The Exterior

The exterior of the Sterling is shocking at a decent distance, but at closer inspection its lack of fit and finish becomes evident. Its kit-car-dom becomes the over-riding value.

The flowing lines, and low wide stance, this car begs to be more than it is. To have a set of hands complete the design that was started so many decades ago.

First I started working on closing in the rather dated fenders. A circular form was made to fit over the wheel, and stretchy fabric was attache to the car, and form to make the new shape. This was then covered in body filler, and then fiberglassed.

The rear fenders were painted to check for flaws, and to test a color of paint.

Here you can see in these older photos where this work went.

This continued around the rear of the car.

Here is an early shot of the tail of the car. The blue color is a thick plastic used as a foam mold. Later this was removed, and the foam sanded down.

The nose of the car also got a few test mock ups laid on it. It wasnt until 4 years later a part was found that could be modified to make the new nose.

The center opening will house the radiator for the EJ20 engine.

Finally after some trips to the dealership, and a lot of measurements taken I landed a 2015 Mercedes E550 AMG sport front bumper to splice onto the nose of the car. This will be cut down, and modified to fit the sterlings nose.

This is the concept of what the new nose with the modification applied.

This is the latest and hopefully final scale rendering of the Sterling GTR's side. The rear, and rear deck still have yet to be finalized.

Retractable spoiler:

A source for a speed reactive spoiler has been sourced up.

The rear deck of the Sterling causes a reverse airflow, or tumbling effect which will reduce the effieicency of the intercooler, and cause additional drag. By instaling this type of spoiler it will not ruin the looks of the car as it will be invisible at low speeds, but come up when driving to help streamline the airflow across the tail of the car.

The spoiler will need to be reshaped, and some linkage modifications done prior to installation, however, the end result will be far more exotic, and functional in the end.

Wheels:

The hardest part about this cars build is almost always the wheels. Whether your keeping the stock configuration, or going all out like I am. Finding the right wheels for this car will keep you up at night for a long time!

After years of looking, I had to settle for a set. I had been looking for certain measurents and looks, but that was pushing the envelope upward of 6000 dollars just for wheels.

After, visiting many wheel show rooms, I found these, and got them at a very good price compared to the previous quote.

These are XX 526 wheels. I purchased a staggered set, 10 inch rears, and 9 inch fronts. These came out to be less than $1000 with tires. I also chose 17" rather than 18" as I had planned on. The 17 inch wheels offer cheaper tires, more selection, and a smoother ride.