Body Work

After the April auto show, we came back and decided that there were a few changes we wanted to make to the body. You know how these things go - there are always improvements to be made...

Here are some of the things that have changed on the LH4 body:

- We curved the nose under more (as Matt demonstrates in the picture below)

- We added six inches to the rear portion behind the wheels, meaning more trunk space

BeforeAfter

- We moved the roof and rear section of the car back six inches, giving the back passengers more head room (which all of us tall people really appreciate). By doing that we elongated the windshield, so it flows into the car body better.

Before
After

All the changes have made the whole car much more aerodynamic. It looks like a different car! Let us know what you think and what you would change.

New Photos

The plug for the LH3 belly pan.

Eddie loves to weld stuff.

The LH4 chassis with it's fancy paint job and part of the drivetrain.
Fixing the router.

Up soon: finished carbon fiber body parts and an answer to the most asked question of the week... how will the door work in rain?

More Molds

The rear mold is finished and ready to go out to EBS Carbon Inc.

Free t-shirt to first five people leave a comments with correct make, model and year of the car the LH4 body was loosely modeled after.

The One With the Chain Saw

What? Like you've never wanted to take a chain saw to your car... come on now. Be honest.

Yes, that's Dan taking a chain saw to the mold for the top of the car.

We're working on getting all the mold parts on and fitting correctly so that we can see how the body profile looks. It is great to see it come together in 3-D after all that time looking at it on the computer.

Dan doing a test drive, this time with the car body. Pretty soon we will put them both together...
We're really pleased with the way the lines look. What do you think?

Nice Body!

Car body that is...

The body molds for the LH4 are coming together nicely. It is actually starting to look like a car. Take a look for yourself:

What you see is are the foam molds that will be used to make the plugs that will in turn be used to make the actual carbon fiber body of the car.

We're taking suggestions for color - how do you think we should paint it?

Only 32 days until our unveiling of the LH4 at the Denver Auto Show!

The Engines and the Front End Body Mold

It was another busy week in the shop with everyone working long hours. We're happy to report that progress was made on the prototype engines and on the front end molds.

Prototype engine 1 - as it was when we got it from a junk yard in Germany:

The same engine after cleaning, sandblasting and painting:

Ed getting the engine work done:

The front end mold and preparation for creating the plug for the carbon fiber body:

Have a question about Lightning Hybrids or our cars and technology? Leave us a comment and we will answer it in an upcoming post.

Busy Week

It's been a busy week here. Between getting body molds underway and hosting an anchor from one of the biggest news markets in the region, there has been someone in the shop 24 hours a day for the past week

The chassis is complete and the engine is mounted. Here's a picture. It is no longer supported by the chain you see. The wood that you see shows the profile of the hood.
Also we have a mold! Below is a picture of the mold for the undercarriage body mold. One of the ways we are increasing aerodynamics is to have a smooth underside. This mold will be used to make the plugs which will then be used to create the actual carbon fiber car panels.

We also painted the lobby and some of the office spaces - it looks much more welcoming. Just in time to host Shawn Patrick, weekend anchor and reporter at 9News (Denver's NBC affiliate). They were here for over an hour and took lots of footage. As soon as we know when the spot will air we will post the info here.

And, if you are wondering... Yes, we are aware that the Denver Auto Show is only 47 days away. And yes, we will have a car ready by then!