360S S3 "Yellowjacket" Build in Upstate SC

[Yoram]

FINALLY, PROGRESS!!

 

Hello All,

 

Sorry for the long hiatus.  I've been cleared to resume normal activities in the last week post my back surgery and proceeded to install the diff.

I used my floor jack with a wooden cradle to be able to do this solo.  First pics show the fixture:

 

Floor jack with the fixture works great for solo installation; needed to loosen rear piece of fixture to raise the diff nose.

 

Following are most of the steps - sorry but this will be tedious...:

1.  Loaded propshaft into tunnel.
2.  Removed plywood section of trunk floor to improve access to the top mounts and to spray-coat and seal (per tip from Denver); awaiting warmer weather to do this outside.
3.  Touched up machined surfaces of diff housing with chassis paint pen.
4.  Raised the diff with the floor jack into position, inserted conical punches in all 4 holes and confirmed diff is supported safely without the jack.
5.  Routed RH park cable with adjuster below upper mounting to better engage bracket on diff.

6.  Ground conical tips on the lower M12 bolts and on the upper 1/2" bolt and repaired the threads with thread dies.  Tested the lower bolts to thread OK into the diff  "cage".
7.  Torqued RH lower bolt all the way (with temporary shims under the head) and measured the total gap on the LH side = 4.4mm.
8.  Measured the distances from outside the chassis to the faces of the diff "cage" = 433 LH and 430.5 RH.  Equal distances would be 431.75.  Calculated required bottom shim stacks as 3.15 LH and 1.25 RH.
9.  Installed LH bolt with calculated (~3.2 mm) shim stack, tightened snug and measured RH gap (= target RH shim stack).
10.  Loosened LH bolt and installed RH lower bolt with target shim stack.
11.  Tightened both lower bolts snug and verified near-equal distances from outside tubes to cage -- checked out at 432 LH & RH (otherwise would need to dismantle and modify the stacks)!
12.  Measured the LH and RH gaps at the upper bolt mounts.

13.  Inserted the upper bolt -- sub-steps:
      a)  Loosened the lower bolts to allow more play.
      b)  First few attempts to test-insert the upper bolt from the LH side into the LH diff cage hole (w/o shims) failed.
      c)  Supported the rear part of the diff with the floor jack (w/o the fixture) and adjusted to align the LH chassis and diff holes visually as close as possible.
      d)  Reground a much shallower cone at the bolt tip (after verifying sufficient bolt thread length). Test-inserted past the diff cage by hammering via a piece of lumber, then hammered back out and verified thread intact.
      e)  Assembled the LH shim pack per 12 and inserted in gap. Inserted the bolt until it cleared the shims, then began hammering in as above until ~halfway in.

      f)  Lowered and removed the floor jack to prevent over-constraining the diff.
      g)  Assembled the RH shim pack per 12 and inserted in gap; resumed hammering until the bolt got all the way through.
      h)  Checked the exposed bolt thread with thread die, removed the copper grease off the thread with a dab of brake cleaner, and threaded on the locknut.
14.  Torqued the bolts:  Lower first to 60 lb-ft, then upper to 45 lb-ft  (IKEA guide specs).

 

Notes:

i.  Measured gaps for shims with feeler gage.

ii. Used the smaller (3/4" OD) shims except larger ones (7/8" OD) at the lower bolts on the outside facing the chassis.

iii. All shims were coated with copper grease to keep together during insertion.
iv. Bolts were coated with copper grease except thread engagement areas.
v. RH lower and both upper shim stacks were inserted while leveraging with a large flat screwdriver to open the gap a bit (there is some "give" in the mounts).
vi. Schnorr rings used under all bolt heads and nut as specified.

 

Lining up the LH upper hole.

 

Upper bolt - ground nose

 

Diff installed - LH view

 

Diff installed - RH view

 

Diff installed - view from trunk (wood floor removed).

 

 

Next chapter is rear suspension - already started.

Hopefully will be able to report progress much quicker than on this one...

 

Cheers!

 

Edited February 9, 2023 by Yoram
typo

[Yoram]

Update:   Rear Axle and Suspension

 

Overview of where we stand now:

Brake lines, De Dion tube, coil-overs, radius arms, A-frame, anti-roll bar (ARB), driveshafts, ears, bearings and drop-links installed.

Ear, ARB and drop-link fasteners torqued.

Diff *mostly* filled (of which later...)

 

Highlights and Lowlights

 

Braided brake hose connection to fitting and brake line on chassis:

Copper brake line (pre-assembled on frame) was misaligned with hole in frame for braided hose fitting.  Not enough line length was available to align the end with the fitting in the hole.  Needed to enlarge the hole laterally to ensure square alignment before connecting fitting.  Smoothed the hole with Dremel tool and and touched up with chassis paint pen.

 

  

Before and after hole enlargement

 

View from above after installation (trunk wood board removed). 

 

Lessons:

1.  Prior to diff installation check ability to align the copper brake line routed from the tunnel with the fitting attachment hole on the frame. Should be possible to loosen and adjust routing in frame to ensure alignment without modifying the hole; not accessible once diff in place.

2.  Install the fitting to the copper tube and the hole in frame finger tight making sure perpendicular to frame before tightening.

 

Braided hose protection (split rubber hose):

  

 

 

Radius Links:

My car is an S, not an R, however after some pondering and consultation with Denver I decided to attach the radius links at the lower points on the body designated for R and Academy cars. The lower attachment should bring less roll oversteer or more roll understeer as shown in the following schematic:

 

  

 

 

 

A-Frame:

Installed ensuring centering:  89.5 mm on LH side and 88.6 mm on RH side from face of De Dion tube flange to outer surface of chassis tube. Used 4 chamfered shims on the LH side and 3 on the RH side. Outer shim chamfers in each stack face outboard. No special issues using similar technique to diff install.

 

 

 

 

Anti-Roll Bar:

I did not like the idea of pulling and stretching the bushings over the ARB arm weldments per the instructions, so I assembled them onto the bar by filleting each bushing lengthwise on one side with a box cutter and orienting the slit horizontally on the bar.  The bushings are contained by the housings and the bar and have nowhere to go.  If I encounter issues, which I doubt, it should not be too difficult to replace them. Lubricated the bushing ID with silicone grease (not the OD).

Installed ARB into frame and torqued.  The bar rotates freely in the bushings. I don't like the fact that it has axial free play of about 5 mm. I am looking into it and will report resolution.

 

ARB shown shifted all the way left.  The slit can also be seen pointing back (to the right of the pic).

 

 

Driveshafts

Lubed inner splines and sealing surfaces with diff oil and inserted in diff.  No issued but a bit disconcerting that they do not have a positive locking feature (e.g., circlip) inside the diff.

 

  

 

 

 

View from above at diff after installation of ears and wheel bearings:

 

 

 

_______________________________________________________________

Continued below in another post (out of pic file size).

 

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 20, 2023 by Yoram
Formatting

[MV8]

I've not seen that before on anything. That is odd and would make spline to side gear wear as likely as within the cv where it is supposed to occur and may cause diff leakage and seal damage at full droop. Did you take a pic of the inner cv spline? Is there a groove that is missing the wire clips? Clips are available separately. 

[Yoram]

13 hours ago, MV8 said:

I've not seen that before on anything. That is odd and would make spline to side gear wear as likely as within the cv where it is supposed to occur and may cause diff leakage and seal damage at full droop. Did you take a pic of the inner cv spline? Is there a groove that is missing the wire clips? Clips are available separately. 

(topic is driveshaft installation into diff)  Yes, I share your exact concerns.  No, unfortunately I did not take a pic of the inner splines, but I pulled one back out before installing the ears, looked carefully and saw no circlip or groove or any other feature.  Investigated a bit more and found no mention anywhere of the clip or locking feature.  What I found was:

 

1.  2015 "text" guide:  "Insert the unthreaded end of the driveshaft into the differential taking care not to damage the seals in the differential. The longer driveshaft is fitted to the RH side. The shorter driveshaft is fitted to the LH side. To aid insertion, lightly grease the splines of the driveshaft and if necessary gently tap the outer end of the driveshaft with a soft faced hammer. Ensure that the driveshaft is held as straight as possible to prevent damage to the boot."

 

2.  Chris Collins blog:  "Now just remove the bung from the differential and insert the driveshaft, it should be as simple as that.".

 

3.  IKEA guide (which I know is not the most detailed):  See pic below.  No circlip shown and no mention in notes.

 

4.  Asked my Guru Josh Robbins from RMC about this and his reply was (I hope he doesn't mind me quoting him without permission...):  "Yep, you should be able to seat the driveshaft splines just by pushing in by hand -- simply a matter of lining up the splines. However, they may leak at this point if the diff is filled. Once the rest of the rear suspension is assembled and the hubs/ears are securing the outboard ends of the drive shafts, there will be enough force on the driveshafts (in the compression direction) to push the driveshafts enough into the diff lip seals and make them oiltight."

 

I tried moving the inner CV joint housings axially by hand in either direction now and they don't move.  Got to be careful not to damage the boot.

 

If anyone has more info or other ideas about this please advise ASAP, before I install the brakes...

 

Edited February 20, 2023 by Yoram
typo

[MV8]

All of that makes sense to me for an axle without retainers. Uncommon on this side of the pond. It is what it is. 

[Yoram]

9 hours ago, MV8 said:

All of that makes sense to me for an axle without retainers. Uncommon on this side of the pond. It is what it is. 

Well... a Caterham is pretty unusual on this (and that) side of the pond, huh?  

 

Cheers!

[Yoram]

Rear Axle / Suspension continued.....

 

Ears

Blew inside De Dion tube with compressed air and sprayed with WD40 against corrosion. Coated tube flanges with SuperLub 82003 anti-corrosion gel.  Installed ears over driveshafts onto tube flanges.

 

Bearings

Coated bearing flanges as well as driveshaft bearing interface with SuperLub 82003 anti-corrosion gel.   To get the bearing ID onto the mating driveshaft OD required some gentle taps with a mallet on a block of wood around the bearing face.  Once past the initial engagement point they slid on smoothly.

 

Ear Washers!!!

Major confusion re washers for middle and front ear bolts/nuts -- IKEA guide, 2015 "text" guide and I Pack "BOM" info inconsistent.  Ended up Installing no washers under middle and front ear bolt locknuts:

Washers under middle bolt locknuts, especially the bottom ones, may interfere with the tube flange weld -- cannot use washers in that position.

No need for washers at ARB brackets.

 

Ear bolt torquing!!

Torquing is done on the bolts due to difficult or impossible access to the nuts (and no nuts on rear bolts). Bolt heads are shallow and require torque wrench socket extension.  Difficult to do solo (need 2 hands to keep the torque wrench straight + a hand for counter torque...)

 

 

 

 

ARB drop links

Adjusted to minimum and equal length (93 mm).  Installed and torqued.  No issues.

 

 

 

Diff Fill

I have the optional LSD.  Using Castrol Transmax Limited Slip 75W140.  Gravity feed using funnel and hose attached to roll over bar, and easy hose routing to the fill hole with trunk wood board removed.
No issues unscrewing fill plug with 14mm hex bit.
Minor snag:  Instructions call for 0.8L but 2 x 0.5L bottles used with no fill oil reaching hole -- ordered a 3rd 0.5L bottle.

(These are not available locally so may want to order 3 x 0.5L upfront and save shipping costs.)

Note:  Remember to make sure car is level before oil fill - needed to lower the front jack stand to level the car.

 

 

 

 

 

That's as far as I got as of now.

Immediate next tasks will be complete the diff fill, bolt the propshaft to the diff, sort out the ARB lateral play (I have an idea I need to test), install the speed sensor, install the brakes and partly torque the driveshafts. Re the last one, awaiting a LH nut (received 2 RH ones...).

Lesson here is confirm LH & RH nuts earlier to avoid the wait.

 

As always I welcome all inputs, critique and tips (monetary as well).

 

Cheers!

 

Yoram

 

Edited February 20, 2023 by Yoram
Was incomplete

[Yoram]

Rear Anti-Roll Bar - Axial Play Solution

I mentioned earlier that I had 5mm free axial play of the ARB and that it bothered me.

I decided to try to come up with some nylon shims on each side between the bushing and arm to take almost all the slack.

The shims I'm using are based on nylon washers I found at Ace Hardware, 12.8mm ID, 19.1mm OD, 1.5mm thick.
I split each washer radially in one spot with a box cutter.  I unbolted the bushing blocks from the chassis and slid inboard on the bar to make room for shim installation.
Lubed each shim with silicone grease and mounted on the bar outboard of the bushing by opening the split shim like a key ring.
Total play was 5 mm so I needed 3 shims.  Measured on each side the distance from ARB bracket on ear to chassis tube -- got 89.2mm LH and 87.6mm RH, therefore installed 2 LH shims and 1 RH shim.

I can feel barely any ARB axial movement now.  It will be interesting to see how these hold up along with my split bushings...

 

Shims

 

LH shims installation (bushing block slid inboard to make room)

 

RH shim installation

 

LH side buttoned up.

 

RH side buttoned up.

 

 

Cheers!

[MV8]

I find that wd40 completely evaporates. "Boiled" linseed oil is traditionally used to protect the inside of tube structure for aircraft. It's just sloshed around inside then allowed to drain and dry. It is one of the main ingredients in the recipe for "waxoil" traditionally used on British cars.

[Yoram]

2 hours ago, MV8 said:

I find that wd40 completely evaporates. "Boiled" linseed oil is traditionally used to protect the inside of tube structure for aircraft. It's just sloshed around inside then allowed to drain and dry. It is one of the main ingredients in the recipe for "waxoil" traditionally used on British cars.

Thanks!  Will keep in mind for next build... 

[Yoram]

Speed Sensor

 

Today was a short "play" day but trying to stay current I'm filing a brief report on installing the speed sensor.

 

The mounting design is differnt vs. what is documented in either guide but straightforward enough.  The main task for me was proper routing of the wiring.
I ended up routing a bit differently vs. Chris Collins and the guides.
I "un-zip tied" the chassis side wiring from the bottom tube and connected both ends by the connector to assess overall length and routing options. The connector has a mounting "frame" which allows to zip-tie it to a base.  I ended up attaching it up the rear bulkhead diagonal tube.  Coming from the sensor I routed the wire inboard, then back outwards along the ARB and zip-tied it in a rubber sleeve to the ARB a few inches from the bushing.  Once past the attachment to the ARB the routing makes a U turn and up the diagonal to the connector.  This keeps the wire inboard and away from the wheel, allows gentle articulation on the ARB and leaves the radius link clean.  I think this should work.
I did not implement Chris Collins' "local" grounding - will do down the road if needed.

 

View from above

 

 

View from above, connector visible at top of pic. (copper grease residue will get cleaned up, promise...)

 

 

Side view

 

 

Cheers!

 

Edited February 21, 2023 by Yoram

[KnifeySpoony]

Hmmm I would worry that fixing it to the arb will cause significantly more stress on the wire than if it's on the radius arm. 

[MV8]

Wire and cable are usually much less flexible at the terminations and fatigue there first. I'd drill to secure to the base plate with a zip to eliminate repeated bending at the termination, then a generous loop inboard to minimize bending with suspension travel at the zips. A tab plate could be bolted on with the sensor to attach the zip. Just an idea. The harness may not be long enough to route this way.

[Yoram]

7 hours ago, KnifeySpoony said:

Hmmm I would worry that fixing it to the arb will cause significantly more stress on the wire than if it's on the radius arm. 

I don't think that's the case.  The ARB is a natural pivot point and the motion there is miniscule.  At the end of the day you need to have a pivot point somewhere to accommodate the relative motion.  If you put it on the radius link it will still have a pivot point somewhere on the chassis. However the issue is at the sensor end (see my next reply).

Edited February 21, 2023 by Yoram

[Yoram]

1 hour ago, MV8 said:

Wire and cable are usually much less flexible at the terminations and fatigue there first. I'd drill to secure to the base plate with a zip to eliminate repeated bending at the termination, then a generous loop inboard to minimize bending with suspension travel at the zips. A tab plate could be bolted on with the sensor to attach the zip. Just an idea. The harness may not be long enough to route this way.

 

100% agree.  The issue is the termination at the sensor.  Was thinking along similar lines -- a small aluminum bracket bolted to the extra hole just outboard of the sensor and under the sensor itself, kind of like below, and zip tie to it.  There is not enough length to route the way you show (keep in mind the suspension in the pic is in full droop).

 

 

 

[Yoram]

Speed Sensor wire strain relief

 in follow up to the recent discussion on the topic, I made a little aluminum bracket similar to the concept in my last post.  Instead of a zip tie I am using a small grommet.

I also moved the clamping to the ARB further inboard so the swept angle and length change between jounce and rebound are smaller.

 

 

 

[slowdude]

Thank you for the detailed write up and pictures. Super helpful compared to some of the build blogs I have found.

 

For the superlube 82003, was that included in the kit or the reccomendation to seal from the forum. Heading out to do this job this weekend / next week.

[Yoram]

3 hours ago, slowdude said:

Thank you for the detailed write up and pictures. Super helpful compared to some of the build blogs I have found.

 

For the superlube 82003, was that included in the kit or the reccomendation to seal from the forum. Heading out to do this job this weekend / next week.

Than you!

The SuperLube 82003 does not come with the kit. It is not really a sealer; it is an anti-corrosion gel/grease that I decided to use because the axle tube and bearings are steel and the ears are aluminum.  I decided not to use sealer in case I want to play with camber/toe alignment shims between the tube flanges and ears.

I used the same grease between the bearings and driveshafts.

Took some of the cues from Chris Collins' blog, which I think is the best source for guidance other than "my dealer" Josh Robbins.

Good luck and cheers!

[Yoram]

Update:

 

Diff Fill

Completed the diff fill.  Accounting for a bit of the necessary overflow, it took ~1.2 liters (LSD) - more than reported.  No torque spec for filler plug - torqued by feel.

 

3rd 0.5L bottle after completion of fill

 

 

 

Propshaft attachment to Diff

Attached propshaft to diff flange with the 4 bolts.  Access and torquing are a bit difficult.  Ended up supporting the propshaft from below by floor jack, inserting the bolts from above and tightening from below.  Access to torquing one of the bolts is compromised by a grease nipple - requires a spherical hex bit.  Unable to torque the bolts to spec at this stage due to difficult access and no good way to provide counter-torque; will need to loosen one bolt at a time, apply Threadlocker Blue and torque once handbrake is operational.

Lifting and supporting the front of the propshaft in the tunnel from below and orienting each torqued bolt off center, not dead bottom, allows the best access from below with a long spherical hex bit+extension.  May need to increase the target torque to account for the small angular misalignment... (x 1/cos).

 

View from above.  Note grease nipple in "upper" side of UJ yoke right in front of bolt.

 

 

What you need in order to torque the propshaft bolts:  Long 8mm hex bit with spherical end.

 

 

 

Hub+Disc Units and Driveshaft Nuts

Received the LH driveshaft nut from RMC;  both LH & RH nuts are 42 mm hex.  Lubed the driveshaft outer splines with anti-corrosion gel and mounted the hub+disc units. Hub & disc come preassembled and torqued and are non-handed.  They glide onto the splines with no issues.

Installed the driveshaft washers and nuts and tightened to the extent possible without functioning brakes.

 

 

 

 

 

Rear Brakes

Caliper Assemblies:

Installed the brake anchors, pads and calipers.  This is a pretty regular floating caliper design with direct actuation of the parking brake on the piston.

The 2-piece caliper pin design is quite interesting but assembly is straightforward enough.  The pins come lightly greased but I lubed them (as well as the pad contact surfaces with the piston, caliper and anchor) with standard brake grease.  No pad free play detected after installation.

Tip:  Do an assembly dry-run before applying the various lubricants and thread lockers.

 

Parking Brake Cables:

Routed and attached parking brake cable ends to calipers. This required loosening the cable adjuster to provide as much slack as available with the lever pulled up to max. vertical, and a little fight to hook the cable on each side.
Made sure the speed sensor cable passes above the parking brake cable.

Tip:  Hold off zip-tying the parking brake cables until after parking brake adjustment is complete.

 

Brake lines:
Attached the rear brake lines to the calipers. Very straightforward -- no fittings or washers required.  Bent RH line to align using tube bending tool - no issues.  Parking brake adjustment will need to wait until brake system is filled and bled.  Access to the adjuster is easy from the trunk with the plywood floor removed.
 

 

 

 

Tube bending tool

 

 

 

Next Chapter:  Engine + Transmission...

 

 

 

Cheers!

Edited March 16, 2023 by Yoram

[Yoram]

Hello All,

 

It's been a while and there has been some good progress since the last post but need to catch up with the documentation.

This and the next couple posts will cover prep and installation of the powertrain in the car. 

 

Gearbox Attachment to Engine

 

This is quite straightforward.  I left the engine on the pallet it came on after unscrewing and removing the top and walls of the crate, and used the engine hoist and leveler to lift and hold the gearbox.

Next you need to remove the starter and the bell housing from the engine. The bell housing then gets attached to the gearbox and the assembly gets attached to the engine.  Placed the removed bell housing-to-engine bolts in cardboard template to reuse in same positions.
Installed bell-housing to gearbox using the 4 socket head cap bolts and washers pre-installed in the bell-housing and torqued with no grease or Threadlocker to 68 Nm (50 lb-ft).

 

 

In preparation for attaching the gearbox+bell housing to the engine I applied thin layer of anti-corrosion gel (Superlube 82003) to the spline and the bell-housing face and moly grease to the clutch fingers interface with the thrust bearing.

 

 

 

With the gearbox hanging with straps from the engine hoist and the engine sitting on the pallet, it took a few adjustments with the hoist and leveler and rocking the gearbox about its axis by hand to engage the splines. Started with the 2 bolts with guide sleeves at 2 and 8 O'Clock. Once splines were engaged there was little to no resistance to tightening these two bolts alternately part of the way, followed by the rest of the bolts. Torqued in star pattern with no grease or Threadlocker to 47 Nm (35 lb-ft).

Some folks say use anti-seize lubricant on the threads but my concern is that unless this is expressly specified it may result in excessive stretch load on the bolts at the specified torque - the bolt stretch load is approx. inversely proportional to the friction coefficient in the thread at a given torque. 

 

 

Prep for Installation -- Engine+Gearbox

 

Besides the starter and bell housing, you also remove the coil cover, plenum, alternator, serpentine belt and tensioner (the coil cover to protect from chain damage, the plenum to protect it and provide better access).  Make sure to seal off the ports in the head and in the plenum;  I used masking tape.  I also moved the wiring looms routed in front of the sump to the side of the engine to minimize risk of catching on the frame during lowering.

 

 

 

All the stuff removed from the engine...

 

 

 

Next I reconfigured the engine hoist+leveler for the engine+gearbox lift.  Before hooking up the leveler chains to the engine I covered the top of the engine for protection.  I then proceeded to perform some trials to assess the the range of height and angles and the sensitivity of the hydraulic lowering valve under load.  Had to adjust the chain lengths several times to ensure sufficient "dive angle" and minimize sideways tilt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In anticipation of losing some oil during the insertion of the propshaft end into the gearbox I loosened slightly the gearbox fill plug (14mm open wrench) and placed a warning sticker on inside of windshield re gearbox oil (Josh R. tip).

Finally, I wrapped the gearbox with thick plastic sheeting (cut from the original gearbox packaging bag) to protect the heat shields in the tunnel during the "insertion" (great tip from Chris Collins's blog).

 

 

The next step was the "choreography" of the engine hoist path -- making sure there is sufficient maneuvering room in front of the car for the "approach" and no overhead obstacles in the envisioned path (light fixtures, ceiling fan, garage door rails, etc).

Based on that I decided that I needed to move the car to maximize room in front.  I installed the front wheels (they look cool!!), lowered to the ground, lifted the rear with floor jack under the diff and maneuvered the car with the jack to its new position.

 

 

 

Initially I thought of leaving the front wheels on for human protection when moving around the front, but I quickly realized that there will not be enough clearance under the wheels for the engine hoist "outriggers" so I removed them.

 

 

Next posts will cover chassis/body prep and the install.

 

Cheers!

 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Yoram