Hot Rods Fuller Brizio Volks T topic continued

Absolutely...

There is no denying that.

 

i agree with almost all of what Louvers says on the subject.......EXCEPT..........

there is also a LOOONNGGGG history of fast vw's from the east also. florida has had a huge scene for those cars since the late 50s. same for europe to. hell theres a guy in europe now doing crazy things with small n/a powerplants that wind up to crazy rpm levels. i think he's hitting close to 200hp out of a near stock sized engine..


but back to the correct og subject here so we don't get booted those volks t's have always looked like fun and it shows that even back in those days you have the same divide you have today of hot rod guys that love the bastard air cooled and those that think they don't belong.

i think one of those little volks t's would be an awesome daily car....ken....

 

I have all of those R&C articles, and like others, have noted no front brakes.
Seems to me that installing some of the lightweight front discs like those used on sprint cars would solve that problem. As light as these cars are, a regular Speedway T-bucket front end assembly would suffice, wouldn't it?

 

Speedway T Bucket front brakes are 11" disc of a GM origin. I have one and they've got some weight to them. Maybe a light weight Wilwood set up could work.

 

The old Hurst/Airheart 175 type calipers are now being made again, and they are dead right for this application. Honest to god truth be told, you really don't need front brakes on these cars. I know that was said about T-Buckets at one time or another and common sense says no, but in this case it really is true.

Again, my experience comes from similar weight street driven cars equipped without front brakes... Ok, street legal sand rails if you must, and a street bug that I had for quite awhile that ran a set of spindle mount Mitchell spun aluminum wheels. These things are so light and have such a rearward bias that even with the very light, tiny single pot front calipers I'd be willing to bet you would have lock up problems very quickly.

 

Ive always thought these were kinda neat looking little T's. I really like the white one posted earlier. But Ive never seen one in person (that I remember) and not sure how much Id like them with the VW sound.

Im glad this thread got to stay open, I find the history interesting. I dont find the what you can do to a VW engine to pump up the horse power interesting though. That seems better suited to The SAMBA.

 

I'll echo the east coast popularity. To this day there is a huge scene in Florida and Tennessee. And following the heels of the VolksT were the Barris and Berry Ts. I've helped sell two sets of Barris molds over the last couple of years, but those are more dune buggies. And too big of a front brake on a buggy is more trouble than none. Of they're making the little Hurst Airheart ones again, those would be ideal with an adjustable portioning knob.

 

Medley added front brakes to his Volks rod before he was finished with it.

 

http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=...top_uri=/watch?v=ps91W5skO0s&feature=youtu.be

Here is Gary reunited with his car. Sorry for the poor video quality...the "camera crew" was my 8 year old daughter and 11 year old son with cheesy digital pocket cameras and me with my phone...but you will get the idea and Gary's reaction comes through loud and clear no matter what.


Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!

 

Wow cool find Gary, I hope you find a way to get it back, and thanks for sharing that video Randy.

 

And on the topic of type 3 motors in a Volksrod, how about running it mid ship under the seat. I've posted on another thread but it really needs to be seen here. Built back in the early 70's by Mike Griswold and his high school students. Mike was the industrial teacher there and also was a chassis builder (Grizzly Chassis) and built frames/cars for Pikes Peak, Ascot raceway, Roger Mears etc.

I've wanted one for years, and thought about building one from scratch but found this one with a bit of history and had to have it. It's back together now but still not finished and sporting a few updates. It's really a cool and interesting piece with it's mix of Fiat 850 front suspension, various Model T parts, and Vw running gear. Enjoy

 

This thread RULES! What a great story, and car!

Another reason I love this is because I have a VW powered motorcycle that was built in the '70's. Such a versatile little engine.

 

Fake headers are cute.

 

Loved the video.

 

That is a great video... thanks for sharing, and thanks to the rest of the posters for keeping this delicate thread and subject on topic so it didn't get locked. With age and a little bit of experience comes a bit of wisdom.....


Rad video... his reaction is priceless and I hope you guys work something out to get it back in his possession.

 

I really like the torsion bar front suspension, really clean. I suppose it helps to have a really light front to make it work.

 

Thanks customcory.....saved for future reference!

 

Back in 1973 I built this T bucket, took it to the Tulsa Nationals and won best engineered out of 2400 cars. All Corvair mechanicals front engine transaxle and backwards separated with a driveshaft Corvair front spindles and brakes.
The Corvair engine on the cover of Hot Rod feb. 63' blew me away I had to do something with it.

 

Additional photos. By the way my profile 28, roadster is FOR SALE. Have to btt

 

The Corvair engine on the cover of Hot Rod was not the engine I used only my inspiration.

 

If memory serves correct, they used the lower tube of a VW front end to get the torsion bar set up with these cars. The Torsion "bars" in a link pin VW front end are actually a series of spring leafs "laminated" to become a square, then pinned in the center and ends. It was pretty common in not only these but dragsters as well to use the whole lower tube of the VW's suspension as well. There are adjusters available out there that can be used to raise and lower the suspension too.

 

Dkindell_-- I once saw that car and it was yellow.

 

I moved from Chicago to California working with Dan Woods. There I sold the car and Woods redid it painting it black adding brass radiator shell and brass headlites and a wing ??? Also an enclosed trailer, sold again painted yellow added an electric fan, did a tour of Germany shows and some cigarette ads. Guess it was turned into a show car, but I drove it quite a bit, very quick and handled like a go kart.