Nickson Motorsport 944 turbo bare shell rebuild

[nicksonmsport]

im sure most of you will have seen my previous project thread which took a turn for the worst!

well im back on track now, i have a dedicated evo track car, and so i have decided to carry out a full rebuild from the ground up on my 944 turbo, which is now stripped to a shell (well close anyway!)

after stripping the shell, and planning on selling the parts, i just couldnt bring myself to do it, and decided to put it back together to give me a perfect 944 turbo fast road/occassional track car. now the evo is pretty much done for the minute, and ready to use, this gives me something to chip away at evenings and weekends !

look forward to getting stuck in!

nick

 

[nicksonmsport]

im sure most of you will have at some point seen my original build thread,

http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=700590

it was my intention to transform my 944 turbo into a track day car, and i was going for big power and minimum weight! my circumstances changed half way through the build, and i decided to start breaking the car for parts. luckily as i have been so busy i have not really sold much from the car as i havn't had time to actively sell items.

over the last few months i aquired a mitsubishi lancer evo, which became my new track day project, and this is nearing completion now, and has seen me out on track a few times this year already.

my current position of having the evo ready to use for track use, and therefore no major projects of my own on the go any more, i have decided to rebuild the 944 turbo from the shell up! makes sense to me, as i have the majority of parts on the shelf, and the shell is already stripped down and so is in the perfect position to be fully prepped, repaired, painted, and rebuilt from the ground up, replacing and refurbing components along the way so i am left with a mint rebuilt 944 turbo, which i can enjoy as a fast road and occasional track day car.

my thoughts and plans were to build the car so it can be used regularly on the road, and then the occasional track day. a clubsport type of theme if you like. keep the car lightweight without unecessary items, but still keep it sensible for the road. bucket seats and a rollcage will be installed, but full interior trim and carpets will be kept.
i have a friend who works for rolls royce trimming all the interiors, so i thought i would get him to trim all the parts in an alcantara or similar material, which looks really smart (he did it in his own car and it looks awsome)

this will be a long term project, that i wil just chip away at evenings and weekends. i am in no rush, as i have the evo to keep me smiling, and i want to do it right! so i will add updates and pictures as i go!

the first step is to get the shell to a point where i can mount it to a rollover jig, and then start removing underseal, repairing any rust, and prepping for paint. at the same time i will be sending components off to a local firm for media blasting and powdercoating.

this evening i spent 2 hours removing the complete rear torsion tube and suspension arms etc. i was very surprised that all the bolts came off smoothly and the whole structure came off with no issues! the next thing to do is to remove the gearbox and torque tube which is very simple.

once these larger items have been removed, its just a case of removing the rear hatch and doors, then i can start fabricating brackets to enable me to mount the shell on the rollover jig.

the shell is a very good shell. i will be replacing the outer sills, as they had small signs of rust coming through. i have already cut inspection holes in the outer sills to inspect the inners, which are very good!

heres a small teaser pic to show you the state the car is in at the minute (covered in dust and looking sorry for itself!) with the rear suspension to the side of the car after removal! ( the rest of the car has been stripped, engine bay and front end is 95% bare)

i look forward to being a regular on the forum again! and cant wait to get this project properly under way, and even more so, enjoy it knowing its good as new!

thanks
nick

 

[nicksonmsport]

today i quickly dropped the gearbox and torque tube. and whipped the rear hatch and doors off. all thats left is the fuel tank, and then i can make brackets to mount it on the rollover jig.

on a side note, whats the best opc to speak to re parts for these? im obviously going to be buying a fair few new parts for the car, and so hoping i can deal with someone who can sort me some great prices!! as some of the rrp's on parts for these are ridiculous!!

 

[pauljmcnulty]

on a side note, whats the best opc to speak to re parts for these

It was always Exeter, but when I ordered a few small bits recently they were not seeing much 944 trade any more. We're talking badge inserts at 14p each, heater control clip at under a pound, that sort of thing.

Mark K has always been very positive about Leicester PC. As the guy's coming to Rutland to meet us all, and seems a real enthusiast, I'd say that's where to start.

Bert Gear and Matthew at Type 911 also have a reputation for either selling you the right part first time, or sending you to Porsche with a price guide to start from if they think you'll be better off going to a PC.

 

[nicksonmsport]

thanks, all useful information.

hoping to strip fuel tank from the shell this eve and get the shell ready to go on the spit.

then can start sending components to the blasters to be cleaned up

 

[nicksonmsport]

fuel tank is out, hoping to make rollover jig brackets tonight

 

[Frenchy]

Good to see another being saved !
Drove to Newark (Notts) today from Cumbria and never saw one 944,i never saw that many Porsche TBH a couple of Boxsters and a Cayman.

 

[944 man]

Id be interested to see a lot of pictures covering the seam welding and basic body preparation.

 

[nicksonmsport]

your right, these cars are getting very rare, one of the main reasons i decided to rebuild it! im almost certain a decent rebuilt example will be worth strong money in years to come!

i dont think i have seen another 944 turbo on the road in as long as i can remember! seen a few s2 and lux, but the turbo is a rare beast these days! its also a hoot to drive!

really looking forward to getting properly stuck into the project now! and cant wait for the day i can drive it again! hoping the project will be complete within 2 years MAX!! ideally well before then.

will have some pics soon once the shell is on its spit then work can begin

 

[nicksonmsport]

944 man, of course i will be posting pics up of the shell prep.

heres a few of an ae86 rwd corolla drift car im building for driftworks ltd at the minute to give you an idea of what i do.

a work in progress, still got plenty to do!

 

[nicksonmsport]

spent an hour making front and rear bracketry to mount the shell on the rollover jig today.

will be spinning round early next week lol

 

[944 man]

Obviously you have one eye on the finished cars future value. Id suggest seam welding everywhere that you usually would (inc the rear suspension) and keeping a photographic record, but doing it in such a manner that it can all be hidden with a liberal application of seam sealer. The reason is that everyone wants a fully prepped body but mostof the regs specifically prohibit seam welding.

Everones car is seam welded of course, but no one will admit it and it has to be completed in such a fashion that the scrutes cant see it...


Simon

 

[nicksonmsport]

of course lol, like u say, seam welding is prohibited, but every has it so it makes no difference! i will be giving the car a dusting of seam sealer and underseal anyway as the car will be a road car.

 

[Ex Skyline]

Very neat welds mate[]

 

[944Scott]

I used to see a black turbo with a ring sticker on it when out on my travels and im trying to remember where that was.

Again nice welding, definately better than mine.

 

[944Turbo]

Excellent, looking forward to the progress updates!
Tony

 

[nicksonmsport]

started stripping components and cleaning them up, spent a few hours this eve in the parts cleaner lol. also material on the way to fabricate the rollover jig stands, as im going to make a set for the porsche instead of stealing the escort ones, as im going to be restoring the escort shell aswell now!!

pics soon

 

[nicksonmsport]

started stripping down the rear axle today. not going to bother with the deutschnine stuff, as i worked out i could do it cheaper, will be deleting the torsion bars aswell and fitting solid bushes in the spring plate to locate it properly once the torsion bars are gone. will also mean i will save a few hundred pounds on the fitting bushes that go between the body and the torsion tube supports which will be removed.

stripped the torsion tube and its components, ready for blasting. and also removed the std rubber bushes on the spring plates which we pretty knackered! a few bolts snapped off in the ally torsion tube carriers which is a right pain, so i will need a replacement on one side as the only way to remove the carriers was to cut through the bolts which in turn removed 1mm of material from the carrier.

here u can see how the spring plate looks when removed from the torsion tube. these rubber bushes are replaced with solid items to hold the spring plate in position properly once the torsion bars have been removed. the one on the right shows the spring plate with the rubber bushes removed ready for new ones.

all items will be blasted and coated before fitting bushes etc

car is mounted on the rollover jig now! and sitting upside down for inspection

im really massively pleased with the state of the shell!

cut the outer sills out to inspect the inners and they are like new!!! (outers were bubling slightly)

shell wants for minimal repair work which is great. i will be fabricating and fitting a set of outer sills. small repair to the rear inner sill where the torsion tube carrier sits, and then replace the rear part of the sill that attaches to the rear arch.

the rest of the shell is near perfect!!

spent a bit more time this evening just removing all traces of someone elses shoddy previous repair to the channel at the bottom of the sill on the drivers side.

have removed the lot and treated the inner sill where any surface rust was showing, with fertan rust treatment.

luckily the passenger side has not seen any repairs carried out in the past, so will make the sill replacement much more simple, and as said before i have a mint rear 1/4 which will supply me with a perfect rear 1/4 lower section to the sill.

looking forward to having this shell all sorted!! really pleased with the condition of the shell and the simple repairs needed!

 

[944 man]

Earlier the car, the better the steel!

 

[nicksonmsport]

you say that, but my lux is an 86 car, and its literally fallen apart! the whole inner and outer sill fell apart along with all the torsion tube mounts, 5 mins with a hammer and it was condemned!
im just glad this shell is a good one! makes my life a lot easier!