Ideas for a project
I'm ready to sell my pristine '99 Mustang to go with tire shredding muscle. As of the moment I have two ideas I'm dabbling with. The first is a 1966 Corvette convertible. To keep price down, I'd try to stray from the 427 b/c my intentions are dropping the existing and going with a crate 502 or tweaked 454 small block. I'm wondering if the 502 will fit in the existing bay as I don't want to mess with the hood. I also plan on using a Vortech marine supercharger to get the horse around 740. I'm wondering if the existing components will handle the power or if modification will be necessary.
I havee additional intentions for the vette possibliity. I want to incorporate parts from the C5 vette into the '66 where ever possible. I would try to put in the Bose stereo, new C5 seats, brakes from a ZO6 (complete with red calipers), the 18 inch rims with low profile rubber, and possibly the 6 speed trannie from the 2002 ZO6. I think this would be unique project, incorporating the old with the new, while still keeping it all tasteful.
My second project option is a 1958 Mercedes Benz 190 SL Roadster. Also looking to buy this relatively cheap (high mileage) b/c I'd pull the engine on this and replace with a new Mercedes SLK 4cyl. I'd try to keep everything else on this stock, why dabble with retro beauty.
Project "budget," and I use the term loosely, would be approximately $22,000. I'm looking for a few expert opinions on the matter, as well as thought on other projects you guys are pondering
I havee additional intentions for the vette possibliity. I want to incorporate parts from the C5 vette into the '66 where ever possible. I would try to put in the Bose stereo, new C5 seats, brakes from a ZO6 (complete with red calipers), the 18 inch rims with low profile rubber, and possibly the 6 speed trannie from the 2002 ZO6. I think this would be unique project, incorporating the old with the new, while still keeping it all tasteful.
My second project option is a 1958 Mercedes Benz 190 SL Roadster. Also looking to buy this relatively cheap (high mileage) b/c I'd pull the engine on this and replace with a new Mercedes SLK 4cyl. I'd try to keep everything else on this stock, why dabble with retro beauty.
Project "budget," and I use the term loosely, would be approximately $22,000. I'm looking for a few expert opinions on the matter, as well as thought on other projects you guys are pondering
Tagged:
0
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
NASDAGROB
Your projects are very ambitious but interesting. Yes, I think all that HP will tear your stock 66 Vette to pieces. You will have to do some serious strenthening and suspension work; otherwise I think you'd stress that body/frame structure with all that power. I'm also not sure you could apply all that power to the ground, either. This car would hardly be streetable, maybe just barely. Basically it would be a point straight ahead and stab the gas kind of car.
The 190SL will bury you financially. It's not a very good platform. I know, I know, then why is my MGB project? Well, for one thing, MGB parts are cheap and the car is dirt simple. the 190SL parts are horrendously expensive and the car is rather complex in construction. You could easily spend $5,000 on a top and some chromework without even touching the body. And even a beater 190SL will cost you $10,000, and it will be a disaster. You can't possibly come out to a $22K budget on the Benz and have any kind of a decent car IMO.
How about a massaged Ford small block in a Mercedes 230SL? You can buy a decent 230 for around $12-13K, and it is a more competent chassis than the old fashioned 190SL (which is just a modified 180 sedan, which is about 1950s technology at best.
I'm a big fan of the 914/V8 world, but realistically, you end up with a ton of bucks in a pretty valueless car in the end (especially if a stronger transaxle is called for). I admit that resale value is not a factor in this sort of thing.
I'd love to see a V8 powered 2800 or 3.0 BMW CS. If you can find one that isn't mostly iron oxide, I really love the looks. I have a funny feeling that that swap would be a bear (like many Mercedes swaps) since the original engine is an I-6 and the BMW guys filled the engine compartment in those cars.
There's bound to be beaucoup clearance problems, though. I'll bet semi-serious fabrication would be in order (custom oil pan, conversion to rack and pinion ), the kind of thing you see in DOHC Nissan V6/Datsun 510 swaps. Could be a cool result, though. Pitch on that early '70s IMSA / German Touring Car body work (complete with impressionist paint job) and you could seriously irritate the BMWistas.
This guy was planning on putting a late model Ford V8 in his Volvo (a not super uncommon project, check out the JTR website) and test drove his donor car (a 5.0 Mustang) before he bought it. Turned out that the Mustang was a much better car than the Volvo, so he just bought one of those instead.
http://www.bmw.com/bmwe/pulse/events/art_cars/
Check out the Calder car. That thing is seriously cool.
I don't think a twin turbo setup would make much sense on a rotary, since twin turbos work best on large displacement engines that have lots of air volume being pumped by the cylinders. Twin turbos are also nice for V-engines as it makes for a nicely balanced and tidy package on a V. There is a misconception that twin turbos give you "twice the power". This is quite incorrect. You don't get any more power, as in fact, one large turbo is just as good if not better. Also, there are practical limits to turbo size.
No bolt-on turbo should be run of the mill. Aftermarket turbos need to be very expertly designed, and some of them aren't.
I suspect it was a space-saving compromise, and in a sense, it may have been easier for this particular application to service each rotor separately. But if Saab, say, can effectively turobcharge a 2.0 liter inline 4 with a turbo the size of a softball, I don't see why Mazda needed two.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Another one I'd like to see would be a V8 Jensen-Healey. It wouldn't bother me to see one torn up for a hotrod project and they are kind of pretty. A really bitchin' result would be something as fast as a modern Cobra kitcar without all the Shelby nonsense attached to it. (I'm seeing wwwway to many of those nowadays, must be Factory Five's success).
Speaking of Shelby, I say a Boss 302 this weekend with a real live, official Carroll Shelby signature on the glovebox door. Considering he had zipola to do with those cars, what in the heck is that all about? Maybe I can get him to sign my refrigerator or something (or get Larry Shinoda to sign a Cobra).
if you want a Camaro, buy a Camaro, I think you'd be disappointed in a V8 MGB.
I think you'd reach a point where, if you increased HP tremendously, you'd end up with just a "shell", like a NASCAR racer...it's a completely different car underneath.