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Positioning of the engine and gearbox is critical and the mounts must be strong enough to cope with the power of the project. Originally Escorts were designed to cope with around 50 to 60 BHP. Here at Whitspeed we build cars capable of coping with much more power. In this case we are looking at a minimum 450 BHP with the possibility of more at a later date, so we will build in a good safety margin. This chassis will handle 600 BHP which will be more than enough. Our engine mounts allow for easy engine removal and replacement and are semi rigid, like a World Cup crossmember only better.
Every component must be checked for full travel and movement at this stage to avoid
costly mistakes further down the line. Axles are put in at full lift and full drop
to make sure it won’t hit anything it shouldn’t - ever. This process determines
size and position of bump stops, bodywork, floor pans and chassis tubes. Wheels
and tyres must be fitted at this stage also to ensure full clearance.
At this stage it is fair to say we have a full rolling chassis. Axles, suspension, steering are all in and working and it is rolling on its own wheels. The engine and gearbox had been fitted but has been removed in this shot. The floor is starting to take shape and we can work out seating positions and pedal box mounts. The whole project is built in the flesh, so to speak, not from drawings. If you were to build your first chassis, then we would recommend a drawing, but when you have built as many as we have, we know what goes where and in what order, so drawing everything would just be a waste of time and effort. We do sometimes make a quick sketch if we have a particular idea for something, but that is all.
