In reply to MadScientistMatt: Certainly interesting. Especially for the cone grabbers. He had two clean runs but I'd be behind that light post anyway.
Just a guess. Isn't that just a tad beyond the 2,500# goal?
Hope he owns a tire store!
In reply to MadScientistMatt: Certainly interesting. Especially for the cone grabbers. He had two clean runs but I'd be behind that light post anyway.
Just a guess. Isn't that just a tad beyond the 2,500# goal?
Hope he owns a tire store!
Other than the 250hp thing, our '73 GTV does it all pretty well. Some changes that put it into CSP, wonderful car on the track, and it gobbles up miles nicely on the street.
It's the car in my avetar.
alfadriver wrote: Other than the 250hp thing, our '73 GTV does it all pretty well. Some changes that put it into CSP, wonderful car on the track, and it gobbles up miles nicely on the street. It's the car in my avatar.
I do love the look of those Alfa's but aren't they commanding 911 prices also?
And yeah, while cool, that truckster is definitely not what I am looking for. I've done the heavy, fast car option once with my '04 GTO, it was frustrating on tight courses and just too heavy to be fun to drive for long periods.
Other options I'm looking at are the Datsun 510, and I just thought of it, but would a BMW 2002 be a good base to start from?
In reply to t25torx: If you can find a PL-510, not a HL-510, with little rust, that would work a treat. Spares, hop-up options, etc. galore. Lot's of room inside, considering the exterior size. SOHC,IRS, pretty balanced weight.
In reply to t25torx:
Not nearly yet. GTA's are very pricy. Seems like right now, really good GTV's are in the $20-30k range. And are right in line with 2002's, too. 510's are cheap, but if you honestly look at a basic 510- it's relative spot stock to a GTV or 2002, the prices may reflect that change. Remember, an unmod'ed 510 isn't much of a car, especially comapred to a GTV or 2002, and especially to a 911. (and a LOOONG way from 250hp)
Although I guess one should ask what do you mean by 911 prices.
For sure, a contemporary comparison, the same year 911's are quite a bit higher than GTV's.
The other question is what kind of car are you looking for- something with ivisible modifications that make it fast, or more of a resto-mod car. For the non 911, the 2002 is a better resto-mod car, as I bet you can put a more modern BMW 4 cyl in, whereas the GTV's engine is largely the same through the '91 spider. And if you want to go crazy, I'm sure an updated Nissan motor will look really cool in a 510.
Lastly, if BMWs are on the list, a look at the Mercedes Benz 190E 2.3 16V, aka the Mercedes Cosworth may be in order.
Most are manual shift, very reasonably priced, and well built.
Leo
As a Datsun guy I will second Alfadrivers comment on both the stock 510s being lack luster and the availability of engine choices; both the 300ZX V6 motors and the 2.4 liter truck motors are very common swaps. These are good for 175 to 190 horsepower in stock form and can be had dirt cheap. You can buy the donor cars for under a grand all day long. Now as for an Alfa GTV; one of my best races ever was dicing with a GTV driver in a Datsun/Alfa/Porsche challenge race.........good looking car, sounds great and handles well..........compared to the little 1200 they have gobs of power. Another good choice I also forgot Volvo 142; I've had two, a 144 rally and a 142E daily with A/C and overdrive. 142s handle well and the B20 engines are pretty stout. But alas I can't get away from Japanese cars; an early 80s Celica would do great, also like the early to mid 80s Supra, if you want oddball the same year Cressida can be had with 5 speeds and the large number of the Suora hop up bits bolt on.
Tom
In reply to Tom1200:
The V6 would fit into a 510? THAT would be cool.
The 1974 to 1976 BMW "square tail" cars are still available at reasonable prices. The cost of the earlier cars has really jumped.
For some reason the later cars are likely to have more than their fair share of floor rust. Could be the foam used under the carpet. If the car started life with a metallic paint it must have cost the company a premium and as a result they did not put much of it on the car.
When you pull the side vent windows the lower sheet metal could be very rusty. In fact when you pull any window on these cars the lower sheet metal is at risk.
But on the up side there is lots of parts support and upgrades available. But to end up with a 5 speed, recaro seats and a LSD you might want to start with a 1980-1982 BMW 320. Before they have been "discovered".
alfadriver wrote: In reply to Tom1200: The V6 would fit into a 510? THAT would be cool.
Easily.
Tom1200 wrote: I also forgot Volvo 142; I've had two, a 144 rally and a 142E daily with A/C and overdrive. 142s handle well and the B20 engines are pretty stout.
Whoa, didn't even know about these cars. Daddy like (would like more with an IRS). I did a searchtempest search and came up with only 2 examples for sale across all the craigslist of North America, so this might be harder to find than a clean PL510.
@alfadriver, the Nissan VG30 is a very narrow angle V6 so it fits between the strut towers nicely. BRE has fitted a V8 to a 510 and that fits surprisingly well. @t25torx the Volvo 140s don't come up everyday but if you wait you'll find one. It took me about 4 months to find the 142. While the do not have IRS they rear axle is coil sprung and I can tell that even at 90 mph on a washboard gravel road they float along nicely. One of the most successful ITB race cars in the country is/was a 142E, it won several ARRC championships. Of course a modded 510 is a fun car so it's a good pick as well.
Tom
In reply to Tom1200: I'd much rather have a v6 than v8- they sound cooler to me.
I know some have tried to put the Alfa V6 into the Spider/GTV chassis- but getting the trans to work is hard, since the V6 Alfas were transaxle cars.
IMHO, a v6 510 would be a really cool resto-mod.
BTW, the GTV6 was brought up as an Alfa idea- the Alfetta can be a good choice, too. Much lower getting in price for those.
I am partial to 6 cylinder engines as well. I like motors in multiples of 3, two stroke triples are awesome, although I am partial to things like old XS750 but like the new Yamaha triple bikes as well. Alfa V6, Datsun Z, BMW 6 all sound great. I can also remember working a vintage race many many years ago and the sound of a Ferrari V12 as the car came scream out of the pit lane was surreal.
Tom
6 cylinders? Yes! 6 cylinders inline that is. A truly sweet feel and sound. And if you marry two inline sixes to each other, then you have the even sweeter sound of a V-12.
I've always felt fours or multiples of fours don't have nearly the feel or sound of sixes. Having said that, I will admit I currently own three cars, & all three came with inline fours.
Even though most V-engines will fit into a PL-510, I'd go with the inline six if it were me.
oldeskewltoy wrote: really....??? Ok, I'll bite... why not an older Corolla???mine is 2200#, 170hp, 6 speed equipped, that is a ball to drive, can carry over 400#s, or something as large as a 6' xmas tree. It has little inherent value, allowing you to change whatever you want, and unless the work was done poorly, the value only goes up! It can carry 4, 5 in a pinch, mine gets over 31mpg on the highway, and about 25 around town. It utilizes almost the entire AE86 suspension, so performance goodies are plentiful, while consumables are cheap
My 77 celica was like a modern car in most ways, was very comfortable and effortlessly kept up with modern traffic. I loved that little car.
<img src="
" />
Absolutely nothing wrong with a Corolla; 4AG, N/A or super charged, loads of goodies available for these as well. As for a Celica a friend has a 1976 hatchback that he bought in 1977; he put on a set of sway bars Koni dampers and some various goodies. It's fun to drive.
Tom
So I think I've made a decision. After much deliberation I've decided to pursue getting a very nice 1975 Opel Manta. While the aftermarket for it might be a little small, any car that gets banned from SCCA stock racing for being too dominant can't be a bad starting platform.
The shape reminds me of a Corvair but with the more conventional FR layout. The issue now is the car is in Phoenix and I'm in south Florida. Do I fly and drive, or get it shipped? Also trying to figure out the safest way to put a deposit on it.
I recommend shipping. If you have flexibility on dates and transit time it is very reasonable with well known carriers that advertise in GRM/CMS. For example, I got a quote to move a car from Minnesota to Virginia in covered transport for under $1k (don't recall the exact price). They did say it could take up to five weeks depending on what else they had going on.
I would imagine that with all the auctions in AZ this time of year there are a lot of trucks in the area.
One thing to note is that I recently had an experience where there was an issue with a classic car needing additional (very expensive) insurance. Never mind that it was not an especially valuable car.
In reply to pushrod36: WOW!! I assume you're talking about while trucking it from place to place? Otherwise, I've found classic insurance to be the cheapest I can find.
In reply to Rupert:
Yes. I suppose it would be better defined as the moving company passing along the cost of their insurance.
You'll need to log in to post.
