[Vettezuki]

Well, the title about says it.

What level would like to target? Could we keep street legal, or are you thinking purpose built and stripped out.

What approaches and "technologies" would you like to use?

If the 4.6 engine turned out to not be all that damaged, is it a reasonable base for what you have in mind, or were you thinking more like 351.

Ball park figures to hit what you have in mind. Are we talking:
<=$5,000 (Not a big deal, could probably handle next calendar year no problem)
$5,000 - $10,000 (pushing a little, but still okayish given likely financial scenario)
$10,000 - $15,000 (would really need to see some ROI in the form of publicity and solid resale value)
>$15,000 (would need far more serious sponsorship)

To be clear, other than acquiring the vehicle because of the opportunity at hand, I would not do anything until RX-Snake is completed. Currently I estimate that to be on the order of six months, mostly because of other higher priority drains on my cash and to a lesser degree time. That might work out ok, because I was honestly hoping to do something new about every 12 - 18 months.

[94cobra69ss396]

Purpose built race car! Completely strip the inside and get rid of anything not needed that adds weight. Then build a rollcage to meet the requirements of whatever series we want to enter it in.

Ditch the 4.6 and go with good old pushrod power. What, not sure but I was thinking Ford 302/351 or Chevy 350/454. Keep the engine cheap but make sure it has a good cooling system for coolant and oil. The big block would add around 250 extra pounds but would make a lot more torque which would help with acceleration out of the corners. I have a complete 4 bolt main 454 with 16,000 miles on it that we could use as a starter. Whatever engine we use I would want to set it back in the chassis to help balance the front and rear weight as long as the rules allow it. Then back it up with a 4 or 5 speed.

There are companies that make big brake kits as well as suspension pieces for the T-Birds so we could upgrade those as well. Also, couldn't we have your brother make solid bushing with the CNC machine through school?

I think the most expensive part would be the brakes but I think we could build this for under $5000.

[Leedom]

You know what would be cool... every next project is based off the motor combo of the previous build.

Project RX-Snake
Mazda RX-7 with Ford Powertrain

Tie-Bird
Ford T-bird with Chevy Powertrain

Next Porject
Chevy ? with ? Powertrain

[Vettezuki]

Originally Posted by 94cobra69ss396

Purpose built race car! Completely strip the inside and get rid of anything not needed that adds weight. Then build a rollcage to meet the requirements of whatever series we want to enter it in.

Ditch the 4.6 and go with good old pushrod power. What, not sure but I was thinking Ford 302/351 or Chevy 350/454. Keep the engine cheap but make sure it has a good cooling system for coolant and oil. The big block would add around 250 extra pounds but would make a lot more torque which would help with acceleration out of the corners. I have a complete 4 bolt main 454 with 16,000 miles on it that we could use as a starter. Whatever engine we use I would want to set it back in the chassis to help balance the front and rear weight as long as the rules allow it. Then back it up with a 4 or 5 speed.

There are companies that make big brake kits as well as suspension pieces for the T-Birds so we could upgrade those as well. Also, couldn't we have your brother make solid bushing with the CNC machine through school?

I think the most expensive part would be the brakes but I think we could build this for under $5000.

What series are you interested in? Study the series and see what's allowed and required.

Trans:
Do you have a source for TKOs on the cheap. It seems a quality 5 speed and clutch setup is going to be on the order of $2,500 - 3,500. All brakes and suspension another $3,000 - $5,000.


Engine:
I also have an L83 sitting here. A ghetto build would probably be well under $2k.

Consumables:
Road racing is much more expensive than drag. Tires and brakes get eaten up pretty fast. Banzai weekends can cost a g all in. This is something we have to keep in mind.


If we do a great job on RX-Snake, and things are coming along fine, we'll be in a much better position to shop for sponsorship. I'd love to run something like the FPS 347 at 500HP.

[Vettezuki]

Originally Posted by 94cobra69ss396

. . .Also, couldn't we have your brother make solid bushing with the CNC machine through school?

I have a machine shop in the family. Custom solid bushings would be a snap if necessary. Off the shelf stuff may be plenty cheap.

[94cobra69ss396]

I was thinking cheap. Like finding a good chevy 4 speed to go behind a SBC or BBC. The car wouldn't be lauched hard like a drag car so the trans doesn't have to be as strong as you need for that.

I was also thinking that we could find a way to make a set of newer Vette rotors and calipers work or maybe some Cobra ones. I know that my PBR calipers with Hawk HPS pads work well enough to solw my 3650 lbs Cobra down on the road course without fading. This would keep costs down. For example, the HPS pads I buy for the Cobra I get for under $100.

I was thinking about running in one of the time trail events so the car wouldn't be running 20 hard laps without a break. We would run a warmup lap and then a hard lap followed by a cooldown lap and then another hard lap and so on for the 20 minute session. It will be a lot easier on the cars engine, brakes, trans, etc.