I know people put them in Lotus Seven replicas...what else that's available in America and road legal lends itself to it?

10/22/2007 3:06:23 AM

mini (older ones)

smart

10/22/2007 3:19:53 AM

i should specify RWD and performance oriented.

not seriously entertaining the idea by any means...just something i've kicked around in my head a few times over the years

10/22/2007 3:25:02 AM

the smart is rwd. the mini can't be terribly hard to convert, it's probably the most popular car for bike engine swaps and all i've seen are rwd.

there's nothing that's going to be that performance oriented that's light enough. not really an issue imo though. anything suitable is going to weigh next to nothing, so even basic suspension/brakes are going to provide adequate performance.

[Edited on October 22, 2007 at 4:04 AM. Reason : rwd]

10/22/2007 3:39:31 AM

Minis, to include the old ones, are FWD. otherwise one would be liable to follow me home.

and a busa/zx-14 engine would provide plenty of motivation to move a lightweight sports car with authority (particularly with a little forced induction action)...a 'busa engined Seven will move, and a turbo 'busa engined Seven will damn near jump off the ground (and a Seven--particularly with IRS--is performance oriented by anyone's measure).

i just wondered what else was out there (kit cars, mostly).

10/22/2007 4:04:28 AM

you're right, i just edited... i had it on my mind they were rwd from the swaps i've seen.

i don't think even a busa/zx14 motor (stock) will provide stellar performance in anything heavier than ~1000-1500 lbs. definitely a fun toy, but you've got to consider that's triple what a bike chassis weighs. that pretty much rules out any production vehicle (that i can think of) except those two.

something like the old mg, triumph, etc. roadsters might would work well but would still be on the line of too heavy i think.

the world of kit cars is pretty big... there's probably something suitable out there that's been made in the past or present. i don't know enough about them to name one though.



[Edited on October 22, 2007 at 4:16 AM. Reason : .]

10/22/2007 4:11:26 AM

you could make something like an MG Midget fucking fly with a turbo busa engine (and move along smartly with a regular one)

and while a Midget is fun even in slow, stock form, it isn't the sort of floppy chassis that I want.

Super Seven is pretty much the yardstick. I'm wondering if there are any other options out there.

10/22/2007 4:35:27 AM

+rwd conversion

10/22/2007 8:43:55 AM

^oh oh, i would drive the shit out of that

10/22/2007 9:27:20 AM

nice vomit color

10/22/2007 9:29:32 AM

an old ass civic hatch

like late 70's early 80's before the crx that every ricer boi wants

10/22/2007 9:41:06 AM

http://www.tigerracing.com/cars/tiger-cars.php

Hands down the best options right now.

10/22/2007 9:43:21 AM

Quote :

"Twin Motorcycle Engined."

10/22/2007 9:55:43 AM

^^ Those are awesome, but I don't think they're available in the US.

10/22/2007 10:22:00 AM

^^^ looked at them before. They're all Sevens, and they're British (i.e., RHD and I don't know if I could get it registered here in the States...don't know how that works).

[Edited on October 22, 2007 at 10:23 AM. Reason : ^^^]

10/22/2007 10:23:44 AM

An old Fiat 850 Spider would be a pretty cool application for a sportbike engine. RWD, 1600 lbs, unusual (and IMO attractive) styling. Finding one might be difficult though. Someone on campus has a yellow one of these--used to see it in the Riddick lot every so often.

Imagine with mag wheels and a little finessing:


Or what about a Karmann Ghia?

10/22/2007 10:28:22 AM

Quote :

"an old ass civic hatch like late 70's early 80's before the crx that every ricer boi wants"

I have an old civic hatchback that would be great for this. Will sell for cheap.

[Edited on October 22, 2007 at 10:49 AM. Reason : h]

10/22/2007 10:48:46 AM

Fuck putting a bike motor in a Karmann Ghia. If I was gonna do anything other than a sick Type I turbo'd buildup with fuel injection, it would be an aluminum-block V6 of some sort. Hell, even a cast iron Boo-rick 3800 supercharged would fill my spank bank.

10/22/2007 12:28:29 PM

old Porsche 914 maybe?

10/22/2007 1:17:04 PM

Type 4 motor isn't a BAD option, but there are so many things available for Type I/II/III for so much cheaper that I don't really know if the Type 4 engine is a very viable option. One thing about it is that it has been offered for YEARS in a fuel-injected setup, all the way to '82 in air-cooled form. And you can carry it out to more than 2.8 liters, but I don't know how reliable it would be (air-cooled big bore/stroke shit can get ornery).

10/22/2007 1:20:13 PM

i wanna eventually build a gocart with my spare engine

10/22/2007 3:41:02 PM

http://jalopnik.com/cars/bwaaaaaa!/jackrabbit-hayabusa+powered-volkswagen-mk1-golf-261188.php

10/22/2007 4:00:23 PM

thats pretty bad ass

10/22/2007 4:55:31 PM

old MR2??

10/22/2007 5:47:58 PM

none of that shit is hardcore enough.

i'm talking Super Seven level performance focus. Otherwise I'll just stick with production cars or a Seven kit.

10/22/2007 7:30:41 PM

here is an idea

just ride the damn hayabusa

is it significantly more dangerous than an 1600lb nig rigged go kart?

[Edited on October 22, 2007 at 7:59 PM. Reason : .]

10/22/2007 7:59:11 PM

^^Tiger Racing models are importable, and there are quite a few shops who will build it out for you once it gets here.

10/22/2007 8:01:03 PM

^ i was thinking about building it myself (albeit with some major assemblies prefabbed if they offer that). wonder if they offer it LHD? huge asspain to register for the street?

^^ none of that has anything to do with anything.

10/22/2007 8:04:04 PM

Check Youtube, there are some people putting Busa motors in the Smart.

10/22/2007 8:07:21 PM

i missed this line

Quote :

"not seriously entertaining the idea by any means"

10/22/2007 8:08:37 PM

^^ i wouldn't want a Smart if it had the space shuttle engine in it

^ by that I don't mean that I'm just hypothetically daydreaming...I mean that I don't have my credit card out, and would have to do a lot more research and thinking about it before I pulled the trigger.



Basically, I'm thinking about what I want to drive when I get back from my first deployment (as I don't plan on buying anything crazy until then, so I can just sell whatever I'm driving and save money while I'm in the sandbox). Lotus Elise is an obvious frontrunner, and I'd consider another Evo, and maybe even another turbocharged Miata or supercharged S2000. I have a real interest in having something that is a hardcore backroad burner and track tool, but still streetable enough to drive day-to-day (albeit certainly not as my only transportation). I think something like a IRS-equipped Super Seven replica would be sweet, but they have some aero issues at speed. Also, I'd prefer a heater, a stereo, etc, and a top that isn't a complete afterthought.

[Edited on October 22, 2007 at 8:20 PM. Reason : asdf]

10/22/2007 8:15:17 PM

Quote :

"wonder if they offer it LHD? huge asspain to register for the street? "

Yes, and its easy as hell in WA state. You just schedule an appointment, they make sure its not going to fall apart on the road, and you pay a one time registration inspection. Done.

10/22/2007 8:26:54 PM

hmmm...I don't know that I could get it done here in WA. I'll only be here ~ 8 more months, and I'm not gonna order it tonight, tomorrow, or next week. I'm also still a FL resident and have a FL driver's license, although I can register "normal" vehicles in WA since I'm stationed here. I'll be able to do the same thing in NC when I get back there, too.

(While neither FL or WA have state income tax, I left my residence in FL because I don't have to do vehicle inspections of any kind...so I'm pretty much emissions exempt as long as I register my cars in FL. I don't know if buying a house as a primary residence in NC will screw all that up or not, though).

10/22/2007 9:11:31 PM

and would i be subject to the VAT?

10/23/2007 1:29:46 AM