1958 356A Speedster Replica

[Firebird]

After spending most of Saturday scouting out fabric and carpet I decided that I should just do a quick easy job on the Speedy.

After epoxying the old mounting holes for the bonnet handle... like so :

20140125_195706.jpg

I had just enough time for another quickie ... um JOB... (Stay with me dammit!)

A while back I bought a Bosche ignition lock and i have been itching to swap out the horrible one I put in years ago. Shouldn't take more than an hour...Right?
Step 1: Enlarge the hole and add slots so the whole thing doesn't rotate when you turn the key.

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Step 2: Make note of the wiring on the old one and wire up the new one...
Step 3: Mount new lock in place on the dash... mmm... what's this? Problem.

Step 1 is actually, "Remove the front RH wheel" No jokes ... but moron that later... yes I said 'moron'

The thickest of the wires (the one from the battery) was about an inch too short (once the spade was cut off and the wire stripped, go figure) and it wouldn't reach the lock when it was mounted into the dash. The shortcut would have been to just join on an extra piece of wire but that would be too easy.
So I checked to see where the wires were routed and decided to go and see how much slack I cold find. It was then that I found that the wires were tied up and routed routed OUTSIDE the car into the wheel arch?! They were then cable tied to the RH shock tower and then routed through a hole in the boot/bonnet to the battery and relays then BACK OUT through another hole 30cm away to go to the lights... Whaaat ? Why?

On what planet would this make more sense than routing the harness straight from under the dash into the bonnet and to the battery and relays etc. What if a stone hits the harness? What about abrasion from the tyre when you turn? What about water? .... Okay so 3 hours later ...
I had removed the front wheel to allow access to the wiring harness. Disconnected all the connections to the indicators, light switches and brake master cylinder and pulled them all through to their points of origin. I then made a neat hole under the dash into the inside of the bonnet and routed all the wires back through there. It is not as neat as 'hiding' them in the wheel arch but I can get to them without taking the front wheel off.and trace faults etc. I will make a neat channel for this lot under the rubber bonnet lining and it will be neat and tidy.

In the mean time the car looks like this:

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But at least I now have a nice shiny new Bosch ignition switch, which works

IMG-20140125-WA0015.jpg

...the headlights don't though ... FML

[flatfourfan]

dude call me, I just tried your line with no joy.........whats up?

[flatfourfan]

and ps.................more pics of the tank layout.......

[Firebird]

Oh Sorry Gary, I only saw this now, I am not getting email notifications for some reason...

I haven't taken any decent pictures of the tank.

Here are the best ones I could find.

[flatfourfan]

aaaaaaah

I see that the depth of yours is deff noticeable. It's a good 5-10cms lower, I think that's why you have the intrusion issues inside with the pedal. That's soemthing that they should of taken into account and had maybe a trade off between the two.

I love the detail on the lid and the lid edges on the body.

Ps, when you do snap pics, snap some of the inside tyre well as well. Also maybe with the panel open, I'd love to see if I could get a radiator in there without too much fuss.

[Firebird]

Gary and I went to visit a 'new' 356 replica builder yesterday.
We were coasting slowly down his street looking for his house. Gary spotted this as we drove past....

Manny - Black 356.jpg

It is easily the best 356 replica I have ever seen

( I hope the owner joins us on AircooledVWSA soon )

[Tony Z]

one leg in the air.... must be marking its spot!

[Firebird]

lol

[Firebird]

Right, a quick update from this weekends activities.
Moved the interior door handles higher, as per the original car. (No pics, sorry Gary, my phone went flat)
Replaced the gear lever coupler. (That square thing under the rear inspection cover just in front of the rear seats) The gear changes feel a little 'crisper' now. Less like stirring a bucket of bolts with a spanner
I actually bought the part in question a looong time ago on the advice of a friend. I remember he recommended I replace two things so I think there is a bushing further forward on the shaft that needs to be replaced as well. Can anyone confirm this and maybe tell me what it is called so I don't sound like a retard at Volkspares (again)
I also fiddled with the front bumper position again and got it to look a little better until my replacement bumpers are sorted.

[riaanj]

Right, a quick update from this weekends activities.
Moved the interior door handles higher, as per the original car. (No pics, sorry Gary, my phone went flat)
Replaced the gear lever coupler. (That square thing under the rear inspection cover just in front of the rear seats) The gear changes feel a little 'crisper' now. Less like stirring a bucket of bolts with a spanner
I actually bought the part in question a looong time ago on the advice of a friend. I remember he recommended I replace two things so I think there is a bushing further forward on the shaft that needs to be replaced as well. Can anyone confirm this and maybe tell me what it is called so I don't sound like a retard at Volkspares (again)
I also fiddled with the front bumper position again and got it to look a little better until my replacement bumpers are sorted.

Confirmed, don't know what it's called though, its a round plastic thingy that sits around the gear levers linkage that goes to the gearbox..

[Firebird]

Thanks Riaanj
I have been Googling and I think I found the part. It fits the description.
http://www.glenn-ring.com/tech/bushing_replace.htm
According to the write up though it looks like the only way to replace it is by removing the shifter shaft, which don't think is possible on a replica because of the lack of front inspection panel in the bodywork...

[riaanj]

Thanks Riaanj
I have been Googling and I think I found the part. It fits the description.
http://www.glenn-ring.com/tech/bushing_replace.htm
According to the write up though it looks like the only way to replace it is by removing the shifter shaft, which don't think is possible on a replica because of the lack of front inspection panel in the bodywork...

That, good sir, is the correct part. It is a bit of a problem, I wanted to replace it on my old Spyder and unless I cut some holes or took the body off the pan it was impossible.. I ended up never replacing it & being careful of changing to 2nd/reverse..

[acpaterson]

Ahhh.. then based on Riaan's response, that bush on my Speedster is knackered, as I can easily grind rev when going for 2nd..
gonna have to try replace mine. lemme go read up some more.

[Firebird]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Re-JiUdwYMI

here is a (very long winded vomit cam/ Blair witch style) video of the guy doing the replacement.
Very helpful. The guy even discusses how to correctly align the shift gate under the gear lever when re fitting everything. Based on his guidelines my gear lever has been out of alignment for years

I have been planning to modify the battery area in my car to make space for the battery and spare wheel. This will involve cutting away a panel that is directly in front of the front inspection plate. With this boot replacement in mind, I think I will make the replacement panel removable in case I need to move the shifter rod forward for maintenance again. I am kinda glad about this because it provides further justification for the modification

[Kafer74]

Hi

You have a really detailed thread here. I love what you are doing with this car, it is going to be a real head turner. I noticed you have a Wolfsburg gear knob which I suspect you will be replacing with a Porsche one. Would you be interested in selling it?