Building tube chassis - some input needed

[260BC]

Does it have to be 4WD? It would be a lot cheaper to use a FWD unit in the back and you will get good traction with the weight over the drive wheels, don't underestimate how good, the VW beetle beach buggies were excellent that way.

The whole vehicle will be a lot lighter too which has its own advantages.

[Datto-Zed]

No, doesn't have to be 4WD. I do like the idea of it being 4WD though. I'm more interested in making something that can get around fast, than something that will just be sideways everywhere. The corolla has a open center diff that is electronically lockable. If what I've been led to believe is correct locked will be good on dirt, and when open and at speed it should put all the power to the rear. That way you get the best of both worlds I suppose. Correct me if I'm wrong on any of that.

[THE ASH]

well there was kinda a wrecked VR4 under my house for 4 months :D

I like the idea, my mate Jas has a mig ya know & loves stupid toys like this, we can discuss more at the dynoday if ya like

[Datto-Zed]

Your VR4 running gear pushing 600kg on dirt would be ahh.....interesting. :D
Will have a chat to you/jason on saturday.

[HoonBoy]

From what I have heard, the CV's on the 4WD corolla's are too weak to handle a 4AGZE, so they probably won't stand up to the punishment you are looking at.

Personally, I would go for a RWD setup and get it right, then if you like doing it, try a 4WD version. It wil be much easier to fix up any errors in your first RWD setup and if setup correctly, it will be plenty fast.

[psi999]

A GTiR as a donor car would be fun, 179odd KW on tap (which i am sure with a decent exhaust would turn into 200kw).

Or even a 105kw N14/5 SR20DE fitted with a GTiR gearbox would be fun, and fairly unbreakable (gearbox wise).

Either way you go sounds like an interesting project.

[Datto-Zed]

Jon: Excellent idea! Dunno why I didn't think of that.
My mate ('Willy' on here) has one and it's blast. I suppose there would be some $ in it though. Maybe if someone locally wrote one off......buy it from auction, sell off the motor, interior etc. Then build it up using all of it's drive like and a SR20DE.

Seriously I think we'd kill ourselves VERY quickly with 200kW pushing 600kg on dirt. :D

[psi999]

GTiR front cuts are really not all that expensive, and you can buy my spare GTiR box too :D

The axles and cv compoentry is very strong too, could also use the brakes (while not crash hot on a GTiR would be great on something that light) as well.

Beauty of a GTiR engine is the stock big turbo and quad T/B’s, crank up the boost a bit more (with a decent fuel pump, exhaust and relocate the stock intercooler to a better flowing spot) and you will have yourself an easy 220kw with the reliability of stock motor/injection, with the added benefit of low end response (hello Quad throttle bodies)..... but could be a bit too powerful so i understand why the DE would be a better option lol.

So if you were able to grab a N14/5 SR20DE and a GTiR box you could use a lot of stuff from other nissan models (ie U12 pintara axles and hubs).... all you would really need is a GTiR rear end, or something with the right diff ratio that can be easily found. I would not even bother trying to find a cut.

[psi999]

Thinking more about this you would also need a GTiR clutch/flywheel as well

Clutch would also have to be hydraulically operated (which can be again pinched from a U12 Pintara)

Starter motor would be GTiR, but N14/5 may fit

Basically all the parts you will need will be found on N14's or U12's

[Datto-Zed]

Ohh the evil thoughts of 2kg/HP on dirt.

A U12 atessa import (either sr or ca) would also be a good base.

Hey you never know, since I'll be working next year, I might just shell out the extra $ needed for such a setup (GTi-R). Maybe even fabricate my own double wishbone suspension setup as suggested by GTSboy earlier. Who knows.

Maybe, just do a super budget, low powered RWD, simple one first for some practice....then get into something a bit more complex.

[psi999]

I was thinking about this more on the train this morning and came up with another good suggestion.

Suzuki Cultus..... The most powerfull (factory) 1.3L G13B with full AWD drivetrain.

Great engine that loves big revs, with the drivetrain to suit!

[Datto-Zed]

Nice small car too....would be light as hell.
I'll keep my eyes out for that.

Thanks.

[Nero]

what's the budget and time factor? What sort of equipment do you have?

[Nero]

Might I suggest something along the lines of this: http://www.constructorscarclub.org.n...atprofile.html
also have a look at the CCC site...its good.
I have spaceframe design resources, but how much info do you want. There is an FEA adaptation of Grape on the net for spaceframes, but seems overkill for what you want

[Datto-Zed]

Budget: Not huge. Hence wanting to use as much of a donor vehicle as possible.

Time: Thinking, planning etc until early december when I finish with uni for the year (and can start working). After that I can start putting some hours into design, then later in the when I'm finished with design and have the funds to buy the equipment I will need (eg MIG), then I start building. It's all pretty flexible anyway.

Equipment: I have a good set of tool for working on cars, but I'll need to buy/borrow a fair bit for the purposes of fabrication. I should have access to the equpiment in the engineering workshop at uni next year should I need it.

At this stage I suppose I don't need anything too in depth on space frame design, just enough to get my planning on the right path, give me an idea of what will and wont work. Later I'll need something going into more depth. I suppose I could get away without putting too much time into the design, but I would like to do it anyway. No doubt this project will lead onto something a bit more ambitious down the track where I'll need some more detailed design resources.

Looking at the CCC site just made me realise, I never even thought about putting a body on this thing!

Thanks for the info Nero. Any resources you can point me toward will be greatly appreciated.

Justin