Kudos for staying air cooled. IMHO that is the right thing.
Kudos for staying air cooled. IMHO that is the right thing.
Wow!
Congrats to Frog, Eric, and all involved. What a beast! Nicely done. Thanks for sharing.
Ralph Z
1968 Alexis Mk14 Formula Ford
Makes me think of someone the "sleepers" I've batted around in my head - like a Fiero GT with the IMSA bodywork and an Offy.
That happens when you're looking in the direction of motion, out a side window.Originally Posted by DanW
Caldwell D9B - Sold
Crossle' 30/32/45 Mongrel - Sold
RF94 Monoshock - here goes nothin'
PF is the Ken Tyrrell of our side of the pond, three years in build and virtually no leaks until the unveiling.
Uncle Ken would have been proud, remember the P34 and even the 001 that sprang unknown and unannounced from his woodshed shops.
But Eakin actually moved his project several times and still kept it hidden...
No idea why I get any credit [or blame...] aside from not blabbing and not distributing or posting the occasional progress report or photo.
Well done you mad swamp rat.
Yeah, Don P would be proud as well, his lair isn't all that far distant.
And for sure the other Don, our felllow open wheel curmudgeon Dr Sievenpiper, is proud of your efforts.
FatBoys don't buy things from estates we get get GIFTED things from estates
Awww, come on guys, it's so simple. Maybe you need a refresher course. Hey! It's all ball bearings nowadays.
I've been eyeing up Rand's club fords for years
Awww, come on guys, it's so simple. Maybe you need a refresher course. Hey! It's all ball bearings nowadays.
Freakin' Awesome
That is phenomenal, my friend! I am elated for you - that took more commitment, perseverance, creativity and character than I'll ever hope to possess. While I appreciate the shout-out, I had very little to do with it except to perhaps provide [im]moral support and encouragement through your progress.
I'll show the pics to Jill when I get home, and I promise not to show them to the Virginia State Police
Merry Christmas to you and Mrs. Frog,
Eric
If you don't think too good, don't think too much.
- Ted Williams
So when you get the desire to sell....
Yeah...the line starts after that 'dozen or so' guys who've been waiting for 3 years.
Stan Clayton
Stohr Cars
Congrats PF!
Yeah...the line starts after that 'dozen or so' guys who've been waiting for 3 years.
Maybe it'll be a few years and everyone else will be too old to get into a car that low. Hazelnut and I might be the only young enough or something
No offense.
Only one word,,,,Wow!
And none taken!
Stan Clayton
Stohr Cars
If you are going to be a "sleeper" be a sleeper all the way.
This was Eric's idea... originally to cover the dry sump tank for the 911.
A bottomless fuel tank.
Open the front bonnet... it all looks stock.
But hidden beneath is business.
We can get loud if need be.
For track days; out comes the spare tire, off with the bumpers, on with the noise maker.
102 db.... not
THIS I gotta see!We can get loud if need be.
For track days; out comes the spare tire, off with the bumpers, on with the noise maker.
102 db.... not
Stan Clayton
Stohr Cars
Makes me think of someone the "sleepers" I've batted around in my head - like a Fiero GT with the IMSA bodywork and an Offy.
Have at it ...
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...tiac-fiero-13/
excellent!!!!
Thanks ... Jay Novak
313-445-4047
On my 54th year as an SCCA member
with a special thanks to every SCCA worker (NONE OF US WOULD RACE WITHOUT THE WORKERS)
Makes me think of someone the "sleepers" I've batted around in my head - like a Fiero GT with the IMSA bodywork and an Offy.Awesome 80's.memories..
A friend was the new car prepper at the local Pontiac dealer in the 80's. He would road test these - which consisted of picking me up and a quick trip up the local mountain road.
There is a garage queen down the street from me that sounds like it's been stuffed with a Northstar.
But no, I wouldn't want to own one.
Heck, the Offy would cost a fortune. 40 years ago they were just obsolete race engines. but...
Heck, the Offy would cost a fortune. 40 years ago they were just obsolete race engines. but...
How about a turbo Offy with 1000 hp on alcohol....
The very last year pontiac got rid of all the Chevette/Citation underpinnings - put a proper suspension under it, and I believe made the nose a bit more attractive. The PPG pace car was really boss. Then GM cancelled it. They only made a few. Biggest challenge would be the gearbox of course - would need one of the quaife/xtrac/ricardo units from a euro touring car. The one that's in that BAT ad was never able to handle the V6 torque very well.
and hey, it's only 100 miles away......
laughing all the way
First the background for this episode:
Since I sold the Reynard in late 2014 I have not driven a stickshift car. All the daily drivers are automatics. But it must be just like riding a bicycle, you never forget... right. Oh... and another thing, for about 5 years before that the only stickshift I drove was a FC car, usually with a 70 mph first gear. Launches were, how do you say, anti-climatic.
We had some problems getting the bug clutch hydraulics to function well. Something about ratios of master cylinder size to slave size, and the like. One issue was the Raby engine has a full race clutch with spring pressure enough for a locomotive. With me under the car and Mrs Frog pushing the pedal, lets just say she was not able to release the clutch. Stiff.
Anyway after a lot of pre-flight checks it was time to drive the car. In 4 years the lugs had never been torqued, little details like that.
First test drive:
The car starts easily and idles (thanks Quicksilver).
It warms up in the shop. I lace up racing shoes because the foot compartment is probably smaller than a old Swift.
I climb in. Yes the clutch is a monster. It slips in reverse and I back down the 150' drive with relative ease, trying to adjust rearview mirrors as i go. We forgot to install back up cameras the same day we forgot the seat warmers, and OBTW the defrosters.
I'm pretty jazzed at this point. 4 years and Its finally driving.
I gave thought to hitting the streets. The new neighborhood consists of a 3.3 mile loop of twisty turny with lots of elevation change. As nice a road course as a public road can be. But, I'm thinking we should try to drive back and forth on the drive to see if anything falls off or catches fire. I guess i should mention the drive is covered with dry pinestraw. One should always have situational awareness.
I blip the throttle a few times. Shift it into first gear. (please note right here what I failed to note... this is not a 70 mph first gear) I have also never driven a 5 speed, and this one has first gear down and back to the left, not left and forward like every other VW or race car I've ever driven. Anyway it shifts into !st smoothly but my left leg is starting to go into muscle spasms because of the clutch. I start slipping the clutch just a hair, apply throttle and we are rolling! What else for a red-blooded male to do but let out the clutch and mat it.
Immediately the rear tires break lose and the rear of the car steps out about 8" to the left while my head snaps back. Yee Haw!
In about 1.148 seconds as, I remember, I realize the engine is reving very high. I try to punch the clutch, while counter steering left, and yank the lever back to catch second gear. Oops.
My mind finally catches up and i push the lever into neutral, and coast down the drive, followed by a breeze full of tire smoke, trying to grasp what has just happened.
In my whole life I have never been fortunate enough to drive a car that could step out from a start. There are no past experiences to bank on. I am out of my league.
Grinning from ear to ear I back down the driveway to try to do this a bit more gracefully. It is about that time I notice a popping sound in the exhaust. Something like M-80s in the muffler every few seconds. I am aware this is not a good sound. But, maybe it will go away soon.No reason to quit now.
What the hell. Another smoky burnout for the spectator. Then... common sense set in and I drove it into the shop.
Yes, its popping. That is not a proper sound. I feel the intakes. Number two feels a bit colder than the rest. Pull number two plug wire and it idles quietly with no popping. Shut it down. Pull the valve cover and check clearances. All are correct. I open the 28 page owners manual for the engine... in red font "This engine has no rev limiter." Also, pistons are cut .015" for valve clearance. Something must be wrong with #2 exhaust valve... me thinks.
A dark wave of depression rolls in. Many times in four years this project has been frustrating. But, I'm realizing i made a hugh dumbass mistake. All my fault. No body to blame. Like Jimmy Buffet sings: "Its my own damn fault"
At that point about 5 minutes too late, it dawns on me that with my high powered autocross car in the 70s I always had to launch in second because 1st was too low. And, dumbass, this engine had sat in storage for 10 years, maybe, just maybe some valve springs might be weak from constant compression.
All my friends put me on suicide watch. Langbein, Minor, Kummer all express sorrow while laughing their asses off in the background at me being so stupid. What are friends for? Mrs Frog immediately sees this as a very bad sign in that my "Curmudgeon Level" was rising steadily into the black zone... just as a large migration of relatives were descending towards our home for the holidays.
Back Story:
Just to show you my record is two for two.
In the 70's I put a hopped up engine in the VW van to better tow the trailered autcross car. One very rare winter day it snowed. And where there was a water leak by the old tin shop the pavement was frozen ice.
I thought it would be cool to drive on the ice and do a burnout with the bus. All proceeded well till the bug came off the ice. Immediately it exploded the transaxle case, breaking it completely apart at the spider gear housing. One could reach up and touch the ring gear. So... just to show you... I have a history,
Anyway.... Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and bah Humbug!
Experience
Mike, Happy holidays and fantastic build! great story as well.. cant wait for the next installment.
""Experience is that little thing you get just after you needed it""
regards
Bob
Just another short chapter in the ongoing book, "Stupid Car Tricks!"
Other chapters include (at least ones I'm aware of and may or may not have contributed to):
. Rolling the '64 while "practicing" (at night) for the Solo event at Mabry Field
. Not realizing the ring gear on a VW bus has a different orientation that a Bug - 1 forward gear and 4 reverses
. Pulling the Y-U-G-E dent out of Ghia nose after Kummer t-bones a flag pole on a test run
. Multiple occasions on (and sometimes off) the race track with various iterations of Formula Continentals
Your life has not been boring, my friend...
Butch Kummer
2006, 2007, 2010 SARRC GTA Champion
" Not realizing the ring gear on a VW bus has a different orientation that a Bug - 1 forward gear and 4 reverses"
BTDT - first fire up of my AC FSV. Built the box to the Mk9 manual. Called Tayor - still took them about a minute to mull it around and realize the box was "right side up".
Happy Holidays
I'd laugh except that memories of stuff like this that I've screwed up still give me a headache...
Hope it's nothing serious - and I know you wanted to see inside the engine, anyway...
Dave Weitzenhof
And wisdom is just a few miles down the road after that.....
“Racing makes heroin addiction look like a vague wish for something salty.” -Peter Egan
Good Judgement comes from Experience.
Experience comes from bad judgement and learning from it.
Surviving bad judgement is the hard part!
Spectacular. Brought back a memory from the mid 80’s when I was errantly dicing with a saab900 turbo and some other sports car in the hills on the NY/CT border. I’m in my Sharp enhanced Z and a VW catches and passes me. As he goes by, he looks over and lowers his sun glasses. My first meeting with Mr Newman. I think he’d really appreciate what you’ve done.
Ric,
I actually studied Newman's build. His had an Indy Cosworth V-8 mid-engine. Crazy hp.
It was a convertible, but with no attempt to make it "legal" in terms of race safety. One could reach back from the driver's seat and fiddle with the engine... no firewall or engine cover.
I have wondered where it got to.
I know Dave Letterman is still driving the V-8 powered Volvo station Wagon as recently as this past fall.
One of those rare moments in life that can never be duplicated. Told Agnifilo about it some years later, when he came up in conversation, and Mike told me about the car.
The VW was named Godzilla. It had a 351 Ford with a ZF gearbox.
Stonebridge Sports & Classics ltd
15 Great Pasture Rd Danbury, CT. 06810 (203) 744-1120
www.cryosciencetechnologies.com
Cryogenic Processing · REM-ISF Processing · Race Prep & Driver Development
Autopsy Complete
Sportsfans,
Maybe I'm not as bad a driver as previously thought.After further review, the telltale tach said that I didn't over-rev the beast.
Never the less it was popping in the exhaust. Tim Minor encouraged me to inspect further.
Did a leakdown test.
Applying 100 psi;
#1 = 95
#2 = 45
#3 = 94
#4 = 43
All the leaking sounds were coming out of the crankcase breather.
For a few days I thought maybe if I ran it... it would clear up.
Facing reality I constructed some special tools and removed the engine.
All previous engine changes had been done with the body off. Now it is a full bodied car. This engine has to come out under the car. Sort of a PIA. But, as Kummer always says. "If it were easy everybody would be doing it.
Two hours later...
Tore the engine down last night. This 411 stroker really is just a big fat VW like Minor said.
At this point I must remind the readers of two facts:
1. The engine has less than 2 hours total run time.
2. Unfortunately it sat stored for 12 years.
Yes, I know i should have refreshed the engine during the car build knowing fact #2. But, we gambled mainly because this project got real expensive. SO, we installed it as is. And it did do some amazing burnouts, before it became a mosquito fogger.
Maybe because it was such a terror during the initial drive, that was motivation to repair it instead of just setting it on fire.
My conclusion: I didn't mistakenly blow it up, but i should have refreshed it before installing.
The rings on pistons #2 and #4 were frozen on the pistons. Corrosion and rust mostly on the top sides.
It took 30 minutes to remove the number 2 ring on one of them.
The rings and pistons #1 and #3 look brand new.
None of the valves tagged a piston.
Filled the combustion chambers with light oil. The valves appear tight.
Now it would seem simple to buy a new set of 96mm jugs and pistons and get on down the road. Right?
Not.
These jugs were originally German 94mm that were custom honed out to 96mm.
The pistons were custom ordered from JE... but in 2003. JE didn't start laser coding all their pistons until 2004.
I don't have the original order papers nor the box they came in.
Not only does this mill have a 80mm stroker crank, it has 5.325 Chevy rods instead of the original shorter Porsche size.
So the the pin boss to crown height on the piston is a very short .680". (Most 96mm VW pistons are 1.184".)
So far I have found no piston/cylinder kit on the market that will fit.
It looks like JE has a ring set that will fit, but I'm not sure two of the pistons can be cleaned up enough to use.
But, all the cylinders look like a light hone will put them back in service.
Now it appears I will have to send a good piston to JE and pay them to reverse engineer a new set. $$$
Unless someone reading this has a lead...
Looking for 96mm pistons, 22mm wrist pins, with valve indentions, and .680" from top of pin to crown of piston.
or,
A set of Type 4 / 411 96mm jugs and pistons that will work with a 80mm stroker running 5.325" rods.
Good and bad news...
Now it'll be perfect - to go along with the rest of the monster! Of course, now you have to do all the work and spend some $.
Dave Weitzenhof
you might go see Jake Raby. He's kind of in your neck of the woods. One of the few TY IV guys left. he's also $$$$ and rumored to be kind of a PITA to work with, might dismiss other guys' work as inadequate - but what do you have to lose?
There's also FAT out in CA. They were the off-road holdouts of TY IV before they switched first to Porsche sixes and then other stuff. But they made good stuff as far as jugs and such were concerned.
96mm jugs and pistons here - there're J&E but probably the wrong pin height.
https://fatperformance-rimco.com/col...t-1-7-1-8-2-0l
They also sell 5.325 rods, so they just might have something that works:
https://fatperformance-rimco.com/col...connecting-rod
Ah geez, Frog, just glue some emory cloth to a Popsicle stick and hone them ring grooves and ring faces out, and slap it back together. Holy cow, man, it's just an aircooled Vee Dub.The rings on pistons #2 and #4 were frozen on the pistons. Corrosion and rust mostly on the top sides.
It took 30 minutes to remove the number 2 ring on one of them.
The rings and pistons #1 and #3 look brand new.
None of the valves tagged a piston.
Stan Clayton
Stohr Cars
As Froggy said, it is a Raby engine - I'd by very surprised if he didn't already try him for a parts source.
Dave Weitzenhof
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