Sector111 Spyder

Objective: LOG 27

2007-08-24T12:33:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-13T15:32:00.000-07:00

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”

2007-08-07T18:59:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-31T08:10:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-19T14:02:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-13T14:37:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-05T14:58:00.000-07:00

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.

Objective: Tasty Bits.

2007-06-28T15:22:00.000-07:00

Every cool car out there has at least a couple sweet parts. Lamborghinis have their vertical doors and crazy paint and wheels. BMWs have their “Angle Eyes” and SMG. The S class Mercedes always comes up with new firsts in the industry. The S111 Spyder already has a lot going for it. No windshield, exposed roll bar, and the huge rear wing all set the car apart from the rest. But that wasn’t enough.

One item that had not been sorted out yet was the wheels. Our current TE37s are light, strong, and look hard core.

Anyone who is familiar with good JDM tuning knows that if a car has TEs, they generally aren’t messing around. But the offsets were not quite right and they required things like spacers and hub-centric rings to fit the car. There are several options out there for 16 and 17 inch wheels, but a good set of 15/16 inch wheels are more difficult to come by. As usual, Sector 111 had the solution.
Not only were the SJ Racing wheels made specifically for the car, but they were a step up because of the increased track and contact patch. We were also able to keep the 15/16 inch size that Neil desired.
Sector 111 also supplied the car with the very cool Ikeya Formula Sequential Shifter. I must admit that this seemed like a bit of a toy when I first saw it. Maybe it is, but after installing the Ikeya Shifter, the entire driving experience changes. Not only is this car going to look like a hard core race car, but it feels like it too! Even just driving around town made me feel like I was cruising the streets in a full fledged race car. While the end result is great, the install to get there was a little more difficult.

This was one of the most difficult steps of the project. It required a lot of patience and careful observation of the instructions. Luckily we had two heads to put this one together. The install itself took a day. It might have been shorter but we had to chase down some parts and tools. By mid morning of the following day the car was back on the road. Despite the constant tweaks that had to be made and still need to be made while we fine tune it, I would say the shifter was well worth the effort.

New Wheel Weights: 11 lbs. (Each front) 14.5 lbs. (Each rear)

Added weight for Ikeya Shifter: 3.55 lbs.

Next week we’ll have a little fun pushing buttons and shed some more weight by removing the AC compressor.

Objective: Window Removal and Clean Up

2007-06-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

Since we have plans on removing the windshield, we will have no need for the side or rear windows. Removing the side windows was easy enough and had a nice bit of savings, but the back window was a different story. While I was tackling that Neil had some clean up to do. Eight hours later I had the back window out. In order to achieve this I had to remove the roll bar cover as well. No sense in putting it back on seeing as there would be no windshield and the only real function of the cover was to hold the top on. While we were at it, we decided to remove a few more little things for some extra weight savings. Some say we went over board, but I think not!The finished product was great and got everyone excited to do more!

Side Window Weight Savings: 34 lbs.
Rear Window Weight Savings: 3 lbs.
Roll Bar Cover Weight Savings: 7 lbs.
Key Weight Savings: 52.3 lbs.

Next week we are going to get some new wheels from Sector 111 and an Ikea Formula Sequential Shifter!

Notes: Since the start of the project, we get people asking what we do with the spare parts. Neil and I both have artistic backgrounds and sometimes our creativity gets the best of us.

Objective: Dash Removal

2007-06-15T11:41:00.000-07:00

If you look at race cars like the Sport Exige and the Ferrari Challenge Stradale, you may notice they still have a dash.

For us that just wouldn’t do. Instead a light weight dust shield seemed more suitable. Naturally the first step for this swap was removing the dash.

The dash removal was interesting because the more we removed, the better it started looking. When removing the dash, we also took off the door panels and sill covers. The sill covers concealed some sharp edges on the chassis. In order to prevent getting cut on the sharp aluminum we used a series of files to dull the edge. At this point we have removed enough weight that we are really starting to feel a difference.

Total Weight Removal: 47.3 lbs. (Including side sills)

As you can see, the dash is starting to look better, but the doors need some work. Next week we are going to remove the side windows, rear window, rear roll bar cover, and have a little fun with the angle grinder!

Objective: Works Bell/Personal F1 Install and 1st Weigh In

2007-06-08T18:23:00.000-07:00

Details: If you look at any race car, they will all have one thing in common; a sweet minimalist steering wheel. If you have ever driven an Elise you know how hard it is to get in and out, especially if you have a deep bolstered seat. A quick release is not only a nice compliment to the steering wheel, but it is going to help when it comes to getting in and out of the car. For our project we went to the top. What better wheel than the little brother of the same wheel used in the McLaren F1 LM!

To mount this wheel we couldn't use just any hub and quick release. We went with the Rapfix II by Works Bell. These products were donated by Aspec Products and Works Bell USA.

This leads us to the moment of truth; the first weigh in!

The first weigh in gave us an official starting point. From then on the car would go from a nice street car to something a little more hard core. Now it’s time to part ways with the ordinary.

Total Weight Savings: 3lbs. (Quick Release and Steering Wheel)

Thanks to the following sponsors:

Works Bell USA
Aspec Products

Next week marks the beginning of the end. The dash is coming out as our project Spyder continues with the Sector 111 diet.

Objective Light Weight Radiator Install

2007-06-01T18:16:00.000-07:00

Details: At over 50,000 miles the Elise started show some wear. One of the major maintenance items that needed attention was the radiator. The plastic end caps started to leak and with a track day right around the corner, we needed a fix. It seemed silly to replace the radiator with another stock one that was bound to fail after another 50,000 miles. Instead we opted for a fully aluminum radiator made by Flex Co. Ltd. in Japan. Not only did we prevent future problems from occurring, but the new radiator weights just over a pound less then stock! It’s not much, but we will take every little bit we can get. The radiator worked so well that we now offer it to U.S. Lotus owners.

Finding the right radiator was the easy part. I must say that removing the front clam for the first time was a bit intimidating. After digging up all the information we could on this project, it was time to step up to the challenge.

Half way through the job we realized that we could shave some weight by removing the ac condenser and some of the lines. Since the electric fans mount to the condenser, we had to create some custom rails to mount the fans directly off the radiator.

Roughly 10 hours later, the car was back together and the new radiator was ready to be tested at the track. There’s no doubt that removing the clam was a lot of work for the average do-it-yourselfer, but it was one of the most important stepping stones in this project. It gave us the confidence and desire to continue with the project, plus we earned over 5lbs. in additional weight savings.

Notes: When it came time to fill the cooling system back up with coolant, we ran into a couple snags. After putting in less then a gallon of coolant, the system appeared to be full. This couldn’t be as we had drained it from the radiator, but after trying to run the car to the point where the thermostat would kick on, the reservoir remained full. We also got worried when the electric fans wouldn’t kick on after the engine reached the 210 degrees or so where they were supposed to. That is when we realized the importance of the mystery box on the passenger side fender lining. Even after fixing the fans, we still couldn’t get the system to take an adequate amount of fluid. It turns out an air bubble was preventing the lines to fill and we had to burp the system. That was an interesting hour or so to say the least, but at the end of the day we could look back and laugh at it.

Radiator Weight Savings: 1.1 lbs.

AC Removal Stage 1: 4 lbs. (condensor, front lines, bracketry and hardware)

Next week we are going to install a quick release steering wheel hub from Works Bell, and a steering wheel that was inspired by one of the greatest cars of all time; the McLaren F1 LM. We are also going to look at how our efforts have paid off so far.

Objective “Simplify and add lightness.”

2007-05-25T18:09:00.000-07:00

Target Weight

1600lbs.

Details

Lotus was founded in 1952 by Colin Chapman and has since built a name for itself by manufacturing light weight, nimble sports cars. The Elise is taking Lotus back to its roots by following their founder’s philosophy; “simplify and add lightness”.

Sector111 was founded in the spring of 2004, before the Elise even hit the US market. It has since become the leading manufacturer in aftermarket parts for the Federal Elise and Exige.

Both Lotus and Sector111 are built by enthusiasts for enthusiasts. When you put the two together you are bound to get something outrageous!

The Sector111 Spyder

The Inspiration

Project Spyder takes the light weight theme of the Elise to an extreme level. Our project started with a 2005 touring pack car weighing in at just under 2000 lbs. The day I picked up my car I knew I wanted it to be different from other Lotuses. I am not one to keep any car I own "stock." A crazy thought came to mind...stripping down an Elise.

I wanted to drive the car as it was for about a year before going this extreme route. I had seen photos of the roofless, windshieldless S1 Elise called The Extreme and thought, "that's what I want my Elise to look like". So my inspiration came initially from the S1 Lotus Extreme. I started the stripping process rather slow by removing the rear speaker panels, the stereo and other little creature comforts. And then I shared my idea of removing the windshield with Shinoo Mapleton, the president of Sector111. Since then, my plans have been accelerated. People ask me all the time... why? I simply answer... why not?

The project begins

With a target weight of 1600 lbs, we have a lot of work ahead of us. Our theory is not necessarily replacing parts with lighter weight parts, but taking them out completely leaving only the essentials needed to enjoy the purest driving experience. Check in weekly as we continue to transform a standard Lotus Elise into the S111 Spyder.

Notes

The Stig’s Elise had already clocked over 50,000 miles before the start of the project and was equipped with the following parts (click links to learn more):

ReVerie Carbon Fiber 3 Element Rear Diffuser
Arqray Single Tip Stainless Steel Exhaust
Larini De-Cat Pipe
Sector 111 RTD Brace
Sector 111 Lid Bone
Sector 111 Micro Mirror
Sector 111 HnT Pad
Sector 111 Front and Rear Tow Hooks
Sector 111 HID Lights
Sector 111 Bollock Shift Knob
Sector 111 Bootie
Sector 111 Lid Bone
Sachs Single Adjustable Coilovers
Volk Racing TE37 wheels in 15/16
Oddysey Light Weight Battery
Custom Mesh Grills
Prototype APR Canards

Next week we are going to jump right into project Spyder with a light weight radiator install!