Carlos Salaff Project Caden

That's great news to hear your going with the V10... what a spectacular engine. The rod bearing issue is there with both the S65 and S85 in a percentage of the engines produced. The problem is the factory sized the bearings with too tight of clearances and then exclusivly advised to use 10w-60 weight TWS oil. During cold start and before engine reaches operating temp the oil film between the rod bearing and crank journal contact each other and slowly wear down the bearing until one day it fails from heat and the engines is toast. There are a few solutions to this issue. 1. have the crank machined by professional engine builder to eliminated the excessively tight clearances with the factory sized bearings 2. purchace properly sized bearings from a member of the respected forum (M3post.com has a member who builds NASCAR race engines for Hendrick Motorsport and he has developed proper bears for our cars. They will be manufactured this fall). My car has 63k miles and runs very very strong but will replace the bearings once the warranty expires at 70k miles just to be one the safe side.

Just inform yourself (M5board.com and Dinan) and you will be fine. The S85 is a gem and will be phenomenal in a light weight sports car as it should have been paired with from the start. Project Cayden with Mclaren F1 heart genetics!!

 

Thanks Alexander, this info is gold! Will of course keep you posted.

 

The dark side of German engineering. This is 'similar' to the IMS bearing issue with Porsche. In both cases, a failure, which should never occur at relatively low mileage, results in expensive paperweight. And the pisser is that the great, pinnacle of German engineering companies, know about the problem and don't bend over backwards to help their obsessively loyal customers.

 

Thanks BJK, I'll be sure to address these issues.

 

I have managed to get my CNC mill doing its job properly, and it feels great. For the technically interested, I installed a "smoothstepper" card between my PC and the Geckodrive, which literally smooths out the data coming from Mach 3(on the PC). All this to say that it resolved my machine's problems, and I'm a happy camper.

Because of size limitations of my CNC table--it's around 2'x4'x5"--I am milling the foam molds for the glass surfaces in slices. I custom ordered several blocks of foam that fit my table, and as I go about milling the slices, I will assemble it all like legos.

I am first milling the windshield and side windows as one big piece(The canopy is very Group C style, with no A-pillar interrupting the outer surface anyhow). Then I will mill the foam for the rear glass surface. The last step will be to create a smooth, hard shell on it so that female molds can be pulled(in order to make polycarbonate males).

Here are some photos of the foam blocks, and my first two slices that comprise the windshield.
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Two front windshield slices.
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Have you looked into anodizing the exterior sheet metal?

This would give you the "raw" metal look you are wanting, but would be far more durable and corrosion resistant.

You would be able to keep the brushed look, if that is what you are wanting; but will take some trial and error to get it just right. Apple does a sandblast followed by anodizing on their products.

The challenge will be finding someone with the capability and willingness to handle your biggest component and provide you with a high quality finish.

Fixing damage would be difficult and would probably require stripping and refinishing of the entire panel.

 

Hey Ratrodderx,
I have thought about it, especially for other colors. Imagine a black anodized finish--very SR-71 Blackbird-esque. Something to look into. As far as the raw aluminum upkeep, I'd like to try to live with it for a bit, and see if it isn't a matter of just steel-wooling out the odd scratch here or there.

 

An update on the windshield/sideglass mold.

I have CNC milled several sections, and roughly assembled them. I still need to mill the side glass surfaces, and a few smaller areas.
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A view of the windshield mold in progress. In the background is an early mockup for Project Caden, also with many milled foam parts.
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Various foam bits waiting to be assembled.
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The last few days have been spent manning the CNC macine, Each foam block is about a 3-hour run, and I need to be vigilant about not letting foam dust clog up the bearings. I have about 3 more blocks to mill for my canopy and rear glass molds. Home stretch!
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This summer, Pete has been in the process of moving to a larger facility. Before the Caden aluminum shaping buck was moved, I took a few detail shots.
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Pete's Custom Coachbuilding has made the move to a larger, better facility. Congrats Pete!

Project Caden waits in the wings. More action on its way!
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Hood shaping on Project Caden continues, and the aluminum is pulled down over the buck's contours more tightly.
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That is starting to look darn sexy!

 

Thank you Sir!

 

Monterey Car Week and the Pebble Beach Concours is upon us. In that spirit, Project Caden is a modern handcrafted car in the making.
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Metal master Rodney has begun the process of crafting the rear fenders. It is cool to watch him at this stage. The work is very physical, sometimes involving a knee to bend the metal over.
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A scoop of vintage F1 car, a cup of Group C racer, and a dash of SR-71 jet. Ingredients of Project Caden.
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Early shaping on the rear fender and deck. On the left side is a plastic sheet used for pattern making.
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Early forming of the rear fender and deck. It is amazing that Rodney is creating this piece out of one large sheet of aluminum. Small changes on one side of the sheet can cause the other end to be altered. It is patient work, capturing nuances in the form and sneaking up on the shape.
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and maybe with a little hair pulling and primal screaming thrown in for good measure

 

No Joke--Rodney is a cool cucumber, but there is surely some very physical work to realign those molecules!

 

In an age of plastics, Project Caden celebrates the timeless beauty of metals.

The hammer and die are used to hammerform the metal, while maintaining the correct shape in the fillet/reverse curved area.
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