MadaboutKitcars

In the beginning

I first heard from a friend about the car, he told me that a friend of his was selling a mini based kit car but couldn’t give me any details of it, I arranged to go and view the car thinking it may be a Mini Midas or similar but when I first saw it, it reminded me of a car I was familiar with from the 70’s, the Clan Crusader but it didn’t look quite right and I knew the Clan had an Imp engine, looking around it had stick on letters saying McCoy which then I was not familiar with, I asked the price, he told me £200 and I gave him the money. It wasn’t running very well so I organised a trailer to get it home.



I got the trailer and went to collect the car to bring it home…



The next day I had a good look over the car and didn’t look too bad but had mechanical issues which I decided it was time for an overhaul, engine, gearbox rear sub-frame, the usual mini problems and later purchased a donor mini.











The interior was shabby but nothing that couldn’t be improved.

carry on, I'm enjoying this....

Stripping out

I had the car a few years before serious work was started, women’s requirements got in the way, you know what I mean, get married fix up house, move, fix up house etc etc….

Well I got the car on the 20th January 2004 so work out how much time I havn’t been able to get on with it.

Anyway, I was helping my eldest son put a Vtec Honda engine into his mini but he wasn’t putting enough effort into it due to him working 50 miles from home and it looked like I was going to do it for him, there he was wrong, I had other thoughts, I gave him a deal which let me have all the parts he had for the Vtec conversion which I could then put into the McCoy but I never made the deal until we had the engine running because a lot of work would be needed to get it to fit the McCoy and I wasn’t prepare to cut the car to get it to fit with knowing it was a runner.

In the mean time in slow time I started stripping out the McCoy to fit the parts from the donor mini just in case.



This had to come out….



and this along with several other parts that had seen better days…



The engine bay was stripped and cleaned…



On doing this showed a problem with the firewall suffering from heat off the mini exhaust, that would need repairing…



The door cards were removed along with the rest of the interior and the part have been stored until I get back to them.



The fuel tank would also need some work….



None of this would be needed as I would be fitting a beam axle with new swinging arm assemblies that my son had got new for the mini, but I would refurbish the swinging arms as spares…



This lot had to go… and it would become apparent that the front valance would need cutting to allow the Vtec exhaust to fit.



I am not sure what my son was thinking here but I think it would probably be ‘This will be a monster with my Vtec in’

The engine inspection

I said to my son ‘It would be a good idea to inspect the engine before we bench tested it’ because it was bought off E-Bay and collected from the back of a van somewhere in London and we didn’t have any history of it. All he knew that the engine was from a Honda Del Sol and it was a 1.6 B16A2 Vtec unit with gearbox.

We emptied the sump and with horror about a litre of water came out with the oil and sludge, so the sump was to be removed for further investigation



On removal of the sump the bottom end looked surprisingly clean but the sump itself was full of sludge.





The small amount of emulsified oil was removed….



The main and big end bearing shells and crank were inspected and only a small score was found on one of the shells..











So all was cleaned and rebuilt..

While the engine was out a new clutch assembly was fitted along with a new timing belt and tension pulley.

Sub-frame build

The sub-frame was purchased from a company that manufactured them to suit minis with other engines, as the McCoy was mini based this sub-frame was also suitable, the following was progressed when it was being destined for my sons Mini, the majority of the parts were brand new and other donor part came from the mini and we refurbished…

These were some of the new parts..





[img]http://i652.photobucket.com/albums/uu249/pompeyal/My%20McCoy%20kit%20car/4%20%20%20Subframe%20build/9%20Sus.jpg [/img]





And some of the refurbished or made parts..







It was a struggle to say the least to get the engine into the sub-frame and had to be support from a crane while the sub-frame was put onto it, just like putting on a coat. As this was the easiest way of fitting them together the hole assembly would have to be removed from the car if any major work had to be done



Finally the engine was in and then the suspension, drive shafts steering components etc was assembled.





Later in the build it was apparent that the heater hoses would clash with the sub-frame so it had to be redesigned to sort it out..









That done the trick, it shouldn’t have had to be done if the sub-frame manufacturer accommodated it and there were a few other clash issues I had to deal with, with regard to the sub-frame.

Engine bench test

Heath Robinson would have liked this, I pulled a bench out into the garden and clamped the sub-frame, complete with engine and mini fuel tank a radiator and wiring harness, stuffed an old silencer into the manifold with fire gum attached a battery and tried to fire it up…



















Go here for first trial video https://www.flickr.com/photos/38377409@N05/21958733473/in/album-72157658176284393/

The problem was the immobiliser within the ecu, the steering column was from a different car than the ecu, so the internet was called for, I went searching for possible solutions and it came up trumps, a guy on a Honda forum described in depth on how to by-pass the immobiliser circuits in the ecu, this meant opening it up cutting a couple of resistors out and putting in a few links, after doing this, this is what happened next

Go here https://www.flickr.com/photos/38377409@N05/22553939166/in/album-72157658176284393/

Well that's the first 5 episodes of 27 to date, more to come, watch this space....

Engine bay mods

Well the deal was done and I had most of the parts to complete the job so I thought, time to make it fit.

The engine was removed from the sub-frame and then the engine bay was cut about to make it fit



I set up a pair of straps around a piece of 4x2 straddling the wings and the sub-frame and started to lift into position, cutting material from the car allowing it to raise into the correct position, this is how I envisaged the hole assembly would have to be installed. When putting it in the mini there was a removable flip front so no problems were there, I did at one stage consider flipping the front of the McCoy but changed my mind.

Finally after removing material from the inner wings and the front valance it was in..



The sub-frame was bolted at the top but the two lower mounts where sitting off the body, The area around the mounting plates on the car were cleaned back to the glass and pads were glassed into position, the sub-frame mounts were dressed in cling film, the sub-frame was re-fitted and the pads were shaped to fill the gap.







The sub-frame was forward of the front valance so some cutting was required there.



Now for the frame and the engine, the engine was refitted into the sub-frame and the whole assembly onto a trolley I had made earlier, the car was jacked and the lot was slid under.



Then the car was lowered and more bodywork cut away to allow passage…



Don’t fit…..



More cutting…, as you can imagine the car has been going up and down like a fiddlers elbow by this stage..



Do fit…phew..

Next was the issue with the exhaust manifold and front sub-frame cross mount plates, something had to be done with the front valance to tidy that up



More cutting in order then, gees this car was light before but at this rate there will not be much left…



That’s better now to put some strength back..



That’s better.

Engine bay mods (cont'd)

From the mini build I knew the firewall had to be altered to accommodate the inlet manifold so that’s where I went next..



From this…
[img]http://i652.photobucket.com/albums/uu249/pompeyal/My%20McCoy%20kit%20car/6%20%20%20Engine%20bay%20mods/IMG_0206.jpg [/img]





Not quite enough.







That’s more like it.., as you can see the engine is still going in and out, I was getting quite quick at doing this by now..

Now to fill that hole,









That’s better, by the way I repaired the firewall heat damage at the same time..

The Fuel Tank

On removal of the fuel tank it didn’t look too bad and there was no sound of rust rushing about inside, if I were to use it again it would have to either be run with an external or an internal fuel pump and as I like a challenge I decided for the latter, a pump from the same car the engine came from, I obtained a pump from a civic with the same engine and checked it out against the tank, depth was a perfect fit and the rest of it seemed to be too, the only problems I had now were where are the baffles in the tank and how do I remanufacture the opening for the pump to fit…

After browsing the net I fortunately came across these images, result…





Brilliant the pump will fit between the baffles and I know where to cut the hole…

Hmmm next was how to fit it, I could either cut a civic tank up and use the interface from there and weld it into the tank or I could do it the hard way and do it properly so I opted again for the latter…

First I had to design and make a tool to create the swaged edge for the gasket to seal against, so into work, knocked up a tool and then done this…



Get old tank…



Mark out and cut holes…



Trial fit pump..


Fit tool and tighten, loosen, turn, tighten, loosen turn etc …





Remove the tool and hey presto a nice swage…now for the fixings…



Clean interface in and out and clean fixings.



Silver solder fixings In one by one allowing to cool at each fixing.. (NOTE: Ensure the tank has been completely cleaned off any fuel vapours if you want to try this at home, I will take no responsibility if you blow yourself up)





All done and pump now fits.. now to make it clean and sealed inside and nice on the outside

Fuel tank (cont'd)

Now that’s done it only seemed right to give the filler the same respect..











That’s better, now to fit the tank into the car..


First mark out the position of the pump and chain drill a series of holes



Cut out the middle..



Clean up the edges and now the tank was ready to fit..





Done.. rubber seals were placed between the tank and the boot floor on assembly, now for the filler..



Ok next job..

Excellent, thanks for putting all this effort into the thread a most pleasant surprise when I logged on. That swage tool is a work of art you should hire it out, I followed a McCoy last week they look better as they get older Ed

Hi Ed, I thought I should as I have been teasing for a while, I don't think you will reckonise mine when its finished, if you see that McCoy again would you mind taking its reg no as I am trying to make a database on them, cheers..

Rear end

Now for the back, the old sub-frame was in serviceable condition believe it or not but not for me, I wanted to use the beam axle my son had for his mini, the problem with these after market items they do no cater for everything and the beam was no different, it did not have provision for the handbrake cables so as its what I do I made that right…





Having that sorted the beam was drilled for fit and powder coated..



The beam was offered up and centralised, the car drilled and then bolted into place, I will be strengthening the heal plate it fits to later…



Nice new coil overs..



Refurbished swinging arms with new brake parts and bearings were then fitted to the beam, all the geometry will be set up at a later date..



I was going to have it sit on revolution 12” wheels…


But decided on these 13” Starmags..



The problem with all McCoy’s they sit high in the arch at the rear, even using hi-lo coil overs, I have thoughts on righting that later.

Rear Lights

Now the car was back on wheels I could put it back in the garage, even though the garage was small it would do for a while as I had planned a much bigger garage when I had my extension built.

The rear lights were tired so I searched E-bay for some suitable replacements, as my ideas were not for going modern on the looks at this stage I got some from a Triumph Dolomite, because the rear panel on the car is flat it lent itself to 70’s lights.





First the old lights were removed and a template for the hole positions for the new lights was made.







Holes were cut…





New lights and number plate trial fitted, looking better..





A few coats of paint..





A few stripes…



And that looks good, the paint colour was decided to celebrate the routes of the car where the designer ‘Arthur Birchall ‘ was originally an engineer for the Lotus Racing Team..

The boot lid

 Next was the boot lid, first thing was to flat back and fill the hole that some previous owner drilled for a hideous ill fitting spoiler, maybe he liked it but not my cup of tea, I have other plans on that front and I am considering integrating an air brake…hehe





A few coats of primer..



And a couple of top and that will do for the time being..

On show at the McLaren show in 2011

As my eldest boy works at McLaren, he got me an invite to their yearly show for employees, so onto a trailer, 50 miles up the road and then on show, It got quite a lot of attention as people thought it was a Clan Crusader but couldn’t work out why it had a engine in the front…







We had a good day talking about the car and putting people right about the car and also enjoyed walking around all the other cars owned by employees, we also had the privilege walking through the factory….I wish my garage was so spotless…

In it’s new home

During the long time working on this car my house extension including my new garage was build, the garage boasts carpets and central heating, power and light, now things can really get started and I would not have the weather, lack of light and the cold to stop me, but there is always the wife and a new kitchen and dining room had to be done before I could get on…





but after I had satisfied I was allowed to continue with my quest…







Engine out again….



And started on the engine bay harness..

Some future mod’s

I have along the way had a few ideas to modify the car and acquired parts to do them, here are a couple



A Honda Del Sol dash to be altered to fit,







A rear spoiler from a Mazda Rx-7 FD and a Subaru air intake





And a rather large turbo…..no seriously the car will be fast enough without that and anyway that’s what we fitted to my son’s Rx-7 which took the BHP to 423..

The exhaust

It all started of with me going to use the standard manifold with me fabricating the exhaust centre pipe as I already had a 2” bore stainless back box for a mini van, first I got some 2” stainless tube and flared the end to fit the manifold gasket and made a flange to suit..







Then I decided I wanted a full stainless system so I got this



Unfortunately it gave too many clash problems and only 20mm road clearance and I couldn’t fit it with the engine in the car and I couldn’t fit the engine in the car with it previously fitted so I sent it back







So then I got this it was a pattern copy of the original cast manifold, I could split it to remove it whilst in the car and also take the engine and sub-frame out of the car with it still fitted so that was a go from there.








This one didn’t go that easily though, it didn’t snuggly fit under the engine and the rear support bracket had to be modified so it was time for the disc cutter, I measured them marked with tape how much to be removed, cut it off and cleared the stubs from the flange





Put the pieces together and checked clearances before having it welded









All was good so I prepped the surfaces and as it happens I have very good welder colleagues where I work so it was then welded back together







Nice job…

Exhaust (cont’d)

The next problem I incurred was a clash with the sub-frame cross member









so rather than spacing it out I dealt with that by making a new one and again called on the services of my welder









I also had a small issue with the clutch slave fouling the new cross member so I dealt with that as well while I was at it





Finally got the rear exhaust bracket to fit..





And I have a small issue with the lamder sensor clashing with the sub-frame and will need to deal with that before long





That’s nothing for a cutting disc

Exhaust (cont’d)

I had to manufacture some exhaust hangers for the back box and fit them with the back box into position





The next on the menu was to make a template between the exhaust manifold and the back box so I came up with a cunning plan and used these



A length of 15mm copper tube and 5 nylon rings



By bending the copper pipe into an approximate shape require for the centre pipe, then placing two of the rings at one end and then inserting them into the manifold parted to get alignment I could see where to adjust the copper pipe for best fit







By placing the fifth ring (the one with the blue marker on)which was a slip fit over the pipe and the outside diameter of the exhaust I could then place the template back into the exhaust at both end and run the fifth ring along the copper pipe to see there was enough clearance along its length and adjust the copper pipe where required







Once satisfied I could then use the template to manufacture the centre pipe



Marking as I went along I cut the pipe at the bend positions taken from the template and shut each in turn to form the shape









Once all done my welder tacked each bend and off I went to check it against the car just in case I had to make slight alterations









Once satisfied my welder completely welded each cut



OK that’s the exhaust system complete, next item ….

Right next instalments tomorrow, I hope you are liking it so far, if anyone has any questions or can shed light on better ways I may have done things please comment, thanks...

The Gear Shift

The gear linkage from the Honda was longer than that of the mini and had to be shortened



To go about shortening the linkage I cut the ends of and fitted the to the car and then reshaped the link tubes in turn to fit between the ends









When each of the link tube had been bent into their new shape I trial fitted each in turn, setting the gear stick to a mid position and checking clearances under the car.





To hold them in place I cut some flexible split cable conduit and used that to hold the ends, I rotated each to their best fit and then marked them.



The areas to be welded were cleaned and the services of my welder were again called upon. I had them tacked first then checked them in the car and then once satisfied they were positioned correctly I had them fully welded.





I then cleaned back all the old paint and then re painted.







All I would need to do then was re-glass the original cut out for the mini gearshift.
 

Fitting the Alternator

As the original position for the alternator on this engine was at the rear I had to come up with a mod to front fit it, so first I made an aluminium interface plate that would pick up on the lower engine block holes...... Note on the plate’s top right hole, this picks up with a tapped hole in the block and when the bracket is fitted the top right hole of the bracket set itself up perfectly for the belt alignment.



I acquired an alternator bracket from a Honda Prulude which was front mounted, the holes on the interface plate were drilled to suit the holes of the bracket so it could be mounted it the correct position.



Because the alternator I had was smaller in size I wanted to for that rather than a Prelude one so I offered up the alternator to check what mods were required.



The pivot on the alternator was a perfect fit and the belt aligned with the crank pulley just as planned.



The lower hole on the alternator was out of position and didn’t follow the path on the bracket , this I had to slot.



I space out with washers the miss match on the adjuster and later made correct size spacers to replace the washers





All worked fine so I then cleaned the bracket and gave it a coat of paint.



The next thing to do was change the connector on the harness as the harness was for an OBD1 ecu and the alternator was from an OBD2 ecu.