'57 Rag Bug/'04 Boxster Mashup- The Ragster
 

I really never saw this coming, but I'm starting a new build thread!!!

So, here's where we are at:

2004 Boxster S 85k miles purchased
Cutting out dented panels and generally cleaning stuff up and see what I have to work with.
Have made contact with a guy in Oregon who will sell me a '57 Oval Rag body and some later doors that I'll be fileting within an inch of it's life. Take heart that this body has already been stitched together at some point, so I'm not cutting up a complete car.

Here's some of the damage:













Some motivational reference:




The one with the red decklid is the one I've got my eye on, I'll be replacing all sheetmetal with fiberglass from CCC.












Jason

More pics of the victim, a little nicer than I really want to cut up actually...:(




























Jason

Almost done, only took me 10 minutes;)










More motivation!




JASON

Car is back from the body shop, oddly the chassis ended up being in spec, so it was $380 of insurance I guess.

Some more big news, not very sexy, but really hot if you are a Californian car owner. This project is officially registered as a 1957 Bug!!!! For those of you in other parts of the world or country, in California you have to smog(emissions test) every car newer than '72 I believe. So, this car would have had to have been registered as a 2004 Porsche Boxster, having to be smogged every 2 years. Instead it will never get smogged, have lower insurance rates, and is all set for twin turbos!!!

Back to the juicy stuff, the boxster is completely stripped, very close to the deep cuts it will need to allow the bug to fit over it. Pics to come, sorry.

The whole area from the apron to under the dash is gone from the bug.

Today a set of KW V3 coilovers arrived so I can start to set up ride height.

Good to see you Panel, does this get your juices flowing?!!!

Jason

I purchased KW V3 coilovers for her. Did a lot of head scratching and the cost/value ratio was just too good to pass up compared to competitors.




Got the inner panels cut out of the bug, and got the whole thing ready to go onto the frame table







Unfortunately, the wheels on the frame table are not rated for enough weight, they are barely up for the weight of the table, let alone a 3000lb car. So that was a big waste of time. I'll get some better casters for the table and also I think the legs should be triangulated so they don't fold in if it hits a bump moving it from shop to shop.




Jason

I probably could write a little how-to now, getting very close. Still have some major hurdles to overcome like moving the steering column to the right a couple of inches...







Some more motivation...




Jason

Some candy...




Like a glove...







Jason

Last shot of her before she goes next door to Nor Cal Sand & Off Road owned by Eric Jenkins. His forte is offroad, but he's a heck of a fabricator and I need a chassis, so that's a good mix.

Here's the last shot of her:




I had to leave 1.5" between the bottom of the body and the chassis bottom, I simply didn't have any more room at the top of the fender for the strut tops. As it is I have some grinding to do before the fenders will be low enough:







Jason

Random build shots:











































Thanks to Eric at Nor Cal Sand and Off Road for his awesome fab skills and attention to detail!

Jason

Jason

Front and back are joined again.

Jason

This would be cool!







Precision Chassis Works

Jason

This turned out to be one of the largest problems I didn't even realize I would face. Turns out the steering wheel needed to be moved to the centerline by 3.25". Well, also turns out the steering column and the pedals are one unit. Also turns out the steering shaft is sitting very near the gas tank. Also, the master and accompanying booster aren't really the moving-type. SOOOO

I took a wild guess and tried a step in the right direct by just moving the whole assembly over by the distance between the 2 main mounting studs, 1.75".

The hole on the right is the new one, the other 2 are backed by some sort of aluminum casting that transmits the load right to the MC. I figured half is better than none.




Well, my decision turned out to be a good one, as the steering shaft just clears the gas tank by the width of a zip tie, the master cylinder extender arm just clears the steering column if you turn it 90 deg, and the heater/ac core just fits back in next to the assembly with less than a 1/4" to spare.





I had to hack open the hole for the steering shaft as it would have fouled now, and I have to figure out some sort of reasonably safe way of transmitting the brake pedal motion to the MC extension arm. This is what I'm most worried about, I'm taking a really well designed double-shear and perfectly centered brake pedal system and building a single shear and slightly side loaded force vector. I've got a couple of ideas, rod ends to be exact, but I will have to play it by ear and get the opinions of a couple of the engineer types on GLF when I get that far.

Jason

My first plan included using a male heim, but I just couldn't let myself feel comfortable with that in a single shear load. I'm not worried anymore, the pedal will break before this thing does.




This is my friend Michael who has done the beautiful lathe work. He's from the old school and can machine ANTHING! Thanks Michael!!!

Roll cage nearing completion:



















Not sure how "legal" the rear mounts are, but they seem stronger than a plating type so not sure why that would be a problem. I don't think this think will ever race but I try to follow FIA/NASA/SCCA rules as much as possible.

Jason

Starting to put her back together. Figured I'd just start at the front and work my way back!







Notice the drivers side connection and the passengers side connection to the "bumper" bar are at different heights. The drivers side is where the impact occurred on the Boxster, so the height difference is about 3/8". I had thought about having the frame straightened here, but it was just more work/$ than it was worth as it affected a large area.







The holes filled in nicely, low so I can fill. The whole front apron has been tweaked so I was just looking for a seal and a low surface.




Jason

Rad arrived. I might have overdone it, this thing is heavy and a bit bigger than I wanted, but I think bigger is better if a turbo is on the horizon.







Jason

This is the closest example of the color combo I'll have when I'm done, except in satin not gloss:













Jason

awesome project!
thanks for posting it here, and keep us posted here!!
cheers from the Netherlands!
:thumbup: :D

I just read all 8 pages from your link.
This thing is insane. In a VERY good way.

Keep it up and please keep us updated!!!

Damn!

Verry, verry nice poject!

Keep us posted

Perfect fit

Nice project

Great welts! Cool project!

Keep up the good work, looking good!

lol this is sick. *in a good way*(y) keep up the good work's!

whow! verry nice project! :eek:

Cool project!

Best.
Project.
EVER!

Keep up the good work!

Awesome project

love it, keep up the good work :thumbup: :thumbup:

"Vind ik leuk" otherwise: LIKE

Getting the radiator to fit has been a challenge. Working out airflow through the hood.













Walkaround

Jason

Awesome

Welkome to the forum. And I thought my mid engine V6 TDI project was nuts...

Keep the good work going!

Wow! Very nice!

Picked this little guy up for the A/W intercooler rad. It's a stock 996/986 center rad, about $170 so I thought that was reasonable. Has about 3/4" inlet/outlet. Unfortunately I don't have any more room around the rad, so it's going to have to find a place somewhere else in the car...




Jason

So where are you gonna fit it then?

Love this project. It's nice to see someone stepping out of the box and go radical with his car. Keep us updated!

I'm a "build as you go" kinda guy, I try to have forethought, but it's not always as clear as I'd like. I may be cooling it through the roof oddly enough, we'll have to see. I might even not be able to use it, which would be really annoying, but it's the right size for the job I think.

Jason