In a message dated 98-11-05 12:44:57 EST, spitlist@gte.net writes:
> I could imagine cramming a V8 in to a Mini.
>
> First order of business is to rip out all the interior and move the
> front seating to where the back was and then install the engine and
> fabricate a firewall somewhere in the former passenger compartment.
>
> That would mean the driveshaft would be extremely short. It like the
> Cheetah of earlier days, the tranny could be coupled to the differential
> by a single U-Joint.
Joe,
That pretty much describes how it was done with the Anglia. The driver looked
out the rear passenger window (or, as often as not, right into the door post).
The Fiats (Topolinos, for the most part) were handled a bit differently. The
chassis was discarded and a new, longer chassis fabricated. This put the front
wheels about 3 feet further forward then they were. The only front sheet metal
that was retained was the grill.
> Interesting Thought, but I don't think I am man enough to drive
> something like that at any appreciable speed.
In their original incarnation, they were only meant to be driven down a
straight line for 1/4 mile. The primary factor for steering was to ensure that
power was delivered to the rear wheels as equally as possible. Turning was
only of concern at the end of the strip, when the car had slowed to a crawl.
In the most recent re-incarnation, they only have to be steered into a parking
space at the local drive in, or at a car show. Form takes precedence over
function - no, form replaces function. There is no need to drive them at
speed, only to give the impression that they would indeed go at a high rate of
speed.
One of the hot tricks today is to use hydraulics to get the car "in da weeds"
at the show, and raise it enough to drive it onto the trailer afterwards. One
of the "fabulous" (their words, not mine) cars featured in a recent issue of
Street Rodder had gone the ultimate - the hydraulics lowered the car till the
frame actually rested ON THE GROUND!!!!!
I don't want to give the wrong impression, though - not all street rodders go
for this sort of thing. There is a group (majority) that feels the same way
most of the LBC owners do - if it's trailered, it ain't real. By far, the
majority of them drive their cars to the shows if they can. Obviously, if your
car is a two seater, and your family is large, trailering is about the only
way.
Yes, some of them even drive the Fiat Topolinos, long frame and all, on the
streets - fast from corner to corner, rather slowly through the corners. Not
the way to drive for a Triumph owner, eh?
Dan Masters,
Atlanta, GA for a few days.
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