My son, aka DREWDAY, got inspired by the snubnose C10 on the photoshop thread so he whipped a little mojo on the HouseOspeed shop truck. The more I look at it, the more I like it. So I made it my avatar. Now I'm really digging it. It got me wondering? Hey, could this actually be done? If so, how? Olds Toranado transaxle in rear? Corvair drivetrain? Any thoughts from fellow HAMBERS are most appreciated.
Back in high school a group of us built a 55 Chevy 4dr wagon into a "shortie". Mainly because we were bored and my friends dad had one sitting in the back yard not doing anything. It took us about a year to get it finished but when it was done it was a head turner and brought a few trophies home from local shows. So I say do it!!
Go for it... Anything creative... we need some show cars from this generation! I know there are quite a few, but not like back in the day... Very Cool, I'd roll in it... But I'd roll in a Short Bus Too...
There are some Scion XB's in Japan that the have grafted on sheet metal from chevy trucks. They look pretty cool.
You could possibly use the front clip from under a late 90s Chrysler/Dodge Intrepid type car. Just remove the steering and replace with solid arms. I've considered doing something like that before... using this motor/trans setup that is. The trans is mounted normally with the engine in normal front to rear placement, but the driveshafts come out the side of the transmission.
There used to be an old van parked at a used car lot in Albemarle, NC that had been shortened like your avatar. I seem to remember a monster arm and shifter being added through the roof for the "Rat Fink" look. Like others have mentioned, I'd be worried about it being driveable.
By using the the later Chev van for the frame, front suspension, and cowl/door section and putting an Eldo/Toro setup in the rear you would be able to make the front passenger compartment very nearly "normal", with a bench seat for three people even. Any Eldo/Toro powertrain/ suspension from 66 to the late 70s/ early 80s could be used at the rear and you could always add a breathed on 500 to give it some "pep". Although off topic here, my buddy and I have even considered beefing up the Turbo 325 OD in his 84 Eldo with aftermarket 200R4 parts so that it might stand a chance of living behind the 500 he wants to drop in.
I know .... A "Guy" .. that could do the metal fab / the build ... That would be to cool .... My vote ... Build a mid engine corvair chassie ... and go from there ...
Why not just add a dog house and drop a 250 between the seats like an early chevy van? No reason that wouldn't work. They didn't have any room in front of the windshield either. I dig it. Do it!
I'd put a 4 or 6 cyl late model front drive cradle assembly in the back. Something small and compact and not producing a ton of heat. Probably something from the early 90s with simple electronics. By morphing that thing up to 500ci, all the size and heat issues resulting will double the project's complexity. And it'll still have terrible dynamics to use as a true high performance machine, making all that power a big waste. kind of neet looking good luck
+1 for this idea, those engines have pretty good torque, and you're not going to want to go TOO fast with that wheelbase. Cool idea!
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