Well I finally did it.

[Colin Dalzell]

I've been skulking around on this forum for 6 months now. Living vicarously off of you guys the whole time. But now it's my turn - I am a new GT40 owner.
I officially ordered a kit from Peter Ransom at GT40 Australia. All I have at the moment is a picture of the promised chassis but plan to keep a "build site" active throughout.
I will have tons of questions as the day for delivery draws near - probably late March - and over the many happy months of the build phase.
I'll keep you all posted.
Look forward to discussing more!

Colin

[ November 17, 2002: Message edited by: dazzle ]

 

congrats,hoping to follow you soon.

 

[Guest]

Way to go Colin! I am not sure if GT40Aus has updated their uprights yet or not. But if you'd like to use 88-92 Corvette rear calipers on your car which eliminates the PITA little drum parking breaks, drop me a line. It is very easy to do and makes it SOOOOOOO much easier and a more elegant solution. I used their uprights on my car and learned the trick from a DRB owner in Nashville, TN who grew up with Dennis R. Bretton (DRB) the originator of GT40Aus.

This guy's car is very nice and has some very good features. I think they have one of the best dashes in the business. Did you order the Mk III side windows? This is another fairly unique feature of GT40Aus. Their front end is so tightly build that you might want to seriously consider creating escape routes for the air coming in through the radiator (in addition to the nostrils.) Bob's front access panel did a lot of lifting at speed. I am not sure if this was due to the way he did it or because of the design, just little something to keep in mind. I do hope you also ordered the roll bar option. THIS IS A MUST INMHO!

Are you going to use a Porsche G50? I'd love to take a look at the shifter design. This is something that is pretty difficult to check our in a finished car. Anyway, your in for fun time and look forward to seeing some posts from you. I am sure you'll have questions from time to time, but be sure and let us know about any tricks you develop in the DIY section.

 

[Jim Glickenhaus]

Best of luck and congrats!

 

[Alain Vanhollebeke]

Congrats Colin,
I ordered my kit from New Zealand the last week of August.

Next to saving up the money for such a project,,,,,, the waiting is the hardest part!

 

[Colin Dalzell]

Lynn, the current chassis is designed for the pre 88 Corvette components. I did get a note from you some months back about using the 88-92 calipers and it's on my list to research - later.

As for the side windows - thanks for the heads up - don't know, will check.

I don't plan on racing so I'm not sure at what speed the front starts to lift. Another thing to check.

Yes I did order the integrated roll bar with rear stays as per the photo below.

I do plan to use a Porsche G50. I'll post shifter pics once I get them.

I am certain I'll have a ton of questions and in return I will post any lessons learned (the good, the bad and the ugly!).

Alain, I am already counting the days and it's only been 1 week!

[ November 18, 2002: Message edited by: dazzle ]

 

[Bill Bayard]

Colin,

Congratulations!

You don't need to worry about the front end "inflation" problem, common in early DRB's. The nostril panel on my car is so tight, that virtually all air entering through the radiator inlet, exits through the nostril panel. The nostril panel has a centerline air diverter which directs the airflow through the twin nostrils, as well. The only spot that air can enter is around the radiator inlet/outlet tubes and this is a gap of only 1/16"!
If you survive the "wait", let me know if I can be of any help.
Best of luck!

Bill

 

[Peter Delaney]

Hi Colin - welcome aboard !!

Re the points raised by Lynn :

- My DRB kit is about vintage 1998-9 & has the rear uprights to suit the '88 brakes, so yours should have these (best to double check with PR).

- I have the MKIII side windows & will run with this very practical setup most of the time. I mounted the glass frame surrounds to the door window openings by means of helicoils in the door & bolts thru the frame - this will allow me to remove the MKIII setup & swap it with standard 1-piece perspex windows as required (practicality vs originality).

- Good to see you got the roll-bar up front - mine was part built when I bought it & has no roll-bar. It is going to be an interesting challenge to fit now that the body is bonded onto the chassis (cutting holes in the rear of the body glass near the window, etc), but we'll get there.

- PR has an optional "deep nostril" panel available - this has the normal triangular outlets on top, but has deep scoops that go right to the bottom of the radiator. Solves all cooling issues & high pressure under the clip, and also provides a bit more down force at speed. Bill Bayard has this setup on his 351 DRB & seems to be very happy.

- The G50 trans seems, by all reports, to be able to handle a lot of punishment. PR has developed a nice linkage which is a combination of a rotating rod on the LHS of the tunnel to the back of the trans (to get the left/right movement) & a cable (to get the front/back movement). Mine seems fairly slick, even at this stage with clutch engaged & no engine running.

The waiting is probably the worst bit, but before you know it, you'll be hassling about freight, duty, etc, & then into it !!

Kind Regards,

Peter D.

 

[Bill Musarra]

Collin

My DRB will be here on or abouot the 5th of January ( I hope ). As its one of the early units ( car #5 )and not complete, I will probably have some of the interesting problems mentioned. I plan to disassemble the car, rebuild it, and straighten out some of the problems along the way. If I am lucky ( big if ), the car will be complete by summer. Let me know how yours is comming along. I have saved numerous pages over the last year from the forum on just about any issue you may have with your unit. Drop me a line from time to time.
Bill Musarra

 

Congratulations Colin,

I have been researching much more than that and I have narrowed my search to two cars, but still have some homework to do.

The roll bar is a good idea, but i don´t know what do you might have to do to flip over this car!

Congrats again and best luck.

Javier