The time has finally come to start my own build thread! The intent is to use it as documentation for myself as well as provide an opportunity for family and friends to be a part of the build.
This roadster will be my first build and an opportunity for me to learn as I go, together with my family. The goal is to have a good time together as a family in building the roadster but also an opportunity for the kids (ages 10, 12, 14) to learn practical engineering skills, fabrication and basic tool handling etc. It’ll be a non-donor street cruiser and I have lots of plans and ideas from reading the forums over the past 8 years or so. Exactly which of those plans and ideas that materialize and actually make it on the build remains to be seen.
I’ve been planning for this build on and off for the past 10-15 years and in January I took the plunge and placed the order on Factory Five:
Complete Roadster Mk4 kit
IRS + 3.55 rear end
Power steering kit
Hydraulic clutch kit
Vintage gauges
Dual chrome roll bars
18” Halibrands
Black Wilwood brakes
Front and rear sway bars
Carbon Fiber Dash
Black leather seats
And a few other options as well
It will be a Coyote build. The plan was going with a gen 3 but given the current circumstances, it’ll likely be a gen 4. A little more intimidating, but probably not too different in the end. It’ll be mated to a TKX, with a hydraulic TOB.
This will be the first time I’m doing anything like this so I’m grateful for any and all input, comments and suggestions, especially when I mount things upside down and inside out...
The completion date was March 23
Stewart Transport picked it up on April 3 and Mark with Stewart Transport showed up in TX on April 11. It was a perfect day!
#11001 is now in the garage and we’ll spend the next few days doing inventory, prepping the body buck and getting to know the roadster. It’ll be exciting to see how everything goes together and get a feel for all the parts.
Congrats! Looking forward to following along. I'm working on a MK4 in Austin,TX currently. Somewhat similar build as you, just using a T56 instead of TKX but otherwise most of the same stuff (power steering, hydraulic clutch, 18s, CF dash, etc). Good luck on the build.
Darryl [dbo_texas]
MKIV #9644 (build thread) (Index)
MK4 Complete Kit | Gen2 crate Coyote | Tremec T56, 3.55 IRS | power steering | hydroboost | dual roll bars | FFR carbon fiber dash | 18" Halibrands + Wilwoods | RT drop trunk kit & turn signal | front battery mount | saddle leather Intatrim Stoneleigh seats + interior accents
I still remember the joy and permanent smile that one gets when they see that beautiful 18 wheeler pull up to your house with your dream inside. Like a child on Christmas Day and getting that “One special gift” from Santa. I still have that feeling forever burned in the ol’ brain pan. I guess it only gets topped when you eventually drive-it for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, count to infinity… times. Anyway, lots of knowledgeable and helpful family out here to help. Enjoy your build TXeverydayDad! We’ll all be following along!
Doug
Dj or Doug or TheLateDude
----- #19 of 25th Anniversary MKIV 9769 -----
Build Link: https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...-Slow-Progress
Ordered: Oct 07, 2019 / Production: Dec 28th, 2019 / Shipped: Jan 19th, 2019 First Start: In the future... / Graduation: Even further in the future...
Welcome aboard, TX! Sounds like you've done a great deal of planning (and dreaming!) for your build. Congrats on the delivery. I hope it's a great family project for you all.
I'm also going with a Coyote on my Coupe build--love the Gen 3 in my Roadster--but a ways out from ordering the motor. I will be closely watching what is available (Gen 4?) once I'm ready to order. I'll stay tuned to see what you come up with.
Chris Coupe complete kit delivered: 4/22/24. Build Thread. Coyote. T-56. IRS w/3.55. Wilwoods. PS. HVAC. Side windows. MK4 Complete kit. Build Thread Index. Delivered: 10/15/2020. Legal: 7/25/23. Coyote Gen3. TKO600 (0.64 OD). IRS w/3.55. PS. Wilwoods. Sway bars. This build is dedicated to my son, Benjamin. Build Thread.
Thanks for the welcome! I really appreciate this community!
Seeing the 18-wheeler pull up really does make you smile.
Regarding the Coyote, it'll be interesting to see what happens, if the gen 3 comes back or if Ford just launches the gen 4 crate. I have no insight or connections at Ford so I'll just have to wait patiently.
We’ve spent the past few days going over inventory and finding storage spaces for all the boxes in the garage. The rollbars are the only backordered items, and there were a few minor items missing, so it’s all good. It was actually a fun experience to go through all the pieces and both see and handle them first hand.
A heads-up to first time roadster builders and something I wasn’t aware of or had seen in any other posts earlier. One corner on the fuel tank is bent up for tire clearance, and is not due to transport damage. Just an FYI that I haven’t seen mentioned before.
We also built a body buck with a shelf for holding the carpet pieces flat and store the trunk, doors and hood. The plan is to hoist it up in the garage and get it out of the way. The buck sits on the frame dolly so I can move it around easily, and the design is based on edwardb’s.
A few surprises – this was the first time handling the body and lifting it off the frame was an experience. The body is both firmer, yet more flexible than what I was expecting. The headers were smaller than I expected while the rims were both wider and lighter.
My pleasure Ashaw65. This forum and its very detailed build threads have been very helpful for my planning and now act as great references as I build my own, so just glad to pass it forward. I expect this build thread will also be helpful to myself as I progress and forget what I've done in earlier steps...
Congrats! I have that exact same white folding table, and used it to lay out the dozens and dozens of nuts, bolts and screwbags, in numerical order. Helped a lot!
Greg
Built an early MkIII years ago, sold years ago. Back after 18 years to build a MkIV Build Thread Here Partners: Summit Racing, LMR, Breeze, Forte's Parts, Speedhut, Amazon
MkIV Complete Kit Ordered 4/18/23, Delivered 7/11/23, Boss 427W, Edelbrock Pro Flo 4, TKX (.68 5th), IRS, Wilwood Brakes, 18" Halibrands, Toyo R888R Tires, Custom Speedhut Gauges
We’ve spent the past 2 weekends drilling holes. I’m taking a page out of wareaglescott’s playbook, fitting and drilling all the panels as I remove them, in preparation for powder coating. The panels are generally well cut and fit well apart from a few ‘transport’ screws that were quite poorly placed, especially on the firewall.
I followed the manual for installation order, starting with F-panels, firewall and passenger footbox. Took a lot longer than expected. A combination of the kids and I getting used to the process, finding the optimum speed for proper drilling and aligning the holes for both access and aesthetics. Moved on to the driver’s footbox and then the rest of the cockpit which went a lot faster. Now only the 2 large trunk pieces remain to be completed. I can highly recommend boelube lubricant. Makes a significant difference when cutting through the steel.
I will be adding a drop trunk. I lifted the tank in place to get an idea of the dimensions and settled on 24”x14.5”x5”. Got a 2’x4’ aluminum sheet and will fabricate the box out of that. Planning to put my basic sheet metal brake to use and we’ll see how it turns out.
A question that I had and that has come up a few times is how many clecos you 'need' for the build. If you’re fitting all the panels and want all of them mounted at the same time, you’ll need more than 50. With 50, as I have, you just need to disassemble finished sections as you go.
The past two weeks have been focused on completing the panel drilling and dry fitting the drop trunk. So far so good but it's a lot of panels...
My design for the drop trunk made installation a little more difficult than what it needed to be, but it goes in and fits.
We also had some family help to lift the body buck into its storage location, until it’s needed again. A little cumbersome but it’s tucked away and secured now.
Next is prepping/deburring the panels for powder coat and taking them in to be coated. Then we can finally start building the car, and not just removing stuff.
Well, it’s been about a 2 month break in the building, dealing with a death in the family overseas and then some vacation, but now we’re back at it. The time away prompted a tweak to my drop trunk design to make assembly and access easier. All the panels are now completed and have been dropped off for powder coat along with a few extra pieces, making it 68 pieces in total. I was considering either satin black to match the frame or a darker grey and I ended up going with Black Wrinkle, which is a structured black that almost looks grey in the sunlight. Not that many panels will see any light, but that’s besides the point. We’ll see how it turns out.
While waiting for the panels to return, we started preparing the rear diff and control arms. My diff came coated from F5 and filled with fluid. F5 support said it’s only a small amount of transport fluid and that it needs to be filled, but it’s filled to just below the top fill screw. I’ll put a call into Ford Racing to see what they say. It’s a small cost to drain/re-fill, but I hate wasting perfectly good fluids, if it can be avoided.
The holes were drilled out as required and I’m very grateful for the tip to use a cordless drill set at #1 so when the bit catches, it doesn’t twist your arm off. It was quick work with some cutting fluid. We greased and installed the bushings/sleeves and then my son, brother and brother-in-law helped out in getting the center section installed. I had expected this install to be hard, but it was in and torqued in less than 5 minutes. Almost a little anti-climactic, but the center section is now officially the first part mounted to the car - progress! The breather tube has also been installed after the picture was taken.
After this, the metric studs from the rear hub were replaced with SAE studs. A smooth process with an impact gun, but I stripped the threads off one stud because I used the same nut for too many studs. Easy fix. There was no chance I would be able to torque the studs to 100ft-lbs, so that's on my list of items to complete later, but they are pulled tight enough at the moment.
Cutting off the spindle ‘ear’ was something I hadn’t been looking forward to. Chopping up a brand new cast aluminum piece just feels wrong. Anyway, I used an airsaw and then cleaned the cut with a bench sander. Turned out well. Then drilled out the holes with the same process as the center section.
Continuing the prep work in anticipation of the powder coating being done. Started with the Toe arms. Spent some time looking at the mix of strangely labeled bolts and nuts that came in box 2. Everything was accounted for during inventory, but the labels on the bags (hand-written from F5) in which they were placed made little sense and caused more confusion than help. But just disregard the labels and measure the bolts and all is fine. The toe arms and control arms went together quickly. Used a threaded rod with washers/nuts to spread the flanges to fit as well.
Then we tackled the front upper control arms. I had to shorten the rear to be able to reach the general measurements. I took off about 1/8” from both the screws and adjusting sleeve and now have a little more room for adjustments. It took a long time to saw through the hardened screws with a hacksaw and carbide blade, and especially disheartening as the first 3 screws are hollow, while the 4th, attached to the balljoint plate, is solid. Took as long as the other 3 combined, but it’s done now. Squared everything off with the bench sander and calling it done.
We then spent some time with the Wilwood brakes. Attached and safety wired the hats/rotors. This was my first time doing safety wire and it went surprisingly well. It could probably look better but they’ll function as intended.
The powder coated panels should be ready any day now. I got some black rivets from McMaster for the engine bay, which I hope will look good with the panels, as it might be too much of a contrast with the regular rivets. We'll see.
It’s been a busy couple of weeks, but exciting progress! The powder coated panels came back and look great. I really like the wrinkled look. It has a nice sparkle in the sun but looks almost matt in regular light. I added rivnuts to the F-panels, siliconed and riveted them in place with black rivets. Looks good.
The control arms installed quite easily. I had to spread the tabs with a spreader rod and add a little gentle persuasion with a rubber mallet but everything went together well.
I’d seen a question about the snap rings included with the front control arms and where they go, so I took a picture of it. I believe it goes below the ball joint on the front lower control arm. The UCA ball joints went in smoothly as well. No issues with the supplied parts.
The front spindles and springs went in without drama. However, no matter how much I prepared and read up on the orientation of the steering arms, I still managed to install them in the wrong direction. Of course I didn’t notice this until later when I went to install the steering rack, after I had torqued the axle nut. Amazon to the rescue and delivered the one-time use axle nuts 12 hours later. Living close to an Amazon distribution center sometimes has its privileges. I switched them around and now everything fits together. For those that have a mind that works like mine, the steering arms need to be pointed up and out.
I centered the steering rack, turned the tie rod ends to equal threads on both sides, and attached to the arms, everything at the lengths specified in the manual and the front seems to be relatively straight/parallel. This should be good until alignment later down the road. An interesting side note, when I first installed the tie rod ends I couldn’t reach the specified length, but when I switched them left to right, it magically screwed further in, with movement to spare, so I didn’t have to shorten the rods.
The rear CV axles, spindles, hubs and springs mounted up quite easily. The CV axles went in with a satisfying sound and feel and is seated with the correct gaps on both sides. The rear end is beefy! I like it! I also installed the front and rear swaybars. They took longer than expected but they are in.
Last edited by TXeverydayDad; 08-28-2024 at 09:36 PM.
It’s been a busy couple of weeks, but exciting progress! The powder coated panels came back and look great. I really like the wrinkled look. It has a nice sparkle in the sun but looks almost matt in regular light. I added rivnuts to the F-panels, siliconed and riveted them in place with black rivets. Looks good.
The control arms installed quite easily. I had to spread the tabs with a spreader rod and add a little gentle persuasion with a rubber mallet but everything went together well.
I’d seen a question about the snap rings included with the front control arms and where they go, so I took a picture of it. I believe it goes below the ball joint on the front lower control arm. The UCA ball joints went in smoothly as well. No issues with the supplied parts.
The front spindles and springs went in without drama. However, no matter how much I prepared and read up on the orientation of the steering arms, I still managed to install them in the wrong direction. Of course I didn’t notice this until later when I went to install the steering rack, after I had torqued the axle nut. Amazon to the rescue and delivered the one-time use axle nuts 12 hours later. Living close to an Amazon distribution center sometimes has its privileges. I switched them around and now everything fits together. For those that have a mind that works like mine, the steering arms need to be pointed up and out.
I centered the steering rack, turned the tie rod ends to equal threads on both sides, and attached to the arms, everything at the lengths specified in the manual and the front seems to be relatively straight/parallel. This should be good until alignment later down the road. An interesting side note, when I first installed the tie rod ends I couldn’t reach the specified length, but when I switched them left to right, it magically screwed further in, with movement to spare, so I didn’t have to shorten the rods.
The rear CV axles, spindles, hubs and springs mounted up quite easily. The CV axles went in with a satisfying sound and feel and is seated with the correct gaps on both sides. The rear end is beefy! I like it! I also installed the front and rear swaybars. They took longer than expected but they are in.
Congrats on your build! Yet another build thread for me to follow and learn from.
One question. You put rivnuts on the vertical flange of the F-panels. What was the purpose of this? Not questioning, just trying to learn.
It’s been quite a while since my previous update. We’ve been spending all available time progressing on the build instead of updating the build thread…but here goes. We mounted the brakes and the Wilwoods went on smoothly and look really good. No hick-ups during installation, which was great.
We then started assembling the pedal box and the handbrake handle while I’m mentally preparing to install the brake and fuel lines. The plan is to use the provided brake lines but I’m going with 3/8” NiCopp for the hard fuel lines. Don’t know why the task seems daunting but it does. The pedal box came pretty much assembled, I just added the brake and clutch switches, shortened the brake m/c rods and everything went together well. This is the first time I see a balance bar so played around with that a little and it seems good to go. I still have to install the upper clutch switch but will do that when I get the clutch m/c. I’ll be using a hydraulic release bearing and needed a 13/16” master cylinder. I’ve just added the part to my engine order with Mike Forte to be delivered as soon as the control packs and Moroso oil pickup is ready.
I was a little concerned about the brake and clutch pedals having some side to side play, but that seems to be within tolerances and not an issue.
We also installed the flexlines to the brakes. We fastened the brackets and got the adaptors set up quickly. We followed Wilwood’s instructions for installing the caliper inlet fitting, and they mention using PTFE tape. Turns out that’s not a good idea. After tightening the fitting to finger-tight we then tried to clock the fitting in the desired orientation, while turning the fitting between 1.5 to 3 turns. I got just past 2 turns, needing to go another ¼ turn for the right alignment and ended up rounding the fitting. Most here on the forum recommend liquid thread sealant instead. I tried that on the other calipers and that worked like a charm. I used vice grips to get the rounded fitting out and summit delivered a new fitting a few days later. All installed, clearance checked and all is good. But don’t use tape!
Next up was installing the steering column/shaft. After some test fitting, we mounted the bearing on the inside of the footbox, with the set screws on the inside as well. It gave the best clearance and enabled us to disconnect the lower steering rods without removing the upper. It may or may not be needed but feels good to have the option to do it. At this point we just had to loosely mount the steering wheel and put the seat in, just to get a feel of what’s come. We took turns sitting behind the wheel making engine sounds… 😊 Good times!
I was pleasantly surprised that the foot box feels bigger than what I expected. At 6’2” with size 12 feet, I was a little concerned about space, but I think it’ll be good. Still deciding on whether to have a dead pedal or not. I like the idea of a dead pedal but it’s also nice to be able to stretch out my left leg once you’re cruising. Another idea is to put in a ‘heel’ rest to provide a solid pivot point in front of the pedals. Not sure if it’s a good idea and will experiment with this later on.
We used the provided firewall and fabricated a firewall support bracket to stiffen it up some. Since we purchased a brake to make the drop trunk, I figured we’d get as much out of it as possible. And it’s a really simple piece for the kids to learn on as well.
Then onto the fuel and brake lines. My first attempts at bending the lines turned out to be a lot more fun and satisfying than expected. I started with the 3/8 NiCopp fuel lines. I bought 3 x 60” sections and installed the two main feed/return runs along the 4” tube and up into the engine bay, then cut the 3rd in half to extend towards the tank/filter. I’ll add braided lines for the remaining distances once I have the tank/hanger/filter/regulator in place. All coming along with my engine package hopefully in the not too distant future.
With boosted confidence, I moved on to the brake lines and they went in easier than expected. A good sense of accomplishment when I managed to get some nice loops. I didn’t want to cut and flare so I just used the kit provided lines, with some creative loops/shapes. As for routing, I pulled the rear lines along the 4” tube to the front, up by the front control arm under the F-panel and then back to join the front brake line into the foot-box. I had originally thought about running the rear brake line up and inside the footbox but with the added coyote gas pedal bracket and the line probably about 2-3” too short for my planned run, I figured I’d just go the long way around. I purchased an identical 60” line at Advanced Auto and it turned out ok, and I’m happy with it. I saw a tip about starting with the rear lines since they'll be the least visible on the finished build, so that's what I did.
Rear left to right
Rear driver side
Rear to front, driver side
Up behind the F-panel on driver's side
Then back along the 3/4 tube together with the front brake lines into the footbox
Last edited by TXeverydayDad; 10-24-2024 at 07:50 PM.
The front brake lines are routed as most others. Since I have the Breeze battery box, I routed the line in front of the X-brace. I’ve seen some posts about exhaust header hangers, which would be mounted where the front brake line runs along the ¾ tube. If I decide to put the hangers in, I’ll figure out a way to mount them then. Still need to rivet the clamps in place, but want to bleed the brakes and ensure no leaks/cracked lines etc first.
Passenger front
Across X-brace
Around and connect into the driver side T, then back to the footbox.
This weekend we mounted the reservoirs, with the intention of using a single reservoir for both m/c as described in the manual. I’ve since managed to get a hold of extra reservoirs and will probably add another so I have separate reservoirs for each m/c. With the balance bar brake set-up, it will not make any difference in redundancy/safety (as has been discussed in many different threads on the forum) but it actually comes down to aesthetics for me. I think having 3 reservoirs looks better than having only 2, especially at the spacing the provided bracket has. I’ll just need to make a new bracket and offset the brackets and it should look better.
I used the supplied plastic bulkhead fitting for going into the footbox. I tried drilling holes for the lines in the small cover plate for the clutch opening but couldn't get grommets on with enough material left to have a secure pass-through. Hopefully these plastic pieces will hold up.
The lines had not been tightened down when the picture was taken.
I then attempted to bleed the brakes with a power bleeder. Pro tip…tighten all your fittings before trying to bleed the system. Ask me how I know...After that, it didn't take long to get a solid pedal. Fluid quickly got to all corners, and I bled each corner a few times. Feels good. I then pushed as hard as I could on the pedal for 1 minute to check for any strange pedal movements or leaks and then repeated the test 24hours later. Pedal is good and I’m satisfied with the outcome. This milestone also made it possible to torque the rear axle nuts. I believe it was 98ft-lb + 45* turn. Ended up being a little more than 400ft-lbs, according to my torque wrench. I put witness marks on the axle/nuts so any movement should be easy to see.
It seems that the Moroso oil pick-up is now available for the Gen 4X Coyote, so I'm expecting my engine, control pack, transmission, clutch m/c and TOB to be shipped in the next week or two. Exciting progress! Still need to figure out a solution to the gen 3 Coyote headers that I have, but there's plenty more to do before that becomes an issue.
It’s been a long time since the last post. Lots of things going on in the background and we’re making steady progress.
We managed to get a hold of some extra reservoirs from another member and decided to modify our brake set-up to have individual reservoirs for each master cylinder. Trying to keep the total distance from the firewall to the furthest reservoir to less than 12” meant a new bracket was needed. We staggered the clamps to get equal spacing and I’m happy with the end result. I added a third bulkhead fitting and re-routed the lines, trying to not make a mess with the brake fluid. Worked out pretty well and the brakes are now re-bled and ready to go. I’m still missing my clutch m/c, which will be delivered with my engine package, so I hope to get that delivered soon.
Next to tackle was the fuel tank. I’m waiting on the hanger and pump so can’t finish anything, but we test-mounted the tank. Straightened the bent seams and then massaged the ¾” vertical tubes with a dead blow hammer to get enough clearance for the tank to fit flush. The straps connect up and I’m happy with the fitment. The tank is now removed until the parts show up.
We finished up some other pending tasks as well. Added the drive shaft adapter to the IRS, test-mounted the radiator, attached the fan and Breeze shroud.
I’m starting to think about the chassis wiring and dashboard layout and desired functionality. We haven’t made any final decisions yet so I’m gleaning the forum for ideas. The main plan is a competition layout with some/all of the below:
Vintage gauges and switches
IE427 turn signal
Seat heaters switches
Wiper switch
Undecided on key or start button (or both)
Undecided on Master disconnect (under the dash – into engine bay)
Potential extra toggle on clutch switch (as security measure)
12V and USB outlets under the dash
Maybe a magnetic phone holder (magnet behind dash)?
Lots of questions and not many answers yet. I’m very much in the camp of keeping it simple, but having a few steps for extra safety could be good. I’ll let the process take a little time and we’ll see where we land.
Looks like you are doing good work. I wanted to comment on your last bullet regarding the magnetic phone holder. I have been musing on this as well but looking to integrate a charger. Thinking about installing in the transmission tunnel (totally unclear as to how) but it would be nice to eliminate cords and have holding/charging capability bundled into one. Maybe something like this depending on the thickness of upholstery:
I spent several hours with the carbon dash, trying to mount the glove box. It seems that the factory drilled holes for mounting the hinges are off by about ¼”.
On top of that, one hinge bracket was not bent well and was about ¼” longer/higher than the other. I made new holes in the plastic glove box bucket to match the holes in the carbon fiber dash and then re-worked the hinges to match. Once the hinges were in, the slots in the aluminum backing turned out to be too short and had to be elongated as well.
I painted the parts, glued it all together and installed the lock and hinges. Nothing difficult, but more work than expected to just assemble the glovebox. I’ve informed F5, so they are aware of the hole mis-alignments etc as I heard someone else have a similar problem, incase it’s a batch issue, and not just a one-off.
We then clamped the dash into place and mocked it up for the first time. This is just a quick layout by hand to get an idea of where the gauges and switches could intuitively go for us. With this basic layout, I’ll start measuring and aligning everything.
I’ve just received my i.e.427 turn signal unit as well as some Black Friday deals (wwk-2 universal wiper kit, UPR expansion tank and lizard skin). I’ll be changing out the stalk on the turn signal and then figure out what functions I want on the stalk vs on the dash. I’m finding this creative layout part of the process surprisingly hard. The fact that I have a blank dash, with unlimited options for switches/dials/controls and the ability to add any functionality I want is almost leading to decision fatigue. I’m trying to keep it simple, but then I have (or see on this forum) good ideas that could be added. I’ll just allow it to take some time.
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Originally Posted by TXeverydayDad
