The blue Nova that Mike's been working on is running and driving. And it runs really well. No vibration at idle and it's mounted directly to the chassis. On a dusty driveway and cold wrinkle wall Mickey Tompson slicks, the car picks the nose off the ground about 6 inches. It sounds glorious. Mike did a good job building the engine, repairing the rear suspension, rear wheel wells and steering. I was very impressed once it was all done. It's been there since I started coming around, and it rarely got worked on. Although Mike is slow sometimes, the end product is very nice.

 

I haven't done anything since I tacked in the skeleton. The rear shock mounts are being moved out, the shock bar has been removed, and the rear diagonals moved forward. The frame rails will get cut off directly behind the rear diagonals and drop down to support the gas tank and the rear of the body. The will open up the floor space as well. I took a pic of a rat rod. Mike did a nice job of fabricating the front end. The header are from a Ford and modified to fit Chevy.

 

With the body off the chassis, I tried leveling the body to get it nice and straight. I welded in a "skeleton" which has helped stiffen the body and hopefully will keep all the measurements correct. We can install the floor pans and locate where to build the body mounts.

 

Haven't done much recently. It was time to take a step back and look at what we have and decide what to do next. Somewhat spontaneously, I decided to cut out the rear shock tube out and relocate the shock mounts. The mounts are now on the lower edge of the rear frame rails. The tube will have to be replaced in some other way. With the tube removed, I can build a complete flat floor from the cab to the rear doors.

 

We were working on installing the floor pan extension, but nothing was lining up like it should. After several attemps, we decided to quit. I decided we needed to remove the body. Once the body was removed, it was obvious why we were having so many problems. Removing the center sections (bulkheads?) between the cab and the bed caused the entire body to become flimsy. The tubs are not welded in place either, so the sides are not sqaure with centerline. With the body off, we are going to measure and square everything up and tack in some reinforcement to prevent the body from flexing while we are trying to build the body mounts.

 

I've decided that building the roll cage so that the body is removable is not the best idea. It's proving to be very difficult to accomplish, and it will cause the roll cage to be weak. This was evident when we removed the body. The main hoop diagonal bars were moved forward to sit on the rear spring tube. Even with the diagonal bar in place, the main hoop still had a lot of vibration. Mike added a pair of lower reiforcement bars, and that helped, but the main hoop still has a lot of flex. Currently, there is no reiforcement from the main hoop forward. We were planning to make a removable door brace, but I'm afraid that will be too weak. And, in the event of a crash, there would be no roof halo. So, the next step, after the body is located, will be to build A pillars and a roof halo.

 

Here are some pics of the rear tubs. Each side has about 4" added to the center. Approximately 3/16" space is between the tub and the frame rail. The roll bar rear tube have been cut out to be moved forward over the shocks. Mike is suggesting that we redesign the rear frame to move the shocks lower in the chassis, and more forward. This is to make the floor more flat and level. Quite honestly, I don't care much for how the rear looks or functions, as long as I can mount some stereo components, and toss a backpack or cooler full of beer back there. The one thing I have planned for the floor is a trap door to access the fuel cell that will sit behind the rear axle.

 

The front floor boards are being extended. In the picture you can see the replacement piece I made to fill the gap from the passenger floor in the front with the cargo floor of the rear. It's designed to work like the original floor, but instead of having half of it built into the rear and half of it built on the front, the entire piece will be welded to the front floor. The back floor will then bolt across the top lip. This area of the cargo floor will be designed to be removable and allow the body to lift off and over the roll bar. Also seen in the picture is passenger floor extension. The driveshaft hump will be built into it later.

 

More of the floor section has been laid out. We removed the rear fender wells from the bed, split them in half, and will add a filler strip to the center of each one. This will widen the rear fender wells and allow a larger tire. I'll probably use an 8" rim, but should have room for a 10".

 

After a little time away, working on some other projects, we're back to the Morris. Mike's helper, Trish, an 18 year old young lady, made some glove box inserts and finished the firewall. She also helped me fabricate the large piece to the extend the cab's floor. Mike hopes to have all the steel work on the cab finished very soon. We also started moving the rear roll bar supports forward. As the firewall nears completetion, the headers will also be finished.

 

Mike redesigned the trans cover while building floor pans. He felt the first designed was too "racy" and this design looks more like it came from the factory. It has some nice curves. We've begun building the interior. The cab's floor will be extended nearly 12". Mike has convinced me that the rear diagonal main hoop support bars should be moved forward to allow for more room in the rear.

 

I finished some motor mounts and Mike welded them in. The engine and transmission are finally permanently fixed to the frame. We have designed and installed new outriggers. Mike has a nice, old, manual pipe bender. I cut the original outriggers off. The new outriggers look much better and extend all the way up to just behind the front wheels. We also cut pipe for lower door side rails and exhaust tubes. In a couple weeks, we should have the headers built. An engine firewall and cab firewall have been laid out.

 

I finally got my camera back, so I'll have some new pics up in a few days.

 

I constructed new engine mount adapter plates based on a template I found on LS1Tech.com. I purchased some OEM replacement mounts listed for a 1965 Chevelle. They cost about $17 for two engine mounts and the transmission mount.

 

I was digging around LS1Tech.com and found some templates for a couple different motor mount designs. I've decided to make new motor plates based off these templates. I'll be able to use stock GM rubber mounts.

 

I looked at 9-11-05's post and I was working on motor mounts then... one year later and I'm still trying to figure this out, haha!

 

I built a transmission crossmember today. Very simple design. Now the trans is located, the motor mounts will become final. I decided to move the engine about 1 1/2" forward from it's last position. It sits a little higher than I originally wanted it to, but the relocation of the steering rack required some additional clearance.

 

My camera was left at a friends house. I have pictures to upload, but they are all on the camera.

 

I injured my right elbow and I'll probably need at least a week of recovery before I can do any real work on any of my projects.

 

Mike has started fabricating motor mounts, firewall, and trans cover. Neither he or I will have time to work on the Morris for a week or so.

 

Mike's big project is finally done, so he's found time to concentrate on the Minor. I arrived about noon and stayed until sundown. I finished the rack relocation... that worked out nicely. I cut new motor mount plates for the block. Mike started work on the headers. The flanges are almost done... just need to plasma cut the outer edges. We dropped the engine and trans case back into the car to see the results of the rack relocation. The tie rods are now parallel to the ground, inline to each other, and perpendicular to the chassis. Once more weight is added, I'll be able to shim the tie rod ends to get them perfect.

 

Compare to the "Hi." picture... the tie rods are even with the ground where as before they had a 10-15 degree pitch.

 

I haven't been able to make it to the shop to work on the Morris lately. I did remove the engine, found a 700R4 case to use for mock up, and began work on relocating the steering rack.

 

I'm working on finalizing the engine placement. The steering rack needs to be adjusted. It's too low and too far forward. I want to lower the engine as well as determine it's permanent position on the frame. I have to weigh interior leg room, weight bias, and handling against one another to decide where to place the engine on the chassis. Mike made note of my preferance for cars that handle and road racing over cars that accelerate hard in a straight line. He's suggesting moving the engine back, sacrificing some leg room, for a more neutral 50/50 weight bias. I thought it was a very intuitive observation... because he's exactly right. Although I realize this car won't be a Lotus Elise, I would prefer a car that can handle over a dragster. I believe in the BMW philosophy that performance is a safety feature. A car that can maneuver, stop, and accelerate to a higher degree is a safer car. Especially when it's in the hands of a skilled driver. (and enthusiastic driver :) )

 

A few ideas I'm tossing around are custom mounts for the engine accessories, a/c, power brakes, and steel or poly fuel cell. Work has been a little slower than expected at Hallico. Mike has had all of his attention focused on the '50 Chevy truck and '34 Ford Coupe. I've been doing all my own work. Essentially, I've been paying for use of the shop, tools, and Mike's direction; which is fine with me. I'm enjoying the experience even though I was told it would only take a month to complete. I honestly didn't believe that when I heard it, but I believe Mike's intentions are good.

 

The oldtimers always comment, "That's alot of engine for that little car!" They are afraid of it's 325hp and 84" wheelbase. For those that ask, my intention is to keep the outward appearance mostly stock. Some nice wheels, no major body mods, and a clean, classic, subtle paint job. I want to keep the exhaust as quiet as possible within the short distance from bow to stern.

 

Everyone that sees the Morris smiles. That's more than enough motivation to see this project to completion.

 

I continued to work on the rear suspension and sqauring the body to the chassis. The center mount for the wishbone was almost 1" off. I cut it out and moved the rear axle over the left. I tack welded the mount back in place, and it looks much better. I also adjusted the 4 links to get the left and right wheelbase to within 1/4" of each other. I set the differential pinion angle at about 2° up. The wheels are centered within the wheel arches of the body. The final alignment will be pretty accurate.

 

I spent all day re-working the wishbone. It's ridiculously over built, but it was kinda fun to build. 1/8" plate gussets on top and bottom, the front gussets are fully boxed. I did not want to build a new one. I took a couple quick measurements. Looks like the center point for the wishbone locator is off center. The 4 link brackets are little kinked, but nothing a hammer wont' fix.

 

Extensive reworking of the rear suspension today. After setting the body on the chassis I realized that the rear suspension components are too long. No surprise really, considering the parts were designed with full size muscle cars in mind. I took 2" out of each 4 link bar, and 3" out of the wishbone. I may need to construct a new wishbone, but I believe I can salvage this one with some "spider web" reinforcement. I could have taken 2-3" out of the frame rails... that would help keep the suspension parts longer, but would reduce interior space and also provide an opportunity for me to screw up the squareness of the chassis. The next step will be accurately aligning the rear suspension and 4 link setup so that the wheel base is correct (about 84"). Looking at the rear suspension, it's clear that either the wishbone is not centered to the driveshaft housing (hopefully), the shocks are off center (no biggie), or the 4 link brackets on the driveshaft housing are off center (NOOO!!).

 

The front lower frame rails have been reinforced to repair the rust that ate them up. The front and back halves are bolted together and sitting on the chassis. I brought in the original steel fenders and hood to align the body to the front wheels. The 4 link offers some adjustment to the total wheelbase, but the front wheels are basically static. We are aligning the body to the front wheels, building mounts, and adjusting the 4 link to center the rear wheels in the rear fender wells. I dropped the engine and trans in to get an idea of how the Edlebrock intake and carb would fit under the hood.... tons of room! Plans are being laid out for headers, floor pans, A/C... the list goes on. Mike's experience is really helping.

 

Lot's of pictures today.

 

At the bottom of the pack, the work on the Morris continues. Fixed B pillars (after repairing and replacing recessed nuts), began work on shaving the gas filler, and work on the front body frame rails. The rail have some nasty rust cancer is spots. The corners at the bottom of the footwells are the worst. Water obviously did not drain very well, collected and caused rust. New patches are being built and should actually stiffen the body. Also, around the driver's door sill there was some bad rust. Patches to follow.

 

Some of the cars at Hallico Fab. There are many more.

 

Mike, owner of Hallico Fab, has some very cool projects in his shop. He's very happy to work on mine. '32-34 Fords get boring after a while, and Mike enjoys working on something a little different. I told him that it is important to me to be able to do as much as I can myself. Mike let's me do whatever I want, and he's great about keeping me busy... giving me direction, because I don't know what the hell I'm doing... he's the body expert.

 

The cab is being prepped to have the box welded to it. The box had large piece repaired... a very old rip in the sheet metal was underneath 1/4" of body filler. Some of the nuts in the B Pillars had ripped out of their cages. The bolts were sawed off but stuck in place. I drilled all the spot welds, made new panels, and Mike welded them in. My first experience with making a replacement sheet metal panle turned out very nice! Tomorrow the cab and box will be bolted together, laid on the chassis and mounts will be drawn up.

 

 

 

Well, that "sunburn" is now peeling. I'm really having a tough time deciding what to do with the body, floor boards, and chassis. Originally I intended to build a tube chassis and drop the body down over it. That means I have to attach the floor boards to the chassis and leave the entire bottom of the body open. I can't have the tube frame pass through the body. Keeping the body off the chassis should help prevent noise and vibration to some degree. So, I think what I am going to need to do is weld to the two halves of the body together, reinforce the body to maintain it's shape, and go from there. I don't know how I am going to do this all by myself. Moving the cab by myself is hard enough.

 

Again, with the hot weather, and I'm outside cutting, grinding, and welding. I actually have one heck of "sunburn" from the other day, and it's all from welding!! My lower legs and forearms are bright pink and stinging. So what do I do? I get right back out there, in shorts and t-shirt and start welding some more!

 

I modified some body mounts from a truck for the front of the cab and cut two more for the rear of the cab. I'm going to build some little plates on the bottom of the cab, insert a rubber pad, and bolt them down. The bottom of the cab has some bad rust however. I'm not sure what to do about that yet.

 

I made a gusset for the wishbone where it attaches to the differential housing. It's a simple crescent to re-inforce the mount. I'll make some smaller gussets to the front side as well.

 

I've been outside all day in 100° F heat welding and grinding.... ugh. I think I drank two gallons of iced tea, and perspired at least one of them. My forearms and legs are sunburnt from the welder. I worked on making some body to frame mounts. I welded two inplace for the front. I have a total of 8 which were cut off junk trunks at the salvage yard. I also finished up some welds. My little 110v wire feed is barely up to the task. I tripped the over heat circuit about 6 times. A man stopped by to ask what I was working on (this happens alot lately). He recommended a sheet metal fabricator about 25 miles east of here. I'm gonna check it out. Maybe I can get the floor boards done there. I'm having a heck of a time trying to figure out how to finish the chassis. I have to get the body located correctly first. I still want to weld the front and backs together.

 

No, I'm not dead nor have I given up. It's hard to accept that it's been 6 months since I did anything major. I finally completed a couple other projects that have allowed me to start playing with the Morris again. I've only managed to get a few small things done. I modified and welded the tie rod adapters onto the steering rack and tacked in a few gussets.

 

Here is the Morris crawling out of it's 6 months of hibernation and a size comparison between it and my Dodge Dakota.