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After a full year of autocross competition in two different series here in Ontario, I decided I needed more of an edge to be competitive. So instead of doing the smart thing and taking a driving course, I thought, "hey my car needs to be shorter. Let's see about 8 inches will do..."
... the trusty tools off the trade came out in full force. It was an demo of epic proportions, starring Ryobi Reciprocating Saw as "The Eraser" and the Husky Cut Off Wheel as "The Slicer". These two experts made quick work of the poor innocent victim.
Obviously that center piece was just dead weight, now the tricky bit of lining it back up. If you look here you can see that there was indeed about 8 inches of gap between the back of the seats and the rear bulkhead
Having it in two pieces makes cleanup a breeze. But wait! Let's see here I think if I cut here and then cut over here and then cut there, yes I think it just might work. I can make it narrower...
...ya that's it. Clearly the car was just too darn big. Really if 2 pieces are good then 4 pieces must be better.OK so let's take stock. I went in for a little off the top and they cut the sides as well. That's 8" shorter and 4" narrower. For those of you paying attention, the chassis is now book width, well starting half way back anyway and 4" shorter than a standard chassis. To do this with a 4" wider chassis starting at the front of the scuttle I cut at an angle, to make it a straight shot to the back of the chassis from the front of the scuttle back, instead of the rear of the scuttle back.
From the left we can see that there are some additional tubes added to the rollbar structure. The cross tube is mandatory for the series I run in here and while I was at it I added a brace down to the passenger footwell. The engine compartment remains the same as does the front suspension.
From the right we can see where the tube terminates in the footwell. The rear of the chassis now is quite different, however, the tray that the differential sat in has not be changed, it will bolt right back in.
From the back now a standard looking rear. You know I allways really liked the way my car looked from the front but the extra 4 inches at the rear was just too darn wide. Well that is just the start. I need to make new rear control arms, shorten the two half shafts 2" each, shorten my drive shaft 8" again, shorten the side body panels and narrow the rear ones. I am also going to have to make a new scuttle, this time not out of steel, the old one was too darn heavy. Stay tuned.