Norfolk Tornado

[Andy Green]

Hi Keith,
Yes I’ve been following your Ultima rebuild and I’ve always been impressed by the quality of their bodies. It’s clear that the Tornado body is not one of its better features and all the ‘preferred’ builds seem to have all the issues I’m finding resolved when it goes to the bodyshop.
Good luck with the IVA on Thursday
Regards
Andy

 

[Andy Green]

I’ve spent the last couple of years squeezing between the passenger side & the garage wall, but I now need to sort out the passenger door and open it fully. So over the weekend I refitted all the suspension & wheels and dropped it to the ground to move it over a bit. It’s the first time on it’s wheels since I bought it exactly 5 years ago!

The car’s got a nice stance and is another major physiological step forward. It’s amazing what makes a grown man happy. Also the foul between the rear trailing arm & the exhaust is OK at ride height.

I also made some infill panels to go between the chassis and the front clam. The rear section around the scuttle will be sealed with a section of f/glass sheet bonded to the underside of the front clam.

Central brake light has also been added to sit below the rear screen. I managed to find a very slim LED one that fits within the moulding and shouldn’t be too obtrusive when not in use.
Regards
Andy

 

[René]

looking good on it's wheels, also very nicely done that central brake light, can't remember seeing that before.
so next summer means driving it?

 

[Ian Anderson]

Hi Andy

Yes isn't it amazing what a diifference happens when it sits on it's own wheels?

I remember the first time I got into mine on it's wheels and feeling the suspension "settle" with the extra weight as opposed to be solid on the build table / axle stands

I like that extra brake light. Also thought about doing one but never did.
How about some additional indicators too so that when the rear clip is open the hazard lights can be seen? If not for IVA you can only open the rear clip a small amount to enable you to check oil and water! And it needs to be a "tool required" job to get the rear clip open further

Ian

 

[Brett James-McCall]

Andy - rear brake light looks great You got there before me!

Did you have to mould anything to get it to fit in?

 

[Andy Green]

Hi Rene,
Yes I’m currently aiming to get it IVA’d next year & then Classic LeMans in ‘14

Ian,
regarding the rear a warning note similar to below will get round the issue of rear light visibility when the clam is opened

Brett,
No special moulding was required, just cut a slot and a bit of filler at the edges to blend it in. It’s held in with a M5 screw glued to back of the light and a plate bonded into the bodywork.
Regards
Andy

 

[Mark]

"regarding the rear a warning note similar to below will get round the issue of rear light visibility when the clam is opened"

If true, that sounds like a 'Top Tip' to me. Never heard of that before Andy.

 

[Jon Briggs]

"regarding the rear a warning note similar to below will get round the issue of rear light visibility when the clam is opened"

If true, that sounds like a 'Top Tip' to me. Never heard of that before Andy.

IVA manual, Section 20, Required standard section 5, Part C.

It pays to read

Looking good Andy, as always.

 

[Brett James-McCall]

Andy,
Can you send me the part number of that light then? I have a MG F high level brake light, but I may be trying to over complicate things as usual...

If you are going to get stickers made up of that... let me know how much and I'll send you some cash

Brett

 

[Mark]

IVA manual, Section 20, Required standard section 5, Part C.

It pays to read

I consider myself suitably humiliated Jonny! :thumbsup:

 

[NJ]

Hi Andy,

Thought I'd reply on your build site rather than Keith's. Being a complete engineering oik I'm a little reluctant to post my efforts on the Forum, but on reflection perhaps seeing my many (laughable) attempts to get things right might 'encourager les autres'. If I can do it anyone can, given enough enthusiasm. You've persuaded me!

I too am impressed with your high brake light. Where does it come from?

Neil

 

[Paulbav]

Hi Andy,

Thought I'd reply on your build site rather than Keith's. Being a complete engineering oik I'm a little reluctant to post my efforts on the Forum, but on reflection perhaps seeing my many (laughable) attempts to get things right might 'encourager les autres'. If I can do it anyone can, given enough enthusiasm. You've persuaded me!

I too am impressed with your high brake light. Where does it come from?

Neil

Go on, please do. I'm a mechanical numpty but will be starting my build thread soon as my SGT arrives (plan to order in Dec) the more examples I see the more scared/confident I get:uneasy:

 

[Andy Green]

Hi Brett,
Don’t know what the part number as it was off Ebay, but it off a late V/hall Vectra (C, non estate). They seem to be available in clear or red, although I’ve got a clear one, but a red one would blend in better in this area. I’ll probably look to get a red one or get some red tint paint now I know it fits OK.

Regarding the warning labels, I’m still playing with the wording & layout and will have to do a similar one for the brakes (I’ve a bias pedal box fitted), so will keep you posted
Regards
Andy

 

[Bill Musarra]

Andy,
I like your central brake lite. I had purchased an add on one from Demon Tweaks or one of the other popular UK sites. It has all the functions of a do all lite(turn stop and emergency flasher).It does OK, but hangs down and blocks some of the view of the injectors(you can't see much else out the window!). I believe there are some American lights from spoilers to trunk mount LEDs that should fit the bill for us.Will have to research this a bit. I would like to do something similar to what you have.

Bill

 

[Andy Green]

Glad you like the ideas of the brake light position, but in all fairness it’s something I discussed with Brett a few years ago

On reflection an easier solution would be to buy some red strip LED’s and simply stick them to the surface (the ones I’ve looked at even have self adhesive backings). As long as you have an E-marked rear screen, there should be no issues for the IVA, or leave it disconnected until after the test
Regards
Andy

 

[Andy Green]

A bit more filling & sanding. Fitting the door seals has moved door gaps around a bit (as expected). The driver’s door has come out OK, but on the passenger side it lifted the door ¼” about the roof line. Still working out the best way to improve this, as I don’t really want to fill the roof to meet the door

Had another go at getting a decent transition between the passenger door & the dash. The gaps a bit tight at the top, but I can live with it now and I don’t have any more glassing to do with my head inside the door!

Also made up the rest of the front wheel arch closure panels

Regards
Andy

 

If running the repeater indicator wiring Andy consider running this route. Picture doesen't do it justice and now it's undersealed it blends in. Indicators are very small wires.
Stick on Cable clips are...... how can I say " CRAP "

SHOW US SOME PICTURES OF THAT TROUBLESOME DOOR !
You should not need to fill the roof

 

[Andy Green]

Hi Keith,
I’ve routed my wires for my third brake light in a similar manner you’ve shown and I’ll probably re-route the front indicators at a later date as they do look a bit untidy.

I completely agree with your technical assessment that stick-on cable clips are CRAP – in there standard form. However I’ve removed the self adhesive pad and used a adhesive & surface primer designed for gluing in windscreens. Now the tie-wrap and the fixing base will fail before the bond breaks between the base and the fibreglass.

I’ll sort out some photos of the door issues at the weekend
Regards
Andy

 

[Andy Green]

I managed to get some time in the workshop over the weekend and had another go at the fit of the passenger door. The issue was there’s very little space for the door seal up the A-post and this was lifting the door. Fortunately I was able to trim the seal to give some more room. It still sits proud of the roof line at the front by 1-2mm, but is virtually flush at the rear, so a light skim of filler will fit it
Regards
Andy

 

Hi Andy, Even if your lucky and things line up well first time they always seem to later get out of alignment again. It seems that a door or a panel somewhere will give you a hard time but in the end it all seems to come together. I think I said before that GT40 bodies who evers they are are buggers to get right.
What you can't do, can be done at the body shop stage anyway.
Looks good to me...