Then it was time to continue working with the radiator support frame:
I already put in some steel tubing to strengthen the frame.
Looking at it from the front side it was looking like this:
After the added strength the middle section could be opened up for better air flow:
Oh how many holes there are to weld up!
I just hope all the necessary parts will still bolt up how they should after all the shaving.. There are always risks when you don't have complete pictures about everything.
Another mockup stage:
At this point the lower frame was still like the factory intended. The old, rusty front engine mount is only for mockup purposes!
OK, so I was planning to use the stock 1.6 TD radiator, but then I did some research at work and noticed it's one of the smallest radiators
for the space there is available. So I decided to switch to another unit.
I checked which suitable radiator would be the biggest one that still fit my bay, and found out that a Passat one is the best for this purpose.
The specs are Passat 3A2 TDI-110 Automatic with A/C. It's BIG
Will post pictures later when I get the change...
Anyway, the switch of radiator meant I had to redesign the lower frame too. So let the cutting begin again!
...like so:
And here you can see my logic - I made a hole in there with the exact measurements of the Passat TDI radiator.
The new rad is exactly 6 cm taller in height than the mk2 rad, so changes were necessary.
I still have to figure out how to do the actual radiator mounts, there are a couple of little issues with that.
Making a new bottom to the lower rad mount: