And we now have the bonnet scoop as well!

And we also have the bonnet scoop - repaired and painted now to match the rest of the car. The plastic bits in the middle are missing. We are not too concerned. The bit underneath is going to be customised to fit the intercooler and we plan to dress the hole with some black painted mesh to keep the bigger lumps out of the intake tracts.

Today - The engine went back into the car

Today we finished reassembling the engine and put it back into the car. There is still quite a bit to do before we can actually fire it up and have it running. We still need to mate up all of the harnesses and ensure that all the wiring goes to the correct places. There are bits from different models in different places that will ultimately all talk to each other - we just need to get them all to talk socially. You might notice the intercooler. It is from a WRX and we need to make some amendments to the fittings to marry it up to the intake and the turbo - it will fit quite OK once we make some minor adjustments.

And this is where we are up to - February 2006

And so this is the result of all the work and skullduggery that we have endured thus far. Our Vortex is beginning to look really sweet. With Sam's expertise and knowledge we believe that this will be one of the nicer of its type running around the place. It still needs the engine and gearbox to be fitted. They are in the throes of being rebuilt as I write. It has XT6 hubs which allow the fitment of all the late model Subaru wheels rather than the early stuff with the large PCD. The XT6 stuff means discs all round and there is a plan to fit up the 4WD stuff as well. We still need to get the dash trim right, the scoop from the bonnet is not with us yet (but it is coming soon!). We need a cool tint job on the windows and a bit of custom trimming inside. There are a few custom brackets to be built to fit a few bits so there are probably a few more months before we are able to convince the blue slip man to give us the ticket we need for rego and then we will be able to drive it. There are at least 3 people who almost can't wait!

Keep watching for more updates

And of course, once the car comes back from the painters you need to put it all back together again. We chose the popular Metallic Rally Blue colour from a current WRX for our project. Firstly there are not a lot of Vortexes around and there are probably none done in this colour. I was abit dubious at first but having seen the result I know the choice was a good one.

The start of something BIG!!

This is the car that we acquired to begin the transformation. It came with no interior fittings, a spare turbo bonnet, some spare late model bumper bars and a minimal amount of cancer in places that could readily be dealt with considering the budget we had allocated to the project. Most of the bits we needed currently resided in the white car which had got to the point where it needed a good deal of TLC to ensure its continued viability. The first job was to strip the panels off it and prep it to be painted.

This is where it all began! Fondly known as "The White car" - it was Sam's cheap transport to work and back until his company car arrived. Prue then inherited it (as was the original plan) and then the rego became due. A good hard look suggested it might not pass inspection and so the time came to begin the project of transferring all of the good bits into the rust free shell (well - mostly "rust free" anyway) along with some other bits to create a car that will be somewhat different from all the other ones around the place.

Vortex: Well this is "Project Vortex"

Welcome to my Project Vortex Blog

This is where I will document our rebuild of the wedge. If there is anything that you care to add to my thoughts - please do. If you have a Subaru Vortex that you don't have any furtehr use for, give me a call. There are some plastic bits that would always be a welcome addition to our project. Keep checking here for updates on our progress.

See you soon

Dave