111RS #3 Build: Rodents, Wiring & More Clean Up!

fresh nest

 Rodents like cars that sit.  Sportscars, in general, don't get driven as much as our daily drivers.  This allows critters to infiltrate and set up camp.  Our latest 111RS build seems to have fallen prey to some nest building.  Interestingly enough, no real rodent droppings were found.  In fact the nests were fairly fresh so it seems we got the car in time before the babies were born....

The HVAC unit also fell victim to our furry friends and we had to replace a couple of panels that they had chewed up.  Luckily our BoneYard is a great source for some parts.  

The front cavity that holds the HVAC unit did not recieve the factory tech update that involves drilling four drain holes into the chassis.  So water was able to collect here and start to look nasty.  This is also the reason for the blower motor that stop working due to the electronics getting corroded from the standing water.

The rear subframe got painted black to help it dissappear.  Additional engine bay clean-up made the rear of the car look great again.

time to clean up the hoses as well.  plus the oil lines were not updated...ULTRAliteLINES will get installed

subframe painted and reinstalled

This car had a instrument cluster from a company that is hard to reach for support.  We decided to remove it and install one of our AiM MX2E instead.  The cluster that was on the car was not a plug and play solution so we will reverse the wiring changes first.

111RS #3 Build: Powertrain Out

 We pulled the rear clam off the car and yanked the powertrain.  It can be telling what a car has experienced when it comes apart.  There will be tell tale signs of various 'experiences'.  This car shows no hidden crash damage or repairs but it has seen some dirt.  There is dust build up that suggest silt from driving through a deep puddle.  The car came to us running fine and we will completely clean and replace any thing that may have been submerged.  

The above image shows some dirt build up that seems water related.  

The engine/trans will be full rebuilt along with new suspension, brakes, etc.  The engine has leaks from a couple of locations but will get rebuilt anyhow.  It will be given a new lease on life once the boys at Mountune are finished.  The clutch was in great shape with plenty of life.  Regardless, we will replace it with new and keep this as a spare.  The gearbox is getting rebuilt and will received the OS Giken LSD.  

We plan to paint the subframe black so Lee cleaned it up before we hit it with high temp paint.  It was is much better shape than many we have seen before it.  No signs of crash damage.  The bottom of the chassis is in good shape with minimal signs of damage.  The bottoms are very vulnerable on these cars and usually scars from road debris or off-road excursions are easy to spot.

Introducing 111RS #3

 We have begun working on our third 111RS - technically it is our 4th if we include the 111RS Spyder.  The Spyder was our first and halo vehicle for this line of uprated 111s.  Our latest 111RS project came to us as a tired, higher mileage Elise with over 65k miles.  The car has no truly bad issues, just few cosmetic blemishes and worn out bits.

We've begun blowing her apart.  All the mechanical bits will be replaced or renewed.  The Mountune engine should be with us soon.  The gearbox is getting all of our improvements including an OS Giken LSD - a favorite of mine.  Our new shiftR111 2.0 prototype will likely find its way into this car once the initial testing is complete.  I have a few cosmetic tricks up my sleeve as well to enhance the styling a bit...