Paulie's build

[paulie]

G'day

I am going to use this thread to keep others (and myself) up to date of an Excel build. Against my better judgement I will also keep a running total of costs. This may help others who are interested in the Excel series. The plan is to do it as cheaply as possible, simply because I don't have much money.

So to start:

I picked up this 170k km '95 excel at pickles for $300:
http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/silver1.jpg

http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/silver2.jpg

It is straight with a few smallish dents that I should be able to fix, and the paint on the bumpers is shocking. It runs really well!

Then I picked up a 110k km '00 excel from a wrecker for $350:
http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/red1.jpg

http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/red2.jpg

This one has a few more dents, but the engine and suspension are all straight and it drives nicely.

So the plan is to make the '95 a twin cam. Which should be interesting, I will put up all the details of what I end up having to do.

I am ordering a bolt in cage from Bond tomorrow, so let the stripping begin!

Costs so far:
Silver car: $300
Pickles fees: $50
Red car: $350

Total so far: $700

[paulie]

The rollcage arrived from Bonds today, (Well most of it, the TNT guy said that I should get the other bit on Monday).

What I got is a Bond bolt in with door bars and harness bar for $1342.

Total:
$700 + 1342 =

$2042 so far.

Paulie.

[Brendan]

hey Paulie,

did you continue on with your build? I am looking at getting an excel and was interested in how much it cost you as you went.

Doing what you did looks the go - buy a couple of cheap damaged cars and make 1 good one..

cheeers
Brendan.

[paulie]

Yep I am still building.

at the moment I am stripping the red car to get all the keepable bits, and get the engine out before sending the shell off for scrap.

The upshot being that I am not spending any money.

Buying 2 cars worked out for me because I couldn't find one decent-ish car for the $700 I paid for 2, but then again others have done well with one cheap car.

I did camp the auctions for a couple of months, and lost a lot of ebay auctions before I got my none-to0-pretty cars. But I likey the cheapy

Paulie

[Damo666]

Still an absolute bargain for how much you have spent so far (I've stopped counting on mine!).

Any ideas on what your doing for suspension?

[paulie]

Well I couldn't help it I bought another $300 excel.

http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/excel1.jpg

http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/excel2.jpg

This one is a 123k kms late 97 model with a blown engine.

BUT

The body is Teh Beez Neez. I would almost say immaculate. Also as it is a later model it has the right crossmember mount to slip the twin cam right in! AND it has one of those dashes that I have heard about in mythology, with no cracks. Almost too good to rally....Nah bugger that.

Now I have to decide what to do with the other silver one. As far as it goes $350 for a full car of parts with a running engine is still a bargain. But I will probably be feeling marital pressure to onsell it.

Paulie

[paulie]

Any ideas on what your doing for suspension?

Sorry Damo I missed this completely. Suspensions is a worry, I won't have the money to buy splinky stuff (unless I find some second hand DMS or something). So my plan is to buy something like bilstiens, maybe, just for the front initially. Not quite sure haven't done enough research.

On the total front I have decided to take the original silver one out of rally land and make it my daily, and use the new silver one as the rally car, so I need to take away the difference and add $30 for a couple of tins of rust guard paint I used on the rollcage ;)

running total:

$2022 so far.

[Damo666]

Suspensions is a worry, I won't have the money to buy splinky stuff (unless I find some second hand DMS or something). So my plan is to buy something like bilstiens, maybe, just for the front initially. Not quite sure haven't done enough research.

I still cant belive that you've got three cars & a cage for $2k! Top work.

I'm in the same boat on the suspension front - keep your eye out for some cheap Evo lancer stuff. Evo 1-3 front struts are very similar in dimensions to Excel ones and should fit with a little stuffing around (I've got dimensions here somewhere, let me know if you want them). You should be able to get some secondhand stuff relativley cheap, even after revalving & new springs.

[Crazy Dave]

$300- WOW - give me half a dozen

[fro]

I'm on here before Paulie, so I'll tell a tale:

Last night Paulie and I spent some quality time with our friend Liquid Nitrogen and both his and my Excel... 4 and a half hours later, and most of the tar is out of the interior of both cars. They still need to be cleaned up with some thinners and a wire bruch, but the majority of the sound deadener from the interior is gone.

Through trial and error we learnt that you shouldn't mess around, and just pour lots into the arear that you want to de-tar, and freeze it good and solid. then go like mad 'til it warms up again. When it's cold enough, it really does shatter when you hit it. Also, the angle of the chisel/scraper/screwdriver when hitting it is important.

I've got to talk to Rod and see if he wants everything out (including all of the loom and the heaterbox :( ), or if he can put the cage in with me being lazy. Questions about ECU relocation to come later, in a different thread.

Paulie, hit them with the digits (digital images, that is).

[Whitey]

COOL !!! :rofl:

[Trevor]

:finger

I'm noticing a distinct lack of Excel lovin' here Fro :P

[Whitey]

Hi Fro,
good to see you back on here, thought we may have lost you back to the good old rwd after such a great performance at the Alpine.

[ernysp76]

You'l find that the left over bitumin can be best got off with turps rather than thinners you'll need lost of rags but it will come up really clean.

[fro]

Whitey, you haven't lost me, I'm just recovering from my holiday.

Erny, thanks for the tip.

I'll stop hi-jacking Paulie's thread, and take some photos of my car and start my own thread...

[paulie]

I am still here.

Work has been crazy, which means I work too much and need a holiday. So I took one and was away in Europe for 2 months!

All of which means the Excel has been a slow project. The car has been stripped for ages, and I have been seam welding and plating junk.

pics:

engine in
http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/engine.jpg

various welds and plates:
http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/plate1.jpg http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/plate2.jpg

http://www.fuzzypants.com/rally/excel/plate5.jpg

Now to money spent:

Plates: $100
Tacho dash: $50
Set of locks, keys and steering column: $50
Paints: $50
I think that's all I have bothered to spend on it.

total up to:
$2272

I am going to paint the interior this week some time, then it's time for reassembling!

Paulie