Homemade CFRP mid engine sports car

Neil

Supporter
update on progress into 2024 .. it didn't start very well, with Covid followed by Pneumonia i basically lost all of January :(

I'm better now and I've been working on two things, designing the suspension uprights and building the seats. For the seats i need to make my own because off the shelf ones won't fit, and also because why make things easy ..

I've been building a pattern of the seat from wood/cardboard/plaster/body-filler. Nearly done now, then will take a glass fibre mould, then will make some CFRP seats via vacuum infusion. The seats will be fixed to the body, i intend to use adjustable pedals rather than adjustable seats.

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Are you looking for front or rear uprights? -Neil
 

Joel K

Supporter
Glad you’re feeling better, always look forward to your build updates. Keep up the great work!
 

Neil

Supporter
Both Neil, my suspension is my own layout so i need to fabricate some. I have designed some that i'm looking to get waterjet cut
Paul, I listed a pair of GTP rear suspension uprights that you may find by using "search".

As far as front uprights are concerned, the Ford Mustang II front suspension geometry is very popular with home builders for good reason- the geometry is excellent. This suspension was designed by Chuck Weiss when he was at Ford Motor Company. I had the opportunity to discuss this design with Chuck many years ago and I selected it for my black Mirage race car. Although I built the car to the SCTA (Bonneville) rule book, it is fully capable of acquitting itself nicely on a road course.

The rear suspension is my own design, using Porsche 996 rear uprights and Porsche 928-S4 brake rotors & Brembo calipers. This video may be helpful:

I used "Suspension Analyzer" software to analyze both F & R geometry.
 

Neil

Supporter
Both Neil, my suspension is my own layout so i need to fabricate some. I have designed some that i'm looking to get waterjet cut
Suspension geometry is a VERY complex subject and without the capability of computer analysis, it can go horribly wrong. Considering how much we all spend on building our projects, the cost of good software is a price we pay for not winding up with an ill-handling project. Lots of factors such as caster angle, wheel width, or anti-dive add to the difficulty of designing a good suspension.
 
Thanks Neil, agree with you 100%. Computer analysis is my day job so this is something i'm comfortable with, in fact its a little bit one of the reasons behind my build - I spend all day developing cars only in the virtual world so this is my chance to satisfy my desire to get my hands dirty. Once i've finished this body and chassis work (i.e. structural work) i'm leaving my comfort zone behind, areas such as hydraulics/fuel systems/cooling/electrics/engine&transmission etc will be quite new to me so all advice with them is very welcome !
 

Neil

Supporter
Thanks Neil, agree with you 100%. Computer analysis is my day job so this is something i'm comfortable with, in fact its a little bit one of the reasons behind my build - I spend all day developing cars only in the virtual world so this is my chance to satisfy my desire to get my hands dirty. Once i've finished this body and chassis work (i.e. structural work) i'm leaving my comfort zone behind, areas such as hydraulics/fuel systems/cooling/electrics/engine&transmission etc will be quite new to me so all advice with them is very welcome !
 

Neil

Supporter
I neglected to add that although I used the Porsche 996 five-link geometry in the rear of my black Mirage, I found that it was a bit "off" so I modified it a little to make it better. I suspect that Porsche specified those suspension pick-up mounting points to compensate for their rubber bushing compression under load. I used all spherical rod end bearings so compression was not a factor for me..
 
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