The perfect garage.

Wot. No surface grinder? I don't need any machine tools at home. I have the use of a fully equiped m/c shop a mile away 24/7. Mike.

The message from snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com contains these words:

I wonder if the firm I used to work for ever found the A-series engine with automatic gearbox I dropped into the pit when I was tidying up to quit.

Clive George ( snipped-for-privacy@xxxx-x.fsnet.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

*ding*

They're *lethal*. They're *complicated*. They're a structural 'mare.

The message from "Mike G" contains these words:

Ah - that's "massively impractical", not "massively inferior". I for one would /far/ rather have a lift, but if a pit's all that's feasible I'll take that in preference to nothing. If I could be arsed.

I did. Car-shelves :o)

One day (well, ok, year) I'm hoping it'll turn out to be one of these

Cheers,

Colin.

Well done that man. Well, it will be if I ever get any time to finish it.

Cheers,

Colin.

It's true, they could be a lot more elegant, but I didn't want to fart around designing them. I wanted something I could sling together in an afternoon (without any competence), and still feel safe laying under a car on them.

They're re-configurable too. Here they are in "tall mode" when I started work on the car.

And here are the end sections being used in my fuel injector test setup...

Is there no end to their uses? :o)

Cheers,

Colin.

The message from Colin Stamp contains these words:

So - which engine? I reckon a Ford Duratorq would be a giggle.

Fords are a normal choice because it' easy to mount the RWD type 9 box to the Pinto and Zetec.

I (very) briefly flirted with the idea of an Alfa V6, or a Nissan CA18DET, but then I came over all conventional, and stuck a 2.0 Zetec in it. Funnily enough, diesels didn't cross my mind...

Cheers,

Colin.

The message from Colin Stamp contains these words:

Well, it wouldn't be safe to leave all that unburnt fuel lying about...

Colin Stamp ( snipped-for-privacy@stamp.plus.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

I LIKES THAT.

What you using for FI? I'm having a play with MegaSquirt.

Colin Stamp ( snipped-for-privacy@stamp.plus.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Oh. The front is *hideously* misproportioned. Looks like a pre-crashed Ginetta.

Pah!

These people should be able to help you out with that.

Cheers,

Colin.

Funny you should mention that. Here's yet another picture. You might recognize the software...

The engine was just crying out for Megasquirt 'n' EDIS, especially since my engine donor was a Mondeo automatic, so I even had a free EDIS module.

I'm really impressed with it so far. The engine fired up on pretty-much the first test (even though the default map must be for some huge yank V8) and fiddling with the fueling has just the expected effects on the wideband lambda sensor :o)

How are you getting on with yours?

Cheers,

Colin.

The message from Colin Stamp contains these words:

No sense of adventure, that's your problem.

like

I'd suggest a hoist is potentially more lethal than a pit.

A lined hole is complicated? Mike.

Which is the size that most of us have. I was thinking from a practical POV. Hypothetically, sure, I'd want a garage big enough for at least 4 cars. With a hoist and an overhead gantry for any heavy lifting jobs.

Pitched or flat roof makes little difference. The crossbeams on the trusses of a pitched roof are still at roughly wall hight.

Not on a DIY basis. The materials would cost only a fraction of the cost of a proprietary hoist. Mike

Colin Stamp ( snipped-for-privacy@stamp.plus.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

PRETTY EXHAUST.

Box built, tested fine, put on one side, tested again, failed test miserably - sat waiting for diagnosis... It's almost as if the processor's wiped itself somehow.