[Rayven14]

Well I figured I'd start a build thread with all the great, good, bad, ugly, pretty, frustrating and fantastic parts about building one of these kits. I ordered the kit in early June and it arrived late October :miserable: I had plans to pick it up once it was shipped from San Diego to San Francisco, however once I arrived at the shipper I had to pay additional fees of 150.00 plus an additional $250.00 for a UHaul truck rental (The box was HUGE!) I manged to get it home and unboxed while doing an inventory of all the parts only to find out that the side mirrors (glass) was missing as well as the fog lights and turn signal lights. Upon speaking with LP (its challenging at best) he told me that none of the above mentioned items were included with the kit One of my biggest concerns upon inventory was the quality of the lights ...More on that later when I get to that stage:rofl:

So far the car has been stripped of all the panels, with the exception of the rear deck lid and the doors. Oddly enough I managed to get the entire body stripped with a 10MM socket and wrench and a screwdriver... kinda scary when you think about it, but its done none the less.

I had the car Jammed in white as that will be the final color. I'm kind of on the fence with the finish product as some parts look amazing while other are kinda ehhhh. I don't think I'll have him do the final paint.

As it sets right now the front fenders are bolted on with minimal problems. I did have to install them a few times and use a dremel tool to oval out the screw holes for adjustment, the first installation yielded huge fender gaps from hood to fender. One of the frustrating parts of the build so far is simply the odd cutting of the kit, a couple of the mounting holes were cut right through the middle leaving very little to attach to the car. (See pic)

The kit is also Very Very thick and resin rich! (See Pics) It also appears that it either came out of the mold to soon as many of the edges/corner are warped and very difficult to mate to the opposing surface. (Meaning the edges don't lay flat) Weight is a huge issue with the panels! I swear the rear quarters must weigh 35-40 LBS :concern:

The grills aren't the best material, seems they're some type of cheap plastic. I will definitely be replacing them with something better suited for the application.

In any event the front fenders were adjusted for fitment as was the hood. Initial fitment isn't bad at all. I have notice however that the plastic frunk cover wont fit with the LP hood, seems some of the bracing needs to be trimmed down. Also the front hood latch needs to be relocated to the bumper support as opposed to the radiator support. I also can't get one of the bolts on the hood to seat properly as it just stops threading about half way

In any event things are so far so good... So far.....

 

[rcntype]

Very interesting. I've always wondered how those kits are. More pics the better!!

 

[liberty mkiii]

Wait these kits are real!?

Just kidding of course, just never seen someone do one yet...

I look forward to your progress

01' MR2 K20 swap, crazy mods to come

 

[mandru5891]

This is awesome, thanks for sharing!

Keep up the progress.

 

[Rampage]

Yeah, I will be watching this thread with great interest. Please document everything with photos and descriptions of all the good, bad and ugly.

 

[celi2nv]

As always with fiberglass something goes wrong after being shipped out but from what I see that is some thick fiberglass and I'd be happy to receive something of that quality. Curious to see what wheels you get.

 

[Rayven14]

I worked on the car for a bit yesterday with mixed results. Like I mentioned in my previous post, the hood latch has to be relocated from the radiator support to the front bumper crash bar. Not a big deal, but the bumper is stainless and pain in ass to drill out. My advise is to slow your drill to a crawl and use lots of coolant for the drill bit (I use soapy water, lots of it)

Here is the before pic - you can see the holes I drilled for the new placement of the latch

And here is a pic of the latch mounted in the new location, works like a charm after a little adjustment.

As with projects of this nature ... the release cable is now to short So yesterday I spent some time pondering a solution - bicycle brake cable is the same diameter and perfect match :chuncky:... But my joy was short lived as the lever release handle is far more complex. Pics to come after I figure out a solution, stay turned ... you don't wanna miss this!

 

[Rayven14]

As always with fiberglass something goes wrong after being shipped out but from what I see that is some thick fiberglass and I'd be happy to receive something of that quality. Curious to see what wheels you get.

I think its a general misconception that "Thick" fiberglass is "Good" fiberglass and that's simply not necessarily the case. Sure, if I'm out sailing the seven seas I damn sure want the hull of my boat to be as thick as possible - thicker fiberglass in the boating industry is standard. However, thicker also means more brittle (literally think of it like peanut brittle) ideally for automotive use you'd want something with two or three layers that's been vacuum bagged and oven cured (I'll spare you the details about the layup) the end result would be a piece that's thin, durable, lightweight and strong as all hell.

My .02 for the day

 

[Mercury]

Think the parts will need lots of prep before paint?

 

[liberty mkiii]

I know a place that does great work on custom cables if you are interested... I sent them some cabes and said same as this but add x # of inches

01' MR2 K20 swap, crazy mods to come

 

[Rayven14]

Think the parts will need lots of prep before paint?

Hmmm, There are a few spots that will definitely need some love/filler. Overall the kit is in decent shape, it will need to be re-primed in some spots and blocked all over but its not to bad at all

 

[Rayven14]

Ok, so.... bicycle cable worked out excellently and the hood pops like a charm. The hood release handle OMG:miserable: ugghhhh. So long story short, I had to drill a hole in cable end of the handle. All was going swimmingly until the drill bit broke off... I was LIVID! So in my frustration I used my dremel tool to create a valley in an already tight space in order to remove said drill bit. When it was all said and done an hours time had passed.... :black_eyed: and I was beat up!

End Result:

Used this on opposing end of the cable

So the front end was finished today, it needs some final adjustments but overall it looks great. That's of course until I closed the hood :bi_polo:

What in the complete hell is this about? its a 1/2 inch gap between the hood and the bumper! How to fix? I haven't got a clue. Everything else lines up perfect, I can't slide the hood forward because it will be misaligned at the fender near the windshield and the head light buckets will be misaligned as well. Also it appears that if I were to fill the gap, the secondary latch will be in accessible - ugghhh!

Moving on - I spent some time today with the side skirt/rear quarter panels, initial fitting is good except for under the doors. Seems there is a ton of bondo that snapped off the sideskirt when I closed the door and the body line looks terrible in that area.... it was clearly rubbing.

Initially I started hacking away and the bondo which was almost 1/4 inch thick, but unfortunately the fit was still way off

So I hacked the cracker jacks out of it with the idea that I would bond and morph the panel into the lower rocker. Yes, it does look bad but trust me, in the end the fitment will be much better

Thick bondo pic

Overall progress pic

 

[Rayven14]

Well, I was going to bond the quarter panel on yesterday but realized that I hadn't done any work for the fuel line - they need to be extended by about 10 inches or so.

Removed the fuel lines:

This greyish looking pipe slide out of place:

Made a few measurements and used a pipe cutter for clean cuts and no metal debris in the fuel lines - Side note: the two thinner lines do in fact flex quite a bit but don't get happy and over bend them will break off.

Re-installed n the car

Fuel rated extension lines added:

Audi filler neck with MR2 lower installed on kit:

Audi TT fuel filler door cable and pin:

Longer Bicycle cable - Same exact end pieces

This piece is crucial

The grey piece is from the MR2, it snaps into the lever/fuel door release handle.

The idea is simply to run an longer cable between the two end links, essentially mating the Mr2 handle to the Audi release pin

More pics or maybe a short video on that later

 

[autotracer]

Loving it!

Loving it so far. This is that kit that I've always wanted, but never even thought about purchasing. Good to see a DIY'er giving it a GO!
Looking forward to watching the progress!

 

[Rayven14]

The fuel door release works like a charm, here is a pic on my work bench. The final connection was made in the car and perfection.

Moving ahead of myself to the interior, I purchased these and had them re-upholstered, currently they're in storage. The idea is to match the doors to the seats and "A" pillar or windshield surround

 

[Rayven14]

Previous to the installation of the body kit I purchased the CHE header and downpipe/cat that required only minor adjustment to the heat shield and installation was quick easy and simple. Okay maybe not because you have to take quite a bit of the car apart for ease of access but its simple stuff.

I also purchased a dual exhaust system from one of the members on this forum, the results from the purchase date to install were .... to be nice... not the best. But decide for yourself.

Driver side rear:

Passenger side:

The overall pic shows that the two sides are completely out of whack, I did however take it to a local shop in an effort to try to have it adjusted :concern: the end result was simply not something that was going to work. So I threw this POS in the trash and moved on - next time I'll do my homework.

So I bit the bullet and started cutting the rear bumper support for the muffler shop. Yes you can cut stainless with a hole saw but you need lots of time, a drill press on the slowest speed possible and a cracker jack load of soapy water.

The end result: although the pipes aren't completely centered they don''t knock or bang around.

Ultimately the temporary tips will be removed and these will be permanently attached:



As of today the exhaust sounds throaty without resonating, I've been asked several times "What motor do you have in there" I smile :02.47-tranquillity: and say "Chevy small block... no I'm kidding.

 

[rcntype]

I was allll up with you until you started showing the header and exhaust. That body kit will need atleast 18x10's in the back with some 275 tires. That 200 lb body kit is not going to help either. This thing will need ALOT more motivation than some headers and exhaust man. Without a drastic change in power, this car will be slower than .. almost everything.

The show has to have some go!

 

[drobbs]

This thread is great - pictures, comments, good and the bad. But mostly I'm impressed that someone has the "stick-to-it" gumption to keep on going. It will be great to see where you land...or how you land...SEMA? Autorama? And please, please keep track of your hours and $$ spent. This needs to be a learning experience for all of us.
I love it!

 

[Rayven14]

I was allll up with you until you started showing the header and exhaust. That body kit will need atleast 18x10's in the back with some 275 tires. That 200 lb body kit is not going to help either. This thing will need ALOT more motivation than some headers and exhaust man. Without a drastic change in power, this car will be slower than .. almost everything.

The show has to have some go!

Absolutely!!! Im thinking a turbo charged 1ZZ. There are a few shops in the area Ive spoken with about getting this done. Basically it it boils down to how deep my pockets are and "How fast do you wanna go"

 

[Rayven14]

This thread is great - pictures, comments, good and the bad. But mostly I'm impressed that someone has the "stick-to-it" gumption to keep on going. It will be great to see where you land...or how you land...SEMA? Autorama? And please, please keep track of your hours and $$ spent. This needs to be a learning experience for all of us.
I love it![/QUOT

The kit arrived in late October and Ive been sitting on it since then. I did however have the exhaust completed even before the kit was on the boat. Ive done a few other simple things: Console, Tein Lowering springs, Rockauto Struts, GPS (headunit) Rockford Fosgate door speakers, Interior door trim - arm rest, door pulls and center cosole armrest

Since then my plans have changed a bit with the addition of new door panels and possiby different seats, new top and steering wheel.

So I said all that to say I started the actual build 5 or 6 days ago, in terms of man hours I typically get started about 10 and quit at 4. Thats with an hour lunch, dog walkin, Home Depot/ Bike shop runs, Tea time, Relationship maintenance and other misc down time. So in terms of hours.....ehhhh.... Maybe 20-25. Thus far (Id have to add up the receipts) but its in the arena of 450-500 but that includes two fuel doors that didnt work out as well as A complete rear quarter from an Audi TT.... I was literally shipped 1/4 of the car. Those pieces alone were. 325-350. I do think at this point it would be a great idea to log all of my time.