My Mudane

[samuelellis]

Ok this is just a few photos of what is happening to my humble Mundane Diesel estate, what is happening is not the usual PH fare of more power and add lightness so can we please take any potential "You have ruined your car oh nooooes" and "why have you not just shoehorned the mother of all engines in" as read as i will enjoy the car when it is finished but as it is as mad and oddball as shoehoring a v8 into an mx5 i figured some of you may be interested just because of how daft it is

And besides we need pointless cars out on the roads

First off the car





Its a Mondeo with a derv - all simple and boring so far

Now for what is happening it it
6 batteries in the boot
2 1kwish amps for the front speakers
1 3kw amp for the subwoofers
8 JL Audio 12inch woofers
no rear seats
6.5 inch speakers in the kickbuilds
tweeters in the a-pillars
8inch midbass speakers in the doors

Now it is shipped off to my friends bodyshop


Blacked out windows suit it



Stripped and sound-deadened


First part of the speaker enclosure installed - this is going to be a 6th order bandpass box so the woofers will fire into that piece of MDF and that should load the cone and keep it under control


Should i not have a door here?

Ah here it is


carcase of the speaker box going in




Front end amplifier1

The other side of the car is the same


mmm dusty - how many detailers have just had a heart attack

Woofer baffle





Still dusty


And that is the car as it stands as my friend is currently working on it, as i said i know its not the usual PH Fare but then again any mad project is good to see and the outside of the car is staying pretty much standard so it will be funny when Chavvy McCorsa trys annoying people with bassline only to be handed hsi arse by a Mondeo and slayer (BTW i wont be booming town centres with it - that annoys me as much as it does everyone else)

Edited by samuelellis on Sunday 19th December 15:48

[samuelellis]

rb5230 said:

why?

Why not, the car was cheapish, Ihave not got any children and I like my music to physically hurt from time to time

As i said its no madder than build a drag racer as that only runs for a few seconds and you cant do your family shop in it or stripping your car out to its bare minimum when you still need to use it to sit in traffic and go to work

[samuelellis]

rb5230 said:

samuelellis said:

rb5230 said:

why?

Why not, the car was cheapish, Ihave not got any children and I like my music to physically hurt from time to time

As i said its no madder than build a drag racer as that only runs for a few seconds and you cant do your family shop in it or stripping your car out to its bare minimum when you still need to use it to sit in traffic and go to work

I would say it is quite different to building a drag/track car, in fact the polar opposite i e performance gains and driving experience.

A car with good quality 1 sub and an amplifier in the boot is very loud if you like that kind of thing, to me this just seems a massive waste of time/money unless you are trying to start up some kind of mobile rave business.

And the difference in volume level between one woofer and 8 is quite different, the difference in sound quality of large amplifiers barely stressed compared to a smaller amp run at the ragged edge is different as well

Explain the driving experience gains to having a stripped out car plod up and down the motorway every day as that is what mine does, i will lose very little ride comfort and it should actually be quieter on the motorway road noise wise. I cant see that being the same in a track car or a drag car

What you define as loud and what i define as loud are two different things, for example this is my old car ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhntpTimwVI ) and i did not consider that to be too loud

Shall we just agree to disagree

[samuelellis]

Slagathore said:

Is all that dust from the MDF?

I hope you've been wearing a decent mask while cutting that MDF, as the dust is pretty bad for you!!

its my friend that build it, some of the dust is MDF, some is it is bodyfiller dust as the enclosure has bodyfiler in it to smooth the joins where the MDF meets.

You do make a valid point about the mask and yes he does use one as he runs his own bodyshop (its where the car is being built) but it is a point worth stressing to people who may want to build a speaker enclosure themselvesthat when working with MDF ALWASY WEAR A MASK

[samuelellis]

Thejimreaper said:

When would you ever get the most out of that, not like you would drive round playing it out that loud. I take it you will be doing some things to the outside. Is it a promo car or something?

Hope the outside is staying as stock as it can - the only thing will be the tinted windows, a bit lower rideheight and a small sticker for my friends bodyshop where it was built

Is it a promo car? Nope all built out of my pocket and built for me, it will get used at fulltilt from time to time when it gets taken to sound-offs as i compete in them but for most of the time the speakers will live an unstressed life

[samuelellis]

Taita said:

Does normal music sound good with that setup? Or just the sort of 'fart noise' from the clip?

Yes it does, the fart noise is just the camera not able to cope with the volume and the mic distorting, i fully intend to feed everything from classical to death metal through mine when it is finished and will welcome people having a listen if they wish. You would be surprised how many cars with setups like this are driving around the UK, the reason you dont know about them is once you own something weaponsgrade its only really played at high level at shows and i know a lot of the people who own these things have self rules about using them

It is weird being in these vehicles as you just start laughing - as far as i can work out it causes the bit of the brain that still goes "ugg ugg me kill dinosaur" to think your being attacked so just get a hit of adrenaline and god knows what else

[samuelellis]

scorchio said:

HI mate what kind of spl are you aiming for as years ago when i paid aome attention to sound offs they were aiming for 150-160db, I asume the roof and all panel have been full sound deadened with dynamat as there is nothing worse than buzzing panels with bass, is it set just for spl or are you trying for some sq, know its going to be difficult with stageing with that flat wall of woofers

I have no idea how loud it will be, the fella building it has built a nova (yes a Nova) that did a 170 but that was well into the extremes of it, i know mine will be nowehre near as loud

All the panels have been sound-deadened but with a product the guy who runs DB Drag racing brings in that does the job better

It is my only car so it will have decent SQ from the frontend, tbh the soundstage may not be all that bad as its the front speakers that handle most fo that and if those are set right then the brain can be trucked into beliving the soundstage is good (and lets be honest your never going to get it spot on in a car)

[samuelellis]

Fun Bus said:

Um. Where to start. Well, I admire the fact you are doing something utterly different and daft in a good way.

I just don't get why you're doing it to a jewish racing gold Mondeo, diesel, estate. I suppose it's a Q-car of sorts!

As you said its a Jewish racing gold Mondeo estate on small OEM alloys - who would suspect it

That and it was cheap, its comfy, it was cheap, its got more space than you would imagine, its was cheap, its a 54place so still in good nick, it was cheap, its reasonably economical, it was cheap, its designed to pull a caravan with a family of lardy's onboard so it will take te weight

Oh and did i mention it was cheap

If you look at the people who compete allsorts of cars are used - the old Volvo240 estates are used by finnish extreme competitors quite regularly and the humble Fiat Panda/Seat Marbella are used quite a lot in the street classes

Muzzer said:

samuelellis said:

for most of the time the speakers will live an unstressed life

Then I have to ask, why build it?

Fair enough if you like your stereos and stuff - build an ICE car. But surely not using it to the max from time to time is like having a supercar and driving round at 50mph all the time?

it will get pushed to its limits but when i said they will live and unsressed life i mean its not going to be circling towncentres on full whack every weekend

btw sorry about some bad typing, i blame the keyboard

Edited by samuelellis on Monday 20th December 14:51

[samuelellis]

shirt said:

qn - what are you going to use it for?

i mean, i can't imagine that the stereo is going to sound good, certainly nothing like sitting at home in front of a decent seperates system and also nowhere near a levinson/naim/b&w/linn in-car system. unless you are into raves, are some kind of mental picnic-er or fancy yourself as the next prince buster, i just don't see what the attraction is.

Simple its a laugh, the car goes to shows with me, i spend time hanging out listening to music indulging in bad burger van food and then go home BUT once you have heard a truly loud car its kind of like a bug.

TBH the sq of thses cars is very good if they are setup right, i know i would put money on the cars that compete in SQ wiping the floor with the Linn, Mark Levenson etc factory systems, mine on the other hand wont be as good but will still be good to listen to

Edit: and just for a urine extraction at my expensie i will recreate the beginig of Ali G In da house with the car when it is done

Edited by samuelellis on Monday 20th December 16:19

[samuelellis]

shirt]fair do's. i just thought the weak point of a car froma hifi point of view [listening said:

is the car itself - size/shape/etc.

i agree a loud system is addictive, which is why i like standing in front of the stack at gigs

Ah another person who likes to be shook - you understand the being punched in the chest feeling then

yea the car interior is in no way shape or form acoustically good but you can make them sound very very nice and the lengths some people go make what im having done look smallfry, i would recomend poking your head around some fo the sq builds that compete in EMMA as an example and then look at some of the cars entering in DB Drag if you just want to be hurt by them

[samuelellis]

GFWilliams said:

Strangely I understand this. I didn't use to be a fan of this kind of thing at all, but I went in an old chevy truck with a full DC audio system in the back. The air moving past you is a very unique feeling and very cool. It's also quite amusing pulling up next to people and turning up the bass

To have it in an unsuspecting car would be brilliant seeing the reactions of people in traffic if you were to suddenly turn it on!

Good luck with it

and i know exactly the vehicle you are on about as i have spent a bit of time in the passenger seat myself

[samuelellis]

Warning - Multi-quote ahead

The Crack Fox said:

So, in a nutshell, a stereo on wheels built to get one over on spaxo kid at Mcdonalds ? If you like it, fine, but I cannot think of a bigger waste of time or money myself...

Eta - sorry if that's a bit negative...

Edited by The Crack Fox on Wednesday 22 December 18:36

In a nutshell, not really. Im building the thing for my own enjoyment as i like to feel the music trying to hurt me, trust me when i say playing something like Mars the bringer of war from the planets suite or from the other end of the spectrum Hallelujah by VADER (youtube them if you have not heard of them) at a volume level where it is getting hard to breath is an interesting experience, not something you can do often but its nice to have the ability to do it when you get the chance

young_bairn said:

I quite like my AV stuff so I can understand the guy's passion. I would rather spend the cash on some top end equipment for the home however. Each to their own and all that. Good luck.

I have just got the keys to my first place so am currently planning out the home theatre setup for the new house as i fancy upgrading my current stuff

TXWRX said:

these projects always remind me of that thing they had on the big breakfast where they got people to compete for the loudest sound system byu parking accross the canal and blasting the house

It was quite amusing in its own way and amazing the money folk were spending on that kit, can't find any youtube of it but there must be something somewhere

Yep i remember the big breakfast sound-offs, i alwasy made my and my brother late for school as i insisted on watching them

A couple of people who were on the big breaksfast are stil around the sound-off scene, its something that gets in the blood


And tbh as much as i like the Mondeo (this is my 2nd Mk3) it is a white good so in my mind its a giggle to do something so outlandish

Oh i never mentioned what I have been (and currently am) driving while the Mudane is off the road, im in a 206 Diesel and tbh its a giggle, not a lot of power, rolly suspension but more grip than it should by rights have mean its fun on the twistys if you keep working the gearbox

[samuelellis]

dudleybloke said:

i love it when the bass is that powerfull it stops you from breathing!

what frequencys will your bandpass box go down to?

We are not 100% sure how far down it will plahy until we test, modify, test, modify but im going to put money on it playing down to (or lower) than 30hz and doing it with some authority

[samuelellis]

dudleybloke said:

samuelellis said:

dudleybloke said:

i love it when the bass is that powerfull it stops you from breathing!

what frequencys will your bandpass box go down to?

We are not 100% sure how far down it will plahy until we test, modify, test, modify but im going to put money on it playing down to (or lower) than 30hz and doing it with some authority

hope the windows can take it!

Im not going to get to the level of breaking screens BUT the UK does already have cars that can break screens, an example http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-1anBDkfNg It would be nice to get to that volume level but once you get to that point you have to start doing extreme modifications to the car just to hold it together

[samuelellis]

RetroTed said:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQCU3iyDYM8&fea...

If only it could blow her top off

Having been in that van (see link, im the long haired tit in the Mini t-shirt - http://samuelellis.cozywebhost.com//gallery2/main.... ) i can say that if her top was baggy it probably could

charliedaker said:

Looks great! I totally get why you're doing it. Its sad that tougher laws on noise pollution and a change in modifying trends have nearly killed this whole scene and put many car hifi retailers have subsequently gone out of business.

Ive always put good stereos in my vehicles as it is really the only place i can turn it up and enjoy it.

At the moment in the front of my horselorry i have a Kenwood double din, Hertz 3 way kit in door builds, a hertz 8" sub moun ted in a custom box under the passenger seat running off a Massive amp. Sounds good! Brilliant way towhile away the time at a constant 56mph lol.

Ill be keen to see updates on your build

As much as i love my loud music and loud cars (heck i compete in sound-offs) sadly a lot of young lads with the big-ish ice installs have brought in these regulations, this is why i love competing as most of the people competing are not the lets annoy people at 3am with car stereo brigade, i would honestly recommend anyone who does not quite understand this to try and get to a DB Drag event and have a poke round the cars/talk to the owners

BTW i have a feeling i will be joining you in the inside lane as i will be treating this thing like it is towing all the time, still its not going to add a huge amout of time to my journeys and the car will still be a comfortable mile muncher

[samuelellis]

charliedaker said:

charliedaker said:

Looks great! I totally get why you're doing it. Its sad that tougher laws on noise pollution and a change in modifying trends have nearly killed this whole scene and put many car hifi retailers have subsequently gone out of business.

Ive always put good stereos in my vehicles as it is really the only place i can turn it up and enjoy it.

At the moment in the front of my horselorry i have a Kenwood double din, Hertz 3 way kit in door builds, a hertz 8" sub moun ted in a custom box under the passenger seat running off a Massive amp. Sounds good! Brilliant way towhile away the time at a constant 56mph lol.

Ill be keen to see updates on your build

As much as i love my loud music and loud cars (heck i compete in sound-offs) sadly a lot of young lads with the big-ish ice installs have brought in these regulations, this is why i love competing as most of the people competing are not the lets annoy people at 3am with car stereo brigade, i would honestly recommend anyone who does not quite understand this to try and get to a DB Drag event and have a poke round the cars/talk to the owners

BTW i have a feeling i will be joining you in the inside lane as i will be treating this thing like it is towing all the time, still its not going to add a huge amout of time to my journeys and the car will still be a comfortable mile muncher

You're probably right! It wont be the nicest handling vehicle!
I got into it through In Car Systems (SMC) in Shrewsbury who sadly packed in the car audio side of the business earlier this year.

They had done some brilliant installs in their time competing in SQ.

It would be good to see the industry pick up again.

Hopefully you could be championing the cause!

Well the car will be at most of the modified car shows next year funds willing and as i live in an area most people on here would refer to as a sthole of the highest order i am hoping once it is done to get hooked up with some of da yoof schemes as i have pretty much what da yoof have through hard work and the odd daft thing once in a while just to give people a giggle (id i had it ont he road this year it was going to get cardboard santa-sleigh sides on it and i was going to crooze the local town centre dressed up as St Nick booming xmas carrols . The reason i will probably be doing daft things like that is to show the general public that not everyone who fits loud speaker systems to cars are brainless idiots and if it gives people a laugh then why not, we all need a laugh from time to time

The industry is not as big as it was in its hayday but soud-off continue on over the country and get good turnouts for SQ and SPL, the amount of people working on other peoples cars with them to make them better up and down the country is quite surprising and every year talkaudio host a free event for TA membbers to go to Oxford and take a look at other peoples installs etc and we have Adam Rayner still championing the car audio cause so its not all bad

[samuelellis]

Jonny671 said:

Looks like a good build! The equiptment and specs don't mean anything to me though

I used to go around with Lozzy (May have heard of him? Had a cavalier, then a blueish Astra Van) with a couple of 18s in it and then some silly amount of stuff.. One time down on Brighton Seafront the bass was so much you could physically feel your heart missing a beat

Yep i know Lozzy, last car he had iirc was an audi estate with a speaker tunnel in theback of it, be interesting to see what hisnew car will do

ecain - cheers fella, tbh as i said in my first post i expected some negativity as it kind of goes 100% against the grain of most cars but i always think its good to see build threads that cover practially everything, if you really want to see some really really OTT builds then google a forum called termpro and hit the DB Drag sections (Anything with the heading extreme will be an eye opener)

TBH ive been on forums long enough to not worry what people think of me beacause i am as much of a dick in real life as i come across as on the

Im not sure the current progress of the car as i have not been up to my friends bodyshop to check but should be soon

[samuelellis]

I know a couple of people are following this so i figured i would post some updates as i got up to the bodyshop where the car is today

The inside of the box has been fibreglassed to make it stronger as you can see in this pic



im quite pleased at how well the cars suspension looks to be coping, i have the uprated springs to go on but it is a good sign the stock stuff looks to be coping - get low get low





now Rich has fibreglassed the enclosure you can see where the back of the box will be, not a huge amount of bootspace left but i should still get the weekly shop in



Shot from the drivers headrest in the front chamber



As i said before i know its not the usual pistonheads project log that is posted but i figure some people may like to see something daft

Edited by samuelellis on Tuesday 18th January 19:55

[samuelellis]

that the plan, keep the outside as stock as possible, once the suspension goes on it should sit and ride like standard - the tints give it away a little bit but as i said before im young, daft, have some cash and if i bought something fast i would be dead

[samuelellis]

Damn it - you Ghia X drivers always flaunting it in the face of us lowly Ghia owners :P

This one had about 102thousand on the clock iirc when work started