Which car(s) did you learn to drive in?
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From: Noddy on 15 Jul 2010 00:35 "Brad" <bradleyden(a)spammail.com> wrote in message news:i1m2ol$p1s$1(a)speranza.aioe.org... > The toploader was a popular swap into holdens at the time as the Holden > boxes were not strong at all. I had a toploader in an XC ute, the linkage > shifter was a bit of a pain but once used to it you knew all was good. I > doubt that there was any extra force required to drive the box but as it > was > behind a red motor anything is possible. The top loader was a heavy box to drive compared to an Aussie 4 speed, and it cost around 10 extra hp to get it spinning. The same thing exists between some auto's. For example, the difference between driving a C4 and an FMX was around 25hp due almost entirely to the FMX's massive converter, but also to it's incredibly heavy internals. > Reverse next to second could lead to nasty things on newbie's. No more so that anything else I don't think. The standard shifters had a lockout, and if it wasn't working you needed a new shifter. I used a vertical gate on mine, which had a separate lever for reverse. > The main drawback was the hole that needed to be cut in the hump to fit > the > linkages. toploader and a 9" and you were fairly safe from failure. Depending on your horsepower output. I've broken a few of both, including second gear on a top loader with a red motor :) -- Regards, Noddy.
From: Noddy on 15 Jul 2010 05:46 "Brad" <bradleyden(a)spammail.com> wrote in message news:i1m7o7$ugt$1(a)speranza.aioe.org... > No lockout, had an original GT shifter fitted, It's still in the shed. I can assure you that a standard GT shifter had a detent between neutral and reverse. If yours doesn't, then it's broken. > If you blew either they were awfully sloppy to star with. Uh-huh. I never liked to use many manuals as they were always too hard on the rear axle. There's nothing like twisting the splines on an axle or shattering a diff centre like dumping the clutch at full song. On the other hand, I couldn't tell you the number of 9 inch axles and centres I've broken over the years and it has nothing whatsoever to do with me being rough. > They were not indestructible but awfully strong units to start with. no > problem for up to 400hp. Sorry to burst your bubble but you can break either a 9 inch or a top loader with half of that. They're not particularly weak, but they have their failings like anything else and on any given day if you hold your tongue the right way you'll do damage. > For high HP I prefer autos at least the HP we used back then with wild > cams > which did not like town driving at all. I used mostly autos for my drag racing. Specifically I used a powerglide, and my converter varied depending on the engine I ran. In the "early days" when the engine was normally aspirated it was making around 750hp or so and I used a 4500rpm stall converter and it worked well. I also used a standard 9 inch nodular centre with a full custom made spool, and to keep the costs down I ran Toyota Hi-Ace axles from a mid 80's model. They had the same axle flange as a 9 inch axle, but ran a slightly smaller bearing which meant facilitating a collar so they'd locate correctly in the housing. They were also thick enough in the beam that they could be splined to the correct length when cut down. They were *slightly* softer than a genuine Ford axle and I'd usually have to change them every 30 passes or so as the splines would start to twist, but then the genuine Ford axles would suffer from the same problem after maybe 40 passes. The big thing for me was that I could buy a used Toyota axle in those days for 10 bucks, whereas a Ford axle was close to a hundred and the cost of cutting and splining either was the same. When I finally moved to the blown engine I was making over 1300hp so standard rear axle components went out the window. By that stage the car was running a gas powered trans brake with a 7800rpm converter, and the rear end was a fully floating 40 spline Strange unit. Sadly, by the end of my racing days my differential cost more to assemble than the entire car did at the beginning. -- Regards, Noddy.
From: D Walford on 16 Jul 2010 02:31 On 16/07/2010 3:38 PM, Fraser Johnston wrote: > From my research into it you can get your bum into a roaring fourties GT40 for > around 70 large. Expect a lot of hard work but there is loads of clubs around > to help you with advice and parts. > > Finished you might even make a profit on it if you could bear to sell it. > I know 2 people who own Roaring Fourties GT40's, one was bought as a turn key car for $85,000, not sure if the other was factory built because the current owner bought it s/h. The factory built car has topped 300kph at Avalon airfield driven by a Holden Racing Team driver at a test day there several years ago, the owner chickened out at 290kph:-) The other one is raced regularly in club super sprints. If I ever did own one I'd aim to never sell it, even if I got too old to drive it I'd still enjoy just looking at it in the garage and I'm sure I wouldn't have any trouble getting my boys to take it for a spin occasionally:-) Daryl
From: Noddy on 16 Jul 2010 09:04 "D Walford" <dwalford(a)internode.on.net> wrote in message news:4c403997$0$28638$c3e8da3(a)news.astraweb.com... > If that was true it would make getting in and out easier plus I'd have > more room inside so what your point? His point is that he has no idea what he's on about. -- Regards, Noddy.
From: Fraser Johnston on 29 Jul 2010 02:23
"Blue Heeler" <osd351(a)gmail.com> wrote in message news:xn0gwi8hw7t90g000(a)news.individual.net... > Noddy wrote: > >> There used to be a saying that one Ford key would start 1000 Fords. I >> don't know if that's true, but I can tell you that in the 15 odd >> years that I owned a ZL Fairlane I tried it's key in a number of >> different Fords over the years for curiosity value and the number of >> different cars it would open and start was just under 30. It was >> either 28 or 29 if I remember correctly. After that I stopped >> counting. >> > > Toyotas up to mid 80s were the same. > > I had a mid 70s Corona MkII and was surprised to discover that it's key > also fitted (unlocked and started) a KE-30 Levin notch-back I bought in > the early 80s. But I was bloody surprised to discover that the same key > also fitted my Mother's '85 Celica. I had 2 mates in high school who had a key that could open and start any Toyota Corona. They got done for car theft twice. Their classic was taking a neighbours one and always bringing it back with more petrol than when they took it. He didn't care and neither did they. : ) The petrol in it probably cost more than the car. Fraser |