COP Planning for practice

First the team chopped up the Charger body, keeping only the roof, windscreen surround, door sills and pillars, the outer perimeter of the firewall, and the tops of the rear guards. Then a space frame chassis was created on which to bolt the remaining body parts, plus lightweight fibreglass copies of the original body panels. Space framing involves welding metal tubes (in this case seamless steel) into a frame to house all the vehicle's components. If built correctly, a space frame will be significantly stronger and lighter than the vehicle's standard monocoque. It also allows the builder relative freedom when mounting the suspension and engine. And a space frame is far easier to repair in the event of an accident.

COP Outcome development and evaluation
Mr Addis wanted to make his saloon car stop, go, and turn as similarly to a single-seater as possible. To this end the team would utilise as many of the Lola's components as they could.Once the space frame was complete, the Lola's suspension was redesigned to suit the Charger's higher centre of gravity, different roll centres, and greater track width and wheelbase, then fitted into the spaceframe. Addis was very keen to ensure stability through high-speed corners, which required a longer wheelbase. So the team mounted the front suspension much further forward in the space frame than was standard in a Charger.

Another important requirement was to move the weight of the vehicle as close to the centre as possible to provide an even front-to-rear weight bias, to allow the vehicle faster reactions. So the five-litre Chevy V8 was mounted relatively centrally, just beneath the front windscreen.

Finally, a shallow front airdam was fitted beneath the front bumper to help with frontal downforce by pressing the front of the car into the ground at speed. The airdam would also reduce the amount of air allowed beneath the car at high speed, preventing frontal lift, which reduces the driver's control over the car, and therefore cornering speed.