Fauxre

This would save a lot of time... but at nine times the cost of my current plan, it's too rich for my blood. This guy covers even more options for EPS units which do not require a third party wiring harness. However, the other donor vehicles are too new for me to find at my local Pick N Pull. I don't know how much other wreckers might charge for these units. https://youtu.be/f4TYQ_KJSpc

Wow! Thanks for the link. Save me a ton of time in R&D.

Well it's been six months and the county still hasn't approved my shop project. The plans sailed through five different departments with minor revisions. Then in January, the planning dept. decided that I need a grading permit for the building pad that already exists. That required a civil engineer to draw up a storm water drainage plan, a grading plan and a geotechnical report. They also advised that my neighbors parking area (which is 300 feet from the proposed building and was constructed by the builders of both houses) encroached on my property and I would need to apply for a change to the property line or rip out the paved and fenced improvements. I was advised, by my architect, that a geotechnical report alone usually runs about $4000. Lucky for me, I was able to get a copy of the report used for the homes' construction from the builder... for nothing. And my neighbor provided me with a copy of the easement granted for the parking area. The grading and drainage plans came to a total of $3500. Everything was submitted two months ago and all the permits have been approved. But planning still has my project marked as "revisions needed." Waiting to find out why. Sucks!!!! Now... a little about the car. The steering is stock Z... and manual. I've been looking for an inexpensive way to convert to power steering... and I think I've found it. The electric power steering from an '05-'07 Saturn Vue or Chevy Equinox. I stumbled over this video last night. https://youtu.be/uKzCaEjvJeM I was so intrigued, I pulled a unit today at my local Pick N Pull. Unlike the Cobra in the video, I don't have any room in the engine compartment, so I'll mount it under dash. I'm planning on a custom interior, so I'll remove the original Z dash, get the unit mounted and adjusted, then build a one off dash around it. Probably get it all done before the shop project finally gets approved.

Beautiful location.... reminds me of the NorCal coastline near Monterey. Does the earths magnetic field automaticlly flip camera images down under? Because, it looks to me like you're driving on the wrong side of the road. (Tried to post this text in the above post, but only the quote uploaded. Where are those 14 yr olds when I need them??)

Wow... that's a great barn find.

Beautiful car Lee. I can only hope that my roadster will look so good one day.

Pretty rough for $10k, in my opinion. However, unmounted body kits are starting around $6500 to these days. Sooooo, I guess $10k isn't out of the question. I certainly wouldn't exceed that, though.

Hi Lee, Glad to see some pics posted. Unfortunately, all I can see are the small thumbnails. When I click an image, all I get is a white square and a spinning icon... but it could just be my internet. It's extremely slow out here in the boonies. Anyone else having this issue, or is it just me? Did you solve your email address issue. The link provided two posts above should take you directly to the right page. If for some reason it doesn't, scroll to the top of this page and click on your screen name. The drop down menu will have My Settings listed.

Email addresses and passwords can be changed in "My Settings".

Holy Cow!!! Has it really been over four months since my last post? Where did all that time go? Well anyway, the bonnet is back on, but is going to need a lot of adjusting to fit perfectly. I've been driving her quite a bit this summer which has exposed a lot of mechanical flaws. Most of the squeaks, rattles and vibrations can be eliminated by replacing worn weather stripping and bushings. But there is a major "clunk" in the driveline at the start of acceleration. Could be U-joints, but more likely differential. As I have no good place to work on her right now, the VR will settle in for a long winters nap under her RV cover. I'll be submitting the garage/shop plans to the county this week. Hoping to get the foundation poured this winter and start framing in the spring. Mean while, I spotted this Bentley "replica" on eBay. Can you spot the subtle differences between this "kit" and the real thing? http://www.ebay.com/itm/Replica-Kit-Makes-made-to-look-like-a-bentley-made-to-look-like-a-bentley/162217934963?_trksid=p2050601.c100085.m2372&_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D37338%26meid%3D543e6f6748f14e38b7547632ec031d1c%26pid%3D100085%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D4%26sd%3D142132532648%26clkid%3D8638131730443910262&_qi=RTM2247626

Your entire build is spectacular, but I think your devotion to faithfully recreate the original GTO design is what is most impressive to me. To create doors from scratch, conveys a grand commitment, all by itself. ( Insert favorite "I should be committed" joke here.) Again...Well done.

With a little nudge from down under (thanks BFO), I spent today pulling the VR out of storage, charging the battery and repairing the broken front bonnet hinge with my son. I little grinding, welding and painting and she's good as new. I will attempt to refit the bonnet tomorrow and she'll be road worthy again. Repairing the fiberglass nose damage is next. Waiting on the engineering plans for the her permanent home. Once they're done, I can submit them, along with the architectural drawings, to the county building department for approval

Oh yeah...just what I needed. Spent today pulling the VR out of storage, charging the battery and repairing the broken front bonnet hinge with my son. I little grinding, welding and painting and she's good as new. I will attempt to refit the bonnet tomorrow and she'll be road worthy again. Repairing the fiberglass nose damage is next. Thanks for the inspiration Peter!

Well done sir. I especially like the engine cover. Very nice. I know it's been such a labor of love, can we get more pics .... please? I need a little inspiration to get my project moving again.

Thanks tamo3. The pool comes in handy on those summer days when temps out here hit 110.

Time for an update. Unfortunately there is no progress to report. Only regression. A couple of months ago my son was showing the VR to a friend. When he fired her up for a little drive, we spotted a fuel leak near the carb. We quickly shut her down and fixed the problem. My son then leaned in and turned the key while standing outside the drivers door. The VR immediately started.... while in gear!!!... and drove about six feet... directly under the rear of my daughter-in-laws Mazda 6... before stalling out. The back of the Mazda now rested on the bonnet of the VR approximately three feet in the air. After jacking the Mazda up about three inches we were able to push the VR out from underneath. The damage is mostly cosmetic. I'll have to redo all the fiberglass work I did to extend the scoops and do a little reinforcing. The only functional damage was to the bonnet hinge bracket. The upper bolt "ears" snapped off under the weight of the Mazda. A simple fix with a little welding. I only wish I would have had the presence of mind to take a photo while the Mazda was resting on the hood. It was quite comical. And it was a good thing the Mazda was in the way. Without it the VR would have driven off our paved parking pad and dropped 30 feet to the gully below, al a 'Ferris Buellers Day Off'. For now, the VR waits out the rainy season (long overdue here) under a temporary RV cover. Hoping to start construction on a permanent home for her this spring.

It's been six months since my last post and not much has changed with the VR. I still have the electrical issue, so none of the gauges or turn signals are operational. I did manage to get her down to the local muffler shop this week and replace what was left of the muffler. She sounds much better and I'm hoping to get some use out of her this summer. I'm gonna try to get the signals and a couple of gauges working by next week, but since I'll be replacing all of that stuff eventually, it's not high on the priority list. So what have I been doing these past months??? Here are a couple of before and after pics. To the far right of the last image, my new tractor sits on the pad that will eventually be home to my shop. If I'm lucky, by this time next year I'll be finishing the VR in the comfort of that shop.

Found these two at a local consignment dealer. http://www.specialtysales.com/vehicles/11090 http://www.specialtysales.com/vehicles/11089 Both would make nice daily drivers or weekend drivers, but IMHO, the owner has them priced like show cars. Too many flaws to list. The Velo Rossa's bonnet fits worse than mine. I hope he gets what he's asking for them. A rising tide lifts all boats.

Wish I had some progress to report, but I've actually regressed. While driving a few weeks ago the gauges and turn signals all went dead. The short is somewhere under the dash. Since I'm planning on a complete custom dash, I'm in no hurry to dig through all that wiring that I'm eventually going to toss anyway. We're finally getting some wet weather, so I've been content to let the VR sit in the garage for long stretches. I needed to move her out last week, to make room for construction of this years Christmas village, but the battery was too low. I decided to roll her down the driveway, get her started and let the battery charge. After popping the clutch, twice without a start, I realized I hadn't turned the key far enough to energize the ignition. Stupid me turns the key and BANG... the backfire split the muffler down the seem. I think I'll wait until spring before I inflict any more damage. She still looks pretty good ifo the new digs.

I thought the same thing before I started this journey. I couldn't avoid the 'While I'm At It' syndrome and it quickly became complicated. Maybe you'll have better luck.

Hey TomoHawk, Not sure how I missed this post. I know you you're not building a roadster like mine, but I have quite a few photos on my VR build thread (http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/85830-vacaville-velo-rossa/ )that might give your friend the general scope of the whole project. Hope this helps.

Lovin' the unique details Ken. Where did you find those back-up lights... it looks like they where made specifically for the slope of the rear valance. I like the lights in the round vents...makes for a completely custom look up front... are they turn signals or running lights? Did you make all the trim pieces (oval front opening, light cover trim rings, brake vent grills) yourself? They really add that finished factory look. I'm still stuck in primer, and will be for the foreseeable future. Just too much to do around the new digs. This is what she looks like currently.

Unfortunately I seem to be regressing. Not only is she not painted, she's got an electrical issue that forced me to roll start her a couple days ago. When she finally fired, the muffler exploded. Now she sounds like a boat

WOW!!! She's beautiful Ken.