41 replies to this topic

[thoughtless]

So. I have had my VXT since new in 2003 and in that time I have had the cause to have the rear clamshell off maybe half a dozen times. And to be honest its a real faff

 

Ive had a lot of mods done to the car and have always wanted to track it more but I know that this will mean getting under the "bonnet" more and its been putting me off.

 

So I decided, in a moment of madness, to make the rear clamshell hinged.

 

The split is done around the exisitng shutline, under the lights and along the back under where the vauxhall badge is and the boot is separated off so that it remains mounted when the cover is lifted. Theoretically means you may be able to get a set of golf clubs in as you can acess the entire width. All necessary mods to ensure that its still supported are done. I had to remove the wheel arch liners and rebuild them in glass to be permanently (fixed) in place as the liners would just flop around. The mechanism is a working prototype out of ply and steel plate. Its a basic 4 bar linkage that creates lift and throw as the body comes up. Then refab the roll bar cover and split that with the seal part remaining fixed to the car for waterproofness and the rear part with light being attached to the clamshell to act as a support bridge across the car.

 

To get it to lift there are 4 screws in the cabin. Remove the bootlid, which I have replaced by one that I made in carbon so its light to get off (approx 1kg). Unscrew the fuel filler cap surround and then lift up and hold in place, currently with a pulley over the roof beam. 5 mins max.

 

As a project it has fulfilled its original purpose perfectly.

 

My work now is;

 

Fabricate the mechanism in something more substantial and better for facilitating access. Maybe carbon frame and SS / Alu for the hinge or maybe even gas struts that push it vertically then tilt. Tidy up the million holes that the work left in the boot. Clean up the finishes to some of the moulded parts. Fit quick release catches for toolless access.

Some more bracketing and supports and then some more seals and shims for reducing the occasional rattle.

Once all that is done I will create moulds for the entire rear clamshell and make it from Carbon kevlar. Then put the original back together.

 

I have all of the plans and the equipment  / materials etc but the the main problem is time. If there is anyone in the High Wycombe are who would be interested in helping out possibly with the plan of doing theirs once mine is complete then by all means let me know. I would appreciate the help.

 

 

cheers

 

Neil

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Edited by thoughtless, 27 June 2013 - 04:36 PM.

[techieboy]

Great job. You must have taken the brave pills and had three weetabix the day you cut that clam in half.

[Baron Von Scubadaddy]

bring it on !!!!! fantastic !

[Andrew aka Stuwy]

Mental!

 

Looks epic

[techieboy]

Would love to see some more pics of what's what and also what it looks like in road going format. Grab some more pics and either upload them into the Gallery or stick them up on Photobucket, instead of using up your attachment "entitlement" (which is stupidly small when it comes to photos).

[FLD]

Great job!

[Darcini]

Excellent stuff, more photos required ASAP!

[rob999]

::

[ianrm]

Excellent work. 

[GiGo]

Looks great, but as others have said brave man and more pics please

[Rickwoo118]

God you must have some skill. Looking good with all that hard work. Brave person!!

[Baron Von Scubadaddy]

What do you do about the fuel filler ?

 

fcuking brilliant job

getting access to the engine bay like that is so what this cars needs

[smiley]

What do you do about the fuel filler ?

I had the same thought. I ran that youtube on the v8 conversion with the hinge closing a dozen time, and still don't get it.

[techieboy]

What do you do about the fuel filler ?

I had the same thought. I ran that youtube on the v8 conversion with the hinge closing a dozen time, and still don't get it.

Unscrew the fuel filler cap surround and then lift up and hold in place

 

[thoughtless]

OK so Pics will be uploaded to Skydrive. Is that ok or does it need to be photobucket? Tried to get a video of the back going up but a bit difficult to hold rope and camera at same time. Will update post with link.

 

There was a lot of investigation done before cutting so I was pretty confident that it would work. Most of the cuts were down joints in the clamshell as its made in sections anyway. My backup plan was a bucket load of Upol to get it back together again.

 

The appearance of the car is exactly the same as when it was "normal". All shut lines still match up although some shims are still temporary so keep coming out and also there is a bit of touch up needed in some areas where I was a bit heavy handed but there are no visible cut lines. With time to finish off it will a bit of an invisible conversion. There is actually a really nice line all the way round which can be followed so that nothing is visible. So when you see the pics of it closed I am afraid all that you will see is a normal VX.

 

The 2 really tricky bits were;

 

the 4 bar linkage as it has to lift the back first and then tilt before dropping it. The curved back makes hinging a real bugger I had to remember way back to uni days to remember how to calculate 4 bar linkages. Not only that but the car has one of those big carbon (marmite) wings so the hinges also act as the reinforcement in the boot to prevent crushing.

 

The wheel arches. Had to fabricate the liners in glass and then fasten to what was the boot front. It was a bitch keep laying up, curing, fitting, trimming, laying up etc. Just trial and error until it works and no big gaps

 

I reckon now that I know what to do properly i.e. the cables to reroute and various "things" to remount slightly and have moulds for the wheel arches it wouldnt be too onerous a task to do it again.

[Baron Von Scubadaddy]

Could u do it in a weekend ?

if you had all the bits ?

 

Your have a line of vx's at your drive way

first stop yours

next stop lee and Joe sorry THE BATMAN.

It could make supercharging quicker and I reckon you

could get the sc cooler in the back some where in the void above the arch liners

and vent out the back or the top of the clam .

 

Even just making the hinges and and selling those would be worth doing

Knock up a set of 10...................

Edited by Baron Von Scubadaddy, 27 June 2013 - 10:12 PM.

[thoughtless]

Sorry, didnt see the question about the fuel filler. When I first did the conversion you had to take the 6 bolts out for the surround and  then lift off but it meant having the fuel cap off which I didnt really like for some strange reason. I suppose not a big deal as you certainly wouldnt be driving off with the back up. But my intention is to have it so that you dont need to take the filler cap off to dismount hence the fact that you can see a bit of the surround attached while I make the mod. If it doesnt work I will fix it back and go back to plan A.

[thoughtless]

To answer the time question. Its a question of practice I suppose. The first one took at least a week of studying joints and lines and planning. The hinge took ages but the measurements are there now and thats the trick with 4 bar links. The more times its done the quicker and I suppose cheaper it would become and its an exponential curve as with most things ... so I reckon, maybe not on the second one, but maybe by the third or fourth it could be done in a weekend.

 

The thing is that there is no real wait time, i.e. there are no parts to fab on site so its just a question of how many people working and how good are the procedures.

 

Once I have remade the hinge in a way that doesnt adversely affect the already pants boot space there would be no reason why I couldnt make more. I will have moulds, measurement and settings and I dont intend to be selfish so if it could be replicated I will def make more.

 

I have to say that now that I have done it I cant understand why the designers didnt do it in the first place.

[Claws]

This is outstanding, top effort!

[techieboy]

So when you see the pics of it closed I am afraid all that you will see is a normal VX.

That's kind of what I wanted you to say.