Hey 50fraud , how about a widebody Jamaican ? I picked up two a few weeks back one is a built narrow body with vw underpinnings i am keeping for myself .But the widebody one is unbuilt from the factory just begging for a healthy sbf -t5-wide and wider 5 spokes. sorta a cheaper (much cheaper) cheetah its in phoenix and it is cheap ! I will try to post some pics
Well since were trying to convince Tony to build our next project. We still need to stay in that under 64 category. How about this one with a small block Ford and some Webers and such. You could even cruise Rodeo Drive and pick up chicks with this one. 1960 Alfa Romeo Sprint. Its for sale and near you.
I thought the Rover 75/MG ZT shared a certain amount of structure with some BMW (E39 5-series?) to begin with, which would have made (returning to) a proper RWD layout a lot easier.
Better make it a very FAST car, as there's a body of Alfisti out there who will come after you waving tire irons...
Here are two aussie options that may meet criteria The Valiant charger, it is powered by a 265ci triple carb HEMI six, go hard, handle ok Holden Torana Hatch both of these rides are smallish cars by american standards
The "shrink-wrapping" approach rather suggests Zagato; and adding some classically weird early-'60s Zagato details might bring the whole project closer to HAMB territory. Some examples mostly from http://www.zagato-cars.com:
Tony, Here is the page from Bring a trailer. It appears there is ample room under the hood. Get the email Submissions Gear About RSS <HR>August 14, 2009 Cover Stories / Italian / Race Car 39 comments From the BaT Stable: 1960 Alfa Romeo Sprint 8/21/2009 Update: This car has been sold. Stay tuned for more! 8/14/2009 Update: This 1960 Alfa Romeo remains available and can be seen all weekend as part of the BaT Exclusive Display at the Monterey Historics. The price has been reduced to $29,900 obo to facilitate a quick sale, and all documentation is available on site. Contact us at [email protected] or come by if you are interested. 5/24/2009 Update: This Alfa did not find any buyers at $35k, and the multiple offers at $25k were declined. The car remains available. From 5/14/2009: This 1960 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint has been in the BaT stable for a little over two years. It was built as a weekend track car in Southern California by a professional restorer with fanatical attention to detail. It shows excellent engineering and craftsmanship throughout, and the built 2.0L engine gives it plenty of motivation. The car is now listed here on eBay and is available in Palo Alto, California. Contact us at [email protected] or via the eBay auction if you are interested. The car has been perfectly reliable always garaged and covered in the last two years. It is perfect for spirited street driving and has primarily been used for coastal drives up and down Highway 1 between Marin County and Los Angeles. It was also our vehicle of choice for the 2008 California Melee which was well documented here on BaT. The car performed perfectly on that event, though in its current form the suspension and stance are optimized for smooth pavement and track environments. Check out the video below from the Melee: <OBJECT codeBase=http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0 height=270 width=480 classid=clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000> <embedtype="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="270" src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=1688353&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></OBJECT></P>The red paint is in very good condition but does have one area of touch-up on the front fender and some typical stone chips from road use. The body is very straight and there is zero rust to be found. The exterior is all stock aside from the Panasport wheels, aggressive stance, side exhaust, and lightweight plexiglas side windows. The look is subtle and doesnt scream race car, but wouldnt be afraid to accept number circles or rally plates. The interior has been thoughtfully modified with GTV seats, roll-bar with harnesses mounts, and accurate gauges (originals also included). A smaller sport steering wheel gives better feel at higher speeds, and an aluminum spine has been added to the interior roof to prevent the headliner from buffeting over 110mph. We have tested it and it works. The rear of the interior features a custom enclosure to house an Accusump and the battery. The battery mount is recessed through the floor to keep the center of gravity as low as possible, and a cut-off switch is also inside. The lid is secured with Dzus fasteners and looks very clean. Modern retractable shoulder belts are mounted to the rollbar for both driver and passenger. The layout under the hood is breathtaking nicer than many Alfas weve seen at prestigious racing events. The radiator is an aluminum unit and the oiling system features all stainless braided lines, a fender mounted filter housing, and a thermostatic return valve for the cooler circuit behind the front grille. Master cylinders are aluminum Tilton units and all fluids have proper catch tanks. The engine does not smoke and makes very smooth power. It is currently set-up with hot street cams of unknown make, and more radical track cams are included with the sale. The trunk holds a custom recessed Fuel Safe 10-gallon cell which is elegantly mounted and painted black on the underside as not to look flashy from behind. The Holley electric fuel pump is controlled by a switch on the dash and the regulator is properly adjusted for the Webers. The vented overflow tank at right is for the rear differential. The suspension on the car is fully modified with aircraft-grade heim joints replacing all rubber bushings. It is surprisingly docile on the street with only minor noise from the rear on bumpy roads. The control and cornering capability is impressive and predictable, and the thorough re-engineering of these components addresses the famous Giulietta handling concerns. Brakes are cross-drilled disks at all four corners and feel is excellent. This car has been tastefully upgraded with aesthetics, performance, reliability, and safety in mind. It can always be put back to stock condition down the road, but this car is really built to appeal to someone who wants to drive a very capable Giulietta. The sheer hours it would take to develop and sort a similar car to this level are difficult to measure. The car was run at Buttonwillow, Laguna Seca, and Willow Springs before our purchase, and remains track ready. By the way a stratagy , just pick up 2 gals on Rodeo and talk one of them into distracting the Alfaisti.
^^Ah, I thought you were saying that it already had a SBF in it. I don't think I could be the one to violate that nice car.
Well, you could find another not so nice one or put the SBF in with minimal mods to the car and keep the old engine for a discussion piece in the garage. Drive as is ??? . This Alfa has already lost her virginity .. But I really do agree with you it is to nice of a car to modify further. Just thought I'd throw out the idea for thought.
Jeez, I kinda took a day off and thought all you guys would go home. But no, here it is Monday morning, and you're all still lyin' around with your feet up on the table, drinking beer. Well, I really was pretty much done with the inquiry, but there have been several more suggestions that I think call for a response. Soooo... What, the Aceca wasn't rare enough already? I think I've seen one Greyhound in my entire life! I would really have a tough time violating a rare enthusiast car to indulge my quirky tastes, when there are a zillion BGTs and Healeys and Falcons that would serve the purpose. Those are kinda pretty cars. The sibling 1900 wagon is very handsome, too, and would make a nice conversion for a longroof person. Scarce in the US, though. Yeah, you're on the right track, but the photochopped Corvette that shows up a couple of posts later is closer to what I had in mind. Naaah. That's the same chassis as the Comete, which I've already identified as one of my major (and probably unobtainable) desires. I'd waaaay rather have the Comete. No. Not ever. Showing up at a car event in a hot rod Metro would be like arriving wearing a Captain America costume. No no no. ...and no to both of the above. Nice looking cars, but not aggressive at all. Naaah. Cheetahs have already been mentioned twice. Too uncivilized for my taste. Both nice cars. Neither needs any help to qualify as high performance, and both are too expensive for me. Nice job! I had imagined something a little more brutal looking (hence the 908 picture), but that's certainly the basic idea I had in mind. Hilarious, and it certainly proves the concept. I thought to do it with a series 3 because it's uglier and generally cheaper, but a later donor car would work fine too. Wow, that's an impressive car with a beautiful pedigree. I think it amply demonstrates how a '63 Sprint can be made to look -- and work -- much more aggressive and athletic than a stocker. I'd love a clone of this car. Front engined, steel (or aluminum) bodied, V8 power are all parts of my fantasy. If I wanted a rear engined 6 I'd buy a 911. Those were pretty bodies, but I'm not interested in taking on a kit car with all the detail finish that is required. You guys have several models that would be interesting in the US. Your Falcon GT (not the right name, I think) is pretty appealing too. It does seem like kinda the hard way to start a US project, though. Again, thanks to everyone for your contributions. I really am done now, but if you wanta hang around a while longer, just throw away your empties when you leave.
One of these would be fun, but I'd be happy with the Ford version rather than the Lotus version. http://perichbrothers.blogspot.com/2011/06/english-invasion-pt-i-1966-lotus.html This is the Lotus engine, but one of those modified "Quad" olds engines would fit right in. TP
I really like this Cobra. View attachment 1371274 It was built for John Willment using a LeMans spec Cobra chassis and a Fiat 8V he found in a junkyard ( body by Ghia ) This is what a stock 8V looks like. View attachment 1371278 I like it so much I thought about doing something similar with a Alfa Romeo Guilietta Sprint Speciale. View attachment 1371291 The dream went as far as talking to the owner of this car. View attachment 1371292 View attachment 1371293 But he wanted too much money for what was a parts car, left over from the restoration of his good one...
No, it wouldn't, not without firewall surgery. The Mk1 'Tina engine compartment is very short. Fairly wide, but very short (26in from firewall to core support IIRC.) You can make a 289/302 fit with the right choice of parts, most people end up whacking off the heater-blower housing on the firewall to get clearance, but it's quite tight. Likewise the Buick/Rover V8. Larger fours will not fit, length-wise, without firewall surgery; DOHC Fiats, Ford Zetecs, and Pinto motors have been common swaps in that car, there's also a few Ford Duratecs and a couple Toy 4A-GEs running around. The 2.6/2.8/2.9 Cologne V6 falls in and disappears, very small package. Was contemplating a 4-liter Cologne for mine but I think the taller deck height on the 4-liter will make it a dodgy prospect total height wise. The 3.0/3.2 SHO V6 is heavy and, because of the secondary cam-drive chains on the ends of the heads, it's effectively a longer package than a 289/302 from rad to firewall. If you didn't care about brand purity a fuel-injected 60-degree Chevy 3.1/3.4 with a T-5 would probably be a great combo. If you're hunting for a roller to build, auto-trans 'Tinas had a bigger tunnel that's better suited for newer/larger bellhousings and transmissions but only the GTs (and leaf-spring Locorts) got the rear upper control arm brackets. The V8s and larger fours fit much better in the Mk1/Mk2 Capri and Mk2 Cortina - longer engine compartment. In fact, a 302 Capri might not be a bad option for our original poster...
Metalshapes, you've brought up a car that could easily by named as the inspiration for everything in this discussion. Fiat designed the 8V to run in 2-liter competition in the early '50s. In its factory form it was an OK looking GT coupe, which sold modestly: Realizing that it was not a red-hot seller, Fiat offered the 8V chassis to various coachbuilders in Italy, who did a great many good things with it. This was one of a small number of 8V coupes by Zagato: A couple of the chassis were acquired by Ghia, and were bodied with the "rocket ship" style you identify above as a stock 8V. A larger chunk of the 8V chassis inventory was taken up by Siata, who built the gorgeous 208S Spyders from them: These were very expensive little cars in their day -- MGA sized, but with prices greater than a contemporary Cadillac -- so they were slow to sell between 1952 and 1958, give or take a year. Today, though, they are highly prized by vintage racers and collectors, with really nice ones approacing $1MM at auction. Many of the Spyders were re-engined with Ford, Chevy, and Olds V8s during the days that they were cheap used cars, especially as the supply of original 8V engine parts dried up. Most of these have been restored back to 8V power. Although it's just a 2-liter, the engine makes a wonderful noise, and pushes the car along at a satisfyingly brisk pace.
If you want a small car that goes like a rocketship and would absolutely be a blast to drive, build an all wheel drive mini. Honda power with AWD and you could supercharge or turbo it for even more HP. Check them out here. I'd love to build one myself. http://www.superfastminis.com/AWD_BUILD_INFO.htm Check out the videos here: http://www.superfastminis.com/Videos.dwt
What a great thread! Gets me right were I live. Small light car with excess power! I guess that would be a hot rod. The Cobra formula with the light wt euro or whatever body and US power is so hypnotic. Love some of those rare body styles with the sucker punch engines. I've had a few sleeper Mustangs. I'd love to build a RPU that handles like Super 7 and goes like a big block.. I always thought a MG with a 289 would be pretty cool. I saw a blue TR6 at the North St Paul cruise night with some kind of turbo charger sticking out of the hood as I was heading home last Friday. Sounded pretty nasty.
That would be a hell of a challenge, you'd have to extend the nose about two feet to get enough room to put a bellhousing between the front footwells, or somehow shift the entire passenger compartment rearward. There was another thread about the rope-drive Tempests, and it occurred to me that if one wanted to put together the best stuff GM had at the time one could take a '63 Tempest, an aluminum V8, a real driveshaft, and update it to the '65 Corvair geometrically-a-semi-trailing-arm rear suspension. There was a guy who figured out how to put a T5 on a Corvair transaxle, made and sold a batch, though I think the tooling's migrated around a bit since then.
There was one built in the UK with a 350hp Cosworth Ford turbo motor in it. Totally stock looking from the outside apart from the wheels. Went like stink too. Bader Racing put a Porsche 993 motor in one, with some considerable success - check out the hillclimb videos on their website... http://www.bader-racing.de/en/the_build/the_build_vision.htm
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