Project "Marginal gains..."
Turbo Mini Forums

It's really not a problem as it's of interest, I have tried subtle wheelbase increases already just nothing to this extent.

It will take a bit of time as I have to move all of the hardpoints associated with the rear suspension, Initially I'll try and do it with all the rear suspension component masses as though they are still at the normal mini wheelbase but sometimes the simulation solver gets upset by things like telling it the rear wheel is now at 3.5 metres but the mass associated with that wheel is at 2.0 metres.....

Any more progress?

how have you attached to top edge of the door skin if you dont mind me asking?

Hi stt,

Little progress, life and things in the way, don't expect much to get done this year either

Been trying to get some parts made but it's so difficult to get people willing to make one offs, which I understand but doesn't help....

Hi JetBLICK,

The top edge of a std steel skinned door has an additional stiffening strip which I was attempting to do away with to save weight but it was immediately apparent that the aluminium door skin wouldn't stay straight or seal against the window scraper / seal.

So we welded a steel strip back in with some token lightening holes but more importantly swaged the holes which significantly stiffens the area back up and then bonded this to the door skin:

The swaged strip welded in:

Door_inner_seal_strip by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr
Outer skin bonded (You can even see the tendency to bow in this photo despite trying to straighten it):

IMG_9583 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

Which was better but still tending to bow

Since then having decided to go with sliding windows an unexpected benefit is recreating the bridging piece which connects this swaged stiffener back to the inner frame like on the top of a mk1 door which makes this area very rigid now and has torsionally stiffened the whole door back up, I don't have any photos of this area since I did it but as I say it's the same principle as the area where the bottom glass runner screws to

Edited by Aubrey_Boy on 2nd Jul, 2017.

ah cool cheers. I did the sliding windows too, but used a piece of angle for the slider to sit on and to keep the outer skin straight. But was unsure how to fix the top edge of the ally skin to it. Bonding it makes sense, something like a plexus?

A token gesture but still needed doing, the T45 harness bar / coil over top mount / brace

DSC_7953 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

I need to do this before I do whatever I am doing with the rear / full cage as I need to jig the top mounts relative to the trailing arms to get them positioned correctly. It's all bolted to the to the box section to try and keep it flat and level.

So the two coil over mount bucket bushes are ready to be welded in:

DSC_7941 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

I'm very slow but like doing the tube notching

DSC_7940 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

Just got to linish it and get it TIG'd up then I can finally finish the rear inner arches and seat back

DSC_7939 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr



Cheers

Edited by Aubrey_Boy on 2nd Jul, 2017.

Your attention to detail is phonemonal!
Can't wait for the next update!

Stt,

Thanks for the kind words, I think I spend too much time 'pondering' and not enough 'doing' but hopefully getting this done is one more excuse out of the way to complete the rear end.

Cheers

Alternators....

Sorry if this has already been covered and it's a bit of ramble.. but the searches I have made have referred to ND alternators but nothing which helped me order a specific part number or type.

It's bugged me for a while but the so called ND, Nippon Denso, Kubota, Daihatsu Charade, Nissan Micra or 'lightweight' Motorsport type Nippon Denso alternators seem to vary in quoted weight from 2.5 to 3.0kg for what is advertised as seemingly the same part and no amount of emails or phone calls seems to ever get a straight answer if the weight includes a pulley or pulley nut etc and if they can actually confirm the weight they quote.

I already have a 'small' ND alternator which I have been mocking up with and weighs in at 3.0kg with vee pulley and nut, some way from the 2.5kg I've seen quoted, so after 2 or 3 returned alternators which were no lighter or smaller than what I had despite being sold as "the smallest and lightest you can get mate" I finally sourced one.

It is indeed 2.5kg without pulley or nut and seems to be referred to as 'Ultra small Denso' and my mock up one in the same state is 2.85kg... In my eyes an easy further 350g from where I was. I wanted to buy a new alternator as I didn't want to use something of unknown history

DSC_7961 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

DSC_7962 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

DSC_7956 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

Hopefully the pics help anyone else trying to source the 'ultra small' Denso

With the harness tube and others I only seem to have been adding weight lately so nice to be going the right direction for once

Cheers

Edited by Aubrey_Boy on 2nd Jul, 2017.

That's the one Ive got. I got it from ebay as a mini excavator alternator. There is a thread on here for wiring connections if you need it

Edit, there are a few small areas you can make lighter

Edited by paul wiginton on 22nd Nov, 2016.

I seriously doubt it!

Thanks Paul, do you mean save weight on a few small areas on the alternator ?

I was going to strip the 3.0kg version to see what I could feasibly lighten from the 'ultra small' version, the case looks like it could lose a bit, maybe a Ti nut to hold the pulley, I think it's M14 so will see if there is anything off the shelf and maybe hollow the main central shaft?

Yes, theres a few small bits on the casing that I shaved down a bit. It is M14, I use a modified k nut and Carl made me a titanium pulley

I seriously doubt it!

that's the pair i have been trying on medusa, i did not know the small one was rare.

My situation is more a ,will it fit behind the grill, rather than weight .

Edited by robert on 18th Oct, 2017.

Medusa + injection = too much torque for the dyno ..https://youtu.be/qg5o0_tJxYM

Hmmmm interesting... wewy wewy interesting...

Is there any way of saving weight on the starter?

Hey Robert,

I don't think it's especially rare, just a case of not ever really knowing what you're going to get, also so many are just library photos so you can't even bank on seeing the subtle differences.

Gotta save as much as I can with this boat anchor for a motor

Cheers

Yeah I'm sure there will be weight to lose out of the starter, I have a 'lightweight' WOSP reduction gear starter which is a healthy chunk heavier than the standard one but I needed it to clear the inboard coil overs due to the fact that I could rotate it. Another example of 'lightweight' parts that just aren't.

I swapped to the smaller one of the two wile ago, but i found it could not keep my battery charged like the last one.

To give you an idea I used 3 battery's at pod the last time I was there.

Not sure what I am trying to say tbh lol.

I have started posting on Instagram also my name on there is turbomk1golf

Nothing is impossible it just costs more and takes longer.

What is the centre distance of the bolt holes and the approx dia of the body on the smaller one?
Did you google the number to ascertain the current rating? I've got two of what I believe are the super-small ones; one rated at just 30a, the other 45a - I don't think they get much more powerful than that on the super-small ones.

Hey Simon,

That doesn't sound right? I know from my digging there are 10A and 18 Amp versions but assuming you've got a 40 - 45A version like mine and assuming there is nothing funky with how you've got it 'geared' and it's charging properly that should be more than enough, especially on the strip?

No lights on, no injectors, no heater, no heated screens?

I assume it's not sitting idling with the rad fan running while waiting to run? Can be up to 10A?

What's left? low pressure fuel pump/s, coil, MJ, a few gauges?

Dunno?

Harness bar / coil over brace is done, so glad I didn't end up MIG'ing it myself, I talked to a local zorst place that had some nice examples of TIG from their systems but as soon as brought up the subject of TIG filler rods and what they would use it was clear they didn't have a clue and I knew they wouldn't buy the correct rods for T45 just for this so waited for my normal fabby to do it.

DSC_7984 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

No more excuses to get on with it now

DSC_7977 by Aubrey Boy, on Flickr

Cheers

Edited by Aubrey_Boy on 2nd Jul, 2017.

So mocked it up, it's bolted properly in position for now, the harness bar was welded up and checked on a surface table to 100% check it was flat and level as I need to use it as a datum relative to the radius arm axes to make sure the coil over top mounts are level to each other and the radius arms, it just means spring lengths and coil over platform heights are the same side to side.

As I thought you cannot get around the back of where the harness bar mounts to the top mount in order to weld it in fully with the seat back insitu so it was the right thing to wait.



They were just under 0.1 degrees to each other which is under a millimetre as far as left to right coil over mount relative height goes so I'm happy with that.

It just touches the seatback in the centre so I will probably add a couple of gussets to link the harness bar and the shear panel that the seatback makes to help stiffen everything up.

Just need to decide if I want to add more weight in the form of the rear cage / full cage, it will be used extensively as a road car so reluctant to have a cage, dunno....

Cheers

Edited by Aubrey_Boy on 8th Jul, 2017.

i just realised , if this is a heavy weight ,what does that make my 620kg (receweight) podger ?!!

Medusa + injection = too much torque for the dyno ..https://youtu.be/qg5o0_tJxYM

Hey Robert,

I just constantly seem to be adding weight now! The harness bar thingy is an additional 1.2kg which is 200g heavier than I estimated and effectively undoes the few hundred gram saving made with the alternator, I know I will still save more weight as I go through each bit but the initial flurry of ideas and savings has slowed markedly.

So if 620kg is 'podgerweight' then heavyweight must be 599kg or so

I'll just make it as light as I can whilst still making it suitable for purpose

It's still be pretty light, looking at some new hatchbacks out there, they are around 1500kgs now!