2000 Fiat Dakota Quad Cab

[t vago]

Hi, all!

My name is Tom, and I own a 2000 Fiat (was Dodge) Dakota Quad Cab. I am looking to make it more fuel efficient, as it is my daily driver.

[t vago]

I guess I need to post 5 threads before I can post pictures, so...

[t vago]

Three...

[t vago]

Two...

[t vago]

One...

[t vago]

Here is a picture of my handiwork to date. I started building this thing back on Columbus Day, and I got the inspiration from this very board.

Skeleton


Side view, right-hand side


Side view, front facing rear


Rear view


I used Owens-Corning FoamulaR 1 inch boards for the frame, and 1/4 inch FoamulaR sheeting for the skin. I got a gain of 1 MPG with it so far, and would have gotten more if I hadn't been so heavy with the gas foot.

I would like to coat it with something to protect it against the elements. Any ideas?

[Varn]

Yeah nice shape. Get some fiberglass cloth. a gallon kit of epoxy. Fiberglass , Epoxy , Composites, Carbon Fiber - U.S. Composites, Inc. or other supplier.

Lightly spray the pink board with super 77 spray and lay on a layer of dry fiberglass. I would do it in pieces. Mix your epoxy and paint it on the fiberglass cloth which is glued to the pink board. You can tell that the layer is wet out when the fiberglass cloth becomes clear. Use disposable brushes. Consider covering the wet layup with strips of rip stop nylon particularly over seams.

Once cured the rip stop can be peeled off and you have an ideal surface for a secondary layup.

I would do a single layer at a time to lessen warpage. Make sure that you have the fairing taped down. Duct tape is an excellent mold release.

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by t vago

Here is a picture of my handiwork to date. I started building this thing back on Columbus Day, and I got the inspiration from this very board.

That's not bad as an intro !

It seems highly flexible, which of the Foamular products is it ?

[botsapper]

Strong Daytona prototype/closed coupe genes. Their regulation wide windshields & high metal roll cages, instead of expensive composite tubs, necessitated cleaner fastback tapers.
Still, a very aggressive aero look. Nice.

[t vago]

Thanks for all of the info and props. I will experiment with the fiberglass once I receive it.

The frame was made from 3 each Owens Corning FoamulaR F150 1" x 48" x 96" tongue and groove foam sheets. The skin was made from 1 each FoamulaR 1/4" by 48" by 50 foot fanfold foam sheeting. I still have some of each type of material left over (about 1/2 of the fanfold sheeting) left.

The fastback style was dictated mostly by the side shaping of the quad cab itself. I had originally planned for a cover that looked like what was in the Naval Post-Grad School paper I found on this board, but I then made a closer inspection of the sides of the cab, and discovered that the sides of the cab tapered inward at about a 20 degree angle. It was a bit of a challenge to get the correct shapes for the ribs, and I ended up using an Excel spreadsheet to calculate the rough width/height for each rib.