R500 Duratec - Nylon Skid Plate now Fitted

[nigelpugh]

Guys,

 

Thought you might be interested to see some pictures of the Nylon Skid Plate that Caterham have supplied.

 

Here is a picture of the plate prior to fitting :-

 

Skid Plate

 

And here it is fitted to the engine and bellhousing:

 

Skid Plate Fitted

 

Seems like a good quality item, and I am happy that I now have some protection down there.

 

Nige.

 

Nigel

 

Nigel Pugh - Area Representative - WAGS - Worcestershire Area Group Sevens

 

R500 CP - New 2008 Duratec R500

[I.Mupferit]

A good idea although personally I would grind a bit of metal from the bottom of the bellhousing so that there was nothing hanging below the skid plate at all.

 

Brent

(aka Arfur Nayo)

 

Lotus Elise Probably the best hair dryer in the world! 😬

[andy couchman]

For non duratecs, where do you buy the raw material to make something similar?

 

Andy

[Beverlonian]

Hi,

I've never used them before but check out the stock clearance section here

 

I'd go for acetal, it gives a good machined finish, If you have access to a miller that is.

 

Andy

 

SV in Aztec Orange 'n' Black.

I was the catman but I'm alright Noooowww........

[Eccles]

I've used them, had very good service from them too

 

Ivan

 

 

[Jason Plato]

you cant grind it away Brent as the flywheel protrudes below the line of the sump. Then the bellhousing would be open to the elements.

 

There is now a smaller flywheel available AFAIK with a conventional clutch, but this also requires a new starter motor .

 

 

 

here is my Duratec R .... C7 TOP

Taffia joint AO with Al

 

[I.Mupferit]

I didn't mean grind away the entire bellhousing casing that protrudes below the sump line. Rather I was referring to the 1 or 2mm or so that is just proud of the bottom and sides of the skid plate, as seen from the 'fitted' pic, and which could still catch on a rock that the skid plate slides over. It probably wouldn't happen but it could still be possible to break a small section off the bellhousing flange if it caught on something, so personally I would ensure the flange is flush with the profile of the skid plate.

 

Besides, think of the weight saving of carrying that out.

 

Brent

(aka Arfur Nayo)

 

Lotus Elise Probably the best hair dryer in the world! 😬

 

Edited by - Brent Chiswick on 26 May 2009 10:12:37

[w7rren]

Could make one out of wood............... & stain it with cuprinol

[Stationary M25 Traveller]

Looks horribly vulnerable prior to skid fitting !!! 😳 Is that how they come, or have you removed a cover plate ?

 

 

[John Howe]

DJ is correct, Raceline have produced a flywheel that has the starter gear inboard (i.e. smaller diameter) and a shallower bellhousing. Thas said, the bellhousing sits below the dry sump pan by 14mm...

 

JH

Deliveries by Saffron, the yellow 230bhp Sausage delivery machine

[Jason Plato]

to keep it in context, the bellhousing is sat at the same height from the ground as the K series unit.

 

On mine the wet sump protects the bellhousing 😬

 

here is my Duratec R .... C7 TOP

Taffia joint AO with Al

 

[Stationary M25 Traveller]

It was the exposed flywheel, ref gravel ingress, that looked scary !

 

 

[rgrigsby]

That's pretty standard on a duratec although a lot of people cover the exposed section with a small metal plate, this is what I have on my car.

 

The bell housing definetly hits earlier than the sump, I'd quite like to see some pictures of the new smaller flywheel/bell housing/starter motor set-up to see just how much more clearance there is.

 

Cheers

 

Rob G

www.SpeedySeven.com

[Jason Plato]

the flywheel sits above the sump pan Rob

 

here is my Duratec R .... C7 TOP

Taffia joint AO with Al

 

[FunkySon]

Nigel,

 

Out of interest do you have any details on cost? Or a part number?

 

It does seem pretty odd to me to leave it exposed. If it's not too expensive it looks like a sensible thing to have as I now have visions of filling it up with gravel (thanks SM25T for pointing that out).

 

Thanks

 

Duncan

[nigelpugh]

Guys,

 

Thanks for all the comments on the skid plate.

 

I too was very unhappy with the openness of this arrangement and had questioned it from the start, and when I finished the build of my car.

 

The reason it is like that is because of the very shallow nature of titan dry sump, which means that there is good ground clearance at the front of the engine, but left the bell housing exposed.

 

As far as the cost I have no idea, it was agreed that when the design was finalized it would be provided as it should have been supplied when the car was delivered to me as a kit.

 

Not sure about what could get in there, anything potentially as it so exposed, especially if you happen to be doing a track day and end up in the kitty litter!!

 

As I have booked a few track events I wanted to get it fitted and it was sent to me by CC when it was available.

 

The only thing I had experienced was a strange smell from the clutch when driving in the wet as you can expect the water goes straight in to the bell housing at speed.

 

I was looking at making an aluminum plate for my car prior to getting this, but the advantage to the skid is that you can get away with riding over large bumps such as the dreaded shell petrol station speed humps, and the fact that it is not a vertical face will really help on that front.

 

I am sure that Caterham will make it available as an aftermarket part soon.

 

Nige.

 

Nigel

 

Nigel Pugh - Area Representative - WAGS - Worcestershire Area Group Sevens

 

R500 CP - New 2008 Duratec R500