All signs fitted,test drive went well,final adjustments for suspension....test drive again....put it back on the ramp...everything checked again,engine ok,suspension and brakes working well....all good news,that means The Beast ready for the first race.Lets get ready!

The first race it was all about getting to know the car,getting to know things about rally....everything went well,no problems,no repairs,just top it up with fuel,and gooooo....
The second race was a success...we finished on 3. place :)

We had good times,im proud of this car which is never let us down,we never broke down on any race,and im really proud of that,cause that means to me ive done a good job on it,when i built it,and i kept it very well maintained as well.
Some  more good pictures :

I fitted nearly everything on the car,the engine running fine,gearbox working well,breaks are perfect,first test drive was ok.
I have to tell something about the gearbox. The gearbox housing is original,but everything inside of it is modified by an engineer.
It is a 5 speed gearbox + reverse,he modified the ratios and he made it for a race,it means we don't have to use the clutch to change gears.
The sign writer arrived with plenty of stickers and put them on the car,to give it a better look.

The boys finished with the paintwork on the body...we moved it back to the workshop,and i started to fit the parts  back on...
While the boys worked on the body,i've done my part of the painting....i resprayed the bits for the suspension...

Here is the repainted body on the trailer....better then ever...:)

Back on the ramp....lets fit the bits on..

The brakes are modified,cause the genuine Lada brakes are not good enough for rally...
The master cylinder is Fiat,the front brakes are VW G60 brakes with vented discs+Ferodo DS 2500 pads.The rear brakes:they were drum brakes originally,but they are replaced with Fiat Punto GT disc brakes + Ferodo DS 2500 pads.
The front and rear suspension is adjustable.The front suspension arms are wider then originally,and the rear axle is from a Lada Niva (4x4) which is wider then a standard Lada...The shockers are Bilstein.. 

Dash is in,Toyota Yaris electronic steering column fitted with a switch stalk from a Fiat Tipo.
I made a box for the main power switch,fuel pump switch,fan switch and a start button.This is in the middle between the seats.
The car is fully rewired by a professional,so everything work perfectly.
Engine and a few other bits fitted,slowly getting there... :)

So when we got it back in the workshop,i still needed to work a few more days on the body...i couldn't do it before cause i didn't know where the roll cage gonna be....
I had to make a new mounting for the new electronic power steering column,new bucket seat mountings,cut the front and rear wheel arches higher,cause the suspension gonna be lower and wider then before,and i will need to fit the wide VFTS wheel arch and front splitter kit on it.
After all done we took the body to a body shop,where the paintwork has to be done.
Lets take it there:

The guys in the body shop have been so busy,with other jobs,so i said i will do the paintwork on it inside and underneath,if i can use the room for spraying...i did.

I've done it...and i left it with the guys to finish the paintwork on it outside....it will be silver...

So after a big crash what i had,we pushed the car in the workshop,and i removed the engine+gearbox,and the bits from inside....and started strip the body panels and all the damaged body and chassis parts as well.
some picture about it....i haven't got  more of this stage....

I've done a sandblasting on it to clean all the rust and paint off
The front end wasn't so bad (and it was rebuilt in 2008),just needed to put it back straight.
The rear end was worst,i had to cut it off fully,and replace it with new body parts.
The roof ....badly damaged....i had to cut it off and replace it with a good one from another car.
Sorry but i haven't got any pictures about these moments.....
When i've done it all,we took the rebuilt body to the specialist,who welded a proper roll cage in it.

This is how it was when we brought it back to our workshop:

The car was ready for the new season after lots of hours of work....
Some details:
Lada engine 1.8L about 110BHP: (the Lada engine originally about 68 BHP)
                                                      -Lada engine block bored for Audi TFSI pistons (engine built by MG system)
                                                      -Lada cyl head,ported for bigger valves+race camshaft from Havassy engineering
                                                      -adjustable cam pulley
                                                      -lightweight flywheel
                                                      -modified carb for race
                                                      -60mm exhaust system
                                                      -radiator fitted in the back
                                                      -standard Lada gearbox
                                                      -welded diff
                                                      -rear disc brakes
                                                      -hydraulic handbrake.
We used to race in division 2 category,but we always went for race in a super category as well,where we had to race with stronger, much more modified cars.
 

2008 it was a very successful year for us.....
We won the championship in our (div 2) category,and we won the super category as well! So we were a DOUBLE CHAMPIONS..... :)
Once it was a race for team members (mechanics).It was like every team can nominate a mechanic who can drive a car on a same race track,so every driver was a mechanic who normally work i the pit lane.
I WON this race with this car..... :) :)
We had no technical fault or problem,the whole car worked well,and my friend drove brilliantly... :) we were and still are proud of the result...
But after finish of the season something bad happened....it was an extra race just for fun and my friend said i deserved to drive it again and have fun....the things started well ,but after a fast corner i slipped out of the track and i crashed the car badly...front end ,rear end,roof damaged...it was my worst nightmare to see the car in a state like that......
But my friend told me: nevermind! im sure u can repair it......
I said (in tears): yes i will do,and it will be nicer than ever!
We put it in the garage for a rest....
Few weeks later my friend said he is thinking about a different project....he would like to try the rally...
That was the point where the VFTS project started.....
(i should have a pic about the car after the crash.i will put it here if i find it)
Anyway he wanted to rebuild the crashed body,so what u will see on the next pictures,is the same car like this blue here....

continue soon...

I've done the under body paint...fitted the suspension,wings,doors and all body panels back and get it ready for paint the whole body inside and outside...

Paintwork done,i built everything else back,engine,gearbox,battery,fuel tank,dash,seat.....after all the signwriter came to put the stickers on...

I have to start this from the beginning...this story is happened over the big sea in the middle of Europe in Hungary...My best friend in there bought one autocross car (Lada) just for having fun.He went to use it for amateur autocross...he had some fun but he wasn't really successful. One year later he did ask me to help to repair his race car and keep it maintened for a race.Of course i said YES.
In 2007 we got a bit better,we have been a good team together ,we had some success,but end of the season the car looked a bit crap,we knew what we needed to improve ,so he said he could invest more money to build a good car,if i could build one for him...I think is obvious what i said: YEEEEES,go for it!!!!!
I haven't got so many pictures from this time,but here is some...
This is how the car looked on the end of season 2007:

I stripped down the monster...including body panels,front end,everything...worked a lot on the body to make it stronger and nicer as well....

continue soon....