Most liked posts in thread: The Phoenix - The GP Roadster Project

True. But top down, sub freezing, at 70mph, it doesn't matter where you are. It's cold.

 

But, in my opinion, this should be the practical final exam for a Master Mechanic certification. Build a fully functional car (that has never run before, in this form) from a hodgepodge of parts. Separates the men from the beta-males.

 

About 4 hours today.

Started by finishing the under-car part of the wiring harness install. Still need to route the PDC / fog / corner marker wiring behind the rear bumper, next time I have it off.

Prototyped the dash fitment. First made a cardboard template by tracing a dash pad, then held it in place, marked where the cage needed to fit, and cut a slot in the template. Cut the template down the middle so I could slide it on from the center. Once I thought I understood how it needed to go, I replicated it on an old dash pad that I didn't care about, using a 1.75" hole saw and Dremel cut-off wheel. Glad I had the old dash pad, because it behaves a little differently on the 3D dash pad than it did on the 2D template. Got close enough, and adjusted it as needed to fit in place. Then marked where the cuts actually need to be, so I can copy it over to the good dash pad later. The final product will fit tighter and cleaner than the pics here.




Also installed the windshield header trim, and prototyped one of the A-pillars. Amazingly, can flex it enough to squeeze it in behind the cage! I have a spare set of the A-pillar covers also, so I can redo them "right" once I've played around some.




Also installed the brake/clutch pedal cluster, ran the clutch line, and installed hood release lever and cables.

Played around with the battery cut-off switch. I do think I'll install it in the left driver's vent. Need to fab a mount for it, and cut out some of the duct work behind there. I have insulating covers for the switch terminals, so I don't need to worry about it shorting on anything.



Piles of parts are shrinking! Making progress.

 

Oh yeah... I also noticed that the underside of my hood scoop isn't painted.



Which is normal, since that's usually hidden by some covers and / or the air diverter.

But the underside of my freshly painted bonnet looks sooooo good, I'm probably going to run without the blanket and covers. And with the FMIC, I won't need the air diverter, either. So I'm going to need to sand the molded markings off this and paint it...

 

OK, I have a problem. I can't stop working on this thing. Finished dinner and thought I'd do "one more thing"....

Fitted the GP bumper trim, then ground it out to fit the Mini Fini hitch.



The whole thing looks pretty good, I think. Just lucky, the hitch tubes are perfectly aligned with the end of the cutouts. From the angle most people will see, it looks perfect. Only if you get down on the ground and scrutinize it will you notice it's not.

It was actually easier than I expected. Already had the grilles cut right, so after I installed the inserts, I just used the die grinder to grind them out to match the holes in the grilles. I'll pull them out tomorrow and clean them up a bit, then repaint and reinstall. Done.

 

Hmmmm.

Just realized, I can probably bondo fill those inserts around the cutouts to make them appear solid... then repaint, and they'll look perfect. Sweet.