silicone boy

A few months back, Grassroots Motorsports had an article about a sweet V8 Z. The owner went all out and spent about $60,000. True, he farmed out a lot of the work, while I have installed every nut and bolt in my car. Still, I thought he was crazy to spend that much. Now that I'm deep into the rebuild of my car (and I've strayed from the original plan, made some costly mistakes, etc), I can see how you can spend a ton on a swap. Definitely not for newbies. On the other hand, I was a total newbie when I started, having been a suspension person before. I had to learn how to build a motor, how to install it, how to do wiring, and now I'm learning how to put together a twin turbo setup. My point is, it's possible for a newbie to do a transplant, but we are not born with perfect knowledge, so mistakes will be made, and they are costly.

Maybe I'm just not looking in the right place.

For some reason, I've been reading a lot of sport compact stuff and watching a lot of it on TV (like that new Discovery show about hot street racers). Just want to see what the enemy is up to. One thing I've noticed is the sport compact chicks-for that matter, the hotrod chicks aren't that much different. They all seem to be not all that pretty, kinda short and stocky. Definitely not supermodel material. They all have fake boobs that I would never take credit for creating-too big and too round. WTF. Can't we get better looking girls in the car scene (like the ones I chose for my avatars)? I don't know what my point is. I guess I'm just venting.

Those LS1's are not in exactly in the set back position. Judging by the scale of the motor's size relative to the car, I estimate that they must displace something on the order of 1500 cubic inches and something like 2000 horsepower at the rear wheels. Do you have the stock rear diff on that or does it come off a mack truck? Everyone's always saying that the R200's limits have never been tested, but I'm not sure if it would hold up to 2000 HP.

I have the same motor in my RX7. Why does the engine bay looked so cramped in comparison? Now you've got me thinking. If I get an LS1 for the Mazda, I could put the twin turbo in the Z......

I'll be really upset this year if my I get beaten in my 3rd Gen RX7 by a better driver in a Yugo. You know what? It's probably going to happen.

Having recently done this, I know how much time went into it. Nice work.

I used to obsess about spring rates, sway bar diameters, etc. Unfortunately, I noticed that many of the stock drivers were faster than me. They tuned suspensions with alignment settings and tire pressures. The point is, you can worry too much about the perfect setup, when what will really make your car perform better is investing in improving your driving skill. We all like to think that we are great drivers, but we could all become better.Practice a lot and go to racing school . You'll be far better off.

What kind of a challenge has a fuel economy test, an emissions test, and an evaluation by a granny? Personally, I liked the blown Viper and what it did to the dyno.

Would you just shut up. I had gotten the HSR out of my mind, and you had to bring it up again. You're right, it is a beauty, and functional too, kind of like Tyra Banks. Makes you want it even though you couldn't justify it (the cost) to yourself.

It's actually a lot of fun, and my welding has come a long way because of it. I would get the merge collectors off the shelf, though. I'm thinking of trying some stainless turbo header fabrication-not cheap but It'll help me learn how to TIG weld stainless.

So does that mean that I could just buy one in Canada and drive it over the border? I mean, you can do that with a shitty Canadian built Camaros or Mustangs, can't you?

I was looking around the internet for a boost referenced fuel pressure regulator I'm going to use for a turbo Chevy. Most, of course, boost fuel pressure in a linear fashion with increasing boost pressure. I came across a couple that have rising rate regulators for turbos. Do any of you guys use one of these? What are the advantages and when would you consider one to be mandatory (or even recommended)

I'm not sure if that last one was put in the right forum, but is sure is a thing of beauty. V12 Jag, right?

Man, I love that SRT. What a value. I thought the current issue of Car Craft or Hot Rod had a one of a kind skunk works AWD version of the SRT. I'm probably just imagining it.

Aux, When I first saw the title to this thread, I thought it was going to involve fire and gasoline (given you previous experiences with fuel lines and flames). Glad to see you're alive and well.

Actually, that "under God" part was never part of the original Pledge. It was added in the 1950's. Also, the Pledge of Allegience was written by an American communist-the name escapes me right now.

I'm putting in a call to China for a counterfeit LS6 motor for about $500. Heck, why not ask for an entire fake Z06 Corvette at about $3000. I'm sure there is a market for that.

If they mean to ban Mitsubishi Evolutions from high schools, then I am all for it. With the demise of the Camaro/Firebird, the Evo's and WRX's move up on the list of cars that no high school kid should have access to.

If we were only born with perfect knowlege, life would be great. I continue to make every mistake in the book, and I learn from it. One of the things I have learned is that putting an engine like a VTEC Integra into a Civic gets you a great car thats fun to drive at a Civic insurance rate-just like my insurance company that knows I only have 140 horsies under the hood of my Z. Heck, I'm not even sure they even consider it a sports car. He will learn

I've always said that a man can have one of 3 vices. Sports, cars, and women. If you have just one of the 3, you can still be functional (although the latter can get even more expensive than cars when you think about it). If you have 2 of the 3, say cars and women, then you're a goner .

Mike, Does your wife realize what you spend on your cars? Mine only agreed to get me an RX7 for XMAS if I agreed to make no modifications and drive it as is (it did come with adjustable shocks, better intake, and a fart pipe exhaust though). I agreed that I would make no modifications to the motor or suspension. Is a hidden manual boost controller part of the engine? Putting one in would violate the spirit of the agreement, if not the letter of the agreement.

I'm sure that there's enough engineering talent here to get something together. I volunteer my car since it should do better in the thin Martian atmosphere with the Fuel injection and turbos. I'll volunteer to go myself and make initial contact with the alien women, since I have a lot of experience in handling big breasted women

I love fried rice. Great cars to beat too.

Doesn't surprise me. My RX7 is a torqueless wonder. I'd take my Mazda over the ford in a 100 mph sweeper though.