Papa's Retirement Type 65 Coupe Build - Index in first post

[Papa]

I completed installing the front brakes today:

[Papa]

After wrapping up the brakes, I went back to the fuel tank assembly. I installed the Aeromotive pump and hanger.





The supply and return ports are -6 ORB. I picked up some 90 degree -6 ORB to -6 flair swivel fittings and installed them along with some caps to keep things clean until I'm ready to do the fuel lines later in the build. I also made the wiring connections with some wire that will be connected to the harness later on. This is a much better method of making fuel pump connections than the old plastic connectors that I seem to be able to break almost every time I use them. I also added a few pieces of sound deadener material to the tank to help reduce the potential for noise later on.



Finally, I cut the fill tube per the manual and cleaned up the burs as well as all the metal inside the tubes after using a cutoff wheel.



The body will be coming off Saturday and I'll be able to start on the rear suspension next week.

[Papa]

Yesterday I had some help and got the body off the chassis. I'm going to have to figure out a good way to store it, but it's just sitting on the floor right now. This morning, I removed the rest of the aluminum panels. Some of them were not easy to get off without potentially scratching up the PC on the frame. It'll be interesting to see if I can get them back on with PC on the panels that have to be "flexed" to remove and replace.



Next I started working with the IRS parts. I swapped the studs out on the rear hubs, taking a cue from Paul and flattening a portion of the stud head to clear the seal and casting on the hub in the same way the factory installed studs are done.



I then drilled and cut the knuckles per the manual and cleaned up the rough surface created by the saw.





The knuckles need to be cleaned up a bit more, but I need to press in a new bushing/bearing on one of them that was missing. I have a replacement coming that will need to be pressed in and then these can be wrapped up.

I also chased the mounting holes on the front mounts for the differential. I nearly broke my wrist when the drill bit stopped, but my drill didn't! I installed the differential mounting bushings in the chassis and identified the bolts for the install. I'm going to have to rig up some straps to get this thing into position; wish me luck!

[PNWTim]

Yesterday I had some help and got the body off the chassis. I'm going to have to figure out a good way to store it, but it's just sitting on the floor right now. This morning, I removed the rest of the aluminum panels. Some of them were not easy to get off without potentially scratching up the PC on the frame. It'll be interesting to see if I can get them back on with PC on the panels that have to be "flexed" to remove and replace.



Next I started working with the IRS parts. I swapped the studs out on the rear hubs, taking a cue from Paul and flattening a portion of the stud head to clear the seal and casting on the hub in the same way the factory installed studs are done.



I then drilled and cut the knuckles per the manual and cleaned up the rough surface created by the saw.





The knuckles need to be cleaned up a bit more, but I need to press in a new bushing/bearing on one of them that was missing. I have a replacement coming that will need to be pressed in and then these can be wrapped up.

I also chased the mounting holes on the front mounts for the differential. I nearly broke my wrist when the drill bit stopped, but my drill didn't! I installed the differential mounting bushings in the chassis and identified the bolts for the install. I'm going to have to rig up some straps to get this thing into position; wish me luck!

I read enough horror stories about drilling those holes I bought a tapered bit which made it a piece of cake. It's interesting, I didn't grind a flat on my studs as I don't remember there being any interference but it makes me want to look and make sure they are not sitting on a "shoulder". I also ran a tap through the existing holes and threaded plugs where there are voids going directly to the hub.

Those panels are a bear and there is definitely a right way and a wrong way. I scratched up my bars and vowed to not do it on reinstall at the finish. I found two things - wrap the bars in good duct tape and flex the panel more than you think you need to. I found SEM trim black to be a near perfect match for color and sheen but I am sure there are others.

[Papa]

...I also ran a tap through the existing holes and threaded plugs where there are voids going directly to the hub.

Tim,

Are you referring to these holes?

[PNWTim]

Tim,

Are you referring to these holes?

Yep, those are them. I think they are a perfect fit for 1/4" and 3/8" taps if I remember correctly (but please verify). I know others have made a little cover for them as well. Here is a picture of mine:

Knuckle Plugs.jpg

[The Stig]

First off, congrats! And secondly, you have a phenomenal garage!!!

Rob

I was just thinking the same thing. That is an awesome space to work! Congrats! I wouldn't mind having something very similar when I grow up.

Enjoy the build.

Mike

[Papa]

Papa's pit crew!





I had all of my grandkids here for the weekend. The tall carrot-top is my oldest grandson, Daniel. He was just a toddler when I started my MK4 build eight years ago.

[JimStone]

Nice pit crew!

[Papa]

My headers came back from Jet-Hot and they look great.





Now for the progress on the build for today. I took on the IRS differential install today. That thing came looking for my man card and almost got it! In the end, it was a jack, multiple ratchet straps, some colorful language, and patience that got it done.





I expect my new knuckle bearing kit to arrive sometime today, and I'll be tackling that tomorrow.

[PNWTim]

Headers look great, pretty impressed with their turnaround time. The rear diff is an exercise in patience and rage control followed by an upper division class in geometry and contortionism. Miraculously, they do eventually line up.

[Papa]

I was able to get the toe link bushing pressed into the knuckle at a local machine shop, so on to the task of installing the rear suspension and brakes! I got a lot done today with a pile of empty boxes to break down for the recycler.



Everything went together with no issues at all. I needed to spread a few of the tab mounts, but other than that, it went together pretty smoothly.



I bought the Wilwood Electric Parking Brake kit for the Coupe and it mounted directly where the provided e-brake caliper would normally mount.





I'll need to revisit this feature when I start laying out the electrical to see where I want to mount the controller, run the harnesses, and what switch I'll end up using and where that will go.

Next up will be the fuel tank install, which is already mostly assembled.

[Papa]

Today I installed the front and rear sway bars. I thought this would be a quick 30-minute task, but it was quite a bit more complicated than I expected. First, the front sway bar instructions I downloaded don't show or discuss the Coupe chassis, so I had to sort of wing it based on what I could see that looked like it would work. I'd appreciate any additional eyes on my install to let me know if I did anything wrong.





On the rear, the instructions were better, and it went mostly as they described. One thing I did differently was with the placement of the spacers on the mounting locations on the upper rod-ends. I swapped the 1/2" spacer to the oposite side to give me an angle that didn't bind against the mounts and the bar.





Overall, it was a satisfying day in the shop. I was very pleased that I didn't have to cut all the rod-ends down as the instructions indicated. The only other issue I encountered was getting the holes on the sway bar ends opened up so that the bolts would go through them. I used a round file and cleaned out the coating and rough edges at the hole openings to get the bolts to go in without hanging up.

[Papa]

I'm waiting on a drop trunk kit to arrive before I install the fuel tank, but I laid out the Wilwood EPB components to see what I was up against from a wiring standpoint. It's actually very straight forward. Each caliper connects to the harness:





The plugs clear the springs by about 3/4" and I'll zip-tie the wires back over the plug to keep them out of the springs, which I think should be fine. It would be nice if the plug was a 90 degree vs. straight plug.

The control module simply connects to the harness with one large plug.



This needs to be installed inside the car in a dry location, so I'll need to figure out where it will live down the road.

The provided switch is a three-position momentary switch that you rotate one way to turn the brakes on and the other way to turn them off. It also has an LED that can be wired to light up when the brake is on. The switch has a pigtail that is color-keyed to the wires in the main harness, so very simple to connect it up.



Finally, there are just three wires to connect to make it all come to life; a +12v battery wire, a +12v switched power wire, and a ground wire.

[Lugnut Mark]

Thank you for all the detailed pictures … I’m pretty sure they will come in handy when my coupe arrives …..btw I really like how you have indexed everything in your first post !! Keep up the great work .

[Papa]

Thank you for all the detailed pictures … I’m pretty sure they will come in handy when my coupe arrives …..btw I really like how you have indexed everything in your first post !! Keep up the great work .

Thank you! I like to try to give back to this community that has given so much. Documenting my build is one way I am able to do that. It also is a great reference for me down the road when I'm trying to remember how something looks or how I modified some aspect of the car.

[Papa]

I found a nice looking battery tray for the Optima battery I will be using in my Coupe. I'm thinking of mounting to the FFR tray, or simply mounting it directly to the frame. I can make either work.

[Papa]

I ordered a drop trunk kit from Brent (Snakebite Motorworks) that arrived today. I'd like to say for the record how well done this kit is! I spent some time mocking it up and marking the trunk floor panel that I'll need to cut a big piece out of. The only thing I needed to do was trim a 1/16" of an inch out of the rear facing panel where it is notched to clear the frame tubes. It was hitting the weld and not allowing the box to sit flush with the floor at the rear of the trunk.





The bottom of the kit actually aligns the access over the fuel sender better than the location on the FFR floor, and there are nutsets already installed!



This is what it looks like in the frame of the Coupe.

[460.465USMC]

Looking good. Much nicer than the DIY trunk box I cobbled together! (Although I did enjoy the process). I plan to hit up Snakebite for a couple items as well. They look like quality. Thanks for the review.

[Papa]

Looking good. Much nicer than the DIY trunk box I cobbled together! (Although I did enjoy the process). I plan to hit up Snakebite for a couple items as well. They look like quality. Thanks for the review.

One of my regrets on my MK4 build was skipping the drop trunk. I'm planning on lining it with the same trunk liner material I used on the MK4 trunk. I'm also looking at adding a latch for the lid and have a plan for that.

[burchfieldb]

I ordered a drop trunk kit from Brent (Snakebite Motorworks) that arrived today. I'd like to say for the record how well done this kit is! I spent some time mocking it up and marking the trunk floor panel that I'll need to cut a big piece out of. The only thing I needed to do was trim a 1/6" of an inch out of the rear facing panel where it is notched to clear the frame tubes. It was hitting the weld and not allowing the box to sit flush with the floor at the rear of the trunk.





The bottom of the kit actually aligns the access over the fuel sender better than the location on the FFR floor, and there are nutsets already installed!



This is what it looks like in the frame of the Coupe.

Thanks for the great feedback on this! I will open up that cutout a little more to account for the variation in welds. I used a similar battery mounting tray and attached it to the frame with nutserts. I had to make some spacers for the front where the smaller cross tubes are.

[Papa]

Today I continued working on installing the drop trunk. Once the box was assembled and mounted, it was time to measure and mark the Coupe floor for the cutout. I flipped the floor upside down and used the marking to locate the position of the drop trunk lid and then taped the area as a guide for my saw.



I then flipped the floor back over to verify that the measurements and position were correct.



Now for the "no going back" moment -- time to cut the floor. I left some material when I cut it so that I could sneak up on the fit.



Once the lid was fitting correctly, I positioned the hinge, I drilled the holes in the floor and mounted the door to the hinge and the hinge to the floor using 3/16" clecos.



I also received a set of "slam latches" from Amazon that I will be looking to incorporate (one) in the lid. This will serve two purposes. It will keep the lid closed and provide a handle to lift the lid for access.

[Papa]

Today I installed the "slam latch" in the door of the Snakebite Motorworks drop trunk. I think it looks pretty good and was very easy to install. For the catch, I tapped two #10-24 holes into the tube at the top-rear of the trunk/hatch area on the chassis rather than using metal screws in that location.











I plan to use some felt anti-squeak tape on the rim of the box to help keep the lid from rattling. That will wait until final assembly.

[Papa]

Yesterday I was able to install the fuel tank. The new tank FFR is supplying already has mounting provisions for the filler tube retaining ring, which was a nice add and eliminates the risk of drilling too close to the weld seam.



I put some foam strip along the edge of the tank where the tank comes into contact with the chassis. This isn't called out in the manual or provided by FFR, but it really should be in my opinion.



Next, I persuaded the 3/8" bolts through the hanger straps and then used a floor jack to lift and hold the tank in position while I got the front of the straps on the bolts. Everything fits nice and tight with no issues.

[Papa]

I ordered and received the I.E.427 self-cancelling turn signal kit from Frank. The kit looks good and Frank doesn't even need you to send in your hub for machining anymore; he provided everything you need.





The setup has two switches now as well. One momentary switch that is set up to operate the horn, and a secondary switch that can be used for high/low beam operation or hazard flashers. I plan to use the momentary switch with the IDIDIT headlight relay to operate my high/low beams and then will use the secondary switch for the hazard flashers. I also plan to swap out the lever with something slimmer, which there seem to be a lot of options to choose from.

Something like this: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/s...05-a?rrec=true

[Nigel Allen]

That's a nice robust looking solution from Frank and the stalk upgrade from Summit tops it off perfectly. I really liked the quality of Russ Thompson's kit, which I put on my mk4, but the VW mechanism is becoming unreliable after only a few seasons use.

I reckon Frank has made a winner.

Enjoying following your build.

Cheers,

Nige

[Blitzboy54]

Papa,

Quality of this build is looking just as meticulous as your MK4. I also used Franks turn signal and have been very happy with it. Enjoying following along with your retirement build.

[i.e.427]

While it's not a direct bolt on, the stalk, or lever arm is pretty easy to upgrade by the end user. I believe the one we used is the same as the one you linked from Summit but I found it was less expensive on ebay with free shipping. We also have two quick release options for the turn signal hub and two quick release option for the Mk5 when using the Factory Five included turn signal. I'm really bad at advertising, as a few customers have pointed out recently. I really need to get back into letting folks know about all the different parts we manufacture, fabricate and sell. I need to do better.

Frank

[Papa]

Today I tackled the battery tray install. I ordered a nice looking tray from Amazon and then drilled and countersunk holes in the tray that allowed me to then drill and install nutserts in the chassis to mount the tray to.



I cleaned the powder coating off the chassis around one of the nutserts so that I could capture the battery ground between the chassis and the tray, same way the manual shows with the provided tray. I used a couple of washers on the other side to take up the gap created by the smaller tubes and then installed the battery and hold-down brackets specifically designed for the Optima battery.



I like the way it looks, and it is very solid.

[Papa]

Next up was the Wilwood pedal box install. This is pretty straight forward per the manual. Since I'm going with the Coyote engine, I didn't drill or install the clutch safety switch. There is a different switch configuration used for the Coyote that will get done once I buy the engine and get the rest of the goodies that FFR provides with the engine and transmission.

One minor issue I came across is that the holes used to mount the top reinforcement bracket provided by FFR are full of powder coat and the screws wanted to bind before threading all the way in.



The solution is to simply chase the threads with a tap and clean the powder coat out.



And the pedal box is installed.

[PNWTim]

Looks like F5 might be making gradual improvements. Either they fixed the support bracket fitment or you got lucky. My car is only 7 months ahead of yours and the pedal box support bracket required cutting, shaping and welding to fit correctly. This was a known problem so hopefully it made it to engineering and a correction. I also don't believe my holes were slotted as yours look to be.

[Papa]

Looks like F5 might be making gradual improvements. Either they fixed the support bracket fitment or you got lucky. My car is only 7 months ahead of yours and the pedal box support bracket required cutting, shaping and welding to fit correctly. This was a known problem so hopefully it made it to engineering and a correction. I also don't believe my holes were slotted as yours look to be.

Mine didn't require any tweaking at all. Thank you, Factory Five!

[Papa]

I got a full day in the shop today! First up was replacing the turn signal switch lever to something a bit more vintage than the perfectly functional lever Frank ships his switches with. I bought a Scott Drake switch for a 1964-1966 Mustang and then modified it per Frank's instructions.





The only step I skipped was bending the new arm. I don't think the straight arm will be an issue, but I can always change it later if I need to.

My next task was to install the brake master cylinders on the pedal box and adjust the bias bar. I pretty much just followed the instructions in the build manual, and everything fit like it was supposed to. After installing the master cylinders, I adjusted the brake light switch so that the switch closes with about an inch of pedal movement.

Click on the image below to watch the video short:



Finally, I started fitting and drilling the aluminum panels, starting with the passenger foot box. I actually found that drilling the panels was easier to do directly on the car rather than loose like most recommend. There are a few areas that are behind parts of the chassis or in tight areas that are a lot more obvious when mounted.





Once I have all the panels fitted and drilled, they'll be going to a local powder coater. I'm considering a gloss black or dark silver/gray color for the PC.

[PNWTim]

It's funny, I never realized some drill them off the frame. I mounted them essentially exactly where I wanted them then drilled away. Just shows there are multiple ways to do this.

[Lugnut Mark]

Dave … did you buy all those Cleo’s separately or does it come with your coupe kit ? I currently only have like 50 Cleo’s and it appears like they will get used up pretty quickly !!

[Papa]

Dave … did you buy all those Cleo’s separately or does it come with your coupe kit ? I currently only have like 50 Cleo’s and it appears like they will get used up pretty quickly !!

Mark,

Clecos don't come with the kit. I have quite a bit more than what is needed, but like to put one in every hole when fitting and drilling just to be sure everything stays exactly where I want it. Check out Amazon for some good deals. You should have 15-20 3/16" and 50-100 1/8" Clecos and the tool to use them.

[Lugnut Mark]

That’s what I thought thanks for the info!

[Papa]

Yesterday I spent less time working on the car, and more time abusing my checkbook! I wanted to give a shout out to our vendors that support this great community. These guys help add those refined touches to an already well-engineered kit. Special thanks to:

Frank - I.E.427
Brent - Snakebite Motorworks
Mark - Breeze Automotive

The products and customer service these guys provide is amazing.

Thank you,
Dave

[burchfieldb]

Yesterday I spent less time working on the car, and more time abusing my checkbook! I wanted to give a shout out to our vendors that support this great community. These guys help add those refined touches to an already well-engineered kit. Special thanks to:

Frank - I.E.427
Brent - Snakebite Motorworks
Mark - Breeze Automotive

The products and customer service these guys provide is amazing.

Thank you,
Dave

I appreciate the shout out Dave. I have met a lot of great people in this community and look foward to offering great products and service to help refine the builds.

[460.465USMC]

It feels good to get the panels started, no? It looks like you're planning to rivet the "removable" HVAC access panel? I drilled mine like you did, but having second thoughts that I should have installed nut serts.