The adage “how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time” holds true, but when you’re looking at 2400 lbs of loose parts, where do you take the first bite?

With kit cars, everyone is looking to get done, show progress, and feel like they’ve accomplished something. That gets a little messy with a GT40 since there is a lot of start/stop/mover/restart. That gets compounded even more if you plan any modifications or alterations. Hopefully, my experiences will help you carve out your path.

When building a cobra, most of the work is mechanical. Bodywork is cutting panels to fit, aligning panels, and smoothing out any rough spots before painting. With a GT40, you have all that; however, the body consists of 8 panels and a chassis, and where one attaches to the chassis affects where the others are located. They not only have to line up with one another, but they must also mate/match with the chassis. If you’ve built a cobra, you understand the process – you just need to allow twice as much time since there’s so much fitting and bodywork.

RCR Build Instructions

I hear a lot of guys asking about the build instructions for the kit. RCR maintains a password-protected website that covers various stages of installation. You will have access to this upon the purchase of your kit. The website provides very basic, general instructions for assembling the kit. It is not up to date, often refers to parts you will not have in your kit, and does not provide instructions for items that are included in every kit. Unfortunately, this is one of the company’s weaknesses. A lot could be improved here but I understand the limitations of resources and manpower.

Some additional resources for assembly details

      1. You are probably already a member of the website GT40s.com. There are many questions that other builders have asked and have already been answered. The site has a search feature, or you can use AI or Google to search just that site for a particular detail. Example: if you want to learn more about moving the wiper from right to left, use a Google search “RCR move wiper site:gt40s.com.” That will search only the GT40s.com site and return articles about the wiper relocation (and other stuff also) – 5 pages of hits.
      2. Reach out to other RCR40 owners. There are a couple of websites and also a casual owners/build chat. 
      3. Locate a copy of the ERA GT40 build manual. The car is no longer available, and the kit design is slightly different, yet it still contains a wealth of information.

Work In Progress
I want to document what I encounter and how I am finishing my build. This document is a work in progress and will change as I run into issues or complete sections. I want to make sure the details are captured while they are still fresh.
If you are following along for your build, check back regularly for updates

So where do I start? 

I chose to get as much of the bodywork and cutting/fitting done before doing mechanical assembly. However, some mechanical work is necessary to put the panels into the correct location. This all starts with the front suspension and rocker panels.

The position of the front wheel is critical to positioning the rocker panels, which establish the position of ALL other components. At the same time, there were certain period-correct modifications I wanted to include so those had to be figured in accordingly. My build followed this outline; the links in the outline will open each page for details.

  1. What modifications do you want to include?
  2. Assemble the front suspension to determine wheel/tire location
  3. Design and construct period-correct front and rear sub-frames
    1. Front frame
    2. Rear Frame
  4. Rollbar relocation
    1. RCR Rollbar 4 point vs 6 point
    2. Period-correct crossbar
  5. Determine location of rocker panels
    1. Mod’s to front for tire clearance
    2. Rear flare installation
    3. Mod’s to rear for finishing
    4. Locating pin installation
    5. Lower edge fastening
  6. Determine location and fit of front clip
    1. Inner panel corrections & modification for pivoting.
    2. Gas Strut installation
    3. Locating pin sockets
  7. Determine position of spider (roof)
    1. Front edge correction
    2. Wiper relocation
    3. A-Pillar mounting
    4. B-Pillar mounting
    5. Edge trimming
    6. Bulkhead mounting
    7. Secondary bulkhead construction and install
  8. Determine position of rear clip
    1. Inner panel corrections & modification for pivoting.
    2. Gas Strut installation
    3. Locating pin sockets
  9. Cut out and install rear tire flares
  10. Match rear clip and rear end of rocker panel
  11. Dashboard
    1. Molded part corrections
    2. Demister recess
      1. Grille
      2. Wiper access panel
      3. Defrost ducting
    3. A-Pillar matching
    4. A/C ducting
    5. Adjustable steering column modifications
  12. Rear clip finishing
    1. Modify rear clip tail light sockets
    2. Leading edge gap to spider
    3. Openings edge rework
    4. Brake and cooling duct construction
    5. Duct installation and rear clip inside panel corrections
  13. Doors
    1. Hinging
    2. Anti-intrusion bar
    3. Door latch
    4. Rollbar modification
    5. Gapping and weather seal
    6. Removable roof modification
  14. Front clip
    1. NACA Ducts
      1. Sides
      2. Center
    2. Internal air ducting
      1. Air vents
      2. Brake vents
    3. Headlight mounting
    4. Driving lights
  15. Nostril
    1. Modifications required
    2. Fitting
    3. Dzus fasteners
  16. Overall body panel alignment and gapping
  17. Panel flatness
  18. Final prime and blocking