More progress made on the body : )

[The Stig]

The Headlight covers have been fitted into place and I think that they look very nice.

[GoDadGo]

You're Late Mike!

Mardi Gras Was Tuesday!

C_O_N_G_R_A_T_U_L_A_T_I_O_N_S_!

Steve

[The Stig]

The doors still need to be reassembled. Windows, Mirrors, Glass, Door Panels, etc...

We were delayed quite a bit while we waited for the roll bar covers to be corrected. But at least now we're moving forward again.

The Final Cut & Buff should be done this coming week. And then a much more "gentle" leak check, and heat cycle of the engine and transmission will take place over a little longer period of time.









It's really hard for me to imagine that there is still a final cut & buff to be done before she's finished.

I know that these aren't "final" pictures, but they sure do show that we're making great progress, and we're just a couple of days away.

Mike

[beeman]

Looks flawless! Better have some champagne chilling in the fridge.

[The Stig]

I copied this from post 1840 on the previous page so the video is visible.
*************************

We took Pandora out to check the brakes and check for leaks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NMDQyZ5pYI

This car is crazy fast...! And the brakes work really well. 60 to 0, step on the brakes and she tracked absolutely straight ahead.

Very nice pedal feel. I felt very comfortable with it.

The temp came up a bit, and she started spitting coolant from the rear overflow tank. Looks like we may need to purge some air from the coolant lines again. I think everything will be fine after we've taken care of that once and for all.

I'm re-learning the feel of the clutch, and finding the release point for shifting again.

Man this car is fun.

Mike

[The Stig]

Looks flawless! Better have some champagne chilling in the fridge.

As a matter of fact we do!

Thank you. It was great to be able get a feel for how she drives and feels. She's a very solid car, as far as I can tell so far. But then, we've gone to great lengths to make sure that she is.

FUN FUN FUN!

Mike

[carbon fiber]

I need a ride to the store and back...

[The Stig]

You're Late Mike!

Mardi Gras Was Tuesday!

C_O_N_G_R_A_T_U_L_A_T_I_O_N_S_!

Steve

LOL... I know I know. But for whatever reason, I'm repeatedly forced to endure delays from the most unexpected places. And then deal with the unexpected results...

I learned yesterday that one of the things that I've been waiting on SINCE THANKSGIVING 2016, will eventually have to be done for yet a 3rd time: By someone else this time. What a shame.

That won't happen until she's been on the road and finally enjoyed, though. I've had enough of these sort of things.

For now, it is what it is.

Even with that, I had a blast being in the driver's seat for a few minutes.

Mike

[SteveE]

Mike it looks awesome, just as summer hits enjoy the long drives.

Steve

[dallas_]

Freaking gorgeous!!!!

[The Stig]

I need a ride to the store and back...

I think we can work that out! I love the rear hatch. It's working great.

Mike

[GoDadGo]

Mike,

The fit and finish are totally Amazing compared to the work done by the previous shop.

Steve

[The Stig]

Mike it looks awesome, just as summer hits enjoy the long drives.

Steve

Freaking gorgeous!!!!

Mike,

The fit and finish are totally Amazing compared to the work done by the previous shop.

Steve

Thank you guys. It a surreal feeling to watch the video and see for myself that the build portion of this journey is finally coming to its end.

Not that I'm complaining...

Thank you for the support. You and so many others have given me the encouragement that we all need to get through something like this. And here we are. I appreciate it a great deal.

Mike

[Roger Reid]

These pics are what we have all been waiting for. She looks great! Won't be long now.

[crash]

I have only ever had ONE person say that they had issues with the upgraded header tank setup. IIRC you are running the MRS setup? If so, did you run the engine thru a couple of heat cycles to purge the air? Did you manually purge the air from the radiator? I can't remember, are you still running the front tank as well?

[The Stig]

I have only ever had ONE person say that they had issues with the upgraded header tank setup. IIRC you are running the MRS setup? If so, did you run the engine thru a couple of heat cycles to purge the air? Did you manually purge the air from the radiator? I can't remember, are you still running the front tank as well?

Hi Mike,

I don't think that it's an issue with the header tank set up. I think that there was still air in the lines that got trapped.

We thought we had it corrected, since it wasn't running hot when the car idled for a while.

So we're going to purge the coolant system with a vacuum and refill with new coolant.

I do have the tank up front as well. So there really shouldn't be any place for air to get trapped.

I guess we'll see.

Mike

[jceckard]

Looks like she's glowing in this picture. In my mind I heard a choir singing in the background. Amazing.

[crash]

Hi Mike,

I don't think that it's an issue with the header tank set up. I think that there was still air in the lines that got trapped.

We thought we had it corrected, since it wasn't running hot when the car idled for a while.

So we're going to purge the coolant system with a vacuum and refill with new coolant.

I do have the tank up front as well. So there really shouldn't be any place for air to get trapped.

I guess we'll see.

Mike

The good thing about running the front tank is that it gives the radiator somewhere to bleed any air to. The bad part is that there is a LOT of 1/4 inch line between the front tank and the engine that is hard to bleed and is a good place for air to become trapped, only showing up in the system at some later point. It is for this reason that I highly recommend that the front tank not be used.

[The Stig]

The good thing about running the front tank is that it gives the radiator somewhere to bleed any air to. The bad part is that there is a LOT of 1/4 inch line between the front tank and the engine that is hard to bleed and is a good place for air to become trapped, only showing up in the system at some later point. It is for this reason that I highly recommend that the front tank not be used.

Mike,

The rear Canton Tank helps to bleed air from the engine block and heads. The lines to the radiator run directly to the in/out ports of the water pump. As well the re-circulation to the heater core runs from the water pump, to the core, and back to the water pump. In my mind, if it's trapping air, this might be where. (I don't have the lines running from the heater core to the front overflow tank).

This is the sequence that I used to purge the air from the system, and afterwards I never had any trouble with it over heating.

The problem returned while it was at shop where I was being charged for wiring work that didn't happen... At the time I didn't have a dedicated overflow tank on the radiator. I had a hose that was running into a Gatorade bottle. I asked him to check it every 3 or 4 days, and pour the coolant that accumulated back into the Canton Tank. He didn't and the system drained itself low enough to allow air back into it.

- Open the 1/4 over flow from the radiator. (Upper right corner).
- Then I lift the rear of the car about 24" (didn't have the splitter on at the time), and I think that's what has to happen to burp the heater core if you don't have it plumbed to the the front over flow as a pass-through air bleed.
- Start to fill the coolant system until the Radiator over flow started to overflow.
- Cap the Radiator over flow line.
- Then continued to fill until the front head vents begin to overflow.
- Cap the front vents.
- Then continue to fill, until the rear head vents start to overflow.
- Cap the rear vents.
Then fill until you can see the coolant in the tank.

As far as you can tell, am I missing anything?

If I can get the system purged again, I don't think I'll need to run the pass through lines from the heater core to the front overflow tank.

If not, then I think that would need to be done to fix it.

As usual, we'll see.

Mike

[crash]

I would just suggest that you heat cycle the system a couple/few times and check the rear tank water level each time. Add water as needed. It should settle to where the water level is about thumb depth below the radiator cap in the rear tank. As I have explained, the water has to expand somewhat with heat, so there needs to either be an air pocket at the top of the header tank in the rear, or you need to run a recovery tank. Either is acceptable and will work just fine, but the recovery tank setup is the cleaner and more OEM way of doing it.

[The Stig]

I had planned to take Pandora to Caffeine and Octane in Jekyll Island for the first public unveiling.

An unfortunate event happened last week that keeps me from being able to attend. (At least as far as I know right now).

Tony has indicated that he would be interested in taking her himself and presenting her, in order to show the ability of his shop. I told him that I would be fine with that, because I think that he and his guys deserve recognition for their work, outside of this forum.

My personal "favorite car guy", Chip Foose, will be there. So I'm pretty bummed that I'll miss being able to meet him.

I noticed that based on the entrants list, it looks like Bill Phillips SLC will be there as well.

So if you're in the Jekyll Island area, and you want to get a look at Pandora, she'll be there along with a beautifully done SLC. (Both cars done by Charlotte Speed Shop).

If this changes for some reason and we pull her from the show all together, I'll let you know.


She has a couple of very nice shows coming up soon that I'll get to be a part of, so it is what it is...


Caffeine and Octane: Jekyll Island, GA. 3/17, 18, & 19.

http://www.candojekyll.com/

Mike

[beeman]

Mike-
Over the past couple days I have read through your build thread. I am a little newer to this forum, really just been on here a few months consistently. I have caught wind that you have been through a lot with your car, but never realized how bad it was at times. The guy who charged you $2500 for a POS wiring job...I would have told him to get lost, what a con. Sorry your first round of bodywork turned out so amateur, I thought that shop had a good reputation.
I really enjoyed watching your interior take shape, what a work of art!
So I'm reading about you taking her in for more bodywork with a Tony in mid-2015, and I'm like "how many Tony's do bodywork in Charlotte?". Then I keep reading and realize your car has been in the shop since then??
I can see why you have been "over" this build at times, I would have been too. I think it is good that you are seeing this through to completion.
Congratulations on meeting recent goals, great to see the finish line in sight!

[The Stig]

Mike-
Over the past couple days I have read through your build thread. I am a little newer to this forum, really just been on here a few months consistently. I have caught wind that you have been through a lot with your car, but never realized how bad it was at times. The guy who charged you $2500 for a POS wiring job...I would have told him to get lost, what a con. Sorry your first round of bodywork turned out so amateur, I thought that shop had a good reputation.
I really enjoyed watching your interior take shape, what a work of art!
So I'm reading about you taking her in for more bodywork with a Tony in mid-2015, and I'm like "how many Tony's do bodywork in Charlotte?". Then I keep reading and realize your car has been in the shop since then??
I can see why you have been "over" this build at times, I would have been too. I think it is good that you are seeing this through to completion.
Congratulations on meeting recent goals, great to see the finish line in sight!

Thank you. I really appreciate it: more than you know.

It feels so good to be finishing her up. Yes, Pandora has been at Tony's shop for 2 years this month. But mainly because I wanted her to be. We were able to take her from "The GTM" to "Pandora", by taking our time and making absolutely sure that everything was done exactly as it should & needed to be. The results sure look good to me. And I guess that's all that really matters. And yes, for the most part, I'm still "over it". I'm over the time it has taken to have to re-do things a number of times, and re-visit frustrations that I thought had been resolved.

I've stated a couple of times that there are specific reasons as to why I post as much information about this build that I do. I found that I needed a true historical account of things that have taken place along the way. The history of how "the GTM" became "PANDORA".

My GTM build History Lesson... It's not pretty.

One of the reasons that I post as much detail as possible, is to try to make as many people as possible aware of the absolute crap that is dished out to people like us by automotive shops, just because they truly 100% learned that they can and get away with it.

At the end of the first round of the GTM's paint & body, I was presented with an invoice that was astronomically higher than what we had "agreed" to. I had asked repeatedly to be kept aware of the balance as we went, but never got it. When I did, it was obvious to me that something was very wrong. I figured that I owed around 10,000, and was given an invoice in excess of 40,000.

I felt that I was not able to aggressively pursue them, because my car and registration paperwork were being held for "ransom" as they tried to charge me an insane amount of money for work that they said had been done, but wasn't. I ended up telling him that there was no way in hell that I would ever pay him the amount that he was trying to charge, and that I would let is sit in his shop and rot before I did. After Dave Smith got involved, the price was reduced, but I still ended up paying 25,000 on top of the 14,000 that I had already paid for the body and paint. So around $40,000 in total went to that shop, because they knew that they could rip me off, and did. (It would have been closer to $60k). So when people call me or send me PM's asking whether or not I would provide a reference for that company, I ask them to call me. I tell them that I will not give a reference for them (or anyone else), but I would be happy to provide great detail in terms of what I went through there. And from there I tell them to decide for themselves where they want to send their car to have work done. That seems to work much better.

When I finally got my car and registration paperwork back, I had become 100% shell shocked in terms of allowing anyone outside of my garage to do any work on it what so ever... So I started documenting... everything. And I started Vetting everyone. This process added quite a bit of time to my build. But at this point I didn't care. So when the math clicks in people's minds as they read this and they see that 7+ years have gone into this build, I simply nod my head and say, "Yep". It sure has.

Then came Corty Stone. Corty is a Factory Five Cobra owner/builder.
After speaking with him, and explaining the work that I needed to have re-done, and why, He said that he couldn't believe that the previous shop would do this sort of thing, and promised that he would fix the wiring mess, and that he had my back.

He didn't fix it; if anything he made it worse. And the only thing that he did to my back was put a knife in it. He let the car sit outside in the rain, when I specifically asked him not put it outside, period. I also asked him to keep an eye on the radiator overflow catch bottle, and to simply pour the coolant back into the Canton Header tank. He didn't, and the cooling system got air back into the heads and radiator. Then when it was cranked, the air moved through the system and got stuck again. Just two things that I asked of him. And once again I was ignored. I was in Ohio when my car was brought back to my house, so I had no way of knowing that he had not done what I was paying for. When I got home, and had a chance to see it, I was furious. My assumption is that the only reason he didn't try to charge me more for the "wiring job" was because he knew that if he did, I could get better attention from attorneys to go after him for not doing the work that I was charged for. I could have sued him. But it would have cost more in attorney fees than I would recover. So I chose to wait and fight another day, and in a different way. I was left Shell Shocked again... by yet another person who made me believe that I could trust them.

Steve Kurzman - The Custom Stitching Company. Steve worked with me to implement the interior for this car that I wanted. I would have to say that we worked well together. He kept me informed, he sought my input, and he stuck to the budget. If anything came up that pushed the budget, he explained it well, and allowed me to decide which way I wanted to proceed. Communication was always two-way. And the result was a beautiful interior for Pandora. There have been people that have looked at the interior and said, "Yeah, it looks really nice, but they should have done so & so differently"... I take things like that with a grain of salt, because most people have no idea how extremely limited we are when trying to work inside these cars. There just isn't any room to do the things that you see in my car.

The vendor that Steve uses to install Audio components happened to be a trained & certified Porsche technician, who was also well versed in automotive wiring. Ross cleaned up all of the wiring issues and made it right. I was (and still am) very happy with the work that he did for me.

There were only a couple of things that happened with Steve, and cause issue with me.

First, when the car was finished, we were taking it directly from Steve's shop to a Porsche race shop to have the suspension dialed in. I had arranged for a trailer to pick her up and transport her over. Well Steve hit me with a final bill of about 3500 +, when I was only expecting about 1000.00. He claimed to have sent an e-mail invoice, but I never got it. So I had everything arranged to move the car to one place to the other, and Steve telling me that he "couldn't" release the car until the bill was paid in full. So guess what? I paid the bill. Was I happy about it? Hell no. Did I get the interior that I had hoped for? Yes, Absolutely.

Second, When I sat in the car to move out of his shop and into the trailer, I was having a hard time with my knees and the upper roll bar cover hanging a little lower than it should which blocked my field of vision. I mentioned it to Steve, and he told me that at this point it pretty much is what it is... Certainly not what I wanted to hear after spending 27,000.00 + for him to do the interior.

I reached back out to him on November (17th) of 2016 about shaving the roll bar cover and re-covering it to allow for a little more range of vision. That was finally done last week. March 1, I believe. The part sat in his office month after month, while he worked on other things, until I finally lost it with him. And still had to wait 4 more weeks after that. It's done now... so my eyes are pointed forward.

The Race shop that did the suspension, did some awesome work, and got Pandora dialed in perfectly. And for the amount of money that we had agreed on! Happy? Yes! (In a recent shake down video that I posted, part of what we were doing was getting to car up to speed and then stopping from low, medium, and higher speeds. The first at medium speed, she pulled to the right just a little. The very next stop tracked dead straight. And the same from a little higher speeds. Perfect.)

And then... The transporter that brought the car back from his shop to my house did so with an added gift... a scratch in the front right bumper area that was about 8" long and down to the primer. I was pretty upset to see that, and wondered when things like this would ever end? Of course, no one knew anything about it. It wasn't there when it left the shop (according to the shop owner), and it was already there when he picked the car up (according to the driver)... I was pretty much over the fact that I couldn't seem to send my car out to have any work done, without needing to do something else as a result when I got it back. I had already planned to have some scratches corrected and decided that I would suck it up and add it to the list.

[The Stig]

I needed to have some scratches repaired and I knew who I would NOT be sending back to. So, with huge hesitation, I started looking for someone to do the work. Since I had spoken to RK Motors in the past (Prior to ever having any body & paint work done), I decided to ask them for an estimate to have the work done. They said that they didn't do that sort of work any longer, but asked if I wanted the contact information for the person that they were using for their cars when they needed paint. Yep! I sure would!

Enter Tony Kutas, Charlotte Speed Shop.

I called Tony, and he came to my home to see the car and give me an estimate of correcting the scratches the needed to be fixed, as well as fitting the hatch and painting it. Still being very distrustful of any shops, I let him know what I had been through along the way. The story (history) blew him away... During the conversation with Tony, I got the feeling that he was someone that I could let work on my car. So we discussed it in more detail. We agreed on a price, and he later brought his trailer and took the GTM up to his shop in North Charlotte. We've obviously gone from fixing a few scratches, to a total re-do, and here's why...

When he started trying to match the paint, he put his sun lights on the car. As soon as he did, we could see waves and sanding marks and blurs, and you name it. That's when he asked me if I minded telling him what I paid for paint and body work. I told him, and he went around the car showing me everything that I was charged for, but never happened. So the thing that went through my head, was that these shops could tell people like us ANYTHING they want, and we have no choice but to swallow it... hook, line, and sinker. Unless you do that sort of work yourself, you just wouldn't know. And if I did, my car would have never been at those shops to begin with... Tony asked what my goals were for the GTM. At the time, I had reason to believe (from Dave Smith) that my car would be used in their display at SEMA once it was finished. I also wanted it to be in local shows, etc. He shook his head, and asked whether or not the other shop knew this? I told him that he knew that my expectation was that the car would be done to a show car level when it was done. So Tony put a list of things together that he felt would need to be done if this car was ever going to sit under the lights at SEMA. And it was a LONG list. And it would mean a complete strip and re-work. I was furious, yet again. And I was over it, yet again. And I told him that I wasn't putting another penny into this, beyond what it would take to fix the scratches, the roof, and fit and paint the hatch.

Tony understood, and set off to work. When he got the everything ready for the booth, he called me as asked me whether I wanted the scratches and hatch painted the color of the car, or the color that I was told that it was? (Lexus Indigo Ink - Pearl) The Paint code for the match was nowhere near the Lexus paint code that I was told the car was painted. Furious, and Over it again. I told him to match the car and paint it. I just wanted this to end. He said that he would prep it and have it ready to be painted the next day.

So, I had another night to think about EVERYTHING that I've been through during this project while my car was in the hands of other shops, who all went out of their way to make me believe that that they could be trusted with my car. And I just got more angry. I couldn't find a good way to calm down that didn't involve large amounts of cognac. (And that would be expensive also).

And then it hit me... If I were to strip the car, I could document in reverse how the paint came off, and prove that the work that was paid for was never done. Paint shops get away with so much, because what person in their right mind would strip a car back down just to prove that specific work wasn't done, and that the work that was done, was done poorly? I've never claimed to be a person that was smarter than the average bear, but this made perfect sense to me. So I called Tony and told him not to paint the car. "I want to strip it and start over completely". The car was in the booth, the matching paint was mixed and in the gun, and he was literally about to start spraying…

That is why you saw so many freaking pictures of Pandora at various levels of being stripped. Every High and low that was left in the body would be revealed as proof. The entire car was riddled in them. The work that was done previously was crap. And I certainly didn't get what I had paid for. The more I saw, the more I asked Tony to take his time, and take it all the way back down until we get smooth flat surfaces to start over with; which is exactly what he has done. The pictures that I have posted along the way, were to document for myself that I got exactly what I had paid for, as well as show others that there are people out there THAT CAN BE TRUSTED to do what they have agree to do and at the level that you expect for the amount of money being paid.

That's not to say that Tony and I haven't had a couple of times where we've gone head to head, but that was more out of frustration of the amount of time, or from another customer within the shop that thought that his car should be worked ahead of mine. But those were aired out and forgotten (hopefully). I admit that I am generally quiet, but when pushed can become someone’s worst nightmare. And I don't apologize for it.

I'm sure that Tony probably felt that this was unleashed on him once or twice, but it wasn't: Because I respect him. And I trust him. 100%. I can't honestly say the same for others that I've dealt with along this journey.

After the average person spends the time to read this build thread from start to end, I'm sure that most would form the opinion that I've simply been gullible, and that I allowed this sort of stuff to happen. They would be wrong on multiple levels.

They have no idea to what extent I've vetted people in order to get a feel for them, their trustworthiness, and their level of professionalism. At some point you get to the line drawn in the sand where the work simply has to be done in order to move forward, and you have to make a choice. And hopefully you've made the best choice based on the information that you've been able to uncover, or that you know, or that you simply believe. (Or all of the above). The bottom line is that you'll either get screwed, or you'll luck out and find someone who can be trusted.



So there you have it; the history of taking my GTM and creating Pandora. She's been a real B1tch...!!!!!!!!!! And it's been a true roller coaster of emotion, but Tony & I are claiming our own victories; tangible and otherwise.


Some people know that this is my first build; and most may not. I can say that I've learned more than I ever thought I would about what it takes to get through get through the "mechanics" of building a car. But I've learned exponentially more about the people that you are forced to choose from in the process of building something of this nature. It is what it is, and it always will be. There are always going to be those people that will go out of their way to over-charge, and nickel and dime you until they know that you absolutely have nothing left to spend. That's simply the way they do business; and that will NEVER change. It's WHO THEY ARE.

So, for all you first time builders who have your build plans laid out so nicely on you excel spreadsheet print out; get ready for the "10%" of unexpected budget creep that you've figured in to be used. And be sure not to blink; because as soon as your car goes to someone else's shop, and you give them authorization to begin work, that 10% will be a vacuum in history. It just will. And they will smile when they hand you and invoice for the balance. So be ready to stay on top of it.

I know that this sounds negative, or that I am discouraging people from making the leap of faith in themselves that they can complete a project like this. Actually I am saying the opposite. If I can go through these things and come out of the other end with a beautifully completed car, then any of you can as well. And I would be the first to encourage you to do so. But if you do, just pay close attention to it, as well as anyone (external) that charges you for work that you've asked to have done. Don't let it intimidate you. You will learn how to manage it. You will. And you will enjoy most of it.

Enjoy your build everyone. But remember that there is plenty of time for these people to be your "friends" after they've completed the work for you, and to your satisfaction.

That was a HUGE lesson for me to learn.


Sorry for the rant / explanation / justification / history lesson. Something about this latest post sparked the nightmare again...

Take care.

Mike

[crash]

Just remember...the journey is supposed to be more fun than the destination. Otherwise we could all just buy a Corvette or a Porsche and go have just as much driving fun. If it isn't, then maybe you should examine how the journey has been taken.

[beeman]

I had a similar journey building my house a couple years ago (unexpected astronomical overage invoice at the end). It does leave a sour taste in your mouth, almost makes you hate the finished product even though it is exactly what we designed/wanted.

You should have had Tony save the white primer powder he sanded off Pandora, stuff it in some envelopes, and mail it to a couple shops...

[The Stig]

Just remember...the journey is supposed to be more fun than the destination. If it isn't, then maybe you should examine how the journey has been taken.

I think that was what I just did... And I can promise you that this is one that will not be duplicated by me...

Some journeys are educational, because in order to enjoy and/or appreciate the destination, you have to first know the hills and valleys that got you there. Then you decide if you want to take the freeway back home or not.

Mike

[The Stig]

Pandora's back up on the lift, and the final detailing is being done. She getting ready for a Serious Date! First time in public!



Tony has cut, buffed, and started polishing the doors.



The process is a total of Six Steps to the final Show Car ready paint....!



The sun lamp seems to highlight the metal flake / pearl in the paint (that you never see in the open sunlight).



But the magic of Tony's work is in the reflection and the straight lines on the body.

Serious Serious Serious body prep.

Serious Serious Serious paint finishing.

Serious Serious Seriously Happy about it.

Mike

[GoDadGo]

It Will Be One Serious Debut To Say The Least When Pandora Is Officially Unveiled!

[The Stig]

It Will Be One Serious Debut To Say The Least When Pandora Is Officially Unveiled!

We'll know this weekend... Caffeine & Octane at the Beach (Jekyll Island, Ga.) 3/17, 18, & 19.

It'll be interesting to find out how she fits in with some of the other amazing cars that will be there. I received an e-mail that she had been approved for a "Premier Display" spot. I'm not sure what that really means other than she'll either be on the grass at the entrance of the convention center, or actually inside on the carpet. Who knows?

I just think it's cool that she will be seen ANYWHERE besides a shop. (No offense Tony...)

I don't think I can make it, but at least she'll be there.

Mike

[GoDadGo]

Put what ever you have on hold and go unless it involves a family matter.

Work Can Wait!

[WIS89]

Gee whiz Mike, you should warn us that the pictures were NSFW! I didn't know we were going to look up Pandora's skirt!

You are right, that is some serious paint prep, or post paint work, or however one would categorize it. Very impressive plan, and I can only imagine how good she will look when Tony is done. That is going to be a mile deep finish!

I am sorry to hear you won't be in Georgia with her. I do hope you will be able to get lots of pictures.

Amazing determination Mike!

Regards,

Steve

[crash]

Just a bit of a warning, and this is for everyone...you should understand that on a GTM all the weight is in the rear of the car. The rear lift points should be as far towards the rear tires as you can get them. If you look at our FFR PDG GTM race car, you will notice that we put in a jack post option so that we can jack the car up when it comes into the pits with a flat and if the air jacks will not operate. The spot for this jack post is right at the bottom of the main roll cage hoop and seems to be just about the center of gravity for the car. There are quite a few pictures on the web of people having "issues" on lifts by putting the arms where you would on a "normal car" which the GTM, and really any mid engine vehicle, isn't. Just be aware.

[The Stig]

That's an excellent point Mike. I think that some people may tend to forget that there is a great deal of weight in the rear. But the corner weights also indicate that there is almost equal weight at the front. My car balanced at 45/55 (front/rear) when I had the suspension set.

It may be hard to tell in this picture, but I believe that Tony has the rear arms where I asked him to put them. They are at the rear cross bar, just inside where the cage connects to the outer rails. It's really the only place to pick the car up from the rear. Any further forward and your on the 1/16" aluminum panel that will certainly not support any weight.

Mike

[LCD Gauges]

Time to hire four military tanks and buy some clear wrap. No vehicles driving within 20 feet of you and road debris must not touch the clear-coat!

[ben1272]

Did you go into any detail in your posts about how the headlight covers were: Bonded to fiberglass buckets, polished, black rimmed? They look very nice. I need to do something with my 818 covers and if they turned out looking like yours I would be very happy! If you covered it already, just say and I will dig through to find them.

Thanks!

-Ben

[The Stig]

Did you go into any detail in your posts about how the headlight covers were: Bonded to fiberglass buckets, polished, black rimmed? They look very nice. I need to do something with my 818 covers and if they turned out looking like yours I would be very happy! If you covered it already, just say and I will dig through to find them.

Thanks!

-Ben

Hi Ben,

The Headlight covers are replacements that I bought from North Race Cars; (a Vendor on this Forum). I think they're poly-carbonate that has been formed and cut to better fit the body openings. The Black paint used to black out the edges was purchased from Jerry Bickel Racing, an On-Line race shop.

Kevin located the covers in the headlight openings, and they were bonded in place by a 3M bonding product, but I am not exactly sure which one.

A couple of very small holes (1/16" or so) were drilled in the bottom side of the buckets (very close to the lights) to allow them to breathe and help prevent fogging.

Then I believe Tony polished them with a plastic polish (3M or Meguiars).

That's about it, as far as I know.

Mike

[JL1958]

Thank you for the details on your build. I have been following for the last couple of years, but did not know the extent of the screwing some shops gave you. It's a shame those people stay in business. I had planned to go to C & O at Jekyl, but my other half has to work Saturday. I hate to miss the debut, but I'm sure I will see her sometime. Beautiful car! I'm glad you stuck with it. Good luck at Jekyl!

[The Stig]

Thank you for the details on your build. I have been following for the last couple of years, but did not know the extent of the screwing some shops gave you. It's a shame those people stay in business. I had planned to go to C & O at Jekyl, but my other half has to work Saturday. I hate to miss the debut, but I'm sure I will see her sometime. Beautiful car! I'm glad you stuck with it. Good luck at Jekyl!

My wife and I learned today that one of her Aunts passed away. She was diagnosed with cancer in August, went through 2 rounds of the prescribed chemo "treatments", was admitted to Hospice last week, and passed away today. Her name was Sue, and Pam really loved her. The two of them had always had a very close bond. We were afraid that this might be coming very soon, which was why I was hesitant to make plans to be in Jekyll Island this week. Family is far more important than a Car or a Car Show.

But with that said, Pandora will be in great hands. Tony will be watching over her, and representing me, Pandora, and Charlotte Speed Shop.

I am really interested in seeing how Pandora holds up in comparison to some really nice cars.

We have the Charlotte Auto Fair coming up in 3 weeks. Hopefully, Huntington Beach in 6 weeks. And another show close to home the next weekend.

So if we miss this weekend, we still have quite a bit to keep us busy.

It should be interesting.

Mike

[tucker298]

Mike, I'm very sorry to hear that. This forum is an exceptional place filled with exceptional people and through this build process we also build friendships. My family will keep you and your family in our prayers during these difficult times, safe travels!

-Brent