We’ve had a chance to get through baselining for all of the core systems. For purposes of tracking Lemons budget, we’ve divided everything into safety vs go faster.
Safety Gear 2/10
Great like seats, harness, fire suppression will get serious once we’ve got the basics covered.
Brakes 8/10
Going to get the stock system back to as good as possible. Most of the remaining bits are straightforward like new rotors and fluid purge, etc.
If we want to bump up performance, we’ll need to check back on budget. We can probably do a lot with pad selection.
Steering/Suspension 7/10
Seems to be in good overall shape. Some bushings need replacement. There are performance improvements to be had from stiffer springs, so found some low cost strategies using Golf MkII for fronts and old superbeetle coilovers as helper springs on the rear. Most of this will come out of go faster budget.
Powertrain 6/10
Stopped short of pulling the engine, but lots of little fixes to fuel deliver in engine buy, oil seals, radiator hoses, fan setup (one fan was dedicated to the AC, which as been deleted, so likely will just configure for manual backup duty).
SMOG 10/10
Main thing was missing catalytic converter. Now fixed and passed.
Lighting 5/10
Removed heavy retractable lights, which also free up some go faster budget. In their place will be 6x low cost motorbike lamps for hi/lo and turn signal.
Aero 1/10
Have a plan, but not much happening yet.
Artwork & Audio 0/10
Yeah not there yet.
Beyond all of this work is the economy. That is. Starting with $500, you can sell some items to increase budget. Here’s what that likely looks like. The prices are low end values from ebay/offerup/craigslist.
Some interior was already stripped, but some high value bits like the insane sunroof lifting system…were disconnected, but still function!
Outrun Carbon 