Good news and bad news. Bodywork is on the way from Austria and should arrive in the next week. In the long run this will save lots of labor on the body fabrication. I will have to adjust the front wheel opening to fit the modern tire size I’m running in the front. I mounted Koni adjustable coil over shocks in the rear replacing the canted shocks. I will get much better vertical travel and a more linear spring rate. Clearance will be tight to the axles so I may need to adjust the position with a different lower bracket … Continue reading Update 1/29/13

I found a supplier of Lancia 037 panels in Austria that will arrange shipping to the United States so I ordered the rear clamshell, quarters and spoiler. If the quality is good I will order the remaining body panels, replacing the front clam and bumper which are heavy and still require some fabrication in the grill and headlight areas. I ordered Corbeau FX1 Pro seats in micro-suede. I need the seats to determine the final position of the steering column. I also ordered the remaining parts necessary to finish the steering linkage. I decided against welding anything in the steering … Continue reading Update 1/8/13

I took a break from work on the body to renovate my garage. My garage has always been difficult to heat because there was no ceiling and that made working into the fall and winter very difficult. After the renovation the garage has a suspended ceiling, sheet rock walls and enclosed cabinets to prevent dust accumulation. The lighting is also a vast improvement with twelve florescent bulbs. Continue reading Update 9/28/2012

I’ve been filling and sanding the fiberglass front end. I removed the last of the wood from the grill area and I’m adding further reinforcement to the underside of the fiberglass. Because of the male molding process, a skim coat of filler was required on the entire exterior surface to fill all the imperfections. It seems like a final layer of polyester resin and surfacing veil would make a stronger and more durable surface for the paint, but I’m still not settled on this approach because it will require lots of additional sanding and surface prep. I won’t add any … Continue reading Update 6/1/12

No updates doesn’t mean no progress. I decided to extend the door sills outwards with side skirts to give the car a more contemporary appearance versus the factory sills which wrap under the car. The side skirts will also serve as the body filler piece behind the front wheels and the latching point for the tilt front. I’m 90% finished on one of the side skirts this weekend and 50% done on the other. They look okay but I need to encapsulate the wood in fiberglass and reattach. Weight is a little high but it’s down low on the car … Continue reading Update 5/9/2012