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Had my automotive introduction when I was about 16, when I purchased my first "beater", an original British Motor Corporation, in the form of a hyper-rusted Morris Min Minor 850cc (wow, huh?), which was a total wreck. No brakes, 28 hp motor, tiny drum brakes etc.
Over the next 5 years I turned it into a full-on racing Mini-Cooper, 1310cc Janspeed race motor, side-draft velo-stacked Weber 45 DCOE that stuck through the instrument panel with no air filter, headers, and so on. Front disc brakes, and all the rest. I could have bought a new 1275 Cooper S for less, but what I learned in the meantime, huh? My custom ride went from a max speed of about 58 mph to 120mph+. 150 hp in an 1100 pound car. Full British Racing Green with silver roof and hood stripes.
Meantime, 43 years later, my Ford (VERY sporty) is a near dead-stock (but v. comfy!) '96 F350 Power Stroke crew cab 4X4, ≈110k miles with that ultra-durable 444E running on Amsoil synth. Has a 4.10 rear end with the lone improvements of slightly oversized tires on factory rims, plus better shocks (I tried overside tires on wide rims, but that Ford 1950s vintage "buckboard standard" front suspension system meant it wandered all over the Interstate, even with all-new tie rods and so on: the new rim offset was the culprit!). Current tire size on the factory Alcoa's is 285-16.
Engine changes limited to a Banks installed post-turbo downtube and their proprietary engine map changer. A lot noisier in the cab! Not much improvement, certainly not as advertised. And I had it installed at Banks in SoCal, where they also broke the exhaust manifold. That cost me >> $800 to have fixed. Hmmm...
Plus, that known-to-be fragile E4OD trans which failed @ about 109k miles despite all the oil changes and no towing, so it's been retro-HD built with a welded billet TQ, better clutches and other mods.
That s Banks downtube was supposed to provide some magic fuel economy improvement, which only works and marginally at hat, at 68 - 72 mph, up from 18 mpg on cruise. I would say though that it now has about 250 - 260 hp+ (but only at 3200rom+, where I rarely go!), plus an additional, oh... 60 - 80+ lb-ft.
But for that it cost me well over $1000. Oh well, we live, we learn, right?
Happy to be here. Hope to learn a few things.
Over the next 5 years I turned it into a full-on racing Mini-Cooper, 1310cc Janspeed race motor, side-draft velo-stacked Weber 45 DCOE that stuck through the instrument panel with no air filter, headers, and so on. Front disc brakes, and all the rest. I could have bought a new 1275 Cooper S for less, but what I learned in the meantime, huh? My custom ride went from a max speed of about 58 mph to 120mph+. 150 hp in an 1100 pound car. Full British Racing Green with silver roof and hood stripes.
Meantime, 43 years later, my Ford (VERY sporty) is a near dead-stock (but v. comfy!) '96 F350 Power Stroke crew cab 4X4, ≈110k miles with that ultra-durable 444E running on Amsoil synth. Has a 4.10 rear end with the lone improvements of slightly oversized tires on factory rims, plus better shocks (I tried overside tires on wide rims, but that Ford 1950s vintage "buckboard standard" front suspension system meant it wandered all over the Interstate, even with all-new tie rods and so on: the new rim offset was the culprit!). Current tire size on the factory Alcoa's is 285-16.
Engine changes limited to a Banks installed post-turbo downtube and their proprietary engine map changer. A lot noisier in the cab! Not much improvement, certainly not as advertised. And I had it installed at Banks in SoCal, where they also broke the exhaust manifold. That cost me >> $800 to have fixed. Hmmm...
Plus, that known-to-be fragile E4OD trans which failed @ about 109k miles despite all the oil changes and no towing, so it's been retro-HD built with a welded billet TQ, better clutches and other mods.
That s Banks downtube was supposed to provide some magic fuel economy improvement, which only works and marginally at hat, at 68 - 72 mph, up from 18 mpg on cruise. I would say though that it now has about 250 - 260 hp+ (but only at 3200rom+, where I rarely go!), plus an additional, oh... 60 - 80+ lb-ft.
But for that it cost me well over $1000. Oh well, we live, we learn, right?
Happy to be here. Hope to learn a few things.
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