OK fellas, here's some pics of my build so far, the 2001 C5-R from Lemans #63:
First, an overall shot. I've removed the hood section by cutting through the plastic with sewing thread. Worked quite well actually. The hood isn't sitting right in the picure, because I have a toothpick glued to the front bumber for handling while painting. It interferes with the fit of the hood. I've also thinned out the plastic a bit around the ducts on the hood and rear fenders (this is tough to do without changing/wrecking the shape of the duct). I also sanded down the 'rivet' detail around the side windows because it didn't look good to me, and pics of the real car don't seem to look the same.
Here's a shot of the hood to show what the new vents look like. They're made from styrene strip and worked out better than I expected. They're not exactly like the real thing, but better than the molded in version that is part of the kit.
Here's a shot of some little details I've replaced on the interior frame/cage. They were molded as part of the frame in the kit, and didn't look very realistic to my eye. These are just made from scrap aluminum, brass, and styrene.
Finally, a shot of the new rear diffuser built form sheet brass and thin styrene strip (the kit supplied version is also shown). Hopefully this will look much better on the completed model.
I'm really enjoying this build, and am trying lots of new things I've never done before. I'm anxiously following everyone else's builds too!!
Murray