I have been looking forward to this for so long, to finally get the chassis to powder coating. This step just makes one feel that the car will soon in the final assembly. A day of welding, preceded by final time the engine and gearbox back into the chassis to ensure the battery fitted where we wanted it and all mounts were correct. I must admit that coming from 36-38 degree heat wave in Japan to a crisp Christchurch last winter cold snaps was a shock, but pile on the clothes and keep busy was the survival mode. It’s becoming so familiar imaging the end product and in doing so subtle changes occur and major re-think of the electrical system combines to keep constantly improving the car.
It was an epic escape from the heaviest snow fall in nearly 25 years. To simply get to the airport from my home in Kanazawa to Osaka is normally a 350km journey. But I had to go north to come south and 650kms later I was at Kansai Airport ready to fly to Christchurch.
It is now 9 years ago that I sent the money to confirm my order and have McGregor Motorsport build me one of their Mach7 cars. Looking back at my first blog entry Monday 2nd March, 2009 I would never have predicted that in March 2018 I would be doing it all again.
This time it’s very different and certainly far more demanding than 2009. I only committed to a new build to support the new owners Scott and Delwyn and to make an entirely new car. This has been a ground up project, the new chassis and suspension had been in development for several years. We all agreed to go Honda powered, and while it’s been extremely challenging on a new canvas which would become the 2018 MMS MACHsr7 prototype.
So, where are we at…? I am back in Japan but in three weeks I will once again be in Christchurch for what I believe is the most significant event of the entire process. I will keep this under wraps but it’s a major step forward in having an exciting new McGregor Motorsport back in business. The culture has changed with new faces, new ideas and a positive future ahead.
February was recorded in video as usual….it was a great time!
It’s always inevitable in any project that little things punch far above their weight, but it’s the little things which really become the cornerstone of every successful project. This is perhaps why I enjoy project management, working in corporate Japan in MRP2 Manufacturing Software sales, installation then as an instructor emphasizing nothing beats having your “ducks in a row”….
There are no shortcuts to perfection, it does require a team who are all on the same page and when a commitment is made it should be completed as requested and within the time allocated. Scott is one of those people who makes his goals and will push through to ensure all is completed to not only my standard but often well above what I had expected. The learning curve of the new owner of McGregor Motorsport has been a challenge; this is the nature of all custom car builders. Dealing with demanding clients, sub-contractors, suppliers and most importantly balancing one’s own life can be daunting. Fortunately we both believe in doing it right, not afraid to think outside of the box, prepared to accept our limitations but never waiver from our passion and belief of custom car building.
With an entire new chassis design there will be and are problems that arise and need to be solved. The issue with larger engines is the space is the same so fitting is always a challenge. Being creative or pulling ones hair out is one solution but the grinder and a welder can quickly fix those sleepless nights.
Now we have a clear space, well still tight but it’s workable.
It seems that the cardboard box gas tank mock-up has now been replaced, well nearly. It was simply a matter of looking at the trunk space, or lack of, then centre the tank. This allows the cool central gas filler, no spare wheel to stop that! The traditional tank that lay across the entire bottom of the trunk could not be accessed once the body panels were attached…so a quick sketch over coffee and Scott was quickly on-board with the concept. We also won the bet on capacity with Mark by nearly 3 litres compared to the old gas tank design….yeah!
This has been a very busy past month in the McGregor Workshop and I am certainly one to applaud the progress and take a wheel earned Beer Break
It’s great to have food for thought as all builds hit stumbling blocks which require change in directions that put the build back on track and thankfully Scott has the clear thinking and ability to stand back and find simple but effective solutions. Hubs, studs, spaces and offset all needed to be considered. But it has been solved and wheels and brakes and being attached.
We found a muffler that will work with the system and the radiator core arrived so Scott is really busy making with progress being made significantly this month.
Cool things are beginning to appear, the Fuse and ECU holder plus a little “bling” in an oil filler cap.
In New Zealand nothing really compares to a good feed of Fish’n’Chips with beer to fuel the car build. Scott’s project this evening over dinner [fish’n’chips+beer] was to complete the brake lines which by all accounts was a very successful evening….well done McGregor Motorsport 2017!
It just takes a fresh set of eyes, open communication that often solves problems. The gas tank was problematic, caused by the entire new chassis with the incorporated roll cage. A quick sketch over morning coffee I showed Scott my thoughts which he was thinking exactly the same concept. So off to the local home centre, buy a cardboard box, and back to the workshop. I never imagined that the box would fit perfectly between the rear roll cage bars, love to say I did! So quick measurements, rapid cutting and tape applied we had a pretty cool mock-up. The tank was also 39 litres which was another bonus along with two very large spaces for assorted luggage space.
