Lada Video

Update

Alright, so a lot has happened since the last post. We've been working on the car for 5-12 hours every night after work so I haven't had much time to update. We finally found all of our parts and recieved our last shipment about 2 months ago. Since then, we've:

• Installed the suspension after a little "customizing"
• Plumbed the fuel and hydraulics
• Rebuilt and installed the original brakes
  
• Nearly finished the electrical system including gauges and lights
  
• Installed the engine and transmission
• Installed a seat
  
• Painted and the car and added decals designed by Carl Bean-Larson

It's been a crazy couple of months and it looks like we may make our deadline after all. The car looks absolutely gorgeous. I posted a photo here, but to see more go to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carlbeanlarson/

Suspension Sponsor!

International Auto Parts recently shipped us a set of sport shocks and springs for a Fiat 124 Sedan. A few modifications and they fit great. They should make a real difference on the track.
The guys at international were incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. They showed major enthusiasm for the project and for low-buck racing. For anything Italian, I'd shop International first.

We can rebuild it. We have the parts.

Our engine and brake parts arrived from jolly old England this week. And not a moment too soon. We've got crazy amounts of work to do this month to get our car finished...

Parts Conundrum Sorted

Since we tore the engine down this spring, we've been scrambling to find a few critical parts. Without them, we'd have no engine, and no brakes.

Our search first led us to Russia, where we encountered some scammy-looking eBay sellers. We then contacted our friend Darren from Hagerty International, a UK based division of Hagerty Insurance. (As it turns out, their headquarters overlooks Silverstone Circuit) Darren was able to point us in the direction of Lada UK Ltd. They were extremely knowledgeable and helpful, but shipping was way too expensive for our tiny budget. Again, we appeared stymied.

Enter another long-time friend, Angus Forsyth, also of Hagerty. I described our situation to Angus, and he responded immediately. Get them to me here and we will get them out to you by hook or by crook." That's what you can expect from Hagerty. It's a great company with real car guys at the helm. Hagerty is based in Traverse City, just a few blocks from Total-Loss Racing's state-state-of-the-art facility and a couple of the guys from the team work there. Highly recommended both in the UK and stateside.

Tires!

Comrade Davin drove all the way to Wisconsin to pick up some Fiat/Alfa Romeo wheels. With a 98x4 bolt pattern, they're apparently the only thing that will fit on the Lada. We paid $15 for 3 wheels, which brought our total wheel count to 8.

Belle Tire in Traverse City donated a set 4 tires, mounted them and balanced them for no cost. I go to Belle Tire whenever I need new shoes. They're knowledgeable and very fair on prices. Highly recommended.

Beer Sponsor!

Right Brain Brewery became our newest sponsor, kicking in beer and cash for gas. Right Brain makes excellent, award winning beer, and it's a great place to hang out. No smoke, no TV, just great beer. Stay tuned this winter as Total-Loss Racing, Right Brain Brewery and TJC Design host UNLIMITED PINEWOOD DERBY. It's like Can-Am racing for pinewood derby cars.

Roll Cage Sponsor: TJC Design Studio

In one whiskey-fueled night Comrades Davin and Rory, along with TJ and Alfred from TJC Design built our entire roll-cage. (It was mostly TJ, Alfred and Davin) The next morning, when I came to help clean-up and retrieve the car, they had already finished cleaning the shop and delivered the car to my house. Incredible. They are also craftsmen of the highest order. They can cast out-of-production parts and make metal do beautiful things.

Real Race Driver Sponsor: Holly Classics

Another great sponsor has decided to sully their good name by sponsoring our race car. Holly Classics , has thrown in some much needed gas and hotel money. Holly is owned by John Hollansworth, a man whose contributions to auto racing and and the car hobby are numerous. He's a true car guy and a great friend.

Now we Won't Burn to Death Sponsor: Classic Instruments!

Classic Instruments makes the best aftermarket gauges on the market. Providing clocks, clusters and dash panels to some of the worlds best-known car builders, these guys are obsessive perfectionists. We're lucky to count the guys at Classic Instruments as friends. In fact, we can now count them as the kind of friends who will dig deep and buy us 2 complete racing suits from Crow .
With gloves. And Boots.

Check out their site.

Vodka Sponsor: Valentine Vodka!

Just when things were starting to look bleak for Natasha, Valentine Vodka stepped up with a monster sponsorship; cash and a case of the finest craft-distilled-in-Detroit VODKA. The days of drinking the swill from the corner liquor store are over. Check out their site and treat yourself to some world class booze.

Engine Open, Mild Setbacks Begin

When we removed the valve cover, everything looked good. Maybe a little too good. It looked like a freshly rebuilt engine. We briefly considered leaving well enough alone and closing it back up. That is until we noticed some slack in the old timing chain. "HMMMMMMMMMMMMM" we all said. So we pulled off the oil pan.














Here's what we found in there. It looks pretty good, right? Like a fresh motor. But wait! What are those little flecks of metal on the oil screen? Why are there more flecks of metal in the oil pan?

Maybe we should remove the timing chain cover and have a look...

Oh man! Both of the chain tensioner shoes are completely f'ed, better head over to Autozone and...

So, there's that. And maybe some of the valves aren't as "sealy" as we'd prefer. So.

Here we are, a few short months from race day and we're still short a hell of a lot of parts and a hell of a lot of cash to acquire said parts.

Engine and Tranny out!

The engine and transmission are out of the car. We've also removed the brake calipers, wheel cylinders, and all the brake and clutch hydraulic cylinders. We'll be tearing these down and cleaning them up over the next couple weeks and let me tell you comrades, they need a cleaning.

We also found some troubling rust damage once we got the car in the air. Right behind both front wheel wells are soft spots so bad I was able to push through them and into the passenger compartment with my bare hands.

Comrade Davin also brought out a huge wing from his
dirt track car that looked totally sweet on the Lada.
However, we're concerned that it would lift the front
wheels off the ground at speed.

Natasha on the move

After an hour's worth of glorious, heart-friendly shoveling to free it from my snowed-over driveway we pulled the Lada out of my garage today. One of the tires has been gradually deflating, which I was able to rectify using the original equipment manual pump in the tool kit. It was still wrapped in paper from the factory and had apparently never been used. It worked perfectly!

In the pictures, the car is perched atop a large snow bank in our parking lot at work. It was the only way to park the trailer in our lot (or maybe the most dramatic way to display the full majesty of our steed.)

It's headed to a teammate's shop just south of town for some work tomorrow night including removal of the brakes, suspension and driveline. (teammate has a lift and a much larger space)Then it's off to receive it's roll cage.

I was hoping for a nice bracing chill to remind our comrades of the struggle faced in the long, and ultimately successful Battle of Stalingrad, but though it was -5 this morning, it warmed to 18 by the afternoon.

Sponsors!

While we haven't sold a single part off the car yet, we have secured another excellent beverage sponsor. Rob Sass of Overdrive Consulting has contributed to the effort in a big way. Rob is a hell of a guy and a fine writer. Over the last few years, he's built quite a resume. I'd trust him with my life.

The Selling of Parts!

Ok, so we finally started organizing all these damn parts.  We have just about everything including a good wiring harness and a spotless headliner, so if you need something and don't see it here, send me an email.

We'll also be selling the suspension and maybe wheels at some point, so keep an eye out. We have a pair of BSA alloys that are in good condition.  

If you see something you want, or want something you don't see, send an email to 

Rcarroll1982 at Gmail Dot Com.  

Thanks

Maybe a spare tire cover

Great Set of Seats, I was shocked at how nice these are

Complete Set of wheel wells

Trunk!

Trunk? 

I think this was in the trunk

Full set of glass, everything except the windshield

Window Raisy and lowery Complete set

Clock

Wipers

Mirrors, full set

Dash Clock housing with lights and Cigarette lighter

Footwell cards

Air Intake Thing

Yep, Door Handles

Door Handles

Door Handle Set

Complete Sidemarker Set

Door lock handles

 Interior Door Handles, complete set

Lock Cylinders, Complete Set with Keys

Complete Door Handle Set

Antenna

License plate holder with WAR AMPS STICKERS

Heater Ducts, All Heating stuff, it's all there, all carefully gutted

Heater Blower, with Heater Core and all Accessories

Grill, NICEish

Complete Set of Door Cards, NICE!

Rear Seats, nice! Need Vacuum

Spare? 

 Belts with sensors, they know if you're buckled.  Little Sheaths

Three Wheel Covers, One brand new condition, other two used!

Tire  guage, in BAR, HOW UNIQUE! 

Little Trim Pieces above the Door cards

I forgot what this is, but then I remembered.  It's a cool red light from the door. It lights up when the driver's door is open. 

Complete Set of Oh, Bother Handles

Oh, Bother handles

Speaker covers

Bumper

Armrests 

Complete Headlight Washer System, with one damaged wiper

Center Console

 Front and Rear Bumpers

Bumpers? 

Sponsors!

We've received our first sponsor! Cars That Matter, has stepped up to the plate with some hotel money and a 30 pack of Molson Canadian.  Let me tell you comrades, sponsorship or no sponsorship, Cars That Matter is the preferred price guide of the proletariat.  I use CTM quite frequently, and it's probably the most accurate guide for collector car prices out there.  Check out carsthatmatter.com to purchase a guide which includes a great online and mobile car valuation tool.  

Tear Down: Part One

After hours of wrenching, our hero mechanics have removed all non-essential parts from Glorious People's Race Car:Natasha. While we had initially planned to have parts

 available for sale this week, our plan is delayed while we watch our horrible capitalist neighbors greedily stuff their pig-bodies with food, and prepare to purchase inferior western goods.  

First Scheduled Wrench Session

On Monday, November 24, our hero mechanics will begin the initial tear-down of Glorious People's Race Car:Natasha. As part of our party's "Eight Month Plan," non-critical parts of Glorious People's Race Car:Natasha will be carefully removed and inventoried. Each part will then be sold using eBay. In accordance with LeMons rules, any funds generated from parts sales can be applied to our build.

Natasha Has Arrived!

Natasha has arrived!

Comrades Davin and Teargaskov have returned from their heroic journey to Toronto, Ontario. On the Great Hero Trailer of the Proletariat, they spirited Natasha from her prison in the only moderately socialist Canada.




Her captors were brutal, but they were bribed with American Dollars.



They were detained by the Americans at the US Boarder. The American Border Guards trembled in fear at the sight of so much glorious Soviet engineering. The Spirit of the Soviet worker was indeed strong. When the pigs told Comrades Reckow and Teargaskov that they would need to prove that the Lada met US DOT and DEQ standards, they made it clear that Natasha would do no such thing! After an hour of negotiating, and declaring some gloriously duty-free hootch, they were free.




Comrades Teargaskov & Davin will be awarded the ORDER OF VICTORY FOR TRAILERING