The Project Pad

No more insane then any projects we do, I really wanted to haldex swAp my gti, but the birth of my daughter forced me to drop that idea...still would like to convert a mkiv tho...I really enjoy that platform. Theres a company that makes a great haldex standalone controller too pretty cool features allowing 50-50 split all the way to fwd for highway....

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DAY TWENTY FOUR

The old frame rails are coming in handy now - they're not as deep as they need to be but it looks like there is enough length from the GLI that I can cut four pieces and stack them to make two that will be the right size...




I had thought the back bumper area needed to be pushed in a little and I would need 200mm of filler rail... more like 210-215. Oops. Thankfully the tabs on the TT rails can be bent over to span the gap (notice the one on the bottom) and I was able to tack everything together. I'll cut the tops longer and then finish bending the tabs from the TT rails to fully connect the lower portion...

scubagli wrote:No more insane then any projects we do, I really wanted to haldex swAp my gti, but the birth of my daughter forced me to drop that idea...still would like to convert a mkiv tho...I really enjoy that platform. Theres a company that makes a great haldex standalone controller too pretty cool features allowing 50-50 split all the way to fwd for highway....

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I was thinking this project is a little tame compared to the stuff you guys are doing... although the fact that this is my daily is a little silly. That's cool you were thinking of the same swap at one point - a newborn is valid reason to delay if there ever was one. She'll need a car someday and I'd say all wheel drive is a lot safer than fwd

Good platform as you say though and thankfully there are a few options now on the haldex side - CRC Performance is probably the standalone you're talking about and now HPA is releasing a standalone; plus United Motorsports offers a performance flash for the stock controller.

DAY TWENTY FIVE

Tonight I measured and remeasured and cut the top halves of the frame rail extensions - with a little trimming they look like they'll fit in nicely. The usable GLI frame-rail widens as it gets to the suspension mounting points so a bit of resizing was in order. The top left and right of the picture shows the two areas that need to be narrowed to 75mm and welded up...




Fitting these with the bottoms already tacked in is a bit of a chore - it would have been 10x easier/quicker to instal from the bottom up but the bottom halves are IN so I marked out a strip of the pan for removal which will allow easier access for installing the rails. It will be nice to have a portion of pan with the TT profile welded to the bumper area and then when I splice some of the GLI pan in it should all line up nice. Here's the section that's coming out...




Four spot-welds needed to come out on each side which was minor. The biggest thing was not cutting into the frame rails during removal - mission accomplished. I had been thinking of cutting this piece out before installing the floor pan - would have been a good idea...

DAYS TWENTY SIX - THIRTY FOUR

It's been way to cold, up until now, and work has been really busy so a lot of this has been happening...

DAY THIRTY FIVE

Shovelled my car out today and made some progress on the top half of the back frame rails. Spent the first while trimming and fitting...




Here you can see the tabs have been bent to overlap the rail extensions. The driver's side is fully welded in and the passenger side is partially done - hopefully I can finish these off this weekend and move on to splicing in the floor pan extension...

Loving this build. Always dreamed of my old 20thAE being AWD.

Cool, thanks. It's been a busy weekend but I'm finally getting at it again. Frame rails are just about done then I can start on extending the floor pan...

Man, you need a shop! Lol. F working outside

DAYS THIRTY SIX - THIRTY SEVEN

Finished securing the frame rail extensions so I hit them with some primer and moved on to the floor pan extension. I'm not a fan of the tow hook so off it came - used a knotted wire wheel this time, instead of a flapper wheel, to take off the seam sealer; worked beautifully...




The GLI pan angles up at the back so it's actually pretty close in depth and profile to the TT pan where it meets the trunk. So sketched a line on the pan and cut it off so it can be spliced in with the TT pan. There's also a reinforcing bracket by the tape measure that needed to come off - thought I'd remove it nicely in case its worth welding back in...




Prepped the installed pan areas that will be joining with these other pieces and by then it was dark and patience was disappearing quickly too so time to call it a day.

chaloux wrote:Man, you need a shop! Lol. F working outside

Haha - it was always my plan to build a shop THEN start swapping the floor pan over... too impatient I guess

At least a carport tent to keep the snow and wind out...probably heat it running the car, just route exhaust out...

scubagli wrote:At least a carport tent to keep the snow and wind out...probably heat it running the car, just route exhaust out...

What? There's no challenge in that!

DAY THIRTY EIGHT

Decided to just extend the pan in smaller pieces - the pan/bumper area intersection has multiple planes to connect to and neither pan works on its own. The radius on this GLI section is very close to the TT radius so it was prepped and the first piece to go in - the clamped portions that overlap were cut flush-ish and then butt-welded together. Notice the back tab where the spot-welds were drilled out... there are three different mounting depths there. One at the top, another by the hole in the tab and a third at the bottom...




Don't be a jack-ass: always precisely measure and mark out your cuts before safely securing the item to be cut to something stable and trustworthy. Last but not least, always use the proper tool for the job in a well lit area...




I cut this top piece along the crease before the radius that bends down into the wheel-well since the GLI crease was bigger than the TT's - so now they match up nicely and it made fitting easier. I tacked this panel into place and called it a night but next time I'll fill the two little holes you can see from the earlier butt-weld and do some work on the back tabs. Unfortunately this top piece isn't wide enough to go all the way to the inner-fender but there's a vertical portion that needs to bridge the upper and lower portion of the fender by the clamp anyway- so maybe I can just cut another piece a bit long and bend it at the top...

scubagli wrote:At least a carport tent to keep the snow and wind out...probably heat it running the car, just route exhaust out...

I might end up doing that actually - depending on how progress goes. Thankfully it's around freezing or a little above for the next while...

PRY4SNO wrote:What? There's no challenge in that!

Haha, no extra challenges needed at the moment.... but seriously, my "garage" is pretty sweet compared the the meat locker you were using a little while back. If I get cold, or hungry, I saunter into the kitchen and sip java or whatever. Need to use a washroom - no problem. This Corolla rental really needs to go though

You are a mad man!

I was painting parts hung under an outdoor umbrella in the rain and thinking of all you frozen mechanics the other day

DAY THIRTY NINE

Tacked down the driver's side a little better and fit and tacked two pieces of the floor pan on the passenger side...

ringbearer wrote:You are a mad man!

I was painting parts hung under an outdoor umbrella in the rain and thinking of all you frozen mechanics the other day

We're a determined bunch I guess... although I've got a concrete pad to work on whereas other guys are getting work done on gravel. It was nice here today thankfully - above freezing.

I'd say painting parts in the rain under an umbrella sounds fairly determined too

DAY FOURTY

Day off... gettn' work done - at work...

DAY FOURTY ONE

Got the back piece of the TT pan welded in and prepped the GLI piece that will fill the gap. Guess I could probably drive like this if I need too - that gap is nothing a piece of cardboard and some duct tape wouldn't take care of...

DAY FOURTY TWO

The profiles of the two pans don't match that well so I've been grinding relief cuts into ridges that need to come down and tacking things together while I hold them in place. The panel is secured nicely though so with some more filling and grinding tomorrow the wheel well area should be done and I can get busy on the last couple gaps along the sides of the trunk - I'll see if I can get a decent shot of those tomorrow...

Looks great.

DAY FOURTY THREE

Not the most inspiring start to the day but still pretty tame for December...




Got the far panel with the lip on the top in - just need one vertical panel on the other side of the lip that joins to the bottom of the fender...

DAY FOURTY FOUR

Had a lazy day today but did get the top middle panel tacked into place and ready for some more welding and then smoothing. This side just needs the vertical panel, by the vents, that joins to the bottom of the fender as well...

scubagli wrote:Looks great.

Thank you sir - getting close... er. Guess I'd better sort the brake lines and gas tank fairly soon too...

DAY FOURTY FIVE

My pile of TT body parts came in handy again - cut the two side panels that fit in-between the floor pan and lower fender. Only trimmed and welded one into place but here is the test fit from the top...




Bottom view...




Tacked into place...