DizRotus

Rob, The heater came from Rotus, but it was an aftermarket setup. Dennis Hedges could elaborate. The small core barely fit under the dash just inside the firewall. The clearance for the wiper mechanism was minimal. The temperature was controlled by opening valves in the heater hoses. When the valves were closed the coolant went in a loop that bypassed the core. A multi speed fan was built into the core. Another feature that I found useful was a rocker switch on the dash that turned on the electric cooling fan. It would override the thermo switch. That way I could turn the fan on whenever I was concerned about overheating, which was never a problem, even in traffic.

I had #s 3, 8, 9, 11 (racing switch to disconnect rear mounted battery instantly), 13 (Ford Escort mirror glued to lower inner portion of windshield), 16 and 17 (J.C. Whitney). I used all of them. The heater came in handy on many occasions, as did the cruise on long trips.

The red car is the one that I built.

The CHMSL (Center High Mounted Stop Light or Lamp) was built into the two-tube roll bar.

I remember seeing this car in the Hagerstown shop. My recollection (confirmed by the photos) is that it had Olds heads (if not the entire Olds version of the 215). Are pictures of it in its current condition available?

The red Rotus8 in the photo at the top of this site was built by me in 1992 and sold to a dealer in Florida in 1999. I'm curiouis as to its current whereabouts and condition. It had a 63 Buick 215, with a Carter AFB, and Panasport wheels. It probably can be identified by the rocker switch in the console that activated the brake lights and CHMSL without having to apply the brakes. It discouraged tailgating. Another unique feature was that Dennis Hedges fabricated a removable trailer hitch that attached to the spare tire mount. He included female threads inside the lower horizontal tubes of the spare tire mount when he built the frame. It was my plan to use it to tow a small trailer like those towed by motorcycles. I never used it. If anyone knows more about this car, I'd be interested. Thanks, DizRotus38714.8485300926