Europa S2 project

[Jas]

No I haven't seen it before, looks really good, but too much weight to too little power!!!     

[Mecky]

What engine are you going to use?

[Jas]

We are going to use a Ford Duratec either 2.0 or 2.3 liters, preferably 2.3 liter if we can get one for a  reasonable price.
You should be able to get 270 HP out of the 2.0 and 300 HP out of the 2.3 liter, depending on how deep your pockets are .

We will start out with only a slightly modified engine to begin with (cams, throttle bodies and exhaust), and then build from there when the car works and we can drive it.

The biggest issue is witch gearbox to fit, at the moment we are looking at a Porsche G50 turned up side down, mostly because we can't afford a proper race gearbox like a Hewland or Elite.

[Mecky]

Do you already know, on which competition you want to take part?

How are the regulations about modifying the cars? In which class do you plan do drive? Up to which displacement?

[Jas]

We are planning to build a silhouette racer or Special Saloon Car (Denmark) or Mudsport car (Sweden).
The rules for both classes are very similar and fairly loose, the mounting of the battery is the most detailed in the rules. the rest of the car you came make up as you wish  .
For the top class you can basically build you own car, as long as the engine is in the same part of the car and the silhouette of the car is recognisable, wings and spoilers are allowed.

Both classes use a weight to power ratio to make the competition equal.
For Modsport (S) the ratio is 2.5 kg/HP witch means that a 2.0 Duratec engined car with a calculated HP rating of 220 HP must weigh 550 kg incl. driver! That is light! (Duratec 2.3 liter => 633 kg)
For a Special Saloon Car (DK) the calculated power is a little different and the car with the same engine would end up with a min. weight of 650 kg incl. driver. (Duratec 2.3 liter => 700 kg)

[benbeames]

I like those numbers!   

[Mecky]

Hi Jas,

how is it going? Can you report about progress? I would like to read the news about your project.

[Jas]

Hi

Well there isn't much to report I'm afraid.
I have changed job and now have a lot more to see to, so the project has been put in the bask ground.

But we still give it a lot of thought, mainly on which engine and gearbox to use.
Engine choice was almost decided on a Duratec, but now the Honda f20c also looks interesting.
Gearbox choice is also difficult, a real racing gearbox like a Hewland FT200 would be nice, but is also expensive, so we have been considering a Porsche Boxter / Auid A4 box, but they don't shift as quick and will also raise the hole engine assembly.

No work has been done on the chassis side, except for disassembly.   

[Mecky]

Hi Jas,

how are you getting on with the Europa?
I did not have the time to visit the workshop on the weekend, so I can't give you the suspension information, yet.

I found this magnificant looking Europa race car. I have never seen such a great looking Europa prototype
http://www.flickr.com/photos/76971113@N02/8002582141

[Jas]

Hi Mecky

Well progress is slow, but we have got our self a gearbox and decided on an engine.
We found a slightly used Elite TX250 gearbox which is out of an Aquilia racecar, so it is a proper 6 speed sequential racing gearbox.
The gearbox cost more than the car, but hopefully it is better shape 

We have decided on a Duratec 2.0 liter engine, and have sourced one from a junk yard to use as a mock-up for now.

The next items we need to get is a set of wheels, so that we can design the suspension and steering geometry using the right offset, ET and flange dimensions.
I'm looking for some used Formula 3 wheels, as it is fairly easy to get reasonably good used tires in that size, and I think that they will suit the size of the car well.

I have started a little with some sketches of how the axles could be designed, please don't look too closely at my "Hand-CAD" 

[Jas]

Hi Mecky

I have seen the car you have linked to, it is from the Swedish ModSport series, it runs a 3.5liter V6 engine from Nissan and some quite big wheels.
It is red and silver I my pictures.
edit: here is a link to his profile on Modsport.se:
http://www.modsport.se/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=29&cntnt01origid=62&cntnt01detailtemplate=Nyhetsvisning&cntnt01returnid=67
and  visit to his garage:
http://www.modsport.se/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=92&cntnt01origid=56&cntnt01detailtemplate=Nyhetsvisning&cntnt01returnid=67

There are about 4-5 different Europas driving in that series, here are some pictures of some of them.