Atom's 2 door Amazon wagon Project:Headquarters

[Atom]

That dash is NUTS
Is that your phone or you got one just for the car and you gonna leave it in there 24/7?

It’s my phone. When you push on the face it springs out so you can slide the phone in/out.

[Fruttolo]

That dash is NUTS
Is that your phone or you got one just for the car and you gonna leave it in there 24/7?

[Atom]

Drone video shot by Andrew (@absonracing on IG)

https://youtu.be/8CiRyXyqWSY

[Atom]

Updates:
Wrapped some of the dash components. Also found out I was sent the wrong color early on and used that color to wrap my door panels. Not a huge deal since I intended on re-doing to upper panels two tone anyway. Gauge panel trim is just sitting in there. Have some trimming to do in order to get things fitting better.



I was contacted by Dgerry (on R3V) from G-Pop Shop in Arkansas who was interested in helping out with the build from a turbo standpoint. Since I had already bought the turbo I was going to use and don’t have to moneys to buy anything nice and new, he offered to do a little trade work with me. I sent him my new turbo to upgrade. He installed new journal bearings, new upgraded 360 thrust bearing, new seals (including a stepped gap version on the turbine side). He balanced it, leak checked it and changed to a billet GTX3076 compressor wheel. It’s on it’s way back to me and I couldn’t be more excited.



I still need to iron out some dash details before I can wrap it. It’s tough when I get antsy to not just wrap it and put it in. Carpet kit will be coming soon and I have a pair of custom floor mats getting sewn up as I type.

[Atom]

Hot DMN it's always some good stuff in here. Your rapid prototyping (/ get it right in one try, haha) skills are really inspiring.

It’s the magic of the internet

[Buick40]

Hot DMN it's always some good stuff in here. Your rapid prototyping (/ get it right in one try, haha) skills are really inspiring.

[Atom]

Phone mount (also the head unit in HQ). Goes in the upper dash location



The hinge probably looks a little funny, but like a suicide door hinge, in order to keep the gap tight I need the insert to hinge “out” rather than just pivot along the edge. All of the middle stack openings will have similar polished aluminum trim rings



I used a generic push-lock-spring cabinet latch for positioning and motion.

[Atom]

Little further.



I’d kind of like to add a green tint to the numbers. I don’t know if I’m gonna take it that far though.

[Miroteknik]

love the hand-made dash, cant wait to see how the cluster turns out

[kevvy_dawg]

Dash looks sweet, I dig the driver orientated dashboards.
Keen to see how the cluster updates

[Atom]

Some in-progress stuff.



Then I decided that instead of having a radio blank and a clock blank and rear defrost blank and fader blank, etc. that I’d just cover that part too. It’ll become a panel to relocate the idiot lights from the dash (more on that later) and put in digital boost gauge.



Because the Amazon firewall is so close to the driver there’s not enough room to push the E30 cluster as far back as it is in an E30. What I’m going to do is pull the clear plastic face off the front, trim off the idiot light panel across the bottom, relocate those to the center stack, make individual bezels for the four dials (to look sort of aviation style) and have each bezel have it’s own acrylic face.



Also won an auction for a used Nardi from Japan. Now I need to track down an adapter hub.

[Atom]

Took some time on a brisk Seattle morning to let my buddy do some drone photos

[Atom]

I’ve never cast anything out of metal. I’d like to try that one day.

[Fruttolo]

Is there something you can't work with, man? :O

[Atom]

Taking a break from engine stuff for a bit. Just working on a timing belt cover and then back on the interior.

Started by drawing the pulley positions and belt routing in CAD first. I was going to put the grille hexagons in the cover, but it looked too busy.



Then I cut the outside shape (flipped for front and back) out of MDF and sealed the MDF with BIN primer. Don’t know what’s in that stuff, but it dries fast and seals MDF quickly.



I wanted some bumps where the pulleys are even though it doesn’t “need” them. The back plates are made out of HDPE cause resins don’t stick to it.



Then I made an HDPE ring that will act as the step to make the two halves fit together. There’s clay in the corners as a fillet and the whole mold is sprayed with PVA mold release.




I took some acrylic rod pieces, sharpened them and placed them where the bolt holes in the head are.



I did two layers carbon and one layer of fiberglass with a middle layer of baltek mat in the back part to aid rigidity. Then vacuum bagged it.



Pro tip: if you want the weave of loose carbon to hold it’s shape when you’re cutting a template spray it with Super77 3M spray glue lightly.



Then demolding



Two halves fit together




Test fitting



Now I just need to fill voids, paint and finalize.