Custom 300+hp DSM powered Ariel Atom-esque car

[KAOI]

Hey guys! Ok so my reasoning behind joining dsmtuners was because over the past few years i've helped my buddy fix his car and stuff and whenever we had questions i could find the answer here plain and simple. Well it turns out his car is now mine for the fixing and "rebuilding"

Now the rebuild Im planing is not your run of the mill dsm rebuild. My plans include building a 300 plus horsepower mid-engine ariel atom-esque car with a removable t-top that will weigh around 1200-1500 pounds. Im building a custom chassis in my garage over the next few months but probably wont start until i have the engine rebuilt. My goal is to have the car (not the fiberglass body work) done by spring break. That may be pushing it so currently thats my tentative deadline. Keep in mind i want to keep the cost low on the engine rebuild right now just so i can have the car running by spring break. Im on a tight budget and cant skimp when it comes to the chassis and jeopardize my safety because i wanted cooler stuff .... After the car is built and running i will put more money into supporting mods. IF YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS JUST POST IT

Now heres what i have to work with

ENGINE
fwd n/a engine that has 173k miles on it.... Im doing a conservative rebuild right now nothing too special regarding internals seeing as stock can hold up well to 300-350 hp. I did get turbo pistons. I will need to upgrade the cams for sure.
Im not getting the cylinders bored because the crazy thing is that i can still see the cross hatch.... WTF

TURBO SIZE
im still going back and forth between a 14b which supposedly can crank out 300 hp with supporting mods.... and a 16g which can get me to 300 no prob.... whats holding me back is the price difference between the two. If you have ideas for other turbos that might be better please help a brother out. Please keep in mind the car will weigh around 1200-1500 lbs so it will rev extremely fast so turbo lag will not be a factor.

TRANSMISSION
the current fwd trans blows. 3rd gear grinds like a MOFO plus seeing as the car will be mid engine rwd itll be a bi*** to punch it off the line with the yardstick cv shaft on the left side SOOOO what im thinking is shoving an AWD tranny in there so i have equal shaft lengths. and then possibly when the time comes i could convert the car to awd which, lets not kid ourselves WOULD BE DOPE

FUEL
i plan on running pump gas. Weve got 93 octane out here none of thar 91 octane piss water so i can run high boost i need to upgrade the pump to a wally 190. Would rather not get the 255 and have to get an FPR.

I will post pictures of my build progress as it comes along. Stay tuned!

 

[ed1380]

You can use AWD axles with a FWD trans, but the AWD trans is stronger.
Someone on the forum has already built one. It's always cool seeing progress pics, so be sure to upload lots

 

[KAOI]

Yeah! after i got the idea i scoured the internet to see if anybody had attempted it before and there was one guy but it seems he has yet to finish it.

I was under the impression that the AWD tranny has equal length half shafts is this not true? ### torque steer in the rear is nooooo bueno

 

[9!'clipseDOHC]

Yes, AWD's come with ELHS. Also swapping a FWD to ELHS from the AWD is pretty simple and has been done often. Here is a tech article I wrote on it: http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/articles-drivetrain/402528-equal-length-half-shafts-mod-awd-axle-fwd.html

 

[jcarmichael]

im running a 255 with no fpr but its next on my list of things to do amongst others but I am pysched to see how this turns out. if i ever hit the lottery first car i would get is an aerial atom v8.

 

[tommywsmith]

I gotta see this when your done man

 

[KAOI]

Yes, AWD's come with ELHS. Also swapping a FWD to ELHS from the AWD is pretty simple and has been done often. Here is a tech article I wrote on it: http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/articles-drivetrain/402528-equal-length-half-shafts-mod-awd-axle-fwd.html

Ahhhh this is awesome man thanks! Now that i have this new found knowledge im not sure what to do... should i actually go for awd? or should i just do this and keep it rwd.... If It stays rwd the weight distribution will be around 65% in the back 35% in the front. I might be able to shift it to 60% back 40% front with awd... Im trying to keep the engine mounted as close to the middle as the half shafts will let me....

 

[jwahl16]

go all wheel drive, you want to have as much traction as possible, especially if its only going to weigh 1500 pounds.

 

[TheRealPVTRyan]

I'd go for a 16G (Big, or EvoIII) over a 14B just for the sake of cabin heat you'll incur in a small scale car like that.