Ultralite Buggy Build

ChaosMS

Active member
Well I thought I would post a few shots of the buggy now that she has the correct springs on!!

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts the owner of AVO told me point blank he wasnt going to allow me to talk to a technical person to ensure I had worked out the spring rates correctly - I will NEVER use AVO again and I would advise everyone else to do the same!! thanks to the guys on this forum (Steve and Pat from Team X) who put me in touch with Dave at Dampertech, who has been FANTASTIC nothing was problem always helpful and knew his stuff without a shadow of a doubt - So thanks Dave ;D your a star ;D

So here you go sits spot on, on the new springs with massive clearance now!!

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Shot of the rear spring (145lbs 23 inches long)
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Shot of the front spring (320lbs 23 inches long)
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Oh and the slightly modified column surround, this still needs work (blocking up the hole on the other side where the other stalk was)
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ChaosMS

Active member
Been busy this weekend and a couple of evenings this week, got myself a full 8x4 sheet of correx board and created templates for all the aluminium body panels that are going to be fitted to the buggy also finished the access hatch for the filler neck box and hatch for the dashboard and the wiring for the lamp bar (now fitted with another anderson connector)

here you go:-
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I have also managed to slice up the truck wheel arches ready for plastic welding / trimming and fitting ;D
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Been busy again!! - cut out all the panels and now its fitting time so here are a few pics, its a slow process but im happy with the finished look ;D
Mounting braces in place for the curved alloy nose panel - alloy bonnet shown in place too (not held down yet)
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nose panel in place
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Lower nose panel in place
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side panels in place
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I have also finished the front bulkhead mounts now too so no more flapping about !! ;D ;D - next jobs are to fit the Aerocatches to the bonnet and also some angle to stop it sliding left to right then the other side panels ;D
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Well Steve and I had a cracking Sunday running the buggy around college and I thought I'd share a little of it with you :) Enjoy!! (Because we did ;D ;D )

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ChaosMS

Active member
Hi All!! Another quick update been busy doing the alloy body panels and fitting the bonnet catches here are a few shots-
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So Ive finished one side now and with a bit of luck I will get the other side finished this weekend ;D ;D
 

ChaosMS

Active member
A little update everyone - I have managed to locate a Trike mudguard manufacturer and one of the mudguards he makes is a really good fit !!

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What do you think?
Been doing a little more welding today added some of the brackets to the passenger side to hold the alloy panels, before the snow started!!

Rich
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Hello All!! Its been a REAL long time since I posted, lots of things have happened in the last 18 months+ (new job / Got a dog etc etc) anyway I have been working in the background to try and get the buggy finished, and a few weeks back got to the point where I could say that the whole buggy could be stripped down ready for its final paint (and also to finish any welding I couldn't get to with it all together), I know this sounds crazy but I have taken the whole machine apart stripped every last nut and bolt off finished any welding and applied a final layer of undercoat to anything that needed undercoat.

I have a few pics of the chassis sitting on stands at my local college (Thanks Steve ;) ) just after I finished the final coat of primer all over:
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Since these pics Ive also top coated all the suspension arms and re-built them ready for re-installation, stripped the front hubs down to paint the calipers etc and painted and wrapped the dashboard.

The paint I'm using is a two pack self leveling brush paint called POR15 HARDNOSE, it seems to work REALLY well on tube and once cured (3 days) is impervious to brake fluid / paint stripper/ fuel etc, it cures faster and harder if there is a high level of moisture in the air during its curing period (so a cold garage is perfect) and is rock solid, the only issue ive had so far if the flat areas of the dashboard which I could not get right it seemed to set badly on it (3 attempts) so in the end I flatted the finish down (still has multiple coats and vinyl wrapped the front and top face in a 4D Carbon finish, and Im very happy with the overall finish (to the point where ive wrapped the bonnet and nose panels and I intend to wrap all the side panels)

Anyway hopefully I will get some more top coat applied this weekend then I can start to re-assemble!!!! (It took two full days to strip it down and label everything / box everything as it came off so I wonder how long its going to take to put it all back together!! ::)

Cheers Rich
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Hello All and Happy new Year!!

Had some time off over Christmas so Ive been busy on the buggy, getting some paint on the chassis / hubs/ calipers! - anyway here are a few pics of the chassis in the POR15 Hardnose Red

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A mate of mine (Another Richard) came over before Christmas and helped me get the chassis off the axle stands and back onto its suspension - I made up some shock dummies to put the chassis at its highest point and keep it there during the painting of the chassis (so that I could use a crawler to move about underneath to paint the bottom of the chassis)

Anyway I'm pretty pleased with the results so far, I need to paint some of the other bolt on bits (which means I need to purchase yet another tin of Hardnose!! ::) )

So all I've got to do now is put it back together!! LOL :D ;D

Rich
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Cheers Danny, ive also finished the Dashboard with several coats of red POR15 and also a carbon wrap - here you go!
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The instrument loom is in and sorted just need to tidy up the main fuse box and install that then it can be re-fitted!!

Rich
 

Danny

Administrator
Very nice... i will be pushing hard in 2 weeks i think :)

Cant wait to get this buggy running

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
 

ChaosMS

Active member
HI All, Been busy finishing the panels off now with the 4D carbon wrap, very happy with the finish - here are a few photos of the frame with one set of side panels attached - cut out in the panel near the suspension tower is the magnetic charge socket.

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ChaosMS

Active member
Back with another update, had a few days off work over the last couple of weeks and made a bit of progress on the re-build, here are a few pics!!

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So all the body panels are finished and fitted, painted the additional parts like all the lamp brackets (both front and rear) and the roof lamp bar and got them all refitted and then applied all the rubber edging needed for its test!
Also re-fitted and edged the front bulkhead and floor, then fitted all the harness eyelets back in

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removed the shock bars now and fitted the proper shocks back in along with all the lamps front and rear and final fitted the rear lighting loom and the upper loom for the roof lights - I'm working on the basis that what goes on is not coming off again!!

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You can just make out the new alloy firewall behind the fuel tank and the sump guard - which isnt really a sump guard as its only 3mm alloy - so its more like a protector to keep crap away from the shifter mechanism - good view of all the
rear lamps now back in place again with protective edging all round the backplate, still have a couple of bolt dome covers to put back on

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Another rear view where you can see the upper firewall that protects the back of the passenger seat from the exhaust manifold heat - cleaned and edged - you would not believe how much rubber edging and contact adhesive i'm going through!!

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Internal shot of the fuel tank prior to the refitting of the internal firewall sections and filler box, just need to run the cable from the fuel sender back to the fuel gauge now (its already in the gauge loom so just a connection job)
Center tunnel painted and re-fitted shroud at the back is for the handbrake I have another for the front to cover the gear stick mechanism but I need to make an alloy surround for it first as there is nothing to bolt the shroud cover to!! - so a little bit of alloy should sort it

Anyway thats it for now, next job is to finish off the gauge loom and wire the tank then I can re-fit the firewall - also have to paint the radiator mounting and seat mounts then they can also be refitted
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Here are a few pics of the engine after a clean, full service (including plugs / filters / timing belt / all vacuum pipes / all water and fuel pipes / clutch / thrust bearing / oil seals / gaskets etc plus silver block paint for the main block

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Timing cover also got a painted Suzuki logo added to the top to replace the stickers!

Anyway painting the gearbox and fitting new driveshaft seals this weekend plus various other jobs so should have engine ready for re-fit by the end of the weekend

Rich
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Hi All, quick update on the buggy progress - there has been a bit!

Got the engine re-fitted and sorted out all the electrics through the center tunnel, connected up the handbrake and brake warning light from same. I've also made the guards to stop people sticking their fingers where they shouldnt!! And also to keep the SVA man happy!! - there are two main side panels shown here before paint
Passenger side:-
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and drivers side with cutout for the filler box:-
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then built ones for the rear to stop anyone putting fingers onto the main exhaust pipework (shown here painted and fitted) and also built two to protect the radiator, I added 8mm steel bar to the edges to make sure they will pass SVA
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Also re-built and painted the rod to cable gear change adapter box
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So this is what she looks like at the moment:-
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With a bit of luck and fine weather I will be able to make the pulley cover this weekend and start on the wheel arch brackets then she is done as far as fabrication goes!!

Its getting closer to the SVA!
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Managed to get some more done on the buggy over the last couple of weeks, here are a few pics of the new pulley cover (now painted gloss black) and the rear wheel arch brackets completed with one of the wheel arches fitted and finished complete with carbon wrap and rubber edging fitted!

Pulley cover:-
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the rear wheel arch brackets:-
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Brackets are mostly 25mm x 5mm thick bar with the edges rounded to 2.5mm radius, with a couple of 8mm Rivnuts in the top edge to allow the arch to bolt on

The finished drivers side wheel arch:-
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Still need to fit the reflectors to the back of the rear arches (need to find some too)

Ive also built the front wheel arch brackets now but not taken any photos yet! - will post some more shots once ive painted and fitted the front brackets and arches!
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Hi All, been busy again finished off all the wheel arches edged them all and added a layer of underseal to the glass underside of each one, I also finished off all the rewiring of the rear end and re-fitted all the braking components paying special attention to the balance bar setup. anyway here are a few pics, the alloy thing sat on top of the spare wheel on the roof is the rear under guard which I have not re-fitted

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just got to do all the fluids to sort, and finish off putting the fuse box and electrics back together which is almost there now then i can fire her back up and and take her for a test run!!
 

ChaosMS

Active member
Hi All - So I thought I'd post some pics from the IVA Test the buggy recently went through, these pics are from Carlisle Test Center, the final few pics are the bits I had to fix prior to the resit which was last Friday, so far I've done over 360 miles and I don't have a registration yet!!

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This first pic is in the IVA test building (separate from the main VOSA station, as you can see its a tight fit on the ramps! - The chap stood next to me in the yellow overalls is Andrew who runs all the IVA tests, the other guy was there as an observer really. so the first hiccup was that the buggy would not fit on the speed rollers which are built into the floor behind the ramps, so due to this the buggy would have to be driven and a GPS speed reading used to gauge if the vehicle speedo was off and needed adjusting (it was ok )
It was also at this point on he ramps that ANdrew wanted to know if the fuel tank had been correctly earthed, if you dont have photographic evidence to show the earthing point then you need to show him by removing panels, luckily as this is documented in the IVA manual i took multiple photos of the tank be re-fitted after paint showing the earth point and the route of the earth cable - so all was good and we got through that bit!
Bonnet was also removed here to allow access for Andrew to visually inspect the brake cylinders, battery box, standard of wiring etc

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Still up on the ramps (Note look on my face "Is this good or bad or what??") and the buggy is being very closely inspected, checking joints, suspension mounts position of components and verifying nothing fouls - also checked that I had the "do not adjust the bias bar" text as per the manual, printed and stuck near the master cylinders, along with the correct identification sticker for the brake fluid near the reservoir, this was also the point that the VIN number was checked to ensure its in the correct place (Drivers side - Front) and was correctly marked into the frame (I had originally stamped this into the frame but I was concerned that it was not as clear as it could be due to the fact it was stamped into round tube - so i had a local jeweler engrave a bit of 5mm flat bar and then welded that into the frame - with a continuous weld seam all the way around.

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Almost done on the ramps now, rear suspension was checked, all cable locations and mounting checked, filler to fuel tank etc, then the buggy went up into the air with me in it and all the brake pipes were inspected, how they were mounted and then i depressed the brake pedal several times to make sure there were no leaks, hand brake was also operated here to verify a mechanical operation at the hub end, general build quality was inspected underneath the vehicle to ensure nothing was loose etc.
Seat mounts were also inspected from under the vehicle whilst it was up in the air - all was good so we continued on!!
At this point I must point out I had no idea if I was failing everything, both Andrew and the Observer were not saying much! (That was soon to change)

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With the buggy back on the ground the odd plywood cone thing came out to work out where the floor line was so that the external projections could be done, this took a really long time and every area was covered including above the roofline (so the air intake was tested) - this is where we hit an issue with the rear edge of the air filter which did not have a 2.5mm radius, and the clips holding it and the upper silicone tube in place also failed - not a major issue the clips just needed rotating and some rubber edging needed applying to the rear edge of the air filter, by the time we got to the rear of the buggy there were acouple of points that needed edging applying mostly the rear hub adapters and also the adjusters for the rear shocks

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with the external projections completed and only a couple of minor fixes needed it was time to check the wheel arches, this involved the massive clear plastic guide shown here, checking the arches stop and start at the correct positions and that they dont terminate more than 100mm above the wheel center, all passed so on we went to the next stage
 

ChaosMS

Active member
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Next it was the turn of the internal projections to be verified, and we hit an issue straight off with the little plastic fog light switch which didnt have a 2.5mm radius on the rocker itself, so that was a fail - not an issue just needed to change the switch to a flush mounted one, if the fog light switch was closer to the steering wheel by about 50mm it would of passed as it would of been in the steering wheel exclusion zone

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Continuing the internal projections the next issue was the steering wheel, I had made a pad for the center which was stuck in place and also had cable ties hidden at the outer edges, I had done this as I had heard that the steering wheel must be padded to pass the test - this is total rubbish! - Andrew was not happy with the pad as it was not classed as a permanent addition to the steering wheel, after removing the padding as shown in this picture the wheel was tested for contact with a 165mm ball (Head form test tool) the edges of the steering wheel were all fine so the steering wheel was ok without anything added to it, however it did not have the horn symbol on it anywhere so that was another fix to do (just a horn sticker on it would do)the only other thing to cause a problem were the harness belt top mount edges which again were not 2.5mm radius, even though they were mounted behind the seats it was still within the test area.

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Next up it was a very intensive brake test, I was talking to Andrew throughout the brake test and firstly they test front and back to allow the computer to weigh the vehicle then the brakes are tested at 4 or more brake load levels, each time the vehicle is tested the computer works out the bias between front and rear brakes if at any point the bias shifts the wrong way under any load its a fail, with a brake bias bar setup this can be adjusted but not with a normal dual circuit setup running from a single master cylinder, during the test andrew had a pressure sensor on his foot whilst pressing the brake pedal - this was attached to a small handheld computer which in turn fed its data back to the main computer in the test area and displayed the output on the main screen. overall no issues with any of the brakes including the handbrake!

Once the brake test was complete Andrew got the tape measure out again and did the lighting measurements to ensure the lamps were in the correct place, so height off the ground and distance from the edge of the vehicle, all was good apart from the side repeaters which didnt pass the angles of visibility, so they needed to move but I didnt want them on the wheel arches so we did a bit of measuring and worked out that we could get the right angles of visibility if the side repeaters were moved to the guards behind the seats, so one more thing on the list

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Finally it was the engine emissions test - which I already knew it wouldnt pass as I had tested it a couple of days before and it had failed then and I wasn't sure why (I had also purchased a new O2 sensor on the off chance that was the problem but it wasnt - or so i thought) anyway on the run up to Carlisle the exhaust had got so hot it had destroyed the silicone exhaust sealant so it was blowing like mad!! - needless to say it failed the emissions but I now had a better idea what the problem was!!

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So that was it for the test I had my list of failure points and knew what i needed to do to rectify all of them (not that any of them were big issues)

So a couple of weeks later having sorted all the issues out over the weekends and rebuilding the exhaust - had to put a new cat in the system as the old one was making a hell of a noise as the central mesh had broken free and was rattling around inside, I also due to the heat issue moved the o2 sensor further around the exhaust and removed all the heat wrap on the manifold that was moving the heat right onto the sensor!

Dropped the buggy back into my local garage for another emissions test and this time is was a VERY easy pass, so dropped the test center an email and very quickly got (3 days) a resit date and this time it flew through all the emissions and Andrew was happy with all the small modifications so I finally got the IVA certificate!!!!!
 
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