SS100 "replica" Kit Kar

[Ulu]

Well today I got another coat of glass on the fender. I sanded everything smooth with the DA sander and put on an ounce of epoxy with some finely woven glass. I squeegeed it all down with a Bondo spreader, which works really well.

I took the windshield wiper motor off and had a good look at it.
Real German motor.

They sprayed paint on the wiring which maybe melted some of the insulation, and I’m surprised that this thing actually runs.

It only was hooked up to run on high and the other wires were unused.
It appears to have enough terminals for a three speed motor but I don’t know if that is true.

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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

The first tech page of the SS100 Manual from A&CA

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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[EVfun]

Cool manual page! As far as wipers... do you have too?

I'm about 900 miles north in Seattle and I have never bothered. The old versions of WA code did not actually REQUIRE wipers -- they were just the only thing ALLOWED into the legal forward field of view by more than 2 inches.
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[Ulu]

Oh yes, if you look back a couple posts, you can see the wipers.
They are required here, even on an open car.

BTW, the curb weight of 1630 lbs is lighter than I imagined.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

Today I started mocking up the frame modifications.

I’m going to use these two 12ga pressed steel frame rails from a garden tractor.

A lot of what you see is just temporary mock up stuff, like those rails next to the shifter.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[didget69]

[Ulu]

Don’t laugh too hard. I have a prewar style vacuum tube radio for a car, and I know how to repair it. The problem is it weighs as much as a VW engine.

It is also 6volts. Draws some current.

Anyhow, this car is intended to connect an engine with four wheels. Virtually everything else is superfluous, so there won’t be any radio or speakers in it.

Unless I eventually convert it all to electric. Then I’ll put an 18 inch JBL in the front so I can make vroom-vroom sounds.

Just Kidding guys….

I have the Bombay horn if I need to warn of my approach.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

One of the things that is not superfluous is the structure, and while I was digging around through dirt and seam sealer I discovered camouflaged rust on my frame head.

I don’t know how bad it is, but quite frankly I have been considering dispensing with the stock VW frame head completely.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

I took an ice pick to the frame head and discovered that I could easily perforate the base in a number of spots. Yeah, this will simply have to change.

Since the frame extension is the new frame head, I should cut away everything stock VW, forward of the firewall. That would be everything forward of the back edge of the big rectangular hole, cut in the pan for the fiberglass battery box.

Once the hat is gone, the master cyl must move to the firewall where it belongs.

I’ll have to build a structural firewall as mine is plastic right now.

The entire Volkswagen pan outside of this mock-up frame rail will get bobbed off and I will tuck it plus the new pan up inside the bottom flange.

I considered buying new factory pans to do this modification but I will have to cut a lot of them away yeah I have some 0.50” sheet metal to work with For building the new pan, tunnel, firewall and crossmember.
I will cut the pan right in front of the line of bolt holes, which is the forward of the plastic firewall

The meeting of the heads…

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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

The brake lines and the master cyl are off, along with the long pushrod and pedal assembly.

The repairs/mods in the pedal area are pretty ugly.

I opened up the perforated metal with an ice pick and a prybar until I had a pretty good idea of what was what.

I didn’t get a good photo of the bottom lip of the frame head, but it is dripping with rust.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

There's a lot of rust inside the tunnel.

Lots of crappy welding too. This is the pedal stop.

When you care this little, it is painfully obvious.

The clutch hook is about to snap.

I should just ditch the stock pedals.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

Patches under the frame head cover up some fine German lace.

This is like photos of the Titanic.
Lots of cancer in the frame head seams.

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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[MrGoodtunes]

Clutch pedal hook might be an easy fix, this work'd well for mine:

Regarding your rust situation, I've seen alot worse!

[Ulu]

Thank you.

Welding up the hook will be the easiest welding job on the whole car. I had to do my ‘66 as well, so no mystery.

But I think I would like better, wider pedals, and my car has 4” wider foot room at the relocated pedals. I will probably just build them custom.

Or mod the stock set.

This is small fish compared to the frame defects.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

Marking out the cuts, first with string, the tape, then paint:

Various demolition tools used to bob the pan, including drill, sawzall, nibbler, & pneumatic cutoff wheel. No angle grinder yet…

Cutoff of the Napoleon hat: Here is some of that German lace, plated over with 1/8” to hide the holes.

Both sides trimmed, and starting the next mock-up, to locate the rails more exactly.

No more ugly random pan edge sticking out visibly, under that swooping fender.
You can see the notch where it lept over the hat.

This is what used to stick out.

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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[finefettle]

Great work!
So so much better.
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1979 Bug project

[finefettle]

Great work!
So so much better.
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1979 Bug project

[Ulu]

Thank you.

I will soon get on to trimming off the brake line brackets, which are going to be in my way, and a little bit of clearance grinding on the existing frame extension.

Then I can replace the cowl on the pan and check my clearances before I weld the rails down. I know there is going to be a little trimming before I can tack it all together.

I have some light gauge tubing for crossmembers to integrate into the sheet metal frame pan and I have been trying to locate them, plus there are structural crossmembers that reinforce the frame pan and hold up the runningboards and fender tails.

All of that stuff must get tacked into the rails and pan.

At some point I have to take off the beam axle and the engine, so I can flip this thing over. it’s going to need some welding on the bottom for sure. I don’t think I want to do it all laying on my back under the car with the acetylene torch.

BTW,This car had new full pans on it at some point in its history, probably before it became a kit car. They are super clean on the bottom. It’s a shame they cut that big hole for the battery box or I would have a lot less work. Mostly it just reduces the ground clearance on the driver side of the car right in the middle of the wheelbase. This is not what you want to do on a long low car.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

I have unfortunately discovered more rust repair under the pan, on the tunnel, right about where the gas pedal has been relocated.

It actually doesn’t look too badly done and I’m trying to decide whether to just clean it up on the backside and rust proof, or if I should cut out a large section of the tunnel and rebuild it.

I was preparing to remove the forward section of the tunnel and frame head completely, replacing it with boxed ladder framing.

I really need to cut through the tunnel and see how it is constructed exactly.
Or find a good photograph here in the buggy section. LOL

Then I can decide better what I must do.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP

[Ulu]

How many of you Buggy Guys have seen SAE brake lines screwed into a DIN cylinder ?

When SAE and DIN join forces… somehow it worked & this thing stopped, however there was also brake fluid all over the floor LOL!

Does anybody remember when I had a silly idea that I was just going to patch up the wiring, get this licensed, and drive it for a little while?

Anyhow I’m not sure where the leakage came from but there was brake fluid on the floor and this car is going to get the hydraulics re-done all around.
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SS100 kit kar
1600cc DP