Okrasa Special

[steve wright]

Hi Bruce, thanks for the heads up on the tyres - I'll add this to the list!

[steve wright]

ok, update time. having to type with one hand as I managed to pull my arm off the shoulder drunken arm-wrestling and now recuperating after surgery on thursday, so will keep this brief and barry will add detail.

one side done, looks oddly flat in the pics but doesn't in the flesh. trying to close on details like rear vent, clamshell and door opening lines, headlight and foglight positions, etc. enjoy. sill will curve under which makes a real difference too.

oh, and i fixed black masking tape to roof to remove primer either side of "stripe" and then realised it looked rather good with the roof in black (diminishes its size relative to rest of car) and rather suits it....

[Bruce M]

Agree with the black roof (mentioned earlier in thread I think). Nearly ten years ago I ordered a cooper S with a black roof for that very reason (instead of the usual white roof option).

Still looks amazing btw.

[sladey]

[Barry]

Just to mention quickly that both Steve and I are having to shoot very wide angle to get the car in, so the photo's make it look a lot longer / thinner than it really is.

As Steve mentioned, trying to capture the less obvious curves on camera is proving tricky, although I guess when it next goes outside things might be easier.

We're hoping to meet up there one evening to chat about some further shape refinements (mainly around the rear vent / front of rear wing area). Once we're happy with any further changes, I can spend some time refining what we've got to get everything to flow better, and improve the refections. I'd prefer to get one side as good as I can before moving away to a new area.

Oh yes, both Steve and I have started to ponder the merits of going for a bonnet front end rather than clam. I think at the same time we both started to get worried that having a front clam is going to mean a hell of a big panel to hinge, support and indeed, work on. Jury's out, and the rear one is safe, as that has a real function. This does mean of course we'll need a bonnet recess, with all that takes, plus a bonnet frame. On the other hand, it saves a lot of heaving the front end around, reduces the bonnet size (which has got to be a very real bonus), and generally makes the front a lot more substantial.

Thinking about it, there must be a reliabilty plus as well, as all wires can be fixed, and you're not trying to manage oil cooler ducts etc.

Food for thought anyway.

P.S. I would post my pics, but they are duplicates of Steves, so I won't .

[911hillclimber]

Looking really good, and the black roof looks nice to for the reasons Steve's said.
As to hanging large clams; I have done this on my Lola racer (glass clams) to the rear and will on the larger front. They need a lot of triangulated bracing (I used mild steel 8mm dia thin wall tube) all hung on pip pins for easy removal. A road car will need to be far more substantial/stiff I think.

Do you need the side vents behind the B post? Seems a shame to me to cut the flank of the wing.

Looking good gentlemen.

[steve wright]

Hi Graham, I must admit I was also having the same thought as you about the vents, hence mocking up a vent in the quarter light area. One idea I've had is to reverse the popout, so it hinges inwards rather than out as a 911 one does. this would provide a subtle and easy way of getting lots of air into the engine bay, but I'm not convinced on the idea yet. Cheers, Steve

[911hillclimber]

There must be a more subtle way to get air to the engine,even VW Beetle ways, ie a width of small louvres at the base of the rear window (unless you get a low pressure zone there at speed?)
Lots of air can come in from under the car too.

Air cooled = lots of louvres I feel; the features go together?

Pause for thought!

[Rustbucket]

My ex boss/ Pub Landlord used to rally race Hillman Imps, he used extra ducts mounted into its Lexan rear 1/4 windows to great effect and its a really simple and changeable option compared to modding body contours ?

Also, I had a flip front on my old Moggy Pickup, it was ok but the amount it needed to tilt forward before it gave the engine proper access was prohibitive, you really need to make it tilt fwd almost at 90deg to the floor - meaning you have to be very careful with clearance from nose to concrete...and thus the location from where it tilts/hinges from.

Considering its intended race use I'd make just the bonnet/front nose panel one piece and fully removable using Zuess fasteners ? The two halves can simply slot into different sized tubing, one size on the front end and one size on the body chassis.

Truthfully a front clam looks very cool but offers very little extra benefit, esp considering most front end work you look to need access for is either at the sides( suspension) or on the fire wall (brake masters)?

Looking amazing though !

[steve wright]

Hi Graham, you do indeed get a low pressure zone there - they need to be further into the bootlid area and this being midengined means you're then asking the air to travel back towards the centre of the car.

Rustbucket, I like the tips on doing something with Lexan - I'll mock up a couple but this seems a good way to go. I think you're also right on the front end, a clamshell will just be a pain, irrespective of how sexy it might look!

[smallspeed]

car is looking fantastic

i'll echo the comments about cutting the rear wings; once its cut you're committed to it! i wonder if it would break up the nice flow of the rear wings/doors too much?

i think given its a "period special" you could get away with lexan rear 1/4 windows maybe with a clear plastic naca duct to draw air in. you could probably get away with just one of the larger twin entry ones, and run the ducting down the inside of the c-pillar on one side to hide it a bit? or if you wanted to make a feature of it put one single per side or something.. the naca duct is a very efficient way of drawing air off a vehicles surface for cooling / induction

[Darren65]

The car is looking fantastic

I quite like the idea of side vents, at the moment it's reminding me of a pretty Lotus Elan, the vents would certainly add something distinctive and if done well (does Barry do things any other way!) could look great.

I suppose the modern equivilent is something like the MR2:


or if this comparison goes aginst the grain how about a Ferrari 250LM:


Darren

[911hillclimber]

A front clam ideally needs to pivot close to the base of the wind screen so you have massive access, but this is only reall for a front engined car?
Here there seems little advantage to hinging the front?

I'm doing mone (pivot at the none) so i can access the front for scrutineering and to stop needing help (from the wife) to remove it for inspection/cleaning.

The clams get damaged very easily with removing them time and again.

I think on this little car I would fight the bonet being removable (as opposed to hinged)

The Lotus Elan has a unique approach to this.....

Is the quest for ducted air to cool or to feed the engine
(ie carbs)

Graham.

[Barry]

To comment on the whole vent question (again, as I've just lost another long reply ), to me, they have the following benefits:

1) They break up what would otherwise be a very bulky / heavy area of the car.

2) They allow the side (when viewed from above) to have a noticeable curve, without the whole car looking impossibly wide at the centre.

3) They allow for a height change ahead of the rear arch: valuable as we're having to deal with the fixed height of the rear window base, and C-pillars.

4) They save me having to try to get a reflection-line to work down the whole side of the car.

5) They do make the fabrication of that whole area a little less critical: 'bits' in an area all help to take the eye from the actual panel, and that's not a bad thing in my case ....

Hell, they might even let some breeze in as well .

Overall, I've always had in mind that we're heading for the look of a low-volume sportcar that has either been detuned for the road, or modified for the track. Therefore, vents, grills, visible oil cooling, gear selector mech on view etc etc all help torwards this.

Just my thoughts anyway, but I'm easily sold on alternatives if they look the part and Steve likes it: he's the boss .

[Barry]

Oh yes, and Darren, Steve keeps showing me pics of the 250, so we might still end up getting some inspiration from this direction yet .