biggerbigben

Thanks Jim.. Is it really the first time a Storm has had a complete engine conversion?! Surely someone must have done one before? If not I can understand from the aircon side of things! Its is going to be interesting hooking up that to the new engine! God knows how I'm going to sort that, both systems look completely different :( Might have to get some conversion pipes made I think! Anyway all will be revealed soon! ;-)

Its green chap, with the cream leather although we could paint it Mystic blue when I sort the re-spray.. still would be a storm but it would just spice things up a little ;-) Nope.. :) Exactly.. but there could be a twist ;-) Although the final decision hasn't been made yet.. shhhh ;-) More pics.. we had a downpour this afternoon but after that I cracked on and got the engine out. Will clean the bay tomorrow morning, swap the gearbox over, fit the new clutch and try at least rest the new engine into place. I might need to get the welder out on the front engine mount to lower the front of the engine so the bonnet misses. More to follow tomorrow :)

We'll see mate.. funds are tight at the mo and its a big gamble to put a 20vt into an expensive sports car.. but I have been know to do the odd mad thing to cars in my time.. so you never know ;-) Phil, sorry about last night mate.. just couldn't be arsed with the cold weather :( Ben

Hi all, Just thought I'd post a few pics of the current project I'm working on for a friend. I'm doing an engine conversion and a full respray for him. This Storm is a great basis in which to do what we have planned. I'm tempted to buy it off him once its done as it will be a great 'modern' fresh looking corrado with mod cons like air con, heated seats etc! Anyway see below for a few pics from this morning before the heavens opened! (took x2 days off work to try and get the new engine in! gulp..!) I'm just praying that it stops raining soon so I can get the old 12v out! I'll keep you guys guessing as to what the new engine might be ;-) More updates to follow shortly! :grin: Ben

So tell me mate, whats happening with it now? I must pop around sometime to sort that heater wiring for you.. Ben

Thats one seriously sweet corrado you have there Bill.. well done mate! Ben

I'll be there next Wed buddy.. will bring the Exige along I think.. haha.. I know ;-) Still have that 20vt corrado to send your way for an MOT.. must get on and finish it..

Nah.. you need torque low down and these revvy engines annoy me as they have none!! Plus its all about a big turbo, not an asthmatic supercharger.. :ignore: :nuts: Ultima was a big project and I'm doing a few engine conversions for people, so just run out of time to do anything. 20vt is quite a common conversion for elises/exiges.. there is a company out there that does engine mounts etc for a 20vt conversion but tbh I'd just do it myself.. Awesome mate.. send over the spec!! :D

:norty: Well I'm 6Ft 3 and I fit no worries.. ok well actually my knee did touch the steering wheel but you can angle the foot which gives enough clearance.. answering mk3 yeti's question as well... basically the S2's have slightly more room and thinner ali chassis so you can get in and out ok with the right formula.. the ladies don't really like getting in and out of it though.. :nono: Its really good fun, but dare I say it I can't stop thinking about how to mod it.. although half of me is saying sell it and buy an R34 GTR or a 996 Porker ???!!! Or shall I just save the pennies and stick a tuned 1.8T into the back of the exige?!

Seriously good fun.. and yes I bet they are pretty handy around a track... :)

Hi all.. its been a while!! I still read this forum but just don't post that often.. so I thought it was time for an update! I don't really know why I did it but I sold the Ultima project on a few months ago. I think its cause I couldn't be bothered to go through another long build. So I got my thinking hat on and instead of investing the money ready to buy a house when they market hits rock bottom, I decided to buy another car!! :clap: I present you with the new toy... not sure what I'm going to do with it (I'm thinking 1.8T and big turbo lads!!) but for the time being I'm just enjoying it.. handling is AMAZING.. although its not as quick as my old corrado its damn good fun!! and quick enough to get you into trouble, especially painted in orange! Will be updating the website soon (coupehaus.co.uk). I haven't tinkered with it yet but just watch the site in coming weeks ;-) Ben :D

shhhhh.. no one knows! :ignore:

Some nice toys there chap! :) Good luck with the conversion. Ben

It was completely custom made by myself. It cost me nothing, just the time to make it, I bought a complete TVR Cerbera interior and made the money back by selling the dials and seats etc. I chopped up the dash to fit as well as possible but it was 90% made from scratch. Materials were about 150 odd quid. Leather re-trim was the expensive part, took 8 hides in total to trim. G60Dan has the interior now.. to be seen again soon on the show scene. Ben

My old corrado... :(

Bally that looks sick mate!!!!!!! Awesome....

Seriously good effort.. must be awesome. Whats it like through the front wheels? Bet its ok actually because it doesn't give a sudden surge of power like a turbo might give? Well done..! Ben

Not sure yet. Think I will be doing a step by step write up on coupehaus.co.uk though.

haha.. :norty:

Good progress mate - take your time mate and very sensible re cash flow!! I hate being in debt the whole time!! keep the updates coming mate - you'll love the haldex 4wd !! Ben

:D :lol:

You have to source your own engine basically. Its your choice as to the spec you go for. The basic kit consists of stages 1-17. This gets you about 2/3's of the way through the build but a lot of the parts are in the optional list, the 17 stages won't get you a running car! Far from it infact... Look at the extra's at the bottom of that page and you'll see the wheels are there, gearbox, wing mirrors etc etc.. Its a bit cheeky really but then again each owner can choose their own spec. Ben

lol... Thanks mate!

It is like Christmas, but having to wait 3-4 months before opening the presents! I have an engine conversion to finish and I have a new corrado project to build first, before I make a start on the Ultima - although I bet I will have a tinker in the evenings after work! lol The boxes are stages 1-6... basically, hubs, m/cyl's, pedal box, wishbones etc etc

Chassis fits, just.. not a lot of room to work on it but I will survive! After all I did a 4wd conversion using only axle stands once upon a time :lol: The body will not fit! in fact the car when finished will be about 20cm wider than the garage! lol haha... I will figure out something when I get to fitting the wheels and body, in the meantime I can get quite a lot of stuff done as it is. Engine wise... loving a NA LS7 with some mild tuning.. 560-600bhp, but there is alway the option of a LS1 with twin turbo ;-) haha.. not sure as off yet - will keep you posted!