The old adage goes something like this: You can build your car fast, cheap, and reliable. Now, pick two. This principle seems to hold true with racecars and most things in life. But occasionally, a product comes along that seems to laugh in the face of this principle. I actually got excited when I...
The roll cage is a pivotal moment in the exo car build, and I am taking a super small step back to ensure the cage is executed properly. After all, it has been 10 years since I fabricated, installed, and welded a roll cage. Although I am still confident in my abilities, a few decisions and other...
In the previous Failure Points segment, I discussed a recent front wheel bearing failure on the Super Touring 6 Miata. This failure was abrupt, and there was no indication of issues before the session. And as promised, here are the steps to replace the front wheel bearings on the Miata. A...
The harsh environment of the racetrack pushes a car right to its limit and beyond. As such, racecar failures are bound to happen in many different ways. Failure Points is a new series that dissects these moments and what to do when things go wrong. This time it is the front wheel bearing of the...
The 1991 Mazda Miata from which I am building the exo car has led a rough life. This was especially evident when I finished the chassis cleaning in part 5; quite a bit of surface rust was exposed. Usually, I would wait to address the rust during the fabrication process while fitting the roll cage...
Didn’t I mention this may get a little confusing? In part 4, I cleaned up the chassis, removing any remnants attached to the car, cleaning up the cuts, and grinding a few miscellaneous brackets off. Now, I am physically cleaning the chassis to prepare for the final prep and welding. Taking...
The “ghettocet” project keeps growing. That’s not a bad thing but I have quickly realized that a project of this scale is going to take a bit more prep and cleanup than usual before I move on to the roll cage.
I decided to go ahead and remove the subframe from the chassis. This is a pretty straight forward process in the Miata and will give me easier access to everything when I finish the chassis prep and install the roll cage. However, due to my limited work area, I did have to get a little creative.
Exo cars come in all shapes and sizes. This one is an extreme example of what is possible on a limited budget. As such, in part 2, it’s time to get out the cutting tools and get the car chassis down to as low a weight as possible.
In part 1 of the exo car build guide, I disassemble anything that bolts to the Miata. This would be the interior, dash, seats, doors, soft top, and trunk along with anything else that removes semi easily. And where last time I said, ‘this is going to be a lot of fun.’ This time I...
I love junkyard builds and I have always subscribed to the do more with less methodology. So building an exo car is something I have wanted to do for a very long time. It’s also an excuse for me to brush up on some old skills and hone some new ones.
One of the things I have enjoyed about my foray into Super Touring racing with NASA is the open rule book. Building a car to a power to weight instead of the strict rules that go along with Spec racing. This has opened up many engineering possibilities and things I would like to try. One of those...
