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M2 redux


Ian

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Okay, back to work on the M2.

I need to run a dash bar for the cage. It is easy to run a dash bar in a race car, but in my case I wanted to not only retain the heater, but be able to pull it out for repair once the dash bar is welded in place.

I tried a bunch of locations, but ended up deciding to run the bar just behind the face of the dash. So far the dash bar seems to clear all the heater controls, the heater itself, and almost clears the steering column. I think I will just need to space the steering column down away from the dash with a couple of washers to allow the bar to clear.

I had to cut out some of the dash support in the glovebox, and behind the heater controls. I'll lose most of the storage in the glovebox, but it will still look stock. Here's a pic of the dash deconstruction. I still have to bend the final bar for fit, but I used the old (non-fitting) bar in the pic to get dimensions. The dash will require notching for the A-pillar bar, but it will otherwise look stock.

Dash_Bar%20copy.jpg

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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  • 4 months later...

Back to work on the dash bar. I fiddled with the dash bar for quite awhile, to get it to fit so I can still service the heater and the dash controls. I think I've got it figured out, but this has all been with the dash sitting in place, but no A-pillar bars from the roll cage. Time to notch the dash, so I can bend up a dash bar.

I've been kind of reluctant to cut up my dash, since it is in good shape. However, I need to get going with my car, so time to cut. As a compromise for looks, I thought I'd try and peel back the vinyl cover, so that after installation I could fold the vinyl back over the gap between the dash and the A-pillar bar, to make it look like the dash was still intact. I discovered that a heat gun and a pick work pretty well, and I was able to peel back the driver's side vinyl, just enough to cut-off the corner I had measured.

Dash_01.thumb.jpg.5f6cf1bc323de390ab58fac0af0fab4f.jpg

 

This worked fairly well, so armed with a pneumatic sheet metal body saw, I cut off the end of the dash. I did this in stages, checking for the closest fit I could get, while still aligning with the two mounting screws at the front under the windshield.

Dash_02.thumb.jpg.1a0972334af68bc0ee45bffb8291b384.jpg

And here's how the driver's side of the dash fits.

Dash_03.thumb.jpg.25bb72325750d154c815223275b80fef.jpg

Dash_04.thumb.jpg.f171858e229c63bb80fdd227eb42124e.jpg

 

This was actually too good a fit, as once I did the passenger side with a similar curved cut, I could not get the dash back in. It has to slide forwards, so I had to cut a triangular bit off of the top, to get the dash in.

Dash_06.thumb.jpg.5e5a5cb69e11b166e25d4a0fb0ea29f4.jpg

 

Now I can fit the dash bar behind the lower edge of the dash and coordinate the A-pillar bars and the dash. Once I get the final cage welded in, I'll trim the vinyl, and go back with the heat gun and pull the vinyl back to cover the gaps between the bar and the dash. But this is Pete's cage, so I've got to finish it up and ship it, and then I can work on mine!

Edited by Ian

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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Pete! Good to see ya around! I escaped from Asia recently!

Ian, I need to subscribe to your thread. You are going to make it to the Vintage this year, right?

Cheers,

Ray

Man I am a very very luck man! Looks great Ian!

Thanks!

Pete

Ray

Stop reading this! Don't you have anything better to do?? :P
Two running things. Two broken things.

 

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Ian, I need to subscribe to your thread. You are going to make it to the Vintage this year, right?

Cheers,

Ray

Hi Ray,

I wish I was going to the Vintage, but don't think I'll be ready. I really want to drive the M2 down, and I'm hoping to start attending next year.

Ian

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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  • 1 year later...

Boy, does time ever fly!  Life, family and other car repairs have conspired to keep my M2 stuck up on jackstands.  This must stop!  The major problem has been mission-creep; it's just too much fun thinking of ways to customize the old 2002.  However, I really need to start driving this car again, so I'm scaling back the plans.  Originally, I was going to change the suspension pickup points and remake the suspension, but I just don't have the time.  So, that means it's back to the cage, but first I have to fix the floor.  One section is in the footwell of the driver's-side rear seat, where I had made a flanged panel and welded it in about 5 years ago.  Don't do this!  While the flange was easy to align, the flange trapped moisture and started to rust out.  Plus, I did a crappy job.  So, with plans to butt-weld in the replacement panel, I cut out the offending steel.  I had also cut some holes in the rear tranny tunnel and over the rear suspension points, to get a better idea of how everything might work with my super-fantastic uber suspension.  Since I was scrapping that uber-plan, I had to fill these holes as well.  Here is what the floor looked like pre-surgery:

2002_floor.jpg

 

Notice that you can see the floor in areas that might be helpful for keeping water out of the cabin.  While the missing steel did contribute to lightness, it was probably not what Colin Chapman had in mind when he formed his design strategy for Lotus (just add lightness).  

 

I cut out some 18 ga steel, and got my high-tech tools ready:

hammer.jpg

 

Hammer time!  A little time with the beater bag to get shape, then some wheeling on the english wheel gave me a decent shape, but I could not quite get the replacement to fit the tunnel.  The piece had to stretch in two dimensions, up towards the rear firewall and outward from the tunnel towards the seat area (yellow arrows), and I could not wheel enough stretch into the panel in both directions in one piece.

tranny-tunnel2.jpg

 

I finally ran out of talent, and made this patch in two pieces.

DSCN0002.jpg

 

And stich-welded everything in place.

DSCN0003.jpg

 

I also had the fantasy of running a horizontal bar for the cage through the rocker, and this of course required minor surgery to open up an inspection panel.  While it was great for figuring out how the car was built, I had to close this up as well.  Slightly thicker metal as the rocker is fairly stout.  I ground this flush, as eventually I'll have carpet back in the car and want this to cover up.

rocker.jpg

 

Up till now I had used the empty space in the footwell to stand in while I welded.  Time to close this last offending hole up.  I decided to make a raised inner panel to stiffen this piece, as it was fairly large and flat.  So, with my daughter manning the crank of the bead roller, we made a simple pattern, and then between bending the panel over my knee and the english wheel I got a nice transition curve from the floor up the transmission tunnel.

Done.jpg

 

 

The floor is now waterproof and much stiffer than when filled largely with air, and I am finally ready to build a cage for my own car!  I picked up some .095" steel, and will start on baseplates for the legs of the cage.

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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yeah!!! progress!

 

vintage THIS year?  :)

Not sure. I want to get MOBILE this year.  But mobile doesn't necessarily include items that might be nice for a long drive like a stereo.  Or headliner, carpet, or sound deadening.   But they will come eventually, and I am really looking forward to attending Vintage in the near future.

Edited by Ian

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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Started work on the baseplates for the front legs of the cage.  BMW CCA and SCCA require a minimum thickness of .080" and a maximum area of 100 sq in for baeplates, so I though I'd use this as a rough guide for my baseplates, although I opted for .095" (13 ga) to match the wall thickness of the tubing I'm using for my cage.  I want to land the legs on top of the rockers, to give me maximum foot room, and thought I'd run the baseplate on top of the rocker and down to the floor and out across the floor, and forward to the firewall.  So I started cutting out templates from card stock, which is a lot easier to bend than .095" steel.

Baseplate2.jpg

 

Unfortunately, I discovered a hole in the front corner while removing sound deadening.  When I first got the car (in my pre-welding days) there was a rust hole in the floor that I fixed with marine caulking a pop-riveted plate, and I forgot that I later found a hole in the corner.  I plugged this hole with POR epoxy putty, and it held up pretty well for many years.  However, this mess will be sealed behind my baseplate, so'd better fix this now.   

Baseplate1.jpg

 

The rust actually extended a fair bit back where the floor met the rocker, so I had to cut out a good chunk of the floor to remove all the rust.  Here's a pic of the baseplate, next to the rectangular area that has to be filed with 18 ga before I can weld in the baseplate.

Baseplate3.jpg

 

Hopefully, the passenger-side will have less drama!

 

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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As usual, the old car had a few tricks up his sleeve.  There is a small flared hole on the rocker, forward and down by the floor.  Since this was going to be covered by the baseplate for the cage, I wanted to fill the hole to keep water from infiltrating.  I cut a small disc out of 18 ga, and stitch-welded the piece in.  Then I noticed a discoloration near the newly-sealed hole, and started poking it with a screwdriver.  Rust, and then suddenly another hole!  Oh well, I dug out the air grinder with a carbide bit, and enlarged the hole until I had removed all the rust.  Then I cut out another disc and welded it in to the second hole.  

DriverCorner1.jpg

 

 

The baseplate is going to fit tight to the rocker, so I ground the welds flush with the rocker, and then made a filler piece for the floor.  I welded this in, and ground the welds down so the baseplate could sit flush with the floor.  I didn't worry about the stitch welds in the corner, as the radius of the baseplate bend was large enough that they wouldn't interfere with fit.  Since the welds on the floor are going to be covered in baseplate and then carpet, I didn't worry about making them pretty.

DriverCorner2.jpg

 

With the driver's side water-tight, I put in the baseplate for a test fit.  Looks good, now to form the top into a bend that hugs the top of the rocker.

DriverCorner3.jpg

Ian
'76 M2

'02 325iT

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