[sgraber]

Hey Steve,
Congrats on getting LaBala on something like 3 pages of Kit Car Builder magazine!

I wonder if it will cause a spike in sales for you....

Thanks! I counted 8 photos distributed throughout the mag and 3 pages of text for La Bala the August 09 issue.

What's more, I understand the next issue will have a feature story on the Blue Supercharged Ecotec powered La Bala built by Jim Holley in North Carolina.

At this time a spike in sales would be very welcome... The economy is 'ded' right now.

I will be posting up some new CAD screengrabs of chassis modifications to take the larger power figures. I have to believe that the 87+ brakes will be adequate because I was barely even able to get any heat into them the last time at the track. I am using EBC Green pads with 87+ rotors and brackets.

 

[sgraber]

VEMS is what used to be called MegaSquirtAVR.
It also has much more I/O than MegaSquirt in that it has 8 injector + 8 ignition channels + a load of other I/O.
By the time you have added all the bit onto a MS it actually ends up more expensive than VEMS. However as you already have 2 MS units then that is not so much of a issue.

I would actually be more interested in running the VEMS now that I've taken a few moments to read about it at www.vems.hu.

Maybe if we are talking about shipping an 01x Transaxle from UK I can convince you to 'loan' me your .sql file and help me with a wiring harness (for a modest fee I would insist! :thumbup ) - I'll contact you via PM once I am further along in the funding phase.

 

[paul woods]

Good to see you taking the plunge with this steve, it's the engine Labala deserves!

 

[sgraber]

I'm definitely doing this. At this point I have the chassis already 80% built and a body with doors and hardtop will be part of the end result. Right now I need to work out a new independent rear suspension design since my deDion axle will not work around the Audi transaxle.

I've beefed up the frame design and added a double roll hoop for additional protection. It fits under the new hardtop design too (obviously!).

I note that Megasquirt 3 will be made available as a daughterboard upgrade to MS 1 v2.2 and will allow 8 COP and 8 injectors. Still, if I can have the help from Paul and Hilly to get a VEMS base map and a wiring harness, then I'll definitely go with the VEMS!

Here is some more Solidworks eye candy. You can clearly see that the engine bay tubing needs a redesign which will pull the cradle closer to the engine and allow additional room for an adequate IRS design. The rear tires are now 17x10 and the fronts are 16x8

 

[sgraber]

And just for fun, here's the 'shape' of the hardtop. I'm quite a ways past this point, but this photo shows the shape pretty well...

 

[Square]

I love the hard top. looks killer

 

[cbulen]

great looking Hard Top Steve!

case reinforcement plates for the Audi 01x

http://www.kitcentral.com/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=8320&sid=6292919ee4b60bedac9471254ada4392

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Audi-016-Case-saver-plate-Audi-5000-Diablo-Murci-GT40_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZQ7c293Q3a1Q7c294Q3a30QQ_trksidZp4634Q2ec0Q2em14Q2el1262QQhashZitem4a98b4fc9dQQitemZ320389577885QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessoriesQQsalenotsupported

 

[jimmer411]

I always thought the la bala looked odd as a convertable, like it was not quite a full car. The hard top totally completes it in my eyes.

 

[burdickjp]

I always thought the la bala looked odd as a convertable, like it was not quite a full car. The hard top totally completes it in my eyes.

i will have to agree here. it's the closest thing to a GTM Libra i'm going to get this side of the pond. AWESOME!

 

[Bill Strong]

Steve,

I am loving this, in a huge way.

If I may add some input...

Since I would use this car as an off-road vehicle only (Virginia is very difficult getting a kit car registered) I would like to have a roll structure built into the frame.
While your roll structure is cleverly designed, it does not comply within the rules of any sanctioning body.

So is there a way to include a SCCA / NASA ready alternative for a hardtop equipped Labala? 6 point roll cage structure that would include a proper center roll hoop, connected to a rear roll hoop with X-Beam for both doors utilizing 1.75" DOM tubing? I would specify 1.75" tubing due to the speed potential of the structure.

One could be added at a later date, but incorporating it into the initial design would keep the overall weight of the car down, while not having to add additional tubing.

Can we get some input from JavaJoe who works for a Grand Am Corvette team?

 

[Bill Strong]

also,
since your potential speeds are going to considerably higher than the puny 1600cc 4age, have you done any modeling into how this chassis will react at speeds above 140 mph?
I had the front of the car lift on me at 145 in a 1987 Shelby Charger GLHS before discovering that I needed to make some front spoiler changes per the Shelby garage guys. Once that was done the car never had any lift issues above 150.

I do know that "what looks right" in a design may not be the best for aero.

 

[javajoe79]

Bill asked me to chime in here. Maybe you are aware of all this but Bill is right about roll cage not being SCCA etc. legal but I would guess that the car would be hard to class as well. Correct me if I am wrong but this is only intended to be street car right?

Again maybe you know this but for scca etc it would need rear down bars, a main hoop diaganol, roof bars or bar, a pillars, a dash bar(which it seems to have sort of), and door bars.

 

[sgraber]

Hi Bill, Javajoe,

I have worked out an initial design for a full cage as described, and Joe is right that the chassis shown above is for the street version. Creating a 6 point cage using larger diameter tubing would not be any big thing. The rear down bars would have to be removable to allow access for the clamshell rear decklid, the rest of it is simple connect the nodes stuff.

I had the car up over 140mph briefly at Phoenix Intl Raceway several years ago before the suspension was dialed in. Slow speed cornering tended to snap oversteer which has since been corrected. The car did not exhibit any tendency to lift at speed but we were more concerned with figuring out the cornering issue. I haven't done any experimentation since then to determine the effects of a wicker or wing on the car. These are areas that I hope to work on in the coming winter.

 

[javajoe79]

Sounds good man. If you can find some pics of an SCCA GT1 car, they might help you out as they are a mix of square tube and round tube. The removable rear bars are acceptable I believe, I think you can do removable door bars too as long as it is done well with bolts or pins in double shear. Also always try to make bars like the door bars and roof x brace etc.. bow outward so that they are forced to expand on impact. They are alot stronger that way. Then for tube size on that car, I don't think 1.75" is needed because it is so light. .120" DOM would help alot when it comes to fitment and room inside the car. You could maybe do the main hoop in .120x 1.75" just to be extra safe but you double main hoop would be very strong in 1.5". Of course there is always chromolly.

 

[Square]

so if I start sending you money now...I should be able to pay a la bala off by the end of 2012....I want one...but don't have the means to buy one....yet. After im out off school for Toyota tech and have a good job expect my order for a hard top.

 

[filonin_2]

+1

 

[sgraber]

Hi Guys, Juszt bumpin to let you know that I'm still moving forward on the project. This past week I placed a bid on a 01X TDI 6 speed transaxle from the UK, but I bid too low. I actually used auctionsniper which I have found is usually the best way to make last second bids on ebay items and it keeps your intentions stealthy until that last instant. I rarely if ever plug any service, but for auctions sniping is the way of the future. Once you try it you won't go back to regular bidding.

Anyways, I found a local transmission company that has several ABZ Audi V8s for under $2K and I will be heading down there next week to check them out. What I like about the Audi 4.2L, aside from the fact that it's so compact, is that they are very inexpensive for the power output.

In related news I've got most of the bodywork mounted to the new chassis (the one in the CAD drawings above), the dash/windshield frame is set in place, the drivers side door hinge is mounted and I've made serious progress on the windshield wiper/motor/mechanism assembly!

 

[Square]

any updated pics of the car/sexy hard top?

 

[filonin_2]

Any pics of the hardtop and doors? Great that the new design will have wipers. If I ever do build one, I may even *GASP* put in a heater and radio lol.

 

[sgraber]

Sorry, I've done some work on it, but I had to get the body panels mounted more permanently on the new chassis before continuing the hard top work. It's amazing how just a few 10th's of an inch misalignment at one corner will translate to a big gap at the other end, so it has to be precisely located.

Here is where it's at right now. You can see the doors are in place. I already have latches for them, but my hinges need to be beefed up so that will be this weekends project (at least an hour or two).

And yes, heater, defroster, radio, A/C!!!, but not much else I promise. There will be some upholstery and carpet and this time some cupholders too... hehe