Holy crap! That thing is crazy. Those pictures are a little much though. I could have done with just 2 or 3.
Interesting little beastie. Probably a kick in a straight line, but I wonder if the weight killed the handling?
With the engine weight moved to the center of the car rather than at the back, it probably handles better than it did stock. But why is the guy wearing stilts and an Uncle Sam hat to take the pictures?
Handling wasn't probably affected much at all. From what I've heard, in a mid engine car the weight just needs to stay centered and the handling stays about the same, no matter how heavy the mill in there is, as long as the suspension is setup properly.
I remember a guy did the same thing in a 944T about 10 years ago. Spent shitloads of money and had a 500 horse sbc 944t that handled like shit. Came to a PCA autocross talking a big game acting like a prick and I handed his ass to him with my 450 horse 2.8 litre 944T that didn't handle like shit. Don't worry he deserved it. This thing probably hauls, and is built in the spirit of hot rodding, so good for him. I'd rather spend the time and $ on a real Hot Rod. I don't play with Porsches anymore, I saw the light it was good..Thank you Jesus!
" built this myself, mostly in my garage by myself, but of course had help with welding, machine work, radiator, etc" with help on that stuff, what does it leave to do yourself? turning bolts?
I'd bet the handling was affected drasticly, but for the better. That car was originally a rear engine machine, it is now, after the conversion, a mid engine machine. It should handle better.
Not really... If you look at the pics of this Caddy 500 I picked up, you can see there is a lot of engine weight on the outside of the wheelbase. And he put the Radiator all the way in the back too. ( I think I would have moved that to the front...) very cool car though...
I remember reading that same 1972 article. That car had a matched set of luggage as an engine cover too. Still a neat idea. Claim was it handled better than stock. As I recall they used modified corvette half shafts on the rear. I may have that book around here somewhere, have to look.
Must be a real rocket in a straight line, but i would bet a ton that it handles like complete dog shit. You people need to think of overall weight, distribution of weight, center of gravity, etc. Porsche motors are flat, aluminum castings. Low weight, low CG. Transmission points forward, and weights damn near as much as the motor. The weight of the driver counters the weight of the drivetrain giving the Porsche an excellent balance, front to back. The dry sump system is housed in the right side of the car, and it's 13 quart capacity helps to balance the car side to side. A lighter car handles better, and there are few cars that handle better than the porsches. They can't drag race since the drivetrains can't withstand the static loads, but when it comes to road racing they're hard to beat. Chevy took a play from their playbook in a way with the newer Vettes by using a torque tube and relocating the transmission to the rear of the car, helping to balance it's weight. This car has had it's weight proportion totally thrown off, which I'm sure it's now heavily rear biased. The weight of the big caddy in the V formation sits up much higher than the flat aluminum 6. Not to mention the weight of the radiator and the water sitting up even higher. There would be a good chance that this thing gets OWNED by a Mustang or Miata at an autoX
I saw a '66 Corvair at Columbus with a rear engine LS7. There was no way you could tell. Beautiful car.
If you find it, please post the ISBN #. I'd like to try and buy a copy... ( I've seen it once, and I remember it had a bunch of cool Swaps in it...)
Actually, I bet Cheby stole that one from Alfa. Glad they got something for their $2 billion. I'm sure that it would get owned at an autocross but what's cool about it is that he did it and did a decent job. Not something you see everyday.
I totally agree. Especially considering the elitist attitudes that permeate the Porsche circles. Stuffing ANY American engine in there must make them fuckers cringe....and that is AWESOME. I worked for a few months at a Porsche shop. www.instant-g.com Elitist prick, but man does he know his porsches. Totally despises American cars, which makes the Porschillac even cooler in my book
From what I have read (many times) the 500 caddy wieghs 30lb more then a SBC whe u remove the intake manifold. Thats not a lot, but porsche have had a lot of engineering go into them and no matter what IMHO moving that much wieght in the chassis will probably imapct the handing.
Oh yeah? Try this http://www.toy-jet.com/ This is a buddy of mine, did the conversion with no modifications to the car or wiring harness, and will do some serious shit!
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