Chassis - Tube Chassis Frames  
Pick on the name to see there progress
2/27/03
2/27/03
11/22/04
2/27/03
2/27/03
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4/15/03
2/27/03
2/27/03
4/9/03
9/19/03

 

Photos of a real 91 Lamborghini - by Steve Curtis

Click on the photos to see more photos

 

97 Diablo VT
This was on e-bay (3/04) http://www.ferrariservice.ws

 

More photos of a stripped down 94 VT - click on photo to see more photos

 

1991 Diablo Rear fire damage

 

The following information (in the Red outline) is from the Diablo Support Forum.

 

shaddoe
Member posted 04 September 2002 07:51 PM
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Everyone that is interested in trying to copy the Diablo chassis should keep in mind that the steel used to make the origional chassis was a steel alloy. This meant that it was lighter but stronger than mild steel which is what you get if you go to your local steel supplier. Heres the thing, if you use a thicker mild steel thinking that you'll make up for not having the same alloy steel you're not going to correct the problem. As you increase the size the weight will change the way the chassis can handle the flex and stress. Unless you have the knowledge and software to run the numbers like cincidiablo you shouldn't try to copy the origional desing without knowing what steel was used. I would also like to comment on the "using the fiero chassis discussion" by saying that if you build your steel tube around the fiero tub correctly that you'll have a very sound chassis. I have pictures with dimensions that fletch posted on his site but noone has seen the steel that is added after the main rails. I will post some pictures of what it looks like after the rollcage and other bracing is added for those looking to use the fiero but are worried about your chassis handling the stress.
shaddoe
Member posted 05 September 2002 03:51 PM
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Below are a few pictures showing the bracing. as you can see from the pictures we addressed the weakness of the stretch by tieing it into the main rails. the misconception that people have is that using thicker steel for the stretch will handle the stress but they don't realize that the problem comes where the extra steel is welded. when you have a tube that is a certain thickness and you cut it and add thicker steel between and cause the steel to flex, instead of the steel flexing evenly it will cause tremendous stress at the weld points and cause fatigue in the thinner steel and cause it to fail. this is the basic principle to follow when doing your stretch, these pictures may look like a lot of work but it isn't reall that bad and all together you're only talking about $350 of steel. i'll post more pictures of the front of the car which is also very important since there is so much of the front steel cut off but i wanted to post these because the rear is where the most weight is and where the torque of the engine gets to the ground and also where the stretch occurs.
Filip
Member posted 05 September 2002 04:47 PM
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I just wanted to say that it looks very sturdy. Evidently not all Fiero stretches are created equal. The design of the rear sides will hold up very well, especially under torque from the engine. I don't think I've seen a triangular cross-section there (on the sides) before. It looks more like a hybrid space frame / fiero tub than just a stretch. Nice work. I'll look forward to see the front.
By the way, you're assuming that the Lambo won't roll over right? It seems like the tubing by the roof is a little small...allthough well supported. Not that I know HOW you could roll over but...

Was the steel alloy you were talking above chrome-moly? I know it needs to be heat treated after welding. I've seen ppl heat treat using a torch but oven is more reliable.

shaddoe
Member posted 05 September 2002 09:11 PM
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I don't think the diablo's chassis was made with chrome-moly, i think it was a different alloy. i've tried to find that info but can't find it anywhere but remember reading what it was some time back and don't think it was the chrome-moly. the firewall isn't complete so when we add the rest of the steel at the roof line plus the steel at the winshield it should hold if the car is rolled. we have looked at a lot of open top cars to try to come up with the best design for safety. through out the rear stretch we tied the remaining fiero parts to the main rails which should give ue all the strength we need. one thing i have to add about this design is that if you have a se, vt, sv or 6.0 the chassis will have to be different at the firewall where the quarter glass is located, i've been trying to put something together for fletch to post on his site to cover it but its kinda hard since everyone that we are building for wants the roadster.
wrkitcars
Member posted 07 September 2002 08:39 AM
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In June of this year, I stopped by CRP and was able to see a chassis and jig that had been built right off a Real Diablo Chassis (the real chassis was sitting right next to it and I have no idea how they got hold of this diablo). It had to be the most complicated jig I have ever seen but it was a tube by tube copy. I also saw the suspension jigs and I must tell you guys, It was pretty neat. I had hoped to order up a chassis sometime next year, but we all know the fate that befell CRP. I can't imagine going through so much trouble only to let your business go down. I'm very curious to see where this chassis jig turns up.
Endre Bujtas
New Member posted 08 September 2002 05:06 AM
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Speaking of copying the Diablo chassis, I don't know why anyone would do it anyway because even if you do copy it you are not going to get the same handling characteristics of the real car anyway. Sure you copied the chassis with the same wheelbase, track width and suspension, but the weight distribution will not be the same. The location of mass points such as the engine/trans combination, the fact that you are using a fiberglass body that may not have the same weight distribution will change the center of mass of the car. All these things will cause the roll center to change. So why bother duplicating the chassis?
kevkev 60
Member posted 08 September 2002 06:41 AM
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This is exactly the point people are tring to make in this industry. It's an evolution starting out with stretched fiero's, to tube chassis, which will lead to copiing the whole car and this will eventually end up with the transmission in the tunnel as the original Contach/Diablo thats why I'm designing my replica this way, then role center and CG etc will be one with the car we all study or close enough. Tranny in the tunnel, there are so many benifits. It will not require cable shifting instead the shift can be connected to the gear box. the person that come out with this first is going to rock the Diablo replica world. keep checking my diary.
horsethang
Member posted 08 September 2002 07:51 AM
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"Tranny in the tunnel"?
Sorry I have no idea what that is.
Please expand as I am very curious.
shaddoe
Member posted 08 September 2002 09:47 AM
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the tranny on the real car goes forward under the center console. not quite sure how you would get this to work though.

 

Craig Nadeau wrote 3/7/02

When I started building chassis, I made all my own brackets and tabs. I would spend hours cutting, grinding, drilling and so on. Then I discovered A&A Manufacturing who makes tons of die cut tabs and brackets. This was a huge time saver and they are cheap parts!

 

Books about suspension design: (Check the book section for more recommendations)
Race Car Engineering & Mechanics, by Paul Van Valkenburgh - published by HP Books
Chassis Engineering by Herb Adams - published by HP Books

 

 

 
This entire Website is copyright © 2002-2005 by Ron Fletcher. All rights reserved.
Although my information comes from various builders and sources, if you want any information contact me. The photographs used on this site are used with permission, if you want to use any, contact them through the various links on this site. I did and you can see the results!