Andy the troublemaker writes... :-)
>I have to ever-so-slightly disagree here. Cost really IS a factor in some
>cases. It's one thing to blithely say "drop in a pair of SUs and a header
>/ Triumph 6 / Ford 302 / Mazda Rotary / Allision V-16 /Pratt & Whitney
>Turbine...." But the hard fact is that one has to be mindful of the costs
>or each swap itself AND the associated costs of drivetrain, chassis, body
>and other modifications -- and benefits -- as each decides what might be
>done and what each of us is capable of doing or paying someone to do.
>
>In my original comment to Laura, I meant absolutely no disrespect to Tim
>and his rotary Spitfire project or to anyone else who has ever done or
>might yet contemplate any such enhancement. In short, I think it's great
>to see the ingenuity and craftsmanship and engineering that go into such
>projects. (Although I flat-out admit that I personally cringe when I hear
>of such a car, OR a "completely restored from the ground up" car, that
>started out as "a clean, low-mileage original"! :-) But it's more a
>quantum leap than a mere step from adding headers to effectively
>re-engineering the entire car.
"Ever-so-slightly disagree" He he....what diplomacy! And you think
this man has the moniker "Mild Mannered Mr. Mace" for nothing??
Okay....here's another post I dug up from the British-car archives:
>Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 01:21:36 -0400 (EDT)
>From: "Adam B. Cox" <adambcox@phoenix.Princeton.EDU>
>Subject: rotary spitfire
>i have a triumph spitfire in which we recently installed a carburated
>mazda 12-A rotary engine(a beautiful, professional installation). the
>car has NO rust and brand new bodywork (including mazda miata brg
>paint). it also has a new interior and lots of other stuff (including an
>$800 stereo system). unfortunately, the investment in the car exceeded my
>original estimates :) and now i need to sell the car. i am asking $10,000
>for the car. if you are interested please mail me. this spit will make a
>great play or racing machine.
>adam
>adambcox@phoenix.princeton.edu
Now don't go trying to buy this car...this message is dated 1994 and
I'm sure Adam's sold it by now. Well...at a $10,000 asking price
maybe not. :-)
I think MMMM might be on to something when he cautions about
"re-engineering the entire car" for the Ro-Spit conversion.
Grassroots has been at it for over 4 years and those folks are _in
_that_ business_.
I really wonder what Laura would have gotten if she let "the Weber
guy" put a Mazda engine in her car. Would she have gotten a custom
fabricated Mazda rear suspension or was he gonna let loose all 150
horsies on that herald based pumpkin...? Would the brakes be uprated
to match the new performance? Would there be a proper exhaust or just
some scraps of flex pipe? Would the speedometer EVER work again??
:-) Lemme guess...he was gonna do the complete conversion for $2500
U.S and he'd have it done in three weeks, right?
Back pedalling a bit now...I was intrigued when I first read about the
Grassroots Ro-Spit and I think it's going to turn out to be a
fantastic performing car. Someday I think I'd like to do an engine
conversion on a Spitfire but it won't be on MY Spitfire...that one
stays all Triumph. Instead I'd look for a DPO special in a scrapyard
somewhere....a car so bunged up that it can't *ever* be put right.
Geesh.....wonder if I still have Richard Jackson's e-mail address. :-)
I really admire folks like Dan Masters, Barry Schwartz and Tom Suddard
who have the engineering skills and the patience to do these
conversions properly. I figure there's some serious brainstorming
going on here before these guys even *think* about picking up a
spanner. At the same time I'm getting just a little bit nervous
hearing all about those on the list who plan to convert their
Spitfires.
Spitfires seem to be irresistible targets for engine conversions.
Something about that one piece bonnet, open wide, makes you think you
could stuff a 426 Hemi in there. Maybe you could. :-) But I worry
that too many of the cars are getting hacked up by folks who get in
over their head. Wasn't there a fellow on the list last year who was
building a new frame outta 1/4 steel plate? Yikes!! Where's *that*
project going?
If we lose too many Spitfires then the vendors lose their incentive to
keep making parts. Not good. So I dunno...to convert or not to
convert....that is the question! :-)
I got it!! For every Spitfire conversion planned we *require* the
owner to buy an MG Midget and stick a Fiat engine in there FIRST!
Seems fair, right Andy? Everybody wins! <ggg>
Cheers!
Tom O'Malley in Southbridge Massachusetts
'74, '77 Spits
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