're getting to build your wish, it's a fantastic experience.

[badwater]

I hear you! I did have to sell a very nice Lotus Elise to fund this project, first world problems to be sure. (BTW, a very nice Lotus Elise is worth about as much as a beat up 3.2 Carrera these days.) As you'll see, there were lots of really good ideas that I passed on to make the budget work, but this certainly wasn't cheap to me.

[badwater]

Part 4A: more build photos




Engine after resealing and soda blasting



rear suspension, rebuilt calipers, bolting up nice!



putting some effort into back seats and seatbelts. maybe my kids will ride in back sometimes, and maybe that will mean more drive time for me!



rear decklid looks nice! also, check out the exhaust after cleanup and paint. first look at the silver window and door trims



nice fit on the light boxes and grills









backdating the dash fascia and glovebox was more complicated than we had expected



front end coming together right

[em78911]

what wheels are those ? been looking for some wide steelies

[badwater]

they're 16" alloy replicas of the steelies.

i've been really happy with them - i had wanted to use steelies, but I really didn't want to go with 15"s - tire selection limited and $$$$$. maybe ok for a collector car, but not good for a driver like this. cost to get them made was comparable to a used set of fuchs!

Marc had them made, he can hook you up. check him out at Zurlinden, LLC

[badwater]

Starting in March, the build proceeded through the summer, and I first saw the car live at Zurlinden’s booth at Rennsport Reunion. For me, it was a pretty dramatic reveal, walking through thousands of fantastic P-cars to see mine!



We shipped the car to Denver in October, and it’s been a daily driver since, skipping a few snowy/icy days.



She photographs well! Thank you to my daughter for the professional glamor shots...














More importantly, how does she drive? I’ve been very pleased with the quality of the build, and there’s not much that I’d have done differently. It may be a little stiff for the amount of street driving that I do, and I’ve already raised the ride height a little to clear the speed bumps at my son’s school. I got in some high speed testing last month at High Plains Raceway and was very happy with high speed stability, braking performance, and flexibility of motor. The car was so good on the track that I suspect we built it one click too stiff for street. Overall, this car is super solid and has achieved my goals of longhood style, carrera reliability, and a little sport-purpose mixed in.

What next? Well, my toy fund is pretty depleted for now. But, I do keep my wish list alive with a few more ideas:

1. Engine. I always felt like the throttle response on 3.2s is a little slow compared to carbureted 2.2. While I suspect that the lighter clutch and flywheel have helped, I really like the idea of adding PMO throttle bodies sometime. Or maybe replace with a short stroke 3.2?
2. Transmission. I’d like to rebuild/re-gear the tranny – maybe lower first and second gear? Or a lower R&P with a higher 5th gear? Add limited slip diff while we’re in there?
3. Exhaust. The rechambering added a little good exhaust sound, but I could go a little more sport there. Maybe SSI heat exchangers?
4. Sun visors. I’ve had two sets of repro sun visors, and they both sucked! I've now got a used pair (thank you, brother) that I repainted and am happy with the result.
5. Softer torsion bars. I think softening the ride one click would make it a better car for the mix of driving that I do – 99% street, <1% track. But I’m not in a rush on this.
6. Winter wheels and tires. I’ll definitely get some skinny wheels – maybe fuchs, maybe steelies - and mount snow tires on them by next winter.
7. Chrome bumperettes for rear. Maybe bumper decos, or just black stripes on the bumpers.

That's all for now. Thanks to Marc at Zurlinden for being a great partner on this build - he really did make this an enjoyable process, and I really am delighted with the results. Also thanks to Dave B. at TRE for his advice and counsel along the way, and many others who pitched in when needed.

I suspect that cars like this are never truly finished, but I'm happy to have her on the road and to be able to enjoy the ride. I will smile when I walk into my garage for a long time with this one!

Thanks for reading, and please PM me with any questions that you may have.

[Elombard]

Another consideration that is sort of a no lose. Rather than smaller T bars go with some really high quality shocks that are matched to your 22/29s. Maybe even reservoir shocks. I think you will get the ride you want. If it is still too stiff you can keep the shocks and go lighter on the T bars but I think you will be happy. In my experience you can run shockingly stiff springs with high end shocks and get a great ride.

Super cool car. enjoy!

[Jonny042]

Great build. Those wheels are fantastic!!!

[will hung]

Wow. Looks awesome.

[Mike-S]

It's a stunning looker, those wheels are amazing. Nice to hear it's a proper daily driver as well

[mickey356]

Holy CRAP!!! That is HOT! I love the simplicity....letting the iconic shape do what it's been doing for decades.... No silly hood lights, stripes, stickers, etc..... Perfect.

Any picks of the interior? I can only imagine you've done just as nice a job on the inside.

[evan9eleven]

Fantastic build-- a backdate done right!

How are you liking the D'eser seats? I visited their shop in Torino last fall, lovely people and great craftsmanship. Show us more pics please!

[badwater]

Thanks for the comments! I will see if I can get some better interior shots to post. Very happy with the d-Eser seats. High quality, worked surprisingly well on track, and pretty light too!

[Luccia at Pelican Parts]

Very nice work. Great thread.

[TRE Cup]

Saw this car early on in the process, then at RRV in the Zurlinden booth. It was a major magnet all weekend; great choice of colors, great build. And those wheels are a refreshing new look

thanks for sharing it with the community and happy we could help out a little

[RD911T]

What color blue is that? Reminds me of my 73E.

[Fixer]

badwater, that blue hue is stunning !

[badwater]

that's the factory glasurit Albert Blue

[badwater]

Pardon the low quality, but here are a few interior shots.

A few highlights:

• backdated/updated gauges and dash fascia,
• backdated column stalk switches,
• racemark/raid steering wheel,
• deleted center consoles,
• RS-style door cards
• RS-style perlon carpets and cocomats
• added a/c controls and extra center vent.

Cheers!

[badwater]

not sure why some of these are upside-down. please stand on your head while viewing until i can fix...