A very slow build of a custom traveller

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irmscher
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

Nothing happening Steve ??
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

work has got in the way and slowed progress im afraid, and i am waiting for some suspension parts to arrive (been a bit messed about by the supplier)
but I should have a delivery today that will allow me to get on with my centre crossmember, so ill get some pics sorted and up as soon as possible.

Steve
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irmscher
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

Brilliant :D
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

Finally,,

I've had these few parts made for some weeks now but just not had time to post the pics up,

I have folded up a pair of new chassis legs, these are similar to original minor legs but don’t have the pinches around the front lower arm mount or the kick up at the back where they will meet the cross member, or any holes,

My engine mounts are already attached to the legs, I slotted the inside face of each leg and the mount is passed through the legs and is attached to both sides of the legs with a clearance slot at the bottom of waxoyl to flow under,

The bay floors are similar in size and shape to originals but the outer edge doesn’t have the curved shape to follow the inner wing, this is because I won’t be having standard shape inner wings,

The centre crossmember is a box section affair, not the traditional flat plate, I need it as a box section for my suspension setup, (if I have got my plan right that is)

The front cross member is just a piece of notched 30 x 30 box section, which will have corner gussets added when its welded in but first I have to finish each piece so I can weld them all together, so I have lots of holes to drill and mounts to make and attach,

Steve
Attachments
A chassis legs 1.jpg
A chassis legs 1.jpg (182.23 KiB) Viewed 9153 times
A new eng mounts.jpg
A new eng mounts.jpg (169.66 KiB) Viewed 9153 times
A new bay floors.jpg
A new bay floors.jpg (214.76 KiB) Viewed 9153 times
A new cross member.jpg
A new cross member.jpg (221.94 KiB) Viewed 9153 times
A the boss at work.jpg
A the boss at work.jpg (197.59 KiB) Viewed 9153 times
Image
irmscher
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Location: South Manchester
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

Great fabrication work :) and brilliant dog
irmscher
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

Have you given up Steve :(
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

Hi all,

Definitely not given up but work has been so busy over the last couple of months I've not had time to get on with it,

Hopefully I'll have some time over the Christmas break and into the new year,

So I'll post an update as soon as possible,

Steve
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irmscher
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

Have you had time to progress Steve :)
irmscher
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

????
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

Painfully slow progress I’m afraid, work keeps getting in the way, although lockdown was bad for so many businesses we were very lucky and had an influx of work so my poor old traveller hasn’t got much of a look-in for a long time, but haven’t given up, and I have made some progress but nothing exciting enough to post up.

Hopefully if work quietens down during the year I’ll be able to get back on it.

Steve
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irmscher
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by irmscher »

:D
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

So after a very long time of not posting anything about my traveller I thought an update was in order, the lack of posts has mainly been due to the amount of work we’ve had on. Hence lack of time to progress with the traveller.

But also because of a slight change of plan, oh no I hear you all cry, and I agree…. I always say to my customers once you have a plan for a build “stick to it” don’t start changing it half way through….. so what have I done,,,, yup changed pretty much everything.

Now my original plan was a budget build using mainly what I had around already. Fiat TC, ford rear axle etc, a perfectly good plan, but as the plan has always been to use the traveller every day and cover around 20,000 miles a year I decided I really wanted ABS brakes, I also wanted fuel injection instead of a carb, mainly to help with the fuel consumption and smooth running, both of which are good thoughts but I needed an abs setup and a fuel injection setup both of which could be adapted to work on the traveller and fiat twin cam respectively, obvious choice Mazda MX5, Why? Because I had a scrap one sitting here, so now I’m thinking while I’m there could I use the complete front and rear suspension setups? You see no matter what you think of MX5s they do ride well with their coil over double A arm front and rear independent suspension, so if I’m pulling all of that out why not just do as others have done before me and use an entire MX5. Problem was the MX5 I had in front of me was just as rotten as the traveller itself so not ideal.

Now I know the traveller is rather rotten and it’s not that I couldn’t rebuild it as a traveller with mods, but it made sense to use everything modern, or relatively modern, this way I’ll get crumple zones, airbag steering wheel, ABS brakes, fuel injection, good heater etc etc, I also get easy parts availability as everything will be MX5, and tuning parts… well the world really is your oyster, you name it and its available, suspension, brakes, performance engine components, just about everything you could wish for,

So I’ve been keeping my eye out for a suitable donor, my criteria was simple,

1, Cheap, very cheap,

2, 1.8 not 1.6, (there goes the fuel economy)

3, had enough good parts on it that I wouldn’t need for myself to sell on so that the donor car will cost me nothing or almost nothing, and I was lucky enough to trip over this, it’s a 2003 1.8 VVT mx5 UK spec, so 148bhp (when new) with just 49,000miles on, so that should push the old girl along ok..

it has heated leather seats, a set of alloys with good tyres on, and a full stainless exhaust system with a brand new cat, the leather seats, the wheels, and the exhaust system should return what I paid for the whole car, it even came with a pair of brand new rear caliper’s that the previous owner had fitted ready for its MOT but never MOT’d it, winner winner….. And it was only a few miles from work.

So my “I’ll just drop a fiat TC into a traveller” has jumped clean out the window as you can imagine. Still I do have a very good Sll shell here that’s begging to go faster……

So first job is to strip the MX down, and then just weld the two together…. Sounds so simple when you say it like that.. I know it’s not that simple as the MX is longer in the wheel base and wider, but I have a large hammer and a grinder so I’m sure it will be ok…..

Now I can carry on with the build and this will be my interpretation of an MX5 under a traveller,

The things that do stand from my original plan are Has to be built on a sensible budget, and still has to look like a Morris Traveller to the uninitiated.
So there you go, oh and if anyone wants some leather seats, alloy wheels or a stainless exhaust let me know.

Steve
Well loved and cared for....
Well loved and cared for....
mx front edit.jpg (2.01 MiB) Viewed 5664 times
Grey wing and quarter damage
Grey wing and quarter damage
mx side 1.jpg (127.13 KiB) Viewed 5664 times
A clean leather interior
A clean leather interior
mx int 1.jpg (104.48 KiB) Viewed 5664 times
Opps more rust..
Opps more rust..
mx sill 1.jpg (72.3 KiB) Viewed 5664 times
1.8vvt 148bhp
1.8vvt 148bhp
mx eng 2.jpg (111.39 KiB) Viewed 5664 times
Image
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

I realise this is a bit premature, probably by about two years .. but a small purchase towards the project, a new, well new second hand steering wheel,

I don’t like three spoke steering wheels, I don’t find them comfortable, and as you can see the MX came with a three spoke, but I found this on good old ebay only 5 miles away, so fifteen of my hard earned pounds bought me this,

It seems insignificant with the size of the project ahead, but I know if you don’t pick things up as you find them when you actually need them there won’t be any available, or they will be loads of money and the other side of the country.

So that’s about .001% of the project traveller sorted then, blimey nearly finished…. Lol.

Steve
Attachments
old 3 spoke wheel
old 3 spoke wheel
IMG_20221028_124432120.jpg (93.51 KiB) Viewed 5576 times
new 4 spoke wheel
new 4 spoke wheel
IMG_20221028_124445855.jpg (110.09 KiB) Viewed 5576 times
Image
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

Made a start on stripping the MX5 down, the first part is dead easy, remove all the outer panels, strip the interior, remove the Hood, strip the boot area etc, and don’t cut any wiring, being sort of modern everything on the MX is on plugs, yippee no more bullet connectors and green wires….. So relatively easy to disconnect, and just as importantly easy to re-connect in the future, although I’ll still label all the plugs up as I’ll never remember what goes where in the future,

I need to keep it driving for as long as possible as it will need to be moved around the workshop on occasion, so I will be re mounting the steering column onto the dash support bar and plugging the ign wiring back together, that way it will be mobile without having to push it,

The doors have yet to be removed and I’ll be keeping them as I’m hopeful I’ll be able to use the MX locks and electric windows, but only time will tell on that one,

There’s still a bit more stripping to be done and then I’ll be setting and locking the suspension to the correct height, as the MX gets stripped its getting lighter and is sitting higher, so when I eventually drop the traveller shell over the MX base I won’t know where the ride height will end up, could look like a jeep or a be on the floor, so once locked I’ll have a definite datum to work from, so when the traveller is lowered over the MX I can get the wheel arches correctly positioned for height,

I also need to brace the MX and the traveller shell, the traveller is only just about holding square due to the amount of rot in it, and the MX may flex as parts like its sills are removed,

Mazda in their wisdom fitted the ECU in the NS foot well, and I've seen plenty of these that have been damaged either through water coming up through the floor or from a leaky roof getting them wet, luckily this one shows no signs of ever being wet,

Steve
Attachments
front panels removed
front panels removed
MX front 1.jpg (153.54 KiB) Viewed 5089 times
interior mainly stripped
interior mainly stripped
MX int 10.jpg (148.99 KiB) Viewed 5089 times
convertable hood removed
convertable hood removed
MX int 11.jpg (130.88 KiB) Viewed 5089 times
boot stripped
boot stripped
MX int 12.jpg (133.67 KiB) Viewed 5089 times
what a place to put an ECU
what a place to put an ECU
MX int 13.jpg (127.36 KiB) Viewed 5089 times
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ManyMinors
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by ManyMinors »

One day in the future, you'll be looking at an MX5 at a classic car show and telling the owner that "I used to have one of those, and stupidly I cut it all up"..... :D
Steve Phillips
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by Steve Phillips »

I've used several MX5s over years as donor's so not the first one I've dissected and probably won't be the last,

They also make great track toys, I've built several for track including turbo and supercharged versions,

So while I like them for what they can offer i.e Good reliable mechanics that are relatively bullet proof and easy to tune I can't say I'll ever look back and regret cutting any of them up. Although I may be wrong...

Steve
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ManyMinors
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Re: A very slow build of a custom traveller

Post by ManyMinors »

Steve Phillips wrote: Thu Dec 15, 2022 7:54 pm I can't say I'll ever look back and regret cutting any of them up. Although I may be wrong...
Steve
In the 1970s, I thought the same about Mk1 Mini Coopers :-(
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