The Driver
06-01-2013, 12:23 AM
Installed the V8Roadsters frame rails @ Skip Cannon's place, with the help of Carl, Daryl and "Bear".
I bought this frame rails over a 1.5 years ago, while visiting the fam in Tampa. I drove from Tulsa, OK, where I lived at the time (Colorado Springs, was were I bought the '02 Tacoma) to Tampa.
I somehow forgot to pick them up, and when I was ready to have them ship, they sold my set to someone else. Because of that, they paid for the shipping to Tulsa.
I never really had a chance to install them, and frankly I'm glad as even with Skip's assistance, the full lift that he has at his shop, and air tools; it still took close to 3.5 hours to finish.
First the seats need to be unplugged and removed. Then the carpeting needs to be either removed or at least put out of the way.
The frame on The Driver's side :wink: needs no special care, just drilled the holes and install the rail. My cars "factory rails" were in really good shape, so there was no need to hammer them into submission, but I've heard others having to do this.
The passenger side... Well the fuel and brake lines + the ECU are on that side, so I had to be REALLY careful not to mess anything up. Skip "reworked" the brackets so as to use them again. He also, on Carl's advice, cut the end of the bolt that was closest to the rear tire, so as to avoid adding pressure of friction to the lines.
Also the chrome door sills got a bit bent during removal, but Carl is a former Jaguar restoration specialist, so he got the aluminium as straight as a Cherokee arrow.
Unfortunately, since it took so long to get done, Skip wanted me to leave his premises, so a test drive without the hard top was not done.
But on my way back home, the first thing I noticed was how little noise was coming from the cabin, so much so, I lowered the radio volume! The whole car just felt "crisper" and "tighter", specially over pot holes, and road imperfections. My FCM coilovers could do their thing, while the rails added integrity to the structure.
One or two complaints though. I have seen the Flyin Miata frame rails, and not only are their rails stainless steel, they are heavier than V8R's. It is quite possible that due to weight, they are stronger + with the FM ones, you could always install the "butterfly" later on.
Regardless, the frame rails are HIGHLY Recommended!
I bought this frame rails over a 1.5 years ago, while visiting the fam in Tampa. I drove from Tulsa, OK, where I lived at the time (Colorado Springs, was were I bought the '02 Tacoma) to Tampa.
I somehow forgot to pick them up, and when I was ready to have them ship, they sold my set to someone else. Because of that, they paid for the shipping to Tulsa.
I never really had a chance to install them, and frankly I'm glad as even with Skip's assistance, the full lift that he has at his shop, and air tools; it still took close to 3.5 hours to finish.
First the seats need to be unplugged and removed. Then the carpeting needs to be either removed or at least put out of the way.
The frame on The Driver's side :wink: needs no special care, just drilled the holes and install the rail. My cars "factory rails" were in really good shape, so there was no need to hammer them into submission, but I've heard others having to do this.
The passenger side... Well the fuel and brake lines + the ECU are on that side, so I had to be REALLY careful not to mess anything up. Skip "reworked" the brackets so as to use them again. He also, on Carl's advice, cut the end of the bolt that was closest to the rear tire, so as to avoid adding pressure of friction to the lines.
Also the chrome door sills got a bit bent during removal, but Carl is a former Jaguar restoration specialist, so he got the aluminium as straight as a Cherokee arrow.
Unfortunately, since it took so long to get done, Skip wanted me to leave his premises, so a test drive without the hard top was not done.
But on my way back home, the first thing I noticed was how little noise was coming from the cabin, so much so, I lowered the radio volume! The whole car just felt "crisper" and "tighter", specially over pot holes, and road imperfections. My FCM coilovers could do their thing, while the rails added integrity to the structure.
One or two complaints though. I have seen the Flyin Miata frame rails, and not only are their rails stainless steel, they are heavier than V8R's. It is quite possible that due to weight, they are stronger + with the FM ones, you could always install the "butterfly" later on.
Regardless, the frame rails are HIGHLY Recommended!