Its finally in etch prime! Woohoo

[damienengland]

So now the van is in its new phase, which is having the pros do their bits to get it going. So far they have installed a stainless exhaust system, air intake system and fuel fill pipe (from the rear taillight down). Here's some pics...

Exhaust system.
Twin 3 inch with cats (engineer made me do it) and twin O2 sensors, then twin 2.5 inch from the rear muffler going back to exit points just behind each rear tyre...
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Air induction system
4 inch stainless steel pipe and air box lid with a standard Commodore box underneath...
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Fuel fill pipe
Running from behind the taillight and through the void panel area to the tank...
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[Valencia]

Cool updates

[axistr]

Cool one step closer to the finish line.

[damienengland]

Thanks, definitely getting closer now.

I noticed some of the pics didn't work last night so just went through and updated the broken ones. Should all be visible now.

Cheers
Damo

[Sandaro]

Love seeing the progress of your project.

When are you planning to paint? I would have expected some of this work after paint? Or is it just a mock assembly?

[damienengland]

Hey Sandaro.

Yes you are correct, i should have painted it a long time ago...but my paint man (and myself) got a bit lost along the way. So while i couldn't lock him down to paint i decided to push on and get everything else finished. So essentially yes, this is partly a mock up...but not too much. So my forward plan over the next few months is kind of like this...

Finish the drive train, turn it on, run the cam in and make sure everything is ok.
Shut it down, rip the drive train out and get it painted (black is my choice for the engine)
Paint the firewall while the engine is out (colour is now selected)
Put the engine back in so its a runner
Paint the rest of the body and panels
Install a massive out of control stereo
Trim it out

Happy to share the colour here. I want Tropical Green Candy Base Coat with a white ground coat...the one on the left of the pic.
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[damienengland]

So another Saturday working on the van...and I've come across an issue which has set things back slightly. The MRA assembly in the fuel tank has unfortunately fouled on a floor rib and cracked, so it had to come out to get the assembly moved.

But in better news, i got the front drivers seat mounted in (from a WN Caprice V) with some custom offset templates to fit the seat runners to the existing floor holes. Pics below...

Damaged MRA assembly...Bummer, didn't see this happen...but happy it got spotted in time.
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Gonna move the assembly forward on the tank.
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This is my plan for the seat mounts. First I lopped off a couple of Commodore fixings from the runner base.
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Then make a couple of flat bar pieces with offset bolt holes.
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The seat bolted in nicely and fits well. Not sitting too high and lines up nice and central with the steering column.
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[axistr]

That seat looks exactly the same as the seats in my VF SSV ute. ? Nice and comfy, good choice.

[damienengland]

Thanks Axistr, yep these VF seats are definitely comfy and should be perfect when this thing eventually gets on the road.

These ones are from a WN Caprice V and have the 8 inch screens mounted in the rear headrests, so i'm keen to use as many features as i can. I've been reading VF workshop service manuals and I think i've mapped out the wiring for them...and its a bit epic (out of control)!

Here's my spreadsheet showing the drivers seat loom. That's 16 x wires going into one seat!
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[Sandaro]

The seats are very reminiscent of the GTS seats from the 70s with the stripe down the middle. Look right at home.