Bee’s 2010 SS/RS Rally Yellow Build

[Bee]

Originally Posted by hesster

Killer Build! Got to the end and really like the ACS Rear Qtr Ports. Have not seen those before, looking hard at doing that mod. And - how do you like the Rockers and Winglets? Seeing as finding GFX rockers is almost impossible, I like the ACS stuff. Keep up the Modding Madness!

Thank you so much...I just started to read your build thread the other day and you have one heck of a project going on!

Prior to choosing ACS, I was eyeing up the ground kit made by 3DCarbon. But I'm really glad I went the ACS Rockers as they just blend it with the rest of the car. At first, I thought the winglets were going to stand out too much. That may have been based on a picture I came across where the winglets were a different color from the side rockers. But I figured I would just get them when I orders the side rockers and in the end, they add a nice layer of dimension to the rockers.

The winglets don't always show up in pictures. Here's one where you can at least see the outline a little better, but let me know if you want to see them at a different angle.

[Bee]

I made some more progress today. I started off by finishing the passenger side. I just wanted to show again how I handle the corners by first removing as much as I can from the center and then I just make a bunch of smaller cuts until the corners are clean.




I was curious to see the back side of the fuel door looked, so while it was open I snapped this photo.



With both holes cut, I was able to lay both ports in to see how they are going to look.



At one point in the ACS install video, they placed the port into the hole and traced around the edges. I’m not sure why they did that, but I thought I should at least do the same thing in case it comes up later.



Next up was to get these grommets installed in the pan. There’s a channel between the top and bottom so it will form a really good seal. The ACS video briefly showed the outlet/drain tube should point toward the outer rear corner. I also set the curl of the tube to bend towards the front to make it easier to point to the plug in the trunk it will go through.




Since the adhesive has to cure for 12 hours, I thought I would do the pans and the mesh grills today. I forgot how hard this stuff is to get out of the tube. Thankfully, I had a tube of clear silicone so I ended up using that on the mesh instead.




And here was my stopping point for today.

[The_bald_eagle_machine]

Originally Posted by Bee

I made some more progress today. I started off by finishing the passenger side. I just wanted to show again how I handle the corners by first removing as much as I can from the center and then I just make a bunch of smaller cuts until the corners are clean.

Attachment 1147466
Attachment 1147467

I was curious to see the back side of the fuel door looked, so while it was open I snapped this photo.

Attachment 1147468

With both holes cut, I was able to lay both ports in to see how they are going to look.

Attachment 1147469

At one point in the ACS install video, they placed the port into the hole and traced around the edges. I’m not sure why they did that, but I thought I should at least do the same thing in case it comes up later.

Attachment 1147470

Next up was to get these grommets installed in the pan. There’s a channel between the top and bottom so it will form a really good seal. The ACS video briefly showed the outlet/drain tube should point toward the outer rear corner. I also set the curl of the tube to bend towards the front to make it easier to point to the plug in the trunk it will go through.

Attachment 1147471
Attachment 1147472

Since the adhesive has to cure for 12 hours, I thought I would do the pans and the mesh grills today. I forgot how hard this stuff is to get out of the tube. Thankfully, I had a tube of clear silicone so I ended up using that on the mesh instead.

Attachment 1147473
Attachment 1147474

And here was my stopping point for today.

Attachment 1147475

Literally my first thought was... What about water in the quarter panel? This obviously put that question to rest. I gotta say Bee, I like your style, suprised you didn't want that ACS big mouth kit that i had for sale awhile back since most of this stuff doesnt exist anymore.

This looks really good and like everything you've done, looks really professional and well done. You definitely have a really well thought out procedure process. Lots of attention to small details.

[Bee]

Originally Posted by The_bald_eagle_machine

Literally my first thought was... What about water in the quarter panel? This obviously put that question to rest. I gotta say Bee, I like your style, suprised you didn't want that ACS big mouth kit that i had for sale awhile back since most of this stuff doesnt exist anymore.

This looks really good and like everything you've done, looks really professional and well done. You definitely have a really well thought out procedure process. Lots of attention to small details.

Thank you so much! Yeah, if they didn't have any drain tubes for water then it would have been a deal breaker. I did consider buying your big mouth kit after you decided to go a different direction. However, I already have the T3 radiator support, which is what makes the mail slot functional.

It is a shame that ACS stopped making a lot of their 5th gen Camaro parts. They spent all the time researching/developing them, so you would think they could at the very least build them to order since they have the molds.

[SlowLS1]

I admire the kind of work you do. Very well thought out and executed. Kudos to you sir.

[The_bald_eagle_machine]

Originally Posted by Bee

Thank you so much! Yeah, if they didn't have any drain tubes for water then it would have been a deal breaker. I did consider buying your big mouth kit after you decided to go a different direction. However, I already have the T3 radiator support, which is what makes the mail slot functional.

It is a shame that ACS stopped making a lot of their 5th gen Camaro parts. They spent all the time researching/developing them, so you would think they could at the very least build them to order since they have the molds.

I reached out to them about a few pieces and they are no longer producing the items that show unavailable or discontinued. They told me that they couldn't even produce a template for me either or provide a pdf of one to print myself. Its a shame but as a start up business owner myself... They probably know that making parts for the small minority that want to buy them isnt worth the money spent. I made the lightweight crash bars with tow hooks and sold less then half, and now i can't find buyers for the other 13 units

[Bee]

Originally Posted by SlowLS1

I admire the kind of work you do. Very well thought out and executed. Kudos to you sir.

Thanks man, I really appreciate that!

Originally Posted by The_bald_eagle_machine

I reached out to them about a few pieces and they are no longer producing the items that show unavailable or discontinued. They told me that they couldn't even produce a template for me either or provide a pdf of one to print myself. Its a shame but as a start up business owner myself... They probably know that making parts for the small minority that want to buy them isnt worth the money spent. I made the lightweight crash bars with tow hooks and sold less then half, and now i can't find buyers for the other 13 units

Oh wow, that is a shame...it sounds like there is something else behind the scenes then. If they don't have the template then my guess is they don't have the molds either. I know everything you make is top notch. I'll shoot you a PM later with an idea.

[Bee]

Just a quick update, yesterday morning I unclamped the pans and made sure everything felt nice and solid.




After work, I began test fitting and trimming the mesh. This is where having the marks around the edges comes in handy (more on that in a bit). Here’s a before and after shot of the mesh, but basically everything along the sides had to be trimmed.




Here’s how the passenger side came out. At first, the mesh was preventing the port from lining up on the marks, but after trimming the outside edges of the ports are on the marks I previously made on the painters tape.



Unfortunately, the drivers side is slightly off the mark…I’m only talking about maybe a 1/16” or so and only at the backside of the port. After looking closely, I noticed there is a slight curve along the inside edge of the pan (if you look at the first picture in this post you may be able to see it). Thankfully, that is just a lip so the next order of business will be to sand that down a hair to get the port to line up.

[Bee]

I have been chipping away each night to get this install wrapped up. Picking up where I previously left off, I used a small sanding drum to shave the lip back just enough so the port edges lined back up with the marks.




Once I was happy with how the port was positioned, I then began removing the painters tape to prepare for gluing in the ports. However, I still wanted to have something to help with lining up the port, so I reused a few pieces on the outer edges so they wouldn’t be glued under the port.




I didn’t want to forget about the drain tubes (because that would make one heck of a mess). I popped the factory plugs and ran the tubes through the floor and then secured them with zip ties. I took a quick peak underneath to make sure the tubes were not touching the exhaust. However, I do want to get back under there and see if I should route them or at least trim the tube so they don't stick down too far.




Finally, I ran a bead of the adhesive around the port. My caulk gun doesn’t have the thrust needed to get the epoxy out of the tube, so to save my hands this time I ended up using a clamp on the caulk gun trigger. Once I got it going, it flowed quite nice. I then carefully lined the port along the tape, made sure everything was lined up and placed a couple of dumbbells to hold the ports in place.

[Bee]

I wanted to give one final update on the ports. After waiting a full 12-hours for the adhesive to cure, I removed the dumbbells and confirmed the ports are nice and solid. Before I get into the final results, I crawled back underneath to get a better look at the drain tubes. They actually are in a safe spot. They aren’t close to anything and the water looks like it may hit the bottom of the rear bumper before going to the ground.



I really need to give my car a good wash but for the time being I broke out my mini air cannon and blew off all the dust. I then felt comfortable using waterless wash spray to quickly wipe down the rear quarter panels to get rid of the fingerprint smudges.





Overall, I am very happy with how they turned out and I’m glad I didn’t mothball the project any longer. However, I’m not sure if the pictures I have taken really capture the full essence, as it looks really cool in person. So here are a few more at different angles..I’ll take better pictures with a nicer background using a real camera once the weather cooperates.

[SlowLS1]

Amazing work as always! Can't wait to see it with some good backdrop!

[The_bald_eagle_machine]

I love the attention to detail in what you do. Do you have any other ACS mods in the future? Or just mods in general?

[Bee]

Originally Posted by SlowLS1

Amazing work as always! Can't wait to see it with some good backdrop!

Thank you! Yeah, my garage serves its primary purpose of keeping my car (and motorcycle) out of the elements but its certainly not ready for MTV Cribs.

Originally Posted by The_bald_eagle_machine

I love the attention to detail in what you do. Do you have any other ACS mods in the future? Or just mods in general?

That's all the ACS mods I have. It's kind of funny how close my car came out to looking like the one I built using their simulator.



As for other mods, I'm down to just two things on my workbench - a RAM Clutch Adjuster and BMR front & rear swaybar end links. After that, I'm considering what else to do to spruce up the interior. But the only things left on my build "wish" list are heads, gears, and either an aluminum driveshaft or trying the driveshaft carrier upgrade.

[Leadsled]

Originally Posted by Bee

Thank you! Yeah, my garage serves its primary purpose of keeping my car (and motorcycle) out of the elements but its certainly not ready for MTV Cribs.



That's all the ACS mods I have. It's kind of funny how close my car came out to looking like the one I built using their simulator.

Attachment 1148013

As for other mods, I'm down to just two things on my workbench - a RAM Clutch Adjuster and BMR front & rear swaybar end links. After that, I'm considering what else to do to spruce up the interior. But the only things left on my build "wish" list are heads, gears, and either an aluminum driveshaft or trying the driveshaft carrier upgrade.

I was thinking about the carrier upgrade too! but for 300, I think I rather the aluminum shaft for the performance benefit.