Frank818 -1993 VW VR6 Turbo donor- Build Thread

[Frank818]

Dan, tnx a lot, it looks now very similar to what I have adjusted, so I guess I'm cleared on that one.

Jeff, that's really sad, although I bet the kid, if still alive, had a lot of fun with his Rabbit!

Bob, that brake light came with the spoiler?


To all people who want to register an 818 in QC, I think all of the FFR lights are not legal, apart probably from the big brake lights. So you remember my awesome headlight buckets and lighting? All crap!!! Good to trash. Plus I learned that I need a VIN to match my G50 gearbox to prove it has not been stolen. So the car will sit in the garage for what, another year and 20k later probably...

To register the lights, here's a comparison of the rules:

Front DRL/Parking -- SAE P -- FFR None
Front TS -- SAE I -- FFR None
Tail lights -- SAE T -- FFR DOT-STI (that could work I think)
Brake lights -- SAE S -- FFR DOT-STI (that could work I think)
Rear TS -- SAE I or S -- FFR SAE P
Backup lights -- SAE R -- FFR SAE P (FFR's backup/TS lights are no good for both uses)
License Plate -- SAE L -- FFR None
3rd brake light -- SAE U3 -- FFR No light

Don't forget your front and rear side markers+ rear reflectors. Those are different rules.


Solutions:

Rear
I could get away with the brake/TS if I pay a few 100s bucks to get my wiring code updated so I can use the brake lights as TS. Like Bob on one his 6 colored 818s.
I need to trash the reverse/TS sockets and find a new solution. My intention is to fit the rear reflectors into the recess area and find one SAE R reverse light that I would fit... somewhere!
I need to find a new solution for the license plate light.
As for the 3rd brake light, 87-94 Porsche lights would fit well on the engine cover and maybe the 05-10 Scion TC's. Slim inside. But quite wide, not sure I could fit it with my exhaust but for all builds without an exhaust there you could! So those are 2 solutions for you.


Front
Now that's a huge headache. The lights need to be at 15" from the ground or more. Same for my front side markers, which are at... 14"!! I did it wrong. I will cheat and raise the car at 5.5" to pass inspection, IF I can raise the suspension that high! I need help on that, is the suspension adjustable to that high with the ring?
At 15" off the ground, it eliminates the possibility to fit lights in the nose insert. If I find very small DRLs and TS I could fit them on the horizontal fiberglass of the fenders where the fenders start above the nose. Or I need to modify the buckets and fit the lights in the headlights. That is big, would need to delete at least one of the LEDs and then what lights do I find to fit in there? Most OEM lights are now embedded in the buckets so it's hard to extract them and use just the lights.
I could re-use FFR's SAE P rear TS and fit them at the front. They would work as DRLs only as for TS I need SAE I. But where do you want me to fit those Hella sockets? There's no place.
At the front, I am totally out of clues right now, usually SAE/DOT lights are never small so they will take place and I highly doubt I can fit them in the buckets. The front look of the car is completely ruined. Not sure what I'll do.


For the G50 gearbox well that's a VR6 issue, I have found the serial number on the casing, I will call the dealer on Monday and ask them if they can trace back the VIN number that was assigned to the serial number. I know they do the other way around, so probably that way they can as well. If they cannot, my only option is to buy a 8k-10k-15k G50 with VIN, use that VIN and sell the newly bought gearbox. Of course, the serial number will not match the VIN, so if they check that far I'm screwed and will need to open the gearbox and switch the casings. More headaches, they never stop on this build, I am really at the end of my patience, my energy is probably at 1 on a scale of 10. This will take me a lot of efforts to ramp up on these issues. And it's not over if I make it, there are other risks I face after these issues are fixed.

Other options are to part off the car and sell the parts or sell the car as a whole.
Good luck to all quebeckers building an 818.