rear wheel drive chassis

superunknown · 14th July 2005, 17:16

hey...first i ask that every1 bear with my wierd questions...i was wondering if a decently quick car can be made using the rear wheel drive chasis of the maruti omni with say an esteem engine bolted on... how time consuming could this project turn out to be for an over ambitious and bored-out-of-his mind engineering student?would it even be possible to do (with a looot of help of course)?most importanly would it be worth the effort... have any sych conversions ever been done?...
sorry bout this ...was irritating me all thru my exams ...had to clear it
thanx

turbo_lover · 14th July 2005, 17:38

the 1.3L esteem being a FWD the engine is transversly mounted ...i understand for a RWD the engine needs to be longitudinally mounted .. since maruti 800/alto and the Omni share the same engine they can be placed longitudinally ...but i dbout it there is enough space to accomodate a bigger engine ..
but ..why an Omni in the first place ? go for a padmini chassis .. or a contessa

hasopi · 14th July 2005, 19:13

Slightly out of topic...I recently changed my padmini chassis (more than 30 year old) to a new one..chassis costs 2000rs (from an exclusive shop for body parts in JC road)..& fitting charges 1500rs...also overhauled front suspension completely including shocks..total it came to 6K.

Now it can take Bangalore roads with ease.. :-)

aveek · 14th July 2005, 19:51

Can one just buy the chassis and suspension set-up...? and then bolt on, say, an 800 engine and build a body around the whole thing...?

v1p3r · 14th July 2005, 22:35

Hahaha...join the club...spend all my VTU study time designing a low cost drag vehicle. 118NE chassis, G13B 16v engine...what a car...

Yes...it would be possible, anything's possible. Also, it would be VERY worth it.

EDIT: superunknown...please clear your inbox...tried to pm you but couldn't.

Mpower · 14th July 2005, 23:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by superunknown

if a decently quick car can be made using the rear wheel drive chasis of the maruti omni with say an esteem engine bolted on...

Why dont you start with the Versa Chassis. Its already using Esteem engine and is RWD and 20 years ahead in technology.

Take it to DC, he'll chop off the body and build you a beautiful pininfarina body on it.

superunknown · 15th July 2005, 16:25

wow ok...great to know that im no the only motorhead killing himself doin mechanical eng vtu....the reason i asked if an omni chassis could be used were 1) weight 2) ease of finding one 3) mounting mite be a little easier coz the bolts etc will be std maruti stuff and 4) the most important factor being cost also fitting a std body mite be a lil easier?
i do understand that the esteem engine is transverly mounted but wot i wanted to know is that if we were to use an m800 engine at the rear ie without a driveshaft wont we have to turn it around to make it work? do you think keeping the engine in the front and runnin the rear tyres with a driveshaft is more advantageous than placing the engine directly over the rear axle and runnin it ( just like turning a fwd car around and making reverse gear drive forward lol)....how long cud a project like this take and what mite the expenses involved be?
your critisism of my stupidity is very welcome....
thanx

Psycho · 15th July 2005, 16:35

a transversly mounted RWD... I guess quite a few people will wake up...

As far as your idea is concerned you seem to be on the right track excepting for the choice of a chassis. Rear mounting the engine would give you a weight distribution disadvantage compared to a forward mouted approach. It would depend what the build is for

- Daily Use
- Track
- Drag

however a lot more thinking needs to go in before looking at the costs and the approach.

falcon · 15th July 2005, 17:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Psycho

As far as your idea is concerned you seem to be on the right track excepting for the choice of a chassis. Rear mounting the engine would give you a weight distribution disadvantage compared to a forward mouted approach.

Guys, was trying to imagine this setup...

If what I understand is right, we would have all the major weight (engine, etc.) at the rear directly driving the rear wheels and nearly no weight in the front.
Now, would this not make the car very easily do a wheely ? (like the dodge in The Fast & The Furious) ?

Also, doesn't the VW Beetle have the exact same setup ?

Rtech · 15th July 2005, 17:20

Quote:

Now, would this not make the car very easily do a wheely ? (like the dodge in The Fast & The Furious) ?

Not unless you find a way to produce 500bhp from the Esteem engine!

But seriously, the rear weight bias will be a help at the drag strip, as your rear wheels would have maximum traction. It's a philosophy Porsche has sworn by for decades now.

falcon · 15th July 2005, 17:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rtech

Not unless you find a way to produce 500bhp from the Esteem engine!

OOPS!!!
Thanks Rtech... totally forgot about that!!! :-D

A doubt.... this would be off topic i suppose...
Would that depend on the engine's bhp or its torque ?

Rtech · 15th July 2005, 17:36

yea, depends on it's torque, but you get the picture

v1p3r · 15th July 2005, 18:04

Maybe you could try a front mounting, and a rear drive. Mount the engine itself longitudinally and align it to the gearbox. Prop shaft delivers power to the diff at the rear.

I had asked a similar question. Psycho explains how it can be done:
http://team-bhp.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5876

@Psycho, if one were to make a rear-mounted RWD, like Baban Khan's 1300, wouldn't handling be a very big issue?

Hey super, you're lucky. I'm not even doing mech! Where do you study?

Rtech · 15th July 2005, 18:22

As psycho says, It boils down to what exactly he wants to build.

A hot rod: Front engined, rear drive street car
A Dragster: rear engine, rear drive track machine with just a cage.

In either case, handling is not the priority for these, though it matter more for a hot rod ofcourse!

superunknown · 16th July 2005, 18:00

thanx guys...psyco im still in the preliminary stages of the preliminary stages of starting this project!!...i do understand that a lot of research will go into doin it which is why everything is so tentative rite now thanx.....what i dont understand abt transversely rear mounting an engine is how tranny setup will work...would the actual gear stick be close enuf to tyhe driver because the steering column obviously cant be elongated safely so positioning the the drivers seat further back would be out of the question... i realise that the car can be made either to be a hardcore race vehicle or a reasonably driveable car.... im gessing that making a drag car will be much easier as only the engine and chassis will form the bulk of the work
BTW v1p3r what happened to your project? hope u went through with it coz honelsty i cannot see myself goin through all four years of my eng course even though its mech(still ultra boring blv me..nuthin i thought it wud be)
can you guys give me some good research sources (besides tean BHP ofcourse)
thanx

14th July 2005, 17:16	#1
superunknown Newbie Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 23 Thanked: 0 Times	rear wheel drive chassis hey...first i ask that every1 bear with my wierd questions...i was wondering if a decently quick car can be made using the rear wheel drive chasis of the maruti omni with say an esteem engine bolted on... how time consuming could this project turn out to be for an over ambitious and bored-out-of-his mind engineering student?would it even be possible to do (with a looot of help of course)?most importanly would it be worth the effort... have any sych conversions ever been done?... sorry bout this ...was irritating me all thru my exams ...had to clear it thanx
	() Thanks

14th July 2005, 17:38	#2
turbo_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Toronto Posts: 1,377 Thanked: 9 Times	the 1.3L esteem being a FWD the engine is transversly mounted ...i understand for a RWD the engine needs to be longitudinally mounted .. since maruti 800/alto and the Omni share the same engine they can be placed longitudinally ...but i dbout it there is enough space to accomodate a bigger engine .. but ..why an Omni in the first place ? go for a padmini chassis .. or a contessa
	() Thanks

14th July 2005, 19:13	#3
hasopi BANNED Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 177 Thanked: 0 Times	Slightly out of topic...I recently changed my padmini chassis (more than 30 year old) to a new one..chassis costs 2000rs (from an exclusive shop for body parts in JC road)..& fitting charges 1500rs...also overhauled front suspension completely including shocks..total it came to 6K. Now it can take Bangalore roads with ease.. :-)
	() Thanks

14th July 2005, 19:51	#4
aveek BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 294 Thanked: 2 Times	Can one just buy the chassis and suspension set-up...? and then bolt on, say, an 800 engine and build a body around the whole thing...?
	() Thanks

14th July 2005, 22:35	#5
v1p3r Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: BLR / DXB / LON Posts: 5,334 Thanked: 6,896 Times View My Garage	Hahaha...join the club...spend all my VTU study time designing a low cost drag vehicle. 118NE chassis, G13B 16v engine...what a car... Yes...it would be possible, anything's possible. Also, it would be VERY worth it. EDIT: superunknown...please clear your inbox...tried to pm you but couldn't. Last edited by v1p3r : 14th July 2005 at 22:44.
	() Thanks

15th July 2005, 16:25	#7
superunknown Newbie Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 23 Thanked: 0 Times	rwd wow ok...great to know that im no the only motorhead killing himself doin mechanical eng vtu....the reason i asked if an omni chassis could be used were 1) weight 2) ease of finding one 3) mounting mite be a little easier coz the bolts etc will be std maruti stuff and 4) the most important factor being cost also fitting a std body mite be a lil easier? i do understand that the esteem engine is transverly mounted but wot i wanted to know is that if we were to use an m800 engine at the rear ie without a driveshaft wont we have to turn it around to make it work? do you think keeping the engine in the front and runnin the rear tyres with a driveshaft is more advantageous than placing the engine directly over the rear axle and runnin it ( just like turning a fwd car around and making reverse gear drive forward lol)....how long cud a project like this take and what mite the expenses involved be? your critisism of my stupidity is very welcome.... thanx
	() Thanks

15th July 2005, 16:35	#8
Psycho Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,043 Thanked: 110 Times View My Garage	a transversly mounted RWD... I guess quite a few people will wake up... As far as your idea is concerned you seem to be on the right track excepting for the choice of a chassis. Rear mounting the engine would give you a weight distribution disadvantage compared to a forward mouted approach. It would depend what the build is for - Daily Use - Track - Drag however a lot more thinking needs to go in before looking at the costs and the approach.
	() Thanks

15th July 2005, 17:36	#12
Rtech Team-BHP Support Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 5,770 Thanked: 359 Times View My Garage	yea, depends on it's torque, but you get the picture
	() Thanks

15th July 2005, 18:04	#13
v1p3r Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: BLR / DXB / LON Posts: 5,334 Thanked: 6,896 Times View My Garage	Maybe you could try a front mounting, and a rear drive. Mount the engine itself longitudinally and align it to the gearbox. Prop shaft delivers power to the diff at the rear. I had asked a similar question. Psycho explains how it can be done: http://team-bhp.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5876 @Psycho, if one were to make a rear-mounted RWD, like Baban Khan's 1300, wouldn't handling be a very big issue? Hey super, you're lucky. I'm not even doing mech! Where do you study?
	() Thanks

15th July 2005, 18:22	#14
Rtech Team-BHP Support Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 5,770 Thanked: 359 Times View My Garage	As psycho says, It boils down to what exactly he wants to build. A hot rod: Front engined, rear drive street car A Dragster: rear engine, rear drive track machine with just a cage. In either case, handling is not the priority for these, though it matter more for a hot rod ofcourse!
	() Thanks

16th July 2005, 18:00	#15
superunknown Newbie Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 23 Thanked: 0 Times	rwd thanx guys...psyco im still in the preliminary stages of the preliminary stages of starting this project!!...i do understand that a lot of research will go into doin it which is why everything is so tentative rite now thanx.....what i dont understand abt transversely rear mounting an engine is how tranny setup will work...would the actual gear stick be close enuf to tyhe driver because the steering column obviously cant be elongated safely so positioning the the drivers seat further back would be out of the question... i realise that the car can be made either to be a hardcore race vehicle or a reasonably driveable car.... im gessing that making a drag car will be much easier as only the engine and chassis will form the bulk of the work BTW v1p3r what happened to your project? hope u went through with it coz honelsty i cannot see myself goin through all four years of my eng course even though its mech(still ultra boring blv me..nuthin i thought it wud be) can you guys give me some good research sources (besides tean BHP ofcourse) thanx
	() Thanks