got a grass auto test on the 10th.
In preparation me and dad have started fitting a sump guard.

this is what we have done so far.


Next job is to weld a frame up that bolts onto the front suspension arm mounts and has 3 bars that go across the bottom of the engine and bend up at the end bolting to the frame we fitted today.

we may then weld crosses between these bars with lighter steel.
the main reason for this is the car wont be fitted with a metal guard (heavy and more then what i will need)
onto this frame will be riveted a thick flexible plastic sheet. which to start with might be just one of them HUGE oil/fuel drums which im told will be perfect because its flexible, VERY impact resistant.

Thats kinda of what I did, although we used separate brackets off the inner wing that are sacrificial.

We didn't want to use the side brackets because if the guard takes a dunt and moves it will split the radiator.

Cheers

SPD

this wont move we did tack the down bars to the thin metal but the main of its onto the chassis of the car.

if you take the bumper off and look at the side of the headlight there is a hole. we bent the metal out and rammed a bar into it. then welded it all up.
never took a pic but this is what we did



The part behind there is the actual chassis of the car where all the engine mounts are bolted so should be more then beefy enough. fingers crossed anyway.... I just have a feeling ill knock me turbo off

(thought about leaving them bits sticking out as anti-cento-bully device)

Fair enough.

We took the opposite view that things will move so we welded brackets to the inner wings, then bolted the frame up to them.

The rear of the guard is bolted to the chassis rails.

Cheers

SPD

I keep seeing pictures of all these turbo chinqs. makes me want one.
Nice car craig. Oh theres a lot of fluid on your pass CV boot

I was hoping some one was going to make up a glass fibre one to keep the compartment cleaner and suck more air through the radiator, and across the oil sump.

Noel

rallycinq said:

Fair enough.

We took the opposite view that things will move so we welded brackets to the inner wings, then bolted the frame up to them.

The rear of the guard is bolted to the chassis rails.

Cheers

SPD

Click to expand...

where on the inner wing? on/near engine mounts? if so we really looked into this and could not get enough space

Adrian Bravo said:

Nice car craig. Oh theres a lot of fluid on your pass CV boot

Click to expand...

Think its just grease from when i fitted the engine only a while back

Pep0 said:

I was hoping some one was going to make up a glass fibre one to keep the compartment cleaner and suck more air through the radiator, and across the oil sump.

Noel

Click to expand...

fibre glass would be a bit crap imho. it would need to be really thick to take the knocks and a that thickness more then likely cheaper and lighter to use alloy.

i looked into this many moons ago and got in touch with a company called.. erm.. alpha composites i think, they had one that was made from kevlar, cost around £90 - it just needed a frame to be fabbed for it to fit onto

Hi Craig

Yes I'd a planned for titanium like GP car except normal Mx-5's have plastic ones that seem to survice normal road use they run from forward of rad aft to oil sump, no protection for sump, they help air flow.

Noel
[edit]
https://www.fiatforum.com/cinquecento-seicento/39670-cinq-sump-petrol-tank-guards.html
[edit]

im talking about whole under body protection. im told that most rally cars have a sheet of plastic. mostly for gravel... stops the metal floor of the car getting beaten in.
the right kind of plastic is much better for that kind of stuff then metal. metal deforms

craigb244 said:

im talking about whole under body protection. im told that most rally cars have a sheet of plastic. mostly for gravel... stops the metal floor of the car getting beaten in.
the right kind of plastic is much better for that kind of stuff then metal. metal deforms

Click to expand...

plastic snaps ?

Ming

not if its the right plastic. from what im told its near enough the same as what them big oil drums are made from...
which is was im going to use... drums about 4foot tall and the plastic is about 5mm thick. but pretty flexable.

we are actually going to use the whole length (have a feeling it will roll out to almost as long as the cento). excessive for what i need but at least my car wont rot underneath any time soon

Hi Criag

I did realise you were on grass, stones etc. Kevlar is what they make bullet proof jackets out of so it is some what damage tolerant... I just want air flow.

Noel

rally cars use kevlar under body protection dont they?

Pep0 said:

Hi Criag

I did realise you were on grass, stones etc. Kevlar is what they make bullet proof jackets out of so it is some what damage tolerant... I just want air flow.

Noel

Click to expand...

yep. grass auto test we made the gaurd frame mainly to protect the sump/turbo/downpipe. the plastic is just to stop the car scooping up mud like it did last time.

Brooky said:

rally cars use kevlar under body protection dont they?

Click to expand...

guess the top ones do... my dads gaffer has alloy sump gaurd and the rest the same as im doing it (iirc)... he even makes hes mud flaps from old oil drums.

I have used the plastic from standard five litre oil cans as wheel arch protectors on rally cars.

Another thing to do to the cinq if the event is likely to be muddy, is to mount scrapers inside the wheels, particularly the rears, to avoid mud build up.

Kaylan is the plastic used for underbody protection.

Cheers

SPD

I wonder what Kaylan actually is?

My guess is that it might be a kevlar filled polyurethane. Kevlar is pretty tough, the problem is bonding it with something that's both strong enough to hold it together and flexible enough to take impacts.

did more work on this. Got some 6mm thick steel. 2meters of the stuff for 7quid... bargain.

Just got to figure out mounting for the 3 front plates onto the front support. (dont want to drill though the box but i also dont want bolt heads sticking out the plates.)
also going to look into a small lip just under the bumper to stop it getting ripped off

does that bolt onto where the front wishbone mounts to? is that wise, if the guard gets knocked hard and bends those mounts, it'll twist the shell won't it

that part takes the whole force of the engine and brakes. take one hell of a hit to bend them!