The first job that needed doing was to prepare the garage. Luckily, it already had an electricity supply, so I just wired in 3 more 5' fluorescent lights to improve the lighting. Like most garages, there was an awful lot of junk that was being stored "in case it comes in useful one day", so I had to be ruthless and took 3 vanloads to the local tip. Having cleared all the rubbish, I then had a good sweep out, painted the concrete block wall on one side of the garage and improved the shelving on the other wall. Most people seem to paint their garage floor when building a kit car, but I decided to use carpet. I bought a 2.75m by 4m piece of "B" grade kitchen carpet from a local manufacturer which, during the build, proved to be very comfortable to walk, sit, kneel or lie on. On the downside, I've had to be very careful not to spill any liquids on it and it also needs occasional attention from the vacuum cleaner (!).
Next, the search for a suitable donor car. For several weeks, it seemed that every scruffy Sierra for sale was either a 1.6 or 1.8, or a 2 litre with automatic transmission and/or fuel injection. Eventually, I found an advert for just the car I needed. After a quick trip to Chippenham, I was the new owner of a red 1988 2.0 LX Sierra Sapphire. Although it looks half-decent in the pictures below, the outer sills and rear chassis members were completely rotten and crumbled to the touch. However, it was complete, started first time and everything worked. The owner had the V5, in his name and the engine and chassis numbers were correct, which would help with the eventual registration of the Quantum. I paid the £100 asking price and collected the car on the following Saturday, using a recovery truck owned by some friends (thanks Tony, Paul and Derek!).
In the front of the build manual, Quantum provide a list of all the parts required from the Sierra and a recommended dismantling sequence. By (mostly) following this and with the help of a Haynes workshop manual, an engine crane and a trolley jack, stripping the car proved to be quite straightforward. I took my time and was careful to keep all the relevant nuts, bolts and fixings with each component as it was removed. By the following Sunday, I had a garage full of rusting, dirty and oily parts and a rather sorry-looking Sierra on the drive. The shell was taken away on the Monday morning and the next few weeks were spent cleaning, preparing and painting the parts that would be re-used on the Xtreme. The engine and gearbox were sent away to be fully reconditioned which, together with a new clutch assembly, would mean that I could fit and forget the main power-train components. As Sierra parts are so cheap and readily available, I decided to replace most of the other parts with new or reconditioned items, for safety, reliability and piece of mind. There is a list of all replacements and their cost on the "Build Costs" page of this site. By mid-March, the garage was full of new or clean and shiny used parts and with the addition of some extra items to help with the kit collection - ropes, tie-downs, old carpets and sheets etc. - I was ready!
