11Budlite

Thanks guys! "Get out and enjoy!!!" - I did Jack. Drove it to work on a beautiful foggy morning, answered questions all morning to friends at work, gave rides at lunch time, had a great ride home from work with kids waving when I drove by their houses, and took Nancy out for a ride to calibrate the speedo (easy job!) and for a picnic dinner at a state park. She was the one that got out early from work so she could go for a good ride! I think I put on over 50 miles today!! "What do you use to clean / polish the aluminum with?" - I use a rolite polishing kit with a Porter Cable orbital polisher. Saves a lot of time! http://www.topoftheline.com/rolmetpolkit.html It looks like I'll be spending some more time polishing because the family cats used to sleep under the car cover in the winter and wiped their feet off on the side of the body before they hopped in!! :banghead: "It looks like you replaced the stock Birkin fuel cap for a much better looking one. What make/model is it?" - It's a Mocal (actually made by Newton I believe) Aero 300 p/n CAP2LF with a horseshoe shaped mounting ring p/n RIN2 that I got at British American Transfer. I also bought a p/n NH451 fuel hose but I can't remember if that was to mount to the fuel cell properly or for the fuel filler. Here's the link: http://64.202.180.37/files/cap.pdf Wow, I just checked the prices, and they've gone up quite a bit! :ack: "What was required to install it?" - This is from memory but I think it was really pretty simple. The stock Birkin cap was rivited on with a 4-hole bolt pattern so I drilled the rivets and it popped right off. The new cap comes with a 6-hole pattern, but I believe the opening is the same diameter. I just lined up the existing holes the best I could (I think two lined up) and then drilled the extra holes in the body. There are going to be extra holes, but they are covered up by the filler and the mounting ring. Bruce :7drive:

"What kind of battery are you using? is it mounted on it's side? or are that where the posts are" - It's a Odyssey PC680 which can be mounted in any position. I do have it mounted on it's side with the special housing you can get from Odyssey. I just hooked it up with ring terminals, but you can get the standard post-type terminals that screw into the battery. "hopefully our 7s will cross paths this year" - I'm counting on it Box!! Bruce :7drive:

Now up to 1320 miles and counting!! Bruce :7fume:

Thanks guys! Lot's of little things to do, but at least she runs and drives! Bruce :7fume:

Ok, so it was running in the fall when I got it inspected and registered, but it never ran very well. I tried a few different starter maps but they were either too rich with black smoke coming out of the exhaust, or too lean with hesitation and popping and spitting from the intake. So I finally got my wideband wired up and running and then went to try it out and the car wouldn't start. Did a few checks and I could see I wasn't getting any spark. Couldn't remember what I did to cause it but by this time it was late November, so I decided to push it around back to my basement "garage" and leave it for spring. :ack: So today I decide to take a day off from work and see what I can do to get it running again. So I push it back around to the "real" garage and start playing around with a test light. I can see that the fuses check out and I'm getting power to the ignition/ECU relays, but I'm not getting power to the coil. So I put a new relay in and it's the same thing. So I take the ECU cover off the passenger footwell to access the ECU and the back of the relay holders. Everything looks ok, but after playing with the wires a bit, I can see that one wire has been pushed out of the relay holder just enough that the relay wasn't making contact. So bend the tang of the terminal out a bit, and pop it back in place and she holds fine. So crank it over and she fires right up!! Unfortunately, it still runs like it did in the fall. But it was a beautiful day up here, so I have some additional incentive to get it running right. So I "borrowed" Randall Kerth's map from the Birkinowner's mailing list and with the help of my son Matt, downloaded it to my ECU, turned on the fuel pump, double checked the fuel pressure, cranked it over and she fires right up. So I gave it a little throttle and no spits, pops, or bangs. Hmmm, we could be onto something here! So I let it warm up, checking for any lean conditions, leaks, coolant/oil temp, etc and everything seems fine. So what the heck, I tell Matt to hop in and monitor the laptop and we take it for a spin. Well, as soon as I pull out of the driveway I can tell something is different!! We take it down some back roads and she seems to be running fine. No hesitation/popping/stumbling, the temps are all normal, great oil pressure, charging a little above 14 volts, the suspension is soaking up bumps and potholes much better than before (thanks to Woody Harris' rear trailing arm kit), and the T9 tranny that I rebuilt with a BGH close ratio gearkit and Cherik's expert advice is shifting beautifully with what seems to be perfect ratios! So there are a few issues like the speedo that seems to be reading about half speed, the steering wheel is off center a bit, the brakes don't seem to have a great initial bite, I have to calibrate the gas gauge, and I still have to get it on a dyno, but man she runs and drives and what a blast! I love this car!!! So I don't want to get too personal or all emotional, but this has been an almost 6-year on-again/off-again project while my family and I dealt with some trying circumstances. Finding time to work on the car was very difficult at times but I kept plugging away knowing that at some point it would all be worth it...AND IT WAS!!! I'd like to extend a special thanks to all the guys on the Birkinowners mailing list, all you guys on the USA7's site, a special thank you to Al N. for encouraging me to get involved here, and Mazda for all the hard work he's done on this great site!! I look forward to many, many years of se7en activities!!! And I guess I should thank my very understanding wife Nancy, who's been my greatest supporter and has helped in any way she could to make my se7en dream come true!! Bruce :7fume: PS: One more thank you to my son Matt for helping me with the maps and laptop, if it weren't for him I'd still be in the garage scratching my head, ok, banging my head!! :banghead:

Well, I'm finally to the point where I feel I can put some pics of my Birkin in the "Members Rides" section. It's a 2001 model, BIY1899, Ford Zetec ZX1, BGH close ratio T9, Emerald ECU, Jenvey ITB's, Fuel Safe fuel cell, and many other details too numerous to list. http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/892349560_20080410_0016R.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/176344239_20080410_0019R.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1728219701_20080410_0020R.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1687217307_20080410_0027R.jpg http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/607072096_20080410_0011R.jpg Bruce :7drive:

Some nice pics of some original Elevens here: http://www.supercars.net/Gallery?cmd=viewCarGallery&carID=3535&pgID=1 John - Very interesting that you're restoring a Lotus 17 at your work. I always thought that the 17 was every bit as nice looking as the Eleven, but if I remember correctly Lotus had some handling problems with the 17 that kept it from being very successful. I'd be interested to see any updates on the restoration if possible. Thanks, Bruce :7drive:

VERY interesting project! I think the Cosworth BDP is the same motor that was used in the Sugino 7, although I didn't see a picture of it in the guy's ad. Hope a member buys it! Bruce :7drive:

Beautiful car John! Good luck with the sale. Bruce :7drive:

"I asked him what ECU he's using" - Simple Digital Systems (from Canada), fully programable. http://www.sdsefi.com/ Bruce :7drive:

Robert, I sent you a PM. On my Birkin, the front springs were 300lb, 8" free length, with I think a 1-7/8" ID. In fact on the springs themselves they were ID'd as such (less the ID dimension). Bruce :7drive:

John Coomb's car is for sale here: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/Default.aspx?g=posts&t=2278 Bruce :7drive:

"Dang, if it goes for $18,000 someone is getting an incredible deal!" - I agree Stan. A lot of good stuff on that car! Bruce :7drive: PS: I asked him what ECU he's using...

Good one Steve!! :thumbs:

Haven't found my favorite yet, but I like this one: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/1402769914_20060430_02.jpg Bruce :7drive:

"Anyone seen a Westfield with a Zetec?" - I'm sure I had seen a Westfield Eleven with a Zetec/T9 for sale last year but I can't remember where. If I find it I'll let you know... Bruce :7drive:

Never driven or gone for a ride in one, but one of my favorite magazine articles of all time is this Peter Egan article in R&T: http://members.toast.net/joerger/north.html Also check out the build of the same car: http://members.toast.net/joerger/crate.html And a road test here: http://www.totalkitcar.com/tkc_article_837.php I want one!! Bruce :7drive:

I'd have to do some more research on 5-bolts for Panasports and Rotas, but I know Minilite style wheels have been used on some early 911's. Check out these Superlites: http://www.packracingproducts.com/acatalog/15__Superlite_Wheels.html#aSP15624PP Bruce :7drive:

Hi Winston, Sorry I'm not local to this car so I can't check it out for you, but have you tried giving Hayes Harris at Wire Wheel a call? He might be able to confirm, or have a 3rd party confirm, the condition of the frame after the firewall. I bought my Birkin from him a while back and he seemed like a decent guy. If it were a Caterham I know you can get a replacement front frame section from Arch, but I'm not sure if Birkin offers the same replacement section. It does seem like there'd be some useful parts there, depending on cost of course. Sorry I can't be more help... When I first saw the car, I thought it might be Woody Harris' wreck from a few years back but it seems to be damaged in some different areas: http://www.teambirkinsport.com/gallery/album13 Bruce :7drive:

Al, I'm sure what he meant by "cut" was taking a tool like a metal chisel and lining it up across the width of the dipstick, and lightly striking it to leave an indentation that spans the width of the dipstick. This would leave an area which would be susceptible to fatique and breaking off. I've seen where they have center-punched or drilled a small hole at the "full" and "add" locations which would be less likely to break off in the future. Bruce :7drive:

:thumbs: He's quite the character and still going strong! Wish he were active on this site, but he is probably the most active contributor on the birkinowners mailing list. Bruce :7drive:

Congrats, the fun's just starting!!! :cheers: Bruce :7fume:

Wouldn't that be the very first Series 2? Hey Al, you interested?? Bruce :7drive:

Congratulations!!! What year is it, and do you have any pics??? "...where the car jumped about to an alarming degree" - Some of the Birkin owners (me included) have gone to Woody Harris' rear trailing arm kit to improve the rear tire contact over less than ideal roads. It might be worth looking into. Here's a photo I have at work: http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/upload/892449239_IMG_0105.JPG Bruce :7drive:

Does seem a little porky for what it is. Isn't the Ariel Atom around 1300 lbs? I really like the looks, in fact I think it's a much better looking design than the atom, but then I saw the price...holy crap, 250k?!?!? :ack: I think I could buy 7-8 cars that I like for that price!! Bruce :7drive: