Most liked posts in thread: Another Rally MINI Build

so the build began couple months ago but i was too busy with build, work and working around the house
i wanted to finish it before Pacific Forest rally by the end of September but had so many set-backs
now i don't see it done and slowed down a bit.
here are some fun pictures:
engine is out and body work is pretty much completed by now





dry ice fun



i can't believe the amount of wires this car has!
i remember the times where i could make the fullcar wiring out of couple feet of wire and still had some leftovers lol



making supercharger restrictor:
it has to be 32 mm in diameter and placed within 50 mm off the blades
took me 4 days to make out of solid aluminum block.
inlet itself is barely over 32 mm at it's widest so i had to shave it first



pic. of the finished product. it's now sealed by a scruteneer

 

suspension-wise for now i have Impreza front struts (thanks Chris for the tip)
with inserts revalved for high speed compression/rebound
was going to install Bilstein HDs first but suspension travel was disapointing
this is how HD compares with GC8 strut:



for rears i have Bilstein offroad coilovers with enormous external reservoirs.
ordered springs with helpers. picking up next week.
hopefully they'll do the job
still have to fabricate upper mounts and some brackets
funny when they arrived i was almost in shock after seeing huge boxes
and before opening them i was like: holy ****! did i order some wrong ones?!



oh and of course i had to replace laterals with adjustable links
from Dorman it is



now before pulling the engine out i had to run leak down test and it turned out to be near perfect
despite of relatively high mileage so i decided not to take it apart.
just opened up bottom and replaced rod bearings.
there was nothing wrong with the old ones and i'm sure they'd last couple rallies
but still i installed brand new King Bearings



control arm bushings replaced, clutch replaced, exhaust heatwrapped
and engine is now almost ready to go in.
just have to make a new pulley in place of a deleted a/c and fabricate a bracket for it
also have to figure out what to do with front sway bar.
either get rid of it completely or somehow find one w/smaller diameter.



still waiting for the seats and some other useful stuff to arrive from UK
without it i can't even start making rollcage.
on a side note: Demon Tweaks screwed me up big time and that's one of the reasons why this build won't be finished in time for the next rally =o(

 

thanks!
brake work will be done next week and then engine will go in =o)

 

No, Thank You Chris! =o)

i know about that one
BUT!
here's the problem with it: that one sits very low.
look at it and You'll understand

dangerously close to bumpy runty rough road with big rocks on it =o)
so while it's good driving on tarmac on stages any good hit will just shutter it in pieces ending chances to finish =o(
so
first i bought a pulley ($28 for that pulley without a bracket) and fab'd a bracket to place it higher
but a few days later while working on 2010 Mazdaspeed noticed
that drive belt has the same profile but idler pulley is much smaller in diameter.
so again i bought Mazda idler (another $28 lol) and now making a new stud for it
to be welded onto the bracket i already made. once installed i'll post a pic of it.

 

haven't done much yesterday. just removed rear trailing arm
and spent an hour trying to figure out how to mount Bilstein on it.
today i got these two delivered to my door all the way from Poland



because i had some doubts the one i had already installed would pass the tech even if i slapped FIA label on it

 

welded in Subaru tops. Mini metal was only 1.5 mm thick while subie plate is 2.5 mm!



as for rear the main concern is a remote canister hose.
keep in mind this shock has upper and lower kinda pillowball mounts
it's designed and ideally has to be mounted like this:



but can't be unless bottom mounts are totally re-designed because lower spring seat
is pushing against the arm even at this angle and hose will interfere with top mount.



so i tried a few placements including hose going back and it's kinda weird.
plus attaching a heavy canister to upper lateral doesn't make much sense



so i guess this is the only way even though i don't like it much
because hose will be exposed to all the nasty stuff
even when protected by a bracket and under-body protection which i still have to make

 

thanks!
by the end of today i think i have it all figured out.
started making it fit with the way they designed to be used
less unsupported mass and no risk of damaging hose.
upper mount is almost done, just have to weld it all together.
in trailing arm openings will be cut to accommodate lower spring seat and then i will re-in-force it.
pheeeew!
ps. the springs i bought rated 275 and struts valving is 255/100.
also i got helpers with dividers but i think those are useless with this valving, rate is just 40lb.
should've just gotten longer springs instead of blowing money on useless stuff =o(

 

i promise i will :wink:
a/c delete stud still not ready
today i made upper shock mount by utilizing the stock one. tabs welded under certain angle.
and mounting points will still be original according to the rules!
test fitted shock. hose fits right in.
also permanently installed and secured remote canister :biggrin5:

 

Chris You were right.
time i spent building this car i could've built two subies.
...and i'm not even half way there =o(
i think anyone building stage rally Mini should be awarded a medal some sort upon finishing lol
...
gosh i admire my welding skill lol