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Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Hi guys,
I've recently joined SEC to share some pics and updates of my Dad's (Paul Eustace) Litton Corse replica, which he is building at home in Suffolk, UK. I know some of you have already seen information about the car from a thread on Guy Croft's forum, but I thought I would add more information and pics here.
My Dad ordered what was one of the first Litton Corse replicas on 14th July 1989 and collected the chassis and body on 26th October 1989. The chassis is built to house a 2.0l 8v TC engine.
The car was mostly assembled during 1990 and an engine was taken from a crashed Lancia Beta HPE. I was 9-years-old at the time and, once any parts needed were stripped from the HPE, I had the enjoyable task of crushing the HPE with the rear bucket from a JCB before it was taken to the scrapyard :D.
Unfortunately, some high winds at the end of that year caused the double garage, in which the car was kept, to fall down. Luckily, the car suffered only minor bodywork damage which was easily repaired. The Stratos fund, however, took a hit, what with the need to build a new garage. Further distractions meant that momentum in the project ground a halt and the car sat in the garage for 22years until the end of 2012, when it was time to start up the project again.
The car will hopefully be on the road for this summer and I will post pics chronologically of build.
For now, some pics of the car at the end of 2012:
Attachment 5943Attachment 5944
Work then started on stripping the car for Dad to paint it in the garage and, in early 2013, the engine was taken to Guy Croft in Lincoln for a complete rebuild and tuning work.
Here are pics of the car after primer and acid etch coat:
Attachment 5945Attachment 5946Attachment 5947
We would be very interested to hear from other Stratos owners in the East of England, particularly any Litton replica owners.
Cheers, Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Leading contender for the longest build?
Great to hear it's making progress again.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ChrisCar6
Leading contender for the longest build?
Great to hear it's making progress again.
Thanks Chris, really looking forward to getting the car completed - it's been a long time coming...
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Here are some pics after the body chassis was painted and wheels and suspension fitted.
Attachment 5951Attachment 5952Attachment 5953Attachment 5954
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
What a fantastic and interesting history. Your dad is a solid guy to hold on to his dream for so long AND to hopefully see it through to completion :-) Looking forward to the updates and completion. There's plenty of IVA help on the forum.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cadami
What a fantastic and interesting history. Your dad is a solid guy to hold on to his dream for so long AND to hopefully see it through to completion :-) Looking forward to the updates and completion. There's plenty of IVA help on the forum.
Thanks Cadami, I'm sure the IVA info on here will prove to be invaluable ;)
Cheers, Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Photo of the underside of the car after painting
Attachment 5955
Whilst the engine was with Guy Croft, we fitted the car with a spare engine with a view to transporting the car to Lance Pritchard at OJZ Engineering in Lincoln for custom exhaust fabrication.
Pic of the rear of the car in Lance's workshop, my Dad is on the left, Lance on the right. Very pleased with the finished article.
Attachment 5959
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Great to see another Corse emerging.
After ten years or more close to and around the Corse 'project' I have to say I don't think anyone knew or knows how many actually got manufactured and/or built into cars.
Good luck with the final stages.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MichaelEustace
Thanks Cadami, I'm sure the IVA info on here will prove to be invaluable ;)
Cheers, Michael
Hello Michael,
Welcome, nice to see the car getting completed after all these years. I had a rifle through your FB gallery & the build looks very thorough with some interesting modifications/additions.
If I can start the IVA list with a couple of points-
1) Radius end on tail pipe
2) Emissions, how do you intend to approach this? Do you have a V5 doc that tallies to the new engine?
Regards
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
The general rule is build it to a minimum spec with no extras. Less to fail and do for the retest........
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Strat Fan
Hello Michael,
Welcome, nice to see the car getting completed after all these years. I had a rifle through your FB gallery & the build looks very thorough with some interesting modifications/additions.
If I can start the IVA list with a couple of points-
1) Radius end on tail pipe
2) Emissions, how do you intend to approach this? Do you have a V5 doc that tallies to the new engine?
Regards
Thanks for your comments Craig. I will check on what is planned regarding the tailpipe. I have read elsewhere that the tailpipe should have a radius if it protrudes from the bodywork by more than 10mm, however the exhaust is underneath the rear body work, not protruding through it. I assume this will mean it needs a radius?
We have a V5 that tallies with the engine, the Beta HPE was scraped but this was never declared to the DVLA. From what I have read on the forum, this seems to be the right way to go so as to retain the V5.
Thanks, Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cadami
The general rule is build it to a minimum spec with no extras. Less to fail and do for the retest........
Thanks Cadami, yeah we're well aware there are a lots of requirements for the IVA. If anything, it would be good to pass first time simply because the closest test facility is now Norwich after Ipswich closed last year - bit of a trek to do twice.
Cheers, Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MichaelEustace
I will check on what is planned regarding the tailpipe. I have read elsewhere that the tailpipe should have a radius if it protrudes from the bodywork by more than 10mm, however the exhaust is underneath the rear body work, not protruding through it. I assume this will mean it needs a radius?
We have a V5 that tallies with the engine, the Beta HPE was scraped but this was never declared to the DVLA. From what I have read on the forum, this seems to be the right way to go so as to retain the V5.
Thanks, Michael
The exhaust will be contactable so will require a radiused end, they use a cone to determine the plan of the body & it goes a long way under the boot panel of a Stratos replica due to the height of the bodywork.
Good news on having a V5 which tallies to the engine, double check that the engine number on the doc is the same as the one on the block, also make sure that you can read the number on the block easily & that it doesn't look to have been tampered with in any way. You will therefore be emissions tested on the age of the engine rather than having to meet a current emissions standard.
When you have passed the IVA test & gone through the rigmarole with the DVLA you should then be issued with a new V5 doc which has a previously unused registration from the year of the donor car.
Regards
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Hello Michael,
saw those pictures on FB and it looks great!
and i saw also the pictures from engine work,
i do nearly the same with my 131 engine!
what can you say about the horse power?
Enzo
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Strat Fan
The exhaust will be contactable so will require a radiused end, they use a cone to determine the plan of the body & it goes a long way under the boot panel of a Stratos replica due to the height of the bodywork.
Good news on having a V5 which tallies to the engine, double check that the engine number on the doc is the same as the one on the block, also make sure that you can read the number on the block easily & that it doesn't look to have been tampered with in any way. You will therefore be emissions tested on the age of the engine rather than having to meet a current emissions standard.
When you have passed the IVA test & gone through the rigmarole with the DVLA you should then be issued with a new V5 doc which has a previously unused registration from the year of the donor car.
Regards
Thanks for all the info Craig, all very helpful.
I guess something will have to be done about the tailpipe as, from looking in the IVA manual, there's no way of satisfying a radius curvature of 2.5mm at present.
Yes all good about the engine, specifically on the emissions front. I could imagine trying to meet modern emissions on a Beta TC to be challenging if we did not have the V5.
Thanks, Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fiat 131 Abarth#2
Hello Michael,
saw those pictures on FB and it looks great!
and i saw also the pictures from engine work,
i do nearly the same with my 131 engine!
what can you say about the horse power?
Enzo
Hi Enzo, thanks for your kind words.
Yes I have seen a pic of your 131 - it looks awesome. Have you got any videos of the car on Youtube? It would be great to see some.
Guy Croft has done all the work to the engine, he has said on his forum that it will produce 187bhp. Is your 131 in a similar state of tune to this? Here are some pics of the engine during build:
Attachment 5963
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Attachment 5967
Thanks, Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
He guys,
Some pics below of the ally fuel tanks loosely fitted during summer 2013. The left-hand tank holds 45 litres (9.9 gallons) whilst the right-hand holds 39 litres (8.7 gallons), totaling 84 liters (18.7 gallons). At 25mpg (here's wishing), the car's distance would be 467miles. Fuel pump can also be seen loosely fitted.
Attachment 5973
And then again over Christmas 2013. Accusump can be seen on the right with external oil filter mount. Battery tray can just been seen to the left of the left-hand fuel tank. Also pic of the Mocal laminova loosely fitted.
Attachment 5974Attachment 5975
Ally radiator is made by Pro Alloy.
Attachment 5977Attachment 5976
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MichaelEustace
Guy Croft has done all the work to the engine, he has said on his forum that it will produce 187bhp. Is your 131 in a similar state of tune to this? Here are some pics of the engine during build:
So that's a power to weight ratio that exceeds a lot of V6s?
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ProtoTipo
So that's a power to weight ratio that exceeds a lot of V6s?
Could well be. I'm not sure of all the weights of a Beta TC engine and chassis versus a V6 engine and chassis. Perhaps someone else on here would know? Would be interesting to find out.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ChrisCar6
Leading contender for the longest build?
Doesn't the Peter Hubbard Allora beat any Corse for that title. (kit purchaser = current owner)
I'll bet there are still some unfinished Transformer's bought in the 80s and still not sold on? Although I can't think of any?
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
There's no pretenders to my crown left! I went for a tea break 20 months ago, got a little sidetracked and not picked up a hammer since.....
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Just when did you start your build John? Can't have been long after me?
Guy
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Guy Mayers
John H?
I think John H. is a modern day 1990s lightweight? Probably only just though?
Safety Devices chassis.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Hi guys, just some updates on current progress.
So the engine went in the car several months ago. First issue was that there was not a lot of space for the air box to fit in-between the carbs and right-hand fuel tank:
Attachment 6865
Attachment 6866
So out came the engine again and part of the fuel tank was removed:
Attachment 6867
Plenty of space for the air box now:
Attachment 6868
My dad then made an airbox out of fibreglass...
Attachment 6869
(continued in next post)
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
...which now fits nicely with inlet pipe and air filter mounted above the left-hand rear wheel...
Attachment 6870
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Michael
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Hi guys, some more updates...
Doors are now hung. Took the best part of a weekend getting them to line up - very fiddly. We initially used the the original Litton door brackets, but since the pics below were taken, they've been swapped for items from Napier Sport purchased a couple of years ago, which are much stronger. The hinges are Litton items and we used Renault Clio straps, which work very well.
Attachment 7347
Attachment 7346
Here's a pic sitting in the drivers seat for the first time.
Attachment 7348
My Dad has completed some of the upholstery on the underside of the roof and A-posts. Not bad considering he's never used a sewing machine before...
Attachment 7349
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Some exterior pics of the car - door alignment has been improved since these pics.
Attachment 7350
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
First side window fitted
Attachment 7358
Windows seals are next to be fitted.
Attachment 7359
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Wow Michael,
you did a great work step on the car,
fantastic solution with the door hinges and straps,
btw: you did mount the catches on the front bonnet strange, why?
Enzo
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Quote:
Originally Posted by
MichaelEustace
Could well be. I'm not sure of all the weights of a Beta TC engine and chassis versus a V6 engine and chassis. Perhaps someone else on here would know? Would be interesting to find out.
I would also be very curious the comparison. Looking at engine options I am curious how a Busso, QV and the little Fiat match up.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Hi guys,
The car is going in for its IVA test on 3rd June. Also finally got my Dad to join the SEC.
Here are the latest pics.
Attachment 8335
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Well done .......... Good luck with iva !!
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Yes, good luck on Wednesday.
Thanks for suggestion on Clio door check straps!
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Looking good Michael, great to see it being finished off and getting on the road.
One thing to think about for IVA is that the front indicators are also visible from the side for the test. Maybe mounted on a block to bring them forward? Also hazards need to be visible when the front and rear clams are open, so short retaining straps or different mounting point for the test may also help.
if you still have the 'Nose' on the alloy X1/9 clam clips you may find these may need rounding off or nose removing so that they meet the radius requirements as they are contactable.
hope that helps
Rob
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Thanks for the advice Rob, much appreciated. Have passed it on to my Dad to keep him busy for the next few days.
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
It was back in 2005, and SVA, not IVA, but when I had my Corse tested I had to remove the side windows as I had no documentary evidence that they were made of 'suitable safety glazing' and of course, they had no markings on them. Yours may be different (marked) or you may have suitable supporting documentation and be OK. Mine also had a problem with the front tyre not being covered by the arch, right at the front, where the plan of the arch turns inwards, part of the tyre was exposed. The inspector looked at it, scratched his chin and suggested that I might like to double check the tracking as it appeared to be toeing out a lot......after he repeated that and I finally twigged what he was on about...a quick handful of toe-in sorted it.... Again, that one is very dependent on what rims & tyres you have.
I too went with very short straps on opening panels - top tip that one.
Looking at the quality of the build, I expect the examiner will be looking for ways to pass it, not ways to fail it.
Good luck - not long now!!
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Re: Litton Corse build with 2.0l Lancia 8v TC
Michael (my son) and I had a great day at the Norwich IVA test centre on Wednesday. Dennis, our tester, was a great guy and made the entire IVA experience good fun and informative. We didn't pass but only due to relatively easy issues to resolve. My car was the second Stratos he has seen at Norwich and he has worked their for many years.
1. My terribly old rear fog lamp was 'E' marked but not with the additional 'F' marking so at this point we knew we could not pass.
2. The very cool front DRL and Indicators are above 350mm high at the centre but the measurement is taken from the bottom of the lamp. Although thanks to the advice on this forum their positioning was good. We could have increased the front suspension preload and jacked the front of the car up but I there was no point. I now have smaller, slimmer indicators to mount as high as possible.
3. The front clam opens too far pointing the headlights at the ground making the car invisible if broken down in the dark! We knew we could shorten the restraining straps and pass but due to (1) we didn't bother.
4. One of the bottom front suspension bolts wasn't quite long enough to fill the nyloc completely. This was a 'fair cop' and very obvious when the car was up on the hoist. Ironically these 9/16 UNF bolts were part of the original kit! I now have longer bolts.
5. The steering self centring didn't perform as it should. In my driveway it worked but I suspect the gradient of my driveway helped. I have ordered new ball joints and I will increase the camber and see if that helps. The rack is well greased and the pinion appears to be set up correctly. I have never been convinced that the lower balljoint is correct but a thread on this forum pointed me at the correct part number.....
6. When putting the car on the trailer I noticed that I was doing 20mph. The speedo had consistently read correctly in first and second gear on the drive. During the test the speedo was very erratic and the nail in the coffin was doing 20mph standing still! I suspect a bad earth as the rev counter was also erratic.
7. The drivers door mirror needs to be positioned further out as the cone placed on the ground behind the car, directly inline with the off side, cannot be seen as the rear wing is in the way. Easy to fix.
We look forward to returning to Norwich soon. Michael has some photography of the day and he will likely post these soon. Paul