Front struts

I had to make spacers for front bags as the thread on the strut body was bigger than bag's ID. Now I can adjust the height / stiffness at least a little.

Suspension work

I finally got the electrics done so I can now work on the suspension. I installed the front height sensors and routed the air line for front bags. Great thing with the sensors are that they are mirrored and can be mounted at the same spot both sides. 

I didn't shorten the pushrod yet as I need to get the suspension range fighred out first. Probably will do that when I get the car on lift.

Looks like I can fit all but the tank to the spare wheel well. I haven't got the compressor yet but it will fit.

I drilled the holes too high as the moustache bar is right behind the well and there's really no room for stiff line.

And the electrics are done, only few connectors for dash harness are missing. All is hidden behind the dash and dash can be removed without disconnecting all wires.

After few boiled top coats I finally managed to paint the engine bay. Now I only need to finish the wiring for the lights, wipers and such and engine can be lifted back.

This is quite a mess. I decided to remove the wiring harness from the dash and mount it to the chassis. At the same time I will strip all unnecessary wires that are no longer needed.

Some bodywork

Now as the engine is out it was good time to fix all the little issues there was in the engine bay. I welded a few holes shut and removed all the rust and loose paint there was. Strange thing as the car was painted no more than two years ago. I'm sure this time it will last.

I also stripped all the electrics out and now I'm totally lost with them. But anyway they will be replaced and all the obsolete wires will be left out.

New intercooled did not fit without modifying the radiator support panel. So it's totally gone now.

I also made removable front apron. Makes engine removal much easier.

Engine bay in primer. I haven't got the paint yet but this should be done next week so I can install the engine and continue with suspension.

I like doing things twice so I also cut the rear wheel arch. I got 30mm more space and that's just about as much as there was. I will try to weld this with tig to avoid burning the paint. Let's see how that goes.

Time for good old out and in

I decided to change spark plugs and what's a better place to change them than garage floor? OK, at the same time I will also change the clutch and some other smaller things. This begins to remind me of how it was with my VW's, engine and gearbox out every winter and couple of times during the summer also.

I didn't even remember how heavy package this is. But there it is, ready for disassembly.

Now when the engine is out it would be easier to strip off all the electrics and replace them with universal harness. I'm also considering floor reinforcements of some kind. Let's see what I can do and afford as the air suspension is taking way more than I expected. I can't use Universal Air springs at the rear as there's not enough space. So I will have to come up with different, and more expensive, solution soon or I will run normal springs next summer.

OK, driving season has been over for a month now and the car is down at the garage. No big plans for the winter due to time and budget restraints but at least clutch and suspension need attention. I'm having hard time on deciding which clutch to install. I already have Nismo single coppermix waiting for installation but I'm not sure it will hold. I would not want to go for twin disc as this is a daily driver and having easy clutch is almost a must, but then again slipping clutch is even worse than harsh engagement.

Here's a sneak peek on suspension upgrade. I want to get the car lower and air seems to be the only way as I still need to get into the garage and that's not possible with low car.

I got universal air aero sport's at front and they seem to fit just fine. I haven't tried them at the rear, but looks like I have to come up with a different solution as the strut tower is smaller.
 

As there was nothing else to do with the car I installed the almost mandatory duck tail. It really needs emblem now as it looks quite plain without. And while the car was in the garage I installed a pair of Swedish Recaro replica seats as well. Although the original seats do look great they are horrible to sit at. I will get them reupholstered to match the rest of the interior as soon as driving season is over. But anyway hitting the limiter on 4th felt much safer with the new seat.

OK, I find it very strange I can just drive a car like this without pulling the engine out every other weekend to adjust the clutch or fix oil leaks or something. Hell, I haven't even adjusted the valves in ages. Maybe the VW's really are difficult and expensive cars that require tinkering more than enough to keep them running and I've been so mesmerized by them I haven't realized there are other ways also. This is just the right car for this summer as my daughter is 1 yrs old and taking most of my time I used to spend at the garage so I'm not complaining. 

And I'm really surprised that the original 42 years old R180 and halfshafts have not broken yet. It's not that I haven't tried... But as there are no project pictures to post I will keep on posting these pictures.

Snapshots

It was a nice sunday afternoon and I had better equipment than phone with me so I finally tried to get better pictures of the car. Here are some taken on the way home form garage. I still don't know if I like to drive this thing or not but I've been trying. And I have so many plans for the winter already that I doubt this will ever be ready.