Objective: LOG 27

Stage 1 of our Spyder project is complete. The car is currently at LOG 27 for it's big debut. We have come very close to our goal of 1600lbs with a final weight of 1665lbs. Enjoy the pictures and keep an eye out for future installments.

Objective: Finishing Touches

With the car almost done and LOG 27 only weeks away, it’s time to complete some finishing touches before the Spyder makes its big debut. One item that we have been waiting to see on the car is the GUT Sport Fenders. These add a little flare to the front that helps balance out the car as well as diffuse a little bit of dead air in the front wheel wells.

We also finished the mesh work on the car so the exterior is complete for now.

Finally, the dash got a front to match its carbon fiber top. We have one last detail to add to the dash, a few last minute goodies and the car will be ready for LOG27.

Next week we will be doing a recap of the project with some good shots to hold you over until the S111 Spyder debut!

Thank you to our sponsors:

Specialty Car Craft
GUT Sport

Objective: Wind Kick and “Dash”

With most of the major components done, we have a couple of items that have to be sorted out before LOG 27. Two of the biggest things yet to be complete are the “dash” and “wind screen”. Now obviously since we took both the stock dash and wind screen out, we are not going to replace them with other bulky heavy parts. Instead we simplified a little bit and the outcome was great!

For this stage, we had to mount the dash first. For the dash we had RK Sport, cut out a couple sheets of carbon fiber in the rough shapes we gave them. But before we could mount them, we had to decide how we wanted the windshield.

Originally, the plan was to leave the wind shield frame a few inches high on each side so that the wind screen would have support. We were also going to run a full 4.5 inches all the way across. However, after a few more renderings were complete, a much sleeker look was desired.

To get this, we had to completely remove the upright posts that were left from the windshield frame. Once they were cut off flush, there was exposed foam that needed to be covered. We used the resin and fiber glass cloth out of a surf board repair kit to do the job.

Once the resin was dried, the excess was cut away and the tops were painted black. Now it was time to mount the dash. The first part was to lay it up with the wind shield to make sure it would fit. After a little trimming, we were ready to begin.

Once the dash was in place, we had to trim the wind kick and there were able to mount it in the same method to the dash. The end results were just as we expected!

Next week, we are going to be installing a set of GUT Sport fenders and doing a few finishing touches on the dash!

Objective: Down-force

One of the most common questions we get regarding the Spyder is; “Won’t cutting off the windshield affect the aerodynamics of the car?” Of course it will. This is not a top speed car. Aerodynamics, although, are not completely overlooked. It still needs some down-force to keep its tires planted when going around corners. To get this necessary down force, we added a front splitter and rear wing. The front splitter was donated by GUT Sport and the rear wing by RK Sport.

From the beginning, the GUT front spoiler was Neil’s top choice. In fact, before we started project Spyder, the plan was to install an entire GUT Sport kit on the car. Before we could mount it however, we needed to get some paint on there. Thankfully our friends at Specialty Car Craft were willing to help out with the project.

While we were waiting, the rear wing still needed to be sorted. The rear wing is sort of a make or break item. Choosing the wrong wing it would not only take away from the look of the car, but more importantly, hurt the performance. For the Spyder, we wanted a fairly straight wing like on the Cadena GT3 Car.

RK Sport had just the wing for us. The wing has the perfect length, width, slightly curved and not too over-the-top. The end plates and mounting method was left to us to create. The first idea was to go through the clam to the chassis. Thanks to GUT Sport, we did not have to mess with cutting and stabilizing the wing with such large mounts. Instead we used a base from their sport wing, and had Burke Built fab some uprights.
Since the front splitter is going to be black, we painted the base of the rear wing to match. The uprights were scuffed with the grinder and clear-coated to give a cool spartan look.
Now it was time to design the end plates. Like the wing, the end plates make or break the wing. We wanted something that stood out, but not too out-there. The end result was very dramatic.
With all the rear wing bits together, it was time to mount the it for good; and just in time because our front spoiler was back from paint and ready to mount as well.
With the wing and spoiler on, the only big piece left to get done is the dash and windshield. Next week we’ll get those in and start fine tuning the Spyder for its big debut at LOG 27!

Thanks to our sponsors:

GUT Sport
RK Sport
Specialty Car Craft
Burke Built Motorsports

Objective: Shock and Awe

At the beginning of our blog, we showed pictures of different cars that inspired this project. One thing that all the cars had in common was their lack of a windshield. This car isn’t going to be a 200mph top end car. It doesn’t have the greatest climate control known to man. So is there really a need for a full size windshield? We certainly didn’t feel there was, so off it went. Removal was a several stage process. Before we could begin, we wanted to take some measurements from the stock windshield to see where our cut down wind kick should be trimmed to.

With that squared away it was time to remove the glass.

The next step was the big one. Cutting the windshield frame is almost irreversible so we started off with a small saw to try and be precise.

Unfortunately we need this car done for LOG27 not LOG127 so we brought out the big guns.And minutes later…
With the windshield gone, the next step was a no brainer. It’s time for another test drive!
The view with no windshield is incredible!

With the old windshield off, all we need is to have the new wind kick cut so that we can mount it and trim the rest of the windshield frame down accordingly. Unfortunately, we will have to wait for that. In the mean time, the cage is due for some paint.

Normally the roll cage of a car is more of a subtle detail rather then a key focus point when it comes to the cosmetics of a car. In this case Burke Built Motorsports did such a good job with the cage that we wanted to paint it a color that would really make it stand out. Once again our passion for motor-sports gave us some inspiration from a place that most people might not have thought to look.

The Ducati Superlight not only has a name that mirrors our project, but it also has a color scheme that is a little out of the ordinary and still looks incredible on both the bike and our Spyder.

Painting the cage white also made the cage look like a spider web. Every good Spyder needs a web!

Windshield Weight Removed= 28lbs.

Next week we will be working on some down force so that our feather light Spyder doesn’t blow away!

Objective: Custom Cage and Plastic Surgery

After driving the Spyder last week, we were amazed at the added performance we’ve extracted from the car by simply reducing the weight. The next time the car gets a proper flogging, it is going to be scary fast. That means the car is due for a cage that is a little stouter than the one provided from the factory. This new cage is going to be much more visible since a lot of the parts that covered the factory cage have been removed. Lucky for us, one of our engineers happens to be a highly skilled fabricator with a shop of his own. So we loaded the car on the trailer and sent it off to Burke Built Motorsports.

The new cage would be built out of Chromoly which is both a stronger and lighter material than the steal used in the old roll bar.

The pictures show the weight difference in the stock roll bar and the metal used for just the roll bar section of the new cage.

Since we weren’t going to have all the attachments that the old roll bar had, we could save a little more weight by keeping the tubing all the same diameter and leaving out all the unwanted brackets. This also gave the cage a much cleaner look. The last key benefit to the new cage is the additional bracing incorporated into it. With the diagonal cross braces and door/front kicker bars the Spyder now had something a little more suiting.

While the car was away, we still had the body to play with. With a little “plastic surgery” we would have a body to better fit the more serious, muscular looking chassis. Going into this project, the goal was to “simplify and add lightness”. This means removing unnecessary luxuries where possible and only replacing them with lighter parts when necessary. On a track car you really don’t need a trunk (Lotus certainly felt the same way with the S1 Motorsport Elise) so that had to go.

Now we had this big hole in the clam and thought, what better way to take advantage of the situation then to remove more fiberglass? What we ended up with was a spectacular view for any driver who might be following the car on the street or track.

Some where along the road the question of “how do you wash a car with no top” came up? We had to think about that one for a while, but I think our solution is even more efficient than the old traditional way.

The good news is it can be done even though we don’t actually have the car in our possession.

Chromoly Cage = 38lbs.

Stock Roll Bar = 17lbs.

Weight Removed From Clam = 10lbs.
Weight Added By Cage = 21lbs.

Special thanks to our sponsor Burke Built Motorsports! For more information on Burke Built Motorsports, visit their website at: http://www.burkebuilt.net/

Notes: Another short project we undertook while the car was out was filling the stock transmission mounts with Polyurethane. It wasn't that difficult to do since the car was already on the lift with the clams off. It resulted in much better response and less engine movement for a very low cost.

Objective: Button Relocation and AC Removal 2

Since the removal of the dash, we had a few loose buttons to secure. The more we take out of the car, the simpler things seem. By removing the plastic side sill cover we revealed the perfect location for our lights and horn button.

Since we labeled the new horn button “Move!” we needed a horn that was a little more motivating for other drivers. A dual trumpet air horn set up should do the trick.

Next on our list was the removal of the AC compressor. Since we will need to remove the clams for the cage to be made, this seemed like as good a time as any to pull them back off and give ourselves a little more room to get the AC compressor out.

With the compressor out, and the new belt in place, we had to go for a test drive. So we put the wheels back on…

And took the car out for a spin…While Neil finished up some testing, I did some driving of my own!

AC Removal Stage 2 Weight Savings: 26 lbs.

Next week the car gets sent over to Burke Built Motorsports to have a custom cage put in and Neil and I get creative on ways to work on the car with out actually having the car.