It has begun - G-Pete's 289FIA Scratch Build

[G-Pete]

That question I asked my self in case of a starter failure. Well, two possibilities:


one-- I make a hatch and squeeze myself into the foot box, may I ask a smaller person to do that and change it out.

or

two-- I buy a new starter and if the starter fails in the future I have to lift the engine off the motor mounts and change it that way.


The donor starter worked just fine for the last 12 years. Close to 100K on the clock means about 4000 starts (daily driver). If the new one holds just the half of it, by that time I'm 85 years old and have forgotten why I came in the garage in the first place...


...I choose number two.

[G-Pete]

Driver side lower seat belt mount.



Upper driver side mount.



Passenger foot box completed.



Center frame completed.



With the passenger foot box angled, it is possible by removing the header to access the starter

[dallas_]

Pete, thanks for taking the time to show me your car today.

VERY nice work!

Thanks for keeping us posted on your progress.

[migge]

Very nice work but I wonder what the weight will be, a lot of heavy steel.

Cheers
Migge

[G-Pete]

John, you're welcome -good to meet ya.

Migge, the 16ga steel weighs 2.5 pounds per square foot. (foot box). The floor weighs 5 pounds per sq/ft
15 sqf foot box - 37.5 pounds
13.5 sqf floor - 67.5 pounds
estimated 2 pounds of weld

total 107.0 pounds.

Before the foot boxes and the floors the car was on the scale and read 1574 pounds (incl Body and rims). As of now I should be somewhere in the neighborhood of 1700 pounds.
My target of 1800 pounds is out of the question. The estimate was based on aluminum foot boxes and floors. Seeing some of the "conventional" build ones after an accident, made me revise that plan. Just a flat tire spinning parts of it could crumble these alu foot boxes.
In the rear there will be added also steel splash guards (maybe 7 pounds).

To sum that up - just below 2000 lb is realistic.

That means 4.3 lb per HP. P to W = P/W
Better than a Lamborghini Murciélago (5.1lb/hp) or a Porsche 911 GT2 (6.1lb/hp)