4397's Zetec conversion update

[andy harwood]

Due to a variety of factors, I've not accomplished much on this project. Since BDA posted about the ongoing builds, thought I'd update a bit.
First bit - I'm attempting to do the Mazda Miata caliper/Honda disk rotor conversion too. So the VW rear hubs have been turned down to fit the Honda rotors. I have not drilled the rear hubs for lugs, still looking at lug options.
1st photos shows the 3 rear hubs I've been mutilating. L to R, 1.  A undrilled for lugs, disk rotor/hub. the rotor hat is very deep, and seemed unsuitable to use. I cut the hat/rotor off, to use as a hub. As the splines are not as deep/long as the Beetle type hub, this will work with the VW Bus stub axle /100mm CVJ.
2. (middle) Original German VW Beetle hub, This hub will work with the VW Beetle stub axle, which uses the 94mm CVJ. 3. This is a test hub, just used for testing fits, and destroying on the lathe, which was a bit of fun.
The original German hubs, the steel seems to be so much better than the Chinese hub. The trashed hub is from Brazil, seemed comparable to the Chinese hub.
Also in photo, at top, is the red VW Beetle length aftermarket axle, which has a 94mm CVJ on the left, and a 100mm CVJ on the right end. Original black VW Beetle axle below. My transaxle is a NG3 from Banks, with Banks output shaft CVJ flanges, which are 100mm. 100mm CVJ's are 2mm thicker than the 94mm CVJ, so the stock VW Beetle axle will not work with the 100mm CVJ.
Below that is the upper link made from 3/4 DOM tubing.
At bottom, is the right side upper link bell housing mount. I made it from 3/16th mild steel. It utilizes all the mounting point on the bell housing, and at the bottom, the lower link bolts pass through it.
2nd & 3rd photos
I made new shock mount brackets, and cross brace. Thanks to BDA's suggestion, I made the transaxle mounts where they would attach to the cross brace. The cross brace is 1/8" thick tube. The cross brace 3 piece, so the center can be removed with out having to remove the shock mounts. The transaxle mounts are made from 3/16th and 1/8th mild steel.
Also visible, transaxle mounts connected to cross bar by polyurethane bushings. The same bushings are used for the motor mounts, and at the rear hoop mounts.
Since the cross brace will have added stress, I added a flange to each shock mount.
Everything is just tacked together, in case I should have to change anything. So - I would really appreciate if I'm doing anything that is not going to work, it being pointed out

[andy harwood]

These photos are basically just mock ups.
First photo shows the left side inboard upper link mount. The front side mounting point for the upper link bolt has not been made.
The clutch arm will have to be moved a bit.
2nd photo is the outer mount point for the upper link. This bracket will not accommodate the 100mm CVJ.
New mounting brackets that will accommodate (hopefully) either the 94 or the 100mm outer CVJ have been made, but not test fitted yet.

[surfguitar58]

Looks extremely solid Andy. Nice workmanship!

[BDA]

I second what surf said! Nicely done!

[Skywalker]

Hi Andy,
I have followed the correspondence regarding Richard Mann's rear hub modifications and noted your comments concerning the VW stub axle but have only recently seen your entry last year, hopefully things have progressed somewhat since then.  I have a standard Europa and obtained an NG3 box with Fuego bell housing, I am keen on using Richard's CV joint conversion and have found a site selling the Alfa CV axles at reasonable prices but the BMW stub axles are almost impossible to find these days. 

Seeing that you are using a VW  stub axle setup, I have been looking at the dimensions and they seem nearer the original Hillman Imp sizes.  Which stub axles are you using? is it the IRS Beetle or the Bus one?  What is the overall length and the width of the CV flange?  I decided to stick with the rear brake drum setup as I did over 25K miles on my first Europa and never had a braking problem so hope to keep it simple - I am also much older nowadays and my track days are over!

Good luck with yours, it is looking really good! 

[tedtaylor]

is it me or is that last picture, showing the hub bearing housing BEAT, HAMMERED, BUGGERED UP?    Why does it look so rough like it's been through the war?

[dakazman]

Keep going Andy . Great work. I know how hard it is for o find time for our projects. Being semi-retired I have a hard time to accomplish much at times. So my hair is off to you .
Dakazman

[andy harwood]

Skywalker;
I'm using standard VW Beetle stub axles and axles. The NG3 that I purchased from Banks, I got his CVJ flanges installed. They use the 100mm CVJ. The VW Beetle use the 94mm CVJ. I bought some VW Bus stub axles, but the slightly larger diameter CVJ seemed to interfere with the upper link placement. I'm attempting to use the bell housing for the upper link inboard mounting points. I have those mounts mocked up. I have not settled on which VW hubs to use, as there some different ones that will work. Seems the VW hubs are in 2 different lengths. The VW spacers are used, with a bit of trimming the length.
There is one write up on the yahoo group using the VW parts. I think his name is trimandan, or close. His conversion is what I'm basically following.  Richard Mann had bought some VW bits and was experimenting to see what fits what. I think he has not been active here in a while?
tedtaylor;
Yes, the hub housing is a bit tired. Seems the TCS was in a bit of a accident before I owned it. It appears maybe a chain was wrapped around it? May have been how it was loaded after the toss up. I do have another set though.
Dakazman;
Thank you! I've followed your build and the quality of it - great stuff!!  As far as time for projects,  I got the Europa as a retirement project. Since retirement, we've spent most of our time bouncing between Vietnam and Thailand, finally getting our Thai retirement visas last fall. So probably will be  awhile before we return to the US.

[Skywalker]

Hi Andy,
Thanks for your prompt response, particularly as you are travelling! Your information confirms my thoughts regarding the VW stub axles as the only real alternate to the original Hillman parts now that old BMW bits are virtually unobtainable.  I got my NG3 on e-bay, from a guy who was hoping to build a GT40 kit car and only paid $50 for it and so I looked to follow Richard Mann's lead in fabricating the output flanges. My output shafts are about 10 mm longer than the original 4-speed and I have the old Renault CV joints, so if using these to build the 100mm flanges, it would reduce the overall drive shaft length slightly, however Richard's BMW stub axles are rather longer than the Beetle ones and so I'm hoping to have enough room for the Alfa CV drive shafts.  It is all in the planning stage at present due to winter here and health factors but the assistance of other pioneers like yourself make it somewhat easier.  I have contacted Richard but, like yourself, life has somewhat reduced his Lotus availability!  Know the feeling, been there, got the tee-shirt!
By the way, the Skywalker nom-de-plume comes from my homebuilt aeroplane registered G-LUKE, it is a Rutan Long-ez and I've spent a lot of time and effort getting it back into the air but at 22years old it still looks like something from Star Wars! 
Thanks again, Ron Pearson

[andy harwood]

I don't do much TV here, and since I can't get into my shop, I get my mechanical Lotus entertainment vicariously here with coffee, or in the evenings.
 It seems with juggling the CVJs sizes, and there is a bit of room to play with the stub axle spacers, you may be able to make everything fit.
I think I remember that RoddyMac fabricated his output shaft CVJ flanges, and documented it here.

Following is Trimandaran's yahoo group write up, or most of it. Maybe it will be of some help. Photos are in the 2474R album.

VW axles are a great alternative. I just uploaded 2 pics of my new VW axles
into the 2474R album. The axles to use come from 68-79 VW IRS Bugs. I bought
mine from a local pull it yourself JY for $11 each. If anybody else pulls a set,
make sure to get all the VW spacers as well, they are far superior to the Lotus
spacers. Many of the sand rail shops sell chromoly bullet proof new axles on
line. However, these chromoly axles will have flanges to use VW bus or Porsche
930 CV joints which are stronger than bug CVs and able to operate a greater
angles. Our cars are not dune buggys with huge suspension travel, so I will be
installing stock VW CV axles shortly. The VW Bug axles are 30mm so they go right
into stock lotus bearings. The VW axles are dimensionally very similar to Lotus
so there is very little hassle with installation. Leave the first VW spacer on
the axle. This will be the spacer next to the CV flange, the one that the VW
seal rode on. Next, use the small Lotus spacer, the one about .382" thick. The
new axle then goes into the inner wheel bearing, through long spacer, and
emerges through the outer wheel bearing. Next, use the medium sized VW spacer,
it measures about .632" thick. This system will put the CV flange in about the
right spot, and more importantly, it will put the inside of the wheel flange
just where it needs to be (.009" more outboard than where the Lotus wheel hub
set). The wheel hub now goes on followed by the VW axle nut which is torqued to
230-250 ft pounds. Between the wheel bearings, I used the VW spacer which is
German quality and VERY hard. My upright bearing carriers showed some wear as I
expect they all do. To adjust for this wear, do the following: install the inner
wheel bearing in the carrier and make sure it is all the way home. Then use the
depth measurement rod of a digital caliper to measure inside the carrier from
the inner bearing inner race to the ridge where the outer bearing seats. Take 4
measurements at 90 degrees. The longest of these 4 measurements is the length
that you want the spacer between the bearings to be. I have TC/TCS carriers, so
the stock Lotus spacer was 2.125" long. My adjusted spacer needed to be shorter,
but I don't remember the length (maybe .020-.050" shorter). The VW spacer is
about .100" longer than Lotus. Wearing mechanics gloves, I held the spacer up
against the face of a new grinding wheel in a 4 1/2" angle grinder. The spacer
was constantly spun in an attempt to keep the face square. Grind only one end
and measure with calipers each time you need to cool the spacer with water. With
care, I was able to keep the run out in the ground edge to about .005". When I
got close to size, I chucked it up in my lathe and finished to size. Even
without the lathe, I think I could have finished it square with selective
grinding and using an oil stone. Anyway, the results are spectacular, zero play
in the new axles/bearings and resistance free as the axles are spun by hand. If
there is a fly in the ointment with this VW axle conversion, it is with the
wheel hubs. In the bug, the brake drum and hub are one unit. In my donor car, a
PO had bought undrilled drums and had a 4 x 100 bolt pattern drilled using 7/16"
20 threads. This is just the pattern I want to end up with, so I bought the
drums/hubs and cut the drum off. The OUTER face of the new wheel hub was then
machined to Lotus thickness, leaving a step for the Lotus brake drum to center
on. All other steps on the new hub were cleaned up to use for centering wheels.
About 1/4" needs to be removed from the outermost face of the VW wheel hub where
the axle nut rides so that the cotter pin hole will be exposed. An alternative
Wheel hub is the VW type 3 which had rear disc brakes and a separate hub. These
hubs can be bought on line from MOFOCO for $48 each. They will need similar
machining to use in a Europa.

[Rosco5000]

This is very cool Andy!  Great work.  I am looking at solving a CV axle conversion on my Duratec car.  With the research I have done I have found out that the Beetle guys convert their rear brakes to 944 rear discs quite frequently because the parts are very interchangeable.  My thought is to do this 944 conversion front and rear and get the Porsche 5 bolt PCD to open up a larger amount of staggered wheel options.  Just food for thought, maybe a 944 rear disc hub will be easier to modify then the old VW drum.

[andy harwood]

Thanks for the compliment. When I originally started this endeavor, I followed paths already blazed as I thought it would be the easiest route. So, seeing the mazada caliper/honda disk conversion, seemed like a good match for the braking power of the front discs. After deciding on the VW bits for the axles, I did look a bit at the 944 conversion. With out having parts to see if everything would "fit" (The 944 has 16 inch wheels? I don't know how deep the rotor hat is, but the VW one is 'deep') the 944 rotor is almost 12 in/diameter, and 1 inch thick the honda rotor needed to be turned down to about 9 1/4 (for the 13 inch wheels, still, not much free space with 15 inch wheels and is only about maybe 3/8" thick disk, top hat less than 2 inches?, and seeing that most VW's do the front conversion at the same time (as you suggest), I decided to stay with the mazada conversion. Seems there is only so much room before the backside of the rotor contacts the trailing arm. The fact that didn't want to change my wheels, and already have all the bits, and have made some caliper brackets influenced the decision too . I do have a large chunk of steel that I may make some '1 piece' brackets from. I ended up with some original beetle rear hubs, after market hubs, and I bought some undrilled rear disk hubs(cut the disk/top hat off). I have all three type hubs turned to fit, but have not drill for the lug bolts yet. The original lug size seems to not be so popular anymore, I thought go with a larger size. NAPA has a bewildering selection of lug studs, and I've narrowed it down to some potential candidates, but not purchased yet.
The VW axle conversion seemed about as "drop in" as you could get for such a project. The axles appear to be able to handle lots more hp than I'll ever throw at them too. Plus, the VW bits are cheap, and original VW parts available.
You've probably seen them, but Abom79, and Duckmancycles have some videos on youtube on the 944/VW conversions, and mods needed.

[Skywalker]

Really appreciate all the info Andy, I hadn't had time to look up Trimandarin before you had it all there for me!  I will certainly have the VW axles and hubs first on my list but you wouldn't believe how the breaker's yards are now disappearing in the UK and the ones that are left seem to have very little more than 10 years old.
 I must take the wheel off my Europa next and check the height of the drive flange so I have the measurements available when looking for a replacement, however Trimanderan seems to find the standard one adequate with mods.  I won't be going to disc rears, during the 25K miles I drove with my original (from new) S2, I found the braking more than adequate - although I never had it on the track, I was racing Karts at a national level and still found the Europa had pretty similar handling.  I also remember an article by one of the Lotus factory test drivers saying that the original Europa S2 was the best handling machine he had driven on the Hethel track.
 I am hoping to up the engine hp a little but not more than 110/120, as I want it to be flexible on the road - Richard Mann indicates that he has had 200K kms on his Alfa driveshafts with more power, so I think they will see me out!
Good luck with your travelling, having lived in Cyprus 3 years and Canada 10 years after, I have stuck to Europe, with family from the Aegean islands we rebuilt a village house and get there regularly for some heat.  I would have loved to get to Thailand etc but health insurance  is the limiting factor nowadays!

     

[andy harwood]

I ordered some of my VW bits off of "The Samba" VW forum. Lots of info there too. Aftermarket VW bits are reasonable too. The photo is a VW beetle stub axle with bearings and spacers, and cut down beetle hub in place (a la Trimandarin information).
Cyprus? We were looking at going to Cyprus and Malta. Appears like a nice area. With all the migration through the area, don't know if those locations have been impacted. It sounds like a great part of the world to live! Understand about the medical ins. will be on medicare in a few yrs. That will probably impact our plans. Although, care here is inexpensive.

Very nice plane! I've heard of those, never seen one. Impressive! A former co worker owns a Pitts.