Tag Archives: 4age

Panhard rod

Having fitted the anti-tramp bars that made a huge difference to the handling it was time to knock up a Panhard rod. Because of the non standard tank with the extra wide lip surrounding it, plus the non standard over axle exhaust there was no chance of an off the shelf Panhard rod fitting into the small space between them.  Therefore I had to do it my way – the hard way – again.

The main upright from the body that the rod attaches to was angled to fit between the exhaust and fuel tank. Even this still needed another cut and offsetting by 5mm.  Once the upright was in place the side and rear mounting stays could be fabricated to just miss the bits that wouldn’t normally be in the way. The easiest part to make was the bracket mounting on the axle because there was nothing in the way.

Foolishly I didn’t think to take any photos until after I’d dropped it back on the  floor. Instead I have a pic of the black wrinkle finish cam covers that I’ve just fitted. These have had the lettering removed and look fairly subtle but I do wonder if they’ve just a bit too plain.

4age-midget-cam-covers

Seating

The other week I managed to get the wings and bonnet in primer but found some residual paint that reacted with the primer. They’ll need rubbing down in a few spots and a barrier coat applied before they’re due for the topcoat next week.

In the meantime attention has turned to the seating and this is where the fun starts. Being 6’2″ I need to sit as low as possible to keep my head below the top of the screen and below the roll bar. Space for long arms is another requirement so a seat that is tilted as far back as possible will help however the presence of the roll bar is preventing this with the majority of seats.

As I have a pair of Elise bare shells they’ll be initially fitted until I find the perfect seat. The seat runners are from an old pair of TVR seats that were in the shed and fitted with just a new rear mounting hole drilled through the runner base.  The frame to take the Elise seats was fabricated from some 3mm x 75mm steel and bolted to the top of the runners.

This is the drivers seat showing how it has been angled to clear the side of the car and it points towards the pedals rather than being offset to the left.  Having a Porsche 964 where the pedals are offset to the left I’m used to offset pedals but here I’m lined up nicely with them but have an offset sheeting wheel.  It is called character.

Elise seat offset to the left
Elise seat offset to the left
drivers-seat-a
View showing drivers seat in relation to the roll bar.