Lexus V8 with NOS in a Renault Espace - yeah lets do it !

[TonyRPH]

Digitalize said:

Seeing as no one has mentioned it.

HIGHER OFFSET WHEELS.

Leave the arches/tidy them up. Get wheels that fit.

I suspect that suspension clearance might be an issue?

Also - is (was??) the Lexus body a fair bit wider than the Renault anyway?

Given the OP's fabrication skills, I can't help thinking that anything he does will be right.

[The Nur]

TonyRPH said:

Given the OP's fabrication skills, I can't help thinking that anything he does will be right.

What do you mean by this?

eta: sorry, I went full retard for a moment. Completely misread your post

[TonyRPH]

The Nur said:

TonyRPH said:

Given the OP's fabrication skills, I can't help thinking that anything he does will be right.

What do you mean by this?

I meant with regard to how he deals with the wheel arches, i.e. extending them / flaring them, whatever!

[Digitalize]

Thinner wheels etc.

Can massage the arches out a bit too.

[lexspace]

Thanks for everybody's thoughts , to start with , some kind of 'arch' is needed to comply with regulations,and as the std Lexus wheels stick out , combined with the fact my new chosen set are even wider then some kind of wheelarch/extension is definitely necessary .
I really like the 5 spokes and have no intention of changing them, given how much wider the lexus is compared to the espace I don't think any different wheel combo would help anyway .

The Espace body is a plastic polymer GRP and thus it is not possible to 'roll' the arch's , another problem with 'blending' some in is with the sills and bumpers which need to be removable for access . The plastic arch's I have are not woodsport , they are actually Dagenhams finest from a long wheel base transit




Finding any suitable arch's has been a little difficult because of the large size required , the most suitable size was the transit ones .
It will be a fine balance getting some that fit the lines of the Espace body but also add a little bit of a 'mean' look to it ( I'm thinking M3 versus std 3 series for example) , I don't think the pics from the other day do the arch justice , the following pics I have taken today after some trimming , they are getting closer to the required size but more work is necessary . I think once they are a little better fit and colour coded with the body they will give it then look I'm after .

[Usget]

With a bit of tidying up, and in the right colour, that could actually look top dollar. Importantly it'll still look like an Espace, just one that's had a fistfull of steroids rather than just a spoonful.

[GTRene]

maybe you can better work with something like this type, for only the upper part, say above the bumper



cheap too

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Universal-CAR-TRUCK-CARBON...

or such>



http://www.ebay.com/itm/Carbon-Fender-Flares-Wheel...

of course in the cars colour.

or a set out this list>

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_kw=fender+flare+un...

so that only the upper part from joint to joint is covered.

to get something like this covered, only that part from joint to joint

Edited by GTRene on Monday 14th July 22:59

[bstark]

The new pics do look a lot better, and if you need them you need them.

Still can't wait to see this finished - it's fabulous!

[Simes110]

Firstly, truly fantastic work!! I'm in awe at this.

The arches. I fully appreciate what you're doing and can't argue against your arch choice. You've put the time in on research and you've made an excellent mock-up. And I know there's more work still to do.

But, and this is only my view, the arch would look considerably better being closer to the body and trimmed all round so the top lip just covers the tyre. The mock-up picture below gives the impression of being under-tyred.

The arch profile is right. Nothing wrong there. I think the whole arch just needs to sit another 20mm or so closer.

Of course, this is purely my view and it probably differs from yours. That's fine. You, sir, will remain a PH god no matter what you do.

lexspace said:

[jkh112]

Those arches will look fine once they are blended in and painted. They do still look a little wide though, could be narrower. In the latest pictures it looks as though you need wider wheels!

I am not sure why I am giving advice to you as your work to date has far exceeded anything I have produced.

Edited by jkh112 on Tuesday 15th July 08:05

[jkh112]

By coincidence I have just noticed this picture in GG. The arches look similar to what yours may look like when painted.

[Snoop Bagg]

This post is like automotive crack, I have to keep checking it to see if anything happened keep up the good work op!

[OlberJ]

That's looking much better but definitely think they need to come down a touch in width.

Were the Tranny arches good value?









Quattro blisters?

[amancalledrob]

OlberJ said:

Quattro blisters?

I can't believe noone's mentioned that already

[Stuart Thompson]

OlberJ said:

For possibly the third time, URquattro blisters all the way!

Like this.

[cento16v]

Would you not get away using spats like XK8s has when the 20" wheels came about as they had the same issue and had to cover the tread.

Much less visible?

http://www.adamesh.co.uk/ekmps/shops/adamesh/image...

If you keep the Transit arches it might look good to go for the Pand 100 HP look and keep them black and continue it on the arches and bumpers?

Edited by cento16v on Tuesday 15th July 22:54

[Megaflow]

OP you made it to build threads:

http://www.build-threads.com/build-threads/renault...

ETA: Have a look in the comments at the end, it seems like Lexus want to get in touch, in a positive way!

Edited by Megaflow on Sunday 20th July 20:18

[Froomee]

Megaflow said:

OP you made it to build threads:

http://www.build-threads.com/build-threads/renault...

ETA: Have a look in the comments at the end, it seems like Lexus want to get in touch, in a positive way!

Edited by Megaflow on Sunday 20th July 20:18

Well deserved too, this is one of my favourite builds on here.

Please bring it to a Sunday Service when complete

[s p a c e m a n]

Seems genuine, he's a freelancer on the lexus blog: http://blog.lexus.co.uk/

His twitter: https://twitter.com/Words_n_Photos

[OlberJ]

Ha! Nae pressure then