silicone boy

I didn't have problems with my shaft angle (that doesn't sound quite right, does it?) I didn't like just being bolted to the floorpan, so I also fashioned brackets to attatch it to the frame rails (which were made of 2x4 metal tubing. It's really solid now.

I know this may not be a consideration, but I have a WC T5 for a Shelby Cobra kit car I'm building to sell and finance my other car projects-I'm gonna sell it to some dude in a middle age crisis. I plan on driving it around a ritzy part of town with a blond babe next to me. It'll sell itself. Anyway, I digress. My point is that the WC T5 is a lot lighter than a T56. I always brace myself for an aching back when I lift it, only to be surprised by its light weight. The motor it's going behind is a Roush Racing 351 making 400 crank hp, so the T5 is no slouch. It's a good tranny. Will it last behind such power? I don't know. Some sugar daddy's gonna find out the answer to that when his Cobra drops a tranny while cruising with some 20 year old hottie. I had a vivid and sick imagination.

The members of Hybrid Z have cost me big time money, Mostly the Turbomeister and ScottyGNZ. I was perfectly content with building a 383SBC. Then I got the nagging itch to turbo it. My compression is a tad high at 10:1, but I'm not having problems at low boost (about what you plan on running). My huge intercooler probably saves me. If it starts to knock as I turn up the boost, I'll do water/alcohol injection.

Pop, that's incredibly close. Now, about those turbos, I would love to help you on that, but I think your loved ones would hate me for encouraging you!

Are you talking about a real LS7 or a 427 LSX? LS7 uses a dry sump. I just ordered an 427 LS shortblock from Scoggins set up for a wet sump. I anticipate no problems with installation relative to an LS1 or LS2 as they have the same mounting points. The nice thing about this 427 shortblock is that it can use those killer LS7 heads with incredible flow numbers from the factory.

Vinh, Brian at Scoggins Dickey has 3 427 short blocks ready to go (actually 2 now, since I ordered one) for $6200 or so. They are LS7 based but use a wet sump. Can't wait to get it into my 93 RX7. Now I have a spare LS1 that is complete and I may sell someday.

I'm among the overeducated. I was able to start my career at the age of 35, and that's having gone straight through school starting at age 5. I then started went back to school for an MBA at age 37. Let me tell you, I could put all you need to know for an MBA in a book, and it would be a very small book. I'm not saying it was not worthwhile. It gave me a lot of confidedence and credibility, and that's worth a lot. Any venture I choose to create in the future, I know I can handle it. In your situation, it depends on how much hands on work you ultimately want to do. If it's a lot, go to Wyotech. Great school, especially since there's nothing to do there except study. You could get stuck in the nuts and bolts though. At 22, though, I fear you're too young to go to business school and some real world experience would help. You could do both, but that would get expensive. Anyway, good luck.

Well said Doc

Remember that oil has to be distilled also. You can't just put a gallon of crude in your car. It would be a giant mess. Where do they get the energy to distill crude oil? From refined petroleum products. It's one big circle. As to the cost of ethanol production, the cheapest I have seen for home production is someone who claims to be making it for 75 cents to a gallon. Most home "brewers" are at about $1.50. With mass production, it will certainly come down from there (I'll bet the gov't won't tax fuel ethanol for a long time to encourage its use)

Yes I've heard all those arguments, but remember, petroleum costs a lot of energy to collect and fractionate as well, and the byproducts are simply nasty. This gets us in a vicious cycle because we have to get have to go out and get more. These are the same arguments against ethanol, which was supposed to be the original fuel for our internal combustion vehicles ( if Henry Ford had his way). We're lpretty good at growing corn. A bushel (about 55 pounds) costs $1.50 subsidized. You couldn't even fit $10 worth in your car! Ultimately, it's solar energy and it's renewable. Like I said, I was a MILITANT naysayer a year ago, giving the same anti-ethanol arguments, until I saw a show on Brazil thumbing their noses at OPEC. They burn corn stalks, use waste heat from power plants, solar energy to preheat the mash, etc. (remember you only have to heat the mash to 170 deg F to get ethanol to separate) As far as destroying my engine, I'll take my chances in the name of experimentation. I know I'm running lean, but I don't notice any pinging whatsoever. If I destroy the engine, I can get another one fairly cheap from Japan, where they are required to replace engines at 35,000 miles. What I'm really going to do is get a new ECU (probably the Megasquirt).

Do you realize how awesome that would be? Manufacturers would make hi performance motors for us from the factory, and all we would have to do is swap out the cam to really open up the performance. Sounds just like an LSX. I say we trick Detroit in the name of fuel independence into making some hot motors for us.

Until I looked closely, I thought he had a sticker that said "Fauxrarri" near the rear side marker. That's what it should really say!

Very true Pop N Wood. I've always said we could solve our energy dependence better on the consumption side than the production side. Unfortunately, every member of this forum is guilty of a desire to burn fuel at an extremely high rate, with me, the Turbomeister, and many others being some of the worst offenders. Gotta have fun though! I'll brew up some extra ethanol to make up for it. I've even talked to some local microbrewerys about taking some of their bad batches of beer to distill!

Mike, it's easy to get back in good graces with the Corvette community. Since you are a member of the hybrid community, why don't you just go over to your GM dealer and order an LS7 motor (for $13K) and stuff it into your M roadster. You kow all the arguments. Better weight distribution, lighter motor, etc. They'll love you. Either that or both the BMW dudes and the Vette dudes are going to hate you.

Interesting question John. I'm not sure how you would optimize an engine for ethanol. Most of my life, I've been thinking of ways to decrease fuel mileage (i.e. make more power). I see the tremendous strides made in just the last few years in diesel technology and I'm sure we'll all benefit in the future. I think the things we do to improve engine technology will benefit us all, no matter what fuel we burn. I mean, I've been like Rip van Winkle for the past couple of years, when I virtually disappeared off the forum to work on my car, learn flyfishing, and other things. Then I come back and see people working on LS1 conversions. At the time I thought, ....just another 350 motor. Then I saw what nutso power they could put out with minor mods and they still get MPG's in the 20's! I'm not saying E85 is the solution, but it can be a piece of the puzzle. I was a naysayer a year ago until I saw Brazil's success with ethanol. They are relatively fuel independent and a net EXPORTER of ethanol for a tidy profit, all in a generation. Where there is a will, there is a way.

My wife was raised in that generation that absolutely hates American cars. When that latest Vette came out, she said, "OOOOH I love that car, what is it, a Ferrari?" . I talked it up for a while as an Italian exotic and she continued to rave about how she loved it. Then I told her that it was a Vette and she stammered and said "well, it's not that pretty, and they're just copying foreign cars". I reminded her that the C6 looks like the C5, which looks line the C4, which was first built over 20 years ago but she didn't want to talk about it anymore.

As I said, the fuel system components of all modern cars are ethanol compatible. Here in Colorado, we've been using a 10% ethanol mix since the 1970's and we are used to it. I'm surprised when I get on other forums of the fear that ethanol brings to the hearts of car owners in other parts of the country where E10 is being introduced for air pollution reasons, when it's very possible they've already been burning it for a while.

Wheelman I didn't know that about Megasquirt. So I don't need the $600 fuel composition sensor? That's sweet. John I notice about 2 mpg difference in fuel mileage. Most say there is a power increase, but it's not significant. You are right. It's probably a wash. I like it as a higher octane fuel, and as a little trick that you can do to get your car to pass the smog test at the DMV (I don't see anywhere in the regs that you can't burn an alternative fuel during the test. As far as overall cost and energy efficieny of E85, I would remind everyone that it takes an awful lot of energy to distill a barrel of oil, just like it takes energy to distill ethanol. True, we would be paying ADM for the fuel with large scale production. Then again, when it becomes a more popular fuel, production costs should drop.

A few months ago, I decided I wanted to try and convert my Acura MDX into a flexfuel/ethanol vehicle. Then someone suggested that I just mix E85 50/50 with gasoline. It's been running great. The only side effect is that the "check engine" light comes on, presumably because the O2 sensor is sniffing too little smog. It goes right back when I use regular unleaded. The benefit? It's $1.99 a gallon. I know that may be a subsidized price because it never fluctuates. Hey, I'll take it. To add to the savings, I buy the lowest grade unleaded because I'm mixing it with a higher octane fuel. It feels great to stick it to OPEC and big oil, and besides, it burns a lot cleaner. Afraid of somehow ruining your motor? Remember, I'm doing this in a $45,000 SUV, so I don't take that lightly.

Dr Hunt, not to make fun of your predicament, but .....hahahahahahahaha. I racked my brains out for the better part of 2 years trying to get the turbo plumbing right! You seem so close.

Congrats Mike. I know you could do it, having "known" you from this forum for the past few years-your talent definitely shows, although your financial restraint in buying "new" cars is not your best trait. I broke away from my old business partner a couple of years ago and now I'm generating more revenue than the two of us combined in our best years. I'm very cost to recouping my startup costs and we also are in the black. The profits will be socked away for retirement. Yes it is great to be your own boss, but you also have an SOB for a boss. You know what I mean, with the long hours you impose on yourself. Then again, I love going to the workplace every day knowing I am doing mankind some good. Now, about those single moms, if I'm ever back in your neck of the woods, I'll help you support them.

Well, my twenty year dream is to marry Jessica Simpson. Of course, by that time I'll be an old geezer without teeth and she wouldn't give me the time of day. Of course, she just may go for it because I'll have a pile of cash and I'll be about to kick the bucket.

It's so much easier when you can destroy the car. I love taking Sawzall's to them, but a plasma cutter would be fun too.

I gotta admit there are a lotta strange dudes in the gun world, so much so that don't readily admit my fascination with guns to just anyone.