Mike's 1964 Elva Courier MkIV Build Thread!

[ELVA164]

It's been quite a while since my last update but I have a few developments to share! Most importantly, the car is at our shop and accessible all the time!


I also found hugely important piece of fiberglass: The second parking light! I really wasn't looking forward to recreating it myself.


With the car now accessible, I decided to prep and rust-proof the metal areas of the car:







I started by prepping and spraying the steel floors:




I also sanded/wire brushed the rest of the chassis, but the rust-proofing paint didn't really look very different.

Speaking of painting, I finally cleaned up and painted my repaired axle housing!






In preparation for future assemblies, I've laid out a table of goodies including some new gearbox bits!






Looking to make some more strides soon!

[ELVA164]

So I was finally able to pick up the engine block and transmission case yesterday to take home and start working on!


I separated the case and started preparing to clean the pieces. First, I took a look at the center section:

It had a fair amount of rust, so I decided to glass bead it. I think it came out well!




I'll spend a bit more time making 100% sure all the grit is out of the drillings, but I'm confident it'll get nice and clean.

Today, I decided to work on the bellhousing. It's cast iron, like the rest of the drivetrain is (unfortunately...). Here's my starting point:



First order of business was removing the throw-out bearing arm pivot!
Next was removing the mount for the throw-out bearing arm and a section of the starter shield. Here's my dad's bellhousing as an example of my goal:


Using a combination of hacksaw and cutting wheel, I got the mount first...

...and the shield second.

A bit of work with the angle grinder and I'll be good to go! Not bad for a rough cut!


And by the way, it looks like I saved a pound of weight with my cutting!


Next is painting the cleaned pieces, cleaning the second brake drum, organizing the parts for the gearbox and rear axle, and--dare I say it--some assembly!

[ELVA164]

this is R3V, that should've been expected and in fact was overdue ;)

In all seriousness though, its always cool to see the other sex getting involved. Im assuming shes a driver also then if she is a co-owner?

I was expected, but it was going so well!

She will be a driver. This car will be her ride for driver's school when she gets around to it. Until then, I'll have to take driving duties!

Right!!

You haven't added lightness, so you must add moar powah!

(But don't skimp on safety, now)

It's not easy to leave the extra power (and rpm) on the table as I collect things, but this is not the "blank check" job I wish it was! And safety is definitely paramount, hence the steel floors, modified rollbar, and type of seat I've chosen to use. I plan to add a bar or two under the floor for side intrusion, as well.

[LateFan]

...Besides, if I never drove a light one I'll never know the difference, right?



....Right?

Right!!

You haven't added lightness, so you must add moar powah!

(But don't skimp on safety, now)

[2mAn]

Move along, sparky.

this is R3V, that should've been expected and in fact was overdue ;)

In all seriousness though, its always cool to see the other sex getting involved. Im assuming shes a driver also then if she is a co-owner?

[ELVA164]

more pics of you sister?

Can you send her my way?? Im going to need some help soon fiberglassing a new ass on my gazelle kit car.

;D

Seriously though this tempts me to post the build thread over here too

Move along, sparky.


Since we're technically co-owners of the car, it was good to see her get some time in on it. I'll admit her two pieces of glass mat don't quite match my contributions thus far, but it's close.

[2mAn]

First off, my sister did her first fiberglass work a couple weeks ago! Her first experience was with the hood.

After a quick tutorial from yours truly, she got to work!

more pics of you sister?

Can you send her my way?? Im going to need some help soon fiberglassing a new ass on my gazelle kit car.

;D

Seriously though this tempts me to post the build thread over here too

[ELVA164]

Wow, that's a lot of work. Impressive.

Question - is all that epoxy adding a lot of weight to the body, or would it have needed reinforcing even without the damage?

It is adding quite a bit of weight, unfortunately. I'm sure this will be one of the heavier Elva Couriers out there, but with the amount of damage the car sustained it really needs all this to make it once piece again and make sure it's stiff. Besides, if I never drove a light one I'll never know the difference, right?



....Right?

[LateFan]

Wow, that's a lot of work. Impressive.

Question - is all that epoxy adding a lot of weight to the body, or would it have needed reinforcing even without the damage?

[ELVA164]

Another update, and another evening spent covered in dust and fibers!

I took pictures of most of my target areas before I worked today, so there's a good "before and after" this time.
Areas I worked on include...
The gaping hole that was once the right-hand whisker:




A small patch on the right inner fender:



Holes in the rear firewall and tail area from the old rollbar:





The left-hand inner rocker:





I also covered a small gap between the rear firewall and the rear of the chassis to prevent rubber and rocks and things from getting trapped in there:


Oh, and we have a roughed-out rollbar sitting in the car! Woo! It'll need a couple more bars obviously but I like it so far!

[ELVA164]

HUGE update, guys! I've been working full days at the shop, then heading to the Courier and working there! Lots of pictures, so hopefully you aren't reading this on a phone with a limited data plan! :D

First off, my sister did her first fiberglass work a couple weeks ago! Her first experience was with the hood. We had to spread it slightly on one side to get it to match the fender:

After a quick tutorial from yours truly, she got to work!



Great results!

I also showed her how to use leftover resin to fill in rough spots, and she smoothed out this bumperette:


Before we left, I prepped a number of areas for future work:




I also got a nice preview of the second inner fender!


A lot of work got done on the rear firewall and interior!




The inner fender is glassed in!



We also made some super-nifty pieces to locate and secure the transmission tunnel!
Front:

Rear:

Along with some screws, these will allow us to remove the tunnel quickly and easily to access the transmission!

My next visit, I discovered my car at this orientation:


Time to look at the underside! :D
Glassed the back of the rear firewall, under one of the front fenders, and filled some small gaps with the extra:





These final pictures are from today. First of all, it appears we won't be keeping the front bumperette "whiskers:"

I've seen a car without them, and I have to admit it looks quite nice. Hopefully mine will come out as cleanly!

First off, the new gallon of resin was slightly....dried out about four inches in. I had to drill my way in:

That was annoying.

Once I had the resin, I got a number of areas stuck together! Patched the underside of the fenders, the old rollbar holes in the rear, areas around the floor, gaps between the inner and outer fenders, some small gaps in between other panels, and a couple small cracks.














The car is almost ready to come home and then I can make it into a roller!

[flyboyx]

damnit! now i need to subscribe.

[ELVA164]

Haha, sounds good to me!

[Ray Smoodiver]

Moved to projects, too good for OT!

[ELVA164]

It's been an unbelievably busy season thus far and I've only just gotten some time to work on the Courier again. There are some things I didn't get pictures of, but this will get the idea across for now!

I've been heading to the shop where the car is located after work, usually after the owner is done for the day. The last couple times I went, nobody was there and I couldn't figure out how to get the compressor turned on. That meant instead of grinding the areas I had to fiberglass, I had to file them by hand. Took a while longer but worked alright!

The biggest news first: We have one of the doors fitted! We had to remove a bit in front of it to get the hinge to work, but we'll add it back in once it's settled.


On the other side of the car, I did a bit of smoothing out around the front and rear of the left-hand door.



I reattached the two halves of the area underneath the car's "mouth."


There was a hole after reattaching the upper part of the mouth, but I forgot an "after" picture of that. (It's filled now)


I cleaned up the area between the passenger footwell and the inner fender:

As well as attaching the footwell to the chassis rail.


A super-nifty bar has been added under the front cowl so I glassed one of the feet to the chassis (it's been welded already, just so everyone knows):


I also started to attach the center of the bar to the underside of the cowl:


I sealed up the gap between the rear shelf and the underside of the rear cowl. This part was pretty tough as the glass mat had to wrap from a vertical surface to the underside. I started with a single piece but discovered it was too heavy so I used three smaller pieces with more success.



I cleaned up the rear vertical members of the chassis so I can reattach them to the body:



Then I stuck them together!




On a different note, the transmission tunnel is almost completely done and will ultimately be attached with screws for easy removal!