kmead
Old enough to know better
Why not ? I certainly dont reckon it looked "hideous"
View attachment 20114
Sure doesn't look to me like "half the motor was in the rear trunk"
i've seen worse swaps.......
Impressive
Why not ? I certainly dont reckon it looked "hideous"
View attachment 20114
Sure doesn't look to me like "half the motor was in the rear trunk"
i've seen worse swaps.......
I tried to find a pic of the one I saw, no luck. It was transverse mounted?? It didn’t look at all like that, cuz that looks nice!Why not ? I certainly dont reckon it looked "hideous"
View attachment 20114
Sure doesn't look to me like "half the motor was in the rear trunk"
i've seen worse swaps.......
I remember seeing an X with a 2.8 v6 Chevy in it!! Half the motor was in the rear trunk!!
A fun project for sure but it will be more expensive than buying a two or three year old performance car that will probably still outperform the modernized X.
You are probably thinking of this swap. I don't think is was a 2.8.
It's a Buick, on a Toronado trans; current owner is a member here.Looks like it might be a Chevy 3.8 V6.
It's a Buick, on a Toronado trans; current owner is a member here.
My 2 cents: It's all about - what is it you really want? My previous build was a '61 Mini in which I installed a 2.0L VTEC etc. I wanted to build a real light high hp car which I did. But the downfall is that no matter how much money I spent (Quaife LSD, custom suspension etc.) it was always going to be a front wheel drive car with too much hp (I hadn't owned one in over 25 yrs and forgot what FWD cars are like, doh) and a bit fragile (think '61 British). I wanted an auto-x car but because of the way it drove under power it turned out to be a track car which was fun but much riskier when considering there is always one knucklehead out on the track with you and again the car was a bit fragile(I have stories).
So when it was time to move on from that adventure and start a new build I seriously thought about what is it I really enjoy the most in building and driving a classic sports car? As it turns out it wasn't the track days although I really enjoyed them but they can be extremely harsh on your car. What I did enjoy the most were the car rally's, group road drives (a spirited group) and the car shows. On the build side I definitely wanted to do the body and paint myself which was already done on the Mini and be able to update parts not redesign the installation.
Of the three the Mini was the best at the car shows! As I pointed out above it was not as enjoyable in tight slower turns - go figure, and long rally’s in that monster really took a physical toll on me. So for this new build I wanted to concentrate more on the rally, group drive side. And of course by the time it's back on the road it will be a nice show car to.
With the make and model picked out I decide I would do a complete restore but with the best high performance modern upgrades keeping as much of the original intent and design as possible. Which meant keeping the 1.3L but adding dual Webers, cam, really big valve head etc. Street able high performance. I don't need this car to drive at 100+ (my TT handles that as it has been to 150 with 1k rpm left) but to have fun in the twisties and on rally’s.
I figure if in the future I get bored with the 1.3L I can always go the Honda route but for now I'm preserving my X in the true spirit of an Italian road going sports car!
Not found in north America. I only wanted to mention stuff that can be sourced in quite a few places.
Ha, once technology comes up with a 250 mile battery the size of a conventional gas tank, you will see the hot rod hobby shift to electric motor conversions. You can always have a small propane tank hooked up to a faux exhaust pipe to shoot flames out on simulated downshifts!
have you seen videos of old school hot rodders experiencing the torque of electric motors? some of the biggest grins and giggles. I agree that once the weight of an electric comes down it will spark more and more hobbyists jumping on board. I really dont see that far off. Racing has adopted electric as a viable class. Formula E started in 2014 started with only being able to run the races with 2 cars because of how long the power would last. This year it will be only 1. that is quite a bit of tech for only 5 years! I even saw grassroots motor sports is adding an electric class for the $2000 challenge. Fun time for technology indeed.Ha, once technology comes up with a 250 mile battery the size of a conventional gas tank, you will see the hot rod hobby shift to electric motor conversions. You can always have a small propane tank hooked up to a faux exhaust pipe to shoot flames out on simulated downshifts!
What makes you think I would give it back in only an hour??Electric! Satan's motor!!!!! Do I have to come over when the snow is gone and give you the keys for an hour to help you make up your mind? Lol
My brother is big into rc planes. Most have switched to electric, as it has the same flight time, and no clean up afterwards!! I said I liked the sound of the gas engines, so then he showed me a video where they install a speaker and program a specific engine sound that changes with throttle speed! Theoretically, you could make your electric car sound like a big block Chevy, formula one, Whatever you wanted!! Google it, it’s pretty cool!have you seen videos of old school hot rodders experiencing the torque of electric motors? some of the biggest grins and giggles. I agree that once the weight of an electric comes down it will spark more and more hobbyists jumping on board. I really dont see that far off. Racing has adopted electric as a viable class. Formula E started in 2014 started with only being able to run the races with 2 cars because of how long the power would last. This year it will be only 1. that is quite a bit of tech for only 5 years! I even saw grassroots motor sports is adding an electric class for the $2000 challenge. Fun time for technology indeed.
Odie