I was attempting to get some more prep work done on the spoiler...until my trusty orbital sander decided to be dramatic and started to spit out internal parts. I'll try again tomorrow...hopefully the new sander will be more cooperative.
My posts are getting fewer and farther apart. Hopefully I will get back to posting more often.
I started work on the inside of the engine hatch. I've fiberglassed the frame to the hatch and will finish it off with a little body fill to smooth it out.
I also primed the underneath of the spoiler....and subsequently found several dozen flaws that needed some attention. Should just need a final sanding now.
I added ledges to the engine hatch today (used to hold the glass panels). They were cut from flat strips of fiberglass (4 layers) that were larger than the required finished ledges. The first step was just to align them and get them bonded in place with some body filler. I'll strengthen them with multiple layers of fiberglass to properly bond them in place and complete the underneath shape of the hatch. Once they are properly secured I'll be able to flip the hatch over and then cut them to the finished dimensions.
First test of the (oem) third brake light that is embedded in the spoiler...
I've now finished fiberglassing the back side of the engine hatch. I still have to add a finishing layer of body fill to smooth out the surface, and then I'll cut the ledges to their final shape.
Quick video of the active spoiler working (finally). Not the best quality video...but you'll get the idea.
I'm just hooking the motor directly to the battery...no controller at the moment, which means that it is actually rising up a little higher than it should. Once the controller is in place I'll program it to stop at the correct angle. I'll also try to get a better video later...preferably from behind the car.
It's funny how little work gets done when the weather is perfect for working on the car.... now that it has taken a turn for the worse I should be in the garage all the time
Getting a little closer with the rear hatch. I've finished with installing the core, the inner fiberglass layers and an initial Bondo layer. I've also ordered custom cut glass panels for the hatch. They have a complex profile so it took a while for me to find a shop that could cut and temper them from the MDF templates I made up.
The hatch is almost ready now. Of course there are still lots of minor imperfections that will need to be filled. The ledges are cut straight and to the correct thickness.
I started to do some interesting fiberglassing work around the engine bay. These two pieces are used to cover the framing and also become a mounting point for the engine bay trim pieces. These two pieces still need to be finished (trimmed and smoothed out with a little bondo). I had to remove the alternator and belt tensioner since they interfered with everything. I'll need to find a new spot to mount the items I removed. Of course I'll have to pull the engine to do that...damn. Think I'll procrastinate on that for a while, lol. When I do finally get around to pulling the engine again, I'll also mount the AC compressor.
I finished the engine bay edge trim pieces with Bondo, primer and paint. They came out really well.
The final step will be to urethane them in place and drill screw holes to mount the black oem trim pieces. I'll also need to make some mounting brackets that fit just below the rear window,
All the trim pieces are sitting loose in these pics, but it shows roughly how everything goes together.
[This message has been edited by Neils88 (edited 01-03-2018).]
I picked up the new custom glass panels for the rear hatch (thanks to Peter and the guys at Centennial Glass in Ottawa!!) These are close replicas to the oem pieces, just cut specifically for my rear hatch dimensions. They are 1/4" tempered glass panels, with a 50% grey tint. Can't wait to install them...though it'll be a little longer for me to finish the rear hatch. I will also need to get some "frit paint" to paint the edges where the glass mounts to the hatch.
Here's a couple pics of the glass sitting on the hatch. The pieces fit really well for a first try. I'll still need to sand away a couple of interference points and then the glass can be properly aligned so the overhangs are correct. I'll do all the hatch bodywork before securing the glass.
The full engine bay trim is now lined up and ready to be bolted in place. Unfortunately the plastic clips I was planning on using don't seem to work. The oem cam-lock screws and hardware are great, but they are quite expensive so I'll have to find another option. You'd think it would be easy to find simple black screws/bolts that fit....
Thanks pcgold! I originally tried to use plastic clips similar to ones in the kit you referenced. Unfortunately, they didn't work well on all points and I'll need something that does a better job of clamping. I'll either use black button head bolts or be forced to break down and buy the oem cam-locks.
quote
Originally posted by RUNDLC:
Just read this thread front to back, wow my friend you've got some serious skilzz
The engine trim looked good sitting in place, but it still required a couple of brackets to be attached below the rear window to mount the center trim piece. It's amazing how simple brackets can end up taking half a day to build and put in place...
I have decided to use a different radiator than I had originally planned (shown earlier in the build thread). The spacing was just too tight above and below the radiator, and I would have had to make a large notch in the frame rail on the passenger side. So, instead of those ones, I picked up a couple of smaller Honda civic radiators to use as "disposable" templates (the stock ones are really cheap). Once everything is finished I will swap them out for some high performance radiators (with shrouds and fans). In the meantime, I need the radiators in place to finish everything in the area and guaranteed they'll end up beaten and bashed.
I finished the mounting brackets and installed both radiators (driver's side shown in picture below). I still need to add a little rubber on the mounting points.
I built a center support bracket that sits just forward of the rear hatch latch. This bracket holds the middle of the large engine bay trim piece in place and eliminates the sagging. I've also put together some additional brackets that serve to adjust the taillight alignment and lock the taillights in place. However, while putting those together, I found the right rear taillight needed to be shifted out about 1/2". This was a tougher alignment adjustment since the taillight sits in a fiberglass pocket that is bonded to the bumper. Unfortunately, the only way to adjust it was to cut the pocket off and re-fiberglass it back to the bumper.
A few things done today. I cut the holes for the license plate lights, the rear view camera and the side reflectors. I wanted to get the license plate lights and rear view camera done now, since they are in a difficult spot to deal with once the spoiler is bolted down. I'm using oem Aventador license plate lights...but the camera is from a Mercedes I think...unfortunately it's the closest one I could find, but it's still a little smaller than the oem one. I may look for other options to see if I get one that is closer to the correct size (maybe I'm just being picky... ). I'll still need to build a bracket to hold the camera in place. I started by building jigs so I could route out all the holes properly. I quickly gave up on the jigs since they were very difficult to clamp in place. I ended up routing the holes with my Dremel almost to size and then filing to the exact size.
The reflectors fit nicely...but lots of bodywork required on the quarter panels...
I was on a roll yesterday with cutting things so I decided to keep it going and cut the openings for the front marker lights. Next step is to get the rear bumper, lights, grills, spoiler, etc properly lined up and permanently secured. Looks like this is not going to be a fun job...
Unfortunately I haven't made any dramatic progress in the last month...and didn't bother to take any pics on my less than impressive progress.
Having said that, I did get the spoiler mount adjusted properly (which involved removal and fitting all new supports) and then painted the entire rear end framing. I also did the final alignment of the rear bumper...which did make me happy. The rear bumper has now been permanently secured. I chose to remove the two taillight buckets that I had made. I need to make some alignment changes to the taillights, but adjustments are hampered by the buckets. I'll have to break down and make some adjustable mounting brackets instead.
I also got to crawl all over a real Aventador at the local auto-show on Friday. They let me go past the ropes and take lots of up-close photos...great help when you need details on how to get certain parts to fit properly. ...it definitely motivated me!
I've taken another health break from the project, but was finally able to get back at it this weekend. As mentioned earlier, I had originally built fiberglass pockets for the taillights. Now that I am in the process of working through the final panel alignment I discovered that the pockets limited the ability to fine tune the alignment of the taillights. This became a problem now that the spoiler and rear bumper have been properly aligned...some fine tuning of the taillight alignment is definitely required. I've removed the pockets and will replace them with frame mounted brackets to secure the taillights. However, in order to build the required brackets, I decided to create temporary alignment jigs that rigidly hold the taillights but still allow for fine tuning. I've got a little more tweaking to go, but once I'm happy with the alignment, then I can easily create the permanent connections to the frame. (sorry for the long-winded explanation without any useful pics )
Taillight brackets are now welded in place. Unfortunately, I have a number of alignment issues (such as the exhaust) that I'll need to address before beginning any significant bodywork.
Topic Closed
I'll try again tomorrow...hopefully the new sander will be more cooperative. 
They let me go past the ropes and take lots of up-close photos...great help when you need details on how to get certain parts to fit properly. 
