Floor panels

[Zach34]

So after inspecting the frame once I got it all unloaded, one of the first things I noticed was that the steel floor panels welded into the footboxes had buckled quite a bit from the welding process and were prone to pop loudly up and down when stepping in and out. I'm sure pretty much everybody's frame is like this. It's not he biggest deal in the world, but I got my frame uncoated so I could easily make modifications as I like.

I'm considering cutting out the welded-in floor panels and replacing them. Without looking closely, I'm guessing the steel used here is 16 or 18-gauge sheet. I'm thinking of using 1/8" thick aluminum and either screwing or riveting it to the frame tubes. Or I could use steel.

Before I choose, I'm curious to know if any of the sanctioning bodies require steel vs aluminum, welded vs fastened, and what kind of thickness. Anybody know or heard of any problems in tech with specific kinds of floor pans?

[michael everson]

All the previous generations used .04 thick aluminum for the floor. I am sure you would be fine. what if you added an aluminum floor from underneath and riveted it to the steel floor as well to take the pop out of it? lots of silicone in between.
Mike

[C.Plavan]

It's not an issue once the seats and everything is in. It bugged me at first also, but in reality you are stepping on the seat to get in/out of the R. No annoying popping sound.

[Santiago]

I don't think I've ever read of any floor requirement for a non-production car chassis (regs have plenty to say on the production car side). If there's a tech inspection concern for non-production cars my bet is that the Challenge car guys have encountered it already. My guess is that you'll be fine. Even on the production car side, most of the regulations read like they're concern is over controlling performance enhancements (i.e. stiffer chassis), they're not focused on any safety requirement. Still, throw a shout out in the Challenge forum and see if you get any info.

FWIW, my panels don't pop much. They've only done it once, so didn't seem like a big deal for me.

Best,
-j

[wleehendrick]

My floor seems to be bistable, I can pop it up, but it stays in whichever position it's forced into, so Ill just leave it down. If it bugs you, Erik used a torch and water to manipulate his into a stable shape, so you might try that first.

[Zach34]

Good info. Thanks! I threw the question in the challenge series forum. I think I'll replace it. It shouldn't take long to cut the steel out.