speedwagon

lways wanted to build a track T roadster for the street. this would have fit the bill, but bought the superformance s-1 and the itch was scratch with a solid gold scratch-er. The urge is well satisfied. john

I remember using these solid state delay off timers. years ago. googled a search for then and they are still available, and cheap. https://www.google.com/search?q=delay+off+timer+12v&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b-1 remember using the mars brand and you can set the time you want. Worst case you would need 2 NO WAIT they might just turn off after each blink. but it is worth investigating. john

sent you a pm-- I live in golden valley about 20 miles away from you, john

have 2 rotary powered 7ish cars ( superformance s1, and a rotus chassised like a Lola mk1) both are mix fuel (dirty) one is carburetor (pain in rear) 1 na and 1 turbo-ed. both have an ideal torque curve for a light car. rotaries are becoming old school and not for everyone. But, I have seen pictures of a Rotus with a gm ls aluminum block in it. Would buy except for overabundance of toys and years (not left). john

a word to the wise-- "wide-band" (air fuel meter) and if you wish to keep your engine, in the dash preferable. When leaned out at high power an engine will resort to burning aluminum. and quickly. At 14,000 feet, in the sprint to the finish, I lost 3 pistons in a Corvair engine with 30lbs on the manifold. It happened in less than a mile. Drove it down the hill, and when torn down the rings were still intact but you could see into the crankcase where half the pistons used to be. Besides a wide-band will make tuning easy even with a carburetor engine. john

Is the sensor actually in the coolant? or in a well? You should not be able to wiggle the sensor installed directly in the coolant without it leaking. If it is in a well then perhaps wiggling it would cause contact with the well to effect the reading. And if your dash is not sufficiently grounded and using the capillary as a secondary ground there could be some contact hear that could effect the reading. All will be clear on this perplexing problem when the solution is found. john

On my superformance s1, I replaced the tie rod boots with shock boots that were bought at NAPA. somewhere there is the part number. remember it being vw and the cost to buy new was at the time about $40 ea for something that rotted out in about 5 years. since the s1 was made in south Africa too and possibly by the same people or at least known to them. Any how the original part #on the boot traced back to some vw product. Since the new superformance does not support the s1 they are not forthcoming with source info. will try to look for the folder today. john

Color is important-- but-- not that much. My road color (darker grey/blue) xj jag has the most close encounters followed by the medium dark 7. The problem is US, even those of us who have experience with motorcycles in traffic. We do not naturally notice smaller objects, we are programed to notice what is easy. I have read that our view is like a computer screen and sometimes is not refreshed unless we do something to refresh it. Be aware, drive as if you are in a large Mexican city and being stalked by bandits. (or the insurance fraud sters) It will improve your driving and lessen the risk of some cotten head like me looking right at you and then pulling out. We is the problem. john

have a pair of 15" rag tires from the early 60s on the back of my fiberglass dune buggy, they get to 85mph regular, non English speakers not so well. wouldn't trust a current offshore tire when new. But it would be interesting to see unbiased data as there are about 4 yr old coopers on my xj8.

Even if you fed the valve through the intake the rotor would have busted the valve up into little pieces and spit it out. fake photo.

John to John What are you running for or from? and are you sure the voters deserve either of us? And as usual Croc gets the last word in first. I do have an affiliation, but it is yet to come. Yes this is the most considerate place on the internet.

I have a rotus chassis with a sort-of 60 lola mk1 body clone. And a superformance to compare. Rotus rides entirely too hard for me (but may be that it has Carrillo coil-overs rather than the original- too much spring?. The chassis is of comparable workmanship and uses stock toyota bushings in the suspension. Also both were of a 50 or total run and I would expect design changes for both during the run. And, even I cannot build the perfect car the first time and doubt that the complainer or even Chapman could. john

back in the 50s USAC did not allow exposed roll over protection, just what was under the head rest. My first drag car was a flat head ford frame with just a wheel and a bar stool wired to it, no radiator (hoses out of the to to the bottom. times have changed.

there is a carb geru on thesamba.com who has info for making the Weber progressives work right. they were a kinda/sorta popular carb on air cooled VWs. the info can be found here; https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=386388 carb acts all the same on any engine of same size. Save money--drive car more = happiness. john (dinks with rotorery air VW and ford small blocks)

In 1972 my entrance fee at Pikes peak hill climb was $100. Never went back because winning only would have paid about $3300 (and had "been there- done that"). The world has changed a lot. Off road racing had much the same ending for me. john

[ATTACH=CONFIG]16210[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]16211[/ATTACH] One thing I am having trouble finding is info on the shocks. They're Koni 80-2091, 15.5" extended length, 11" compressed. Even the Koni rebuilders can't find info about them in their systems. Rebuilding cost seems pretty high. The spring rates are ~80lbs/in front and ~100lbs/in rear. I'd be interested in what other folks are using for shocks. I have no plans to race the car, just street drive and maybe autocross it non-competitively. I am in the same boat that you are on the shocks. My Rotus framed Lola? has Carrillos and rides like a buckboard. And here in Arizona even the interstates favor off road suspension. The bushings were beat out of them when I got it. Btw the rotary was well suited to a 7. Worst thing is the "bark" but a turbo calms that down.

talk to someone who bought a brand new, made in USA (sic) ford 6.0 diesel, chevy 6.5 diesel, explorer, or for that matter any other domestic or forien new auto. My superformance came from a life of being "run hard and put away wet" with an odd-ball rotary engine and has been much less problem than the ford 7.3, explorer or Jag xj8. My keeper list includes the Superformance, a 90 f150 4wd with a inline 6, and a 66 Ranchero 408ci hot rod that was home built with less than 50 miles on it. Most of the auto companies learned- how to build a sorted quality product from microsoft-- sell it and let the customer sort it-- and a good trustworthy mechanic shop beats almost all dealerships. and good luck finding one near you. and if you do-- kiss them regularly.

I believe the bushings are Toyota. The Rotus manufacturer was a Toyota dealer. I have a Rotus chassis (also with a rotary) lengthened, with a glass over foam body that was patterned after the Lola Mk1. Will keep watching your work, and will dig out the mass of information that came with the car as a bit pertains to the chassis. john

Thanks for the fenders, they arrived sound and well packed. john

Two thoughts-- the Spectra in LA is interesting although not a "7" and the Replica in Fayetteville appears to have Superformance S1 fenders (front and rear), front fender mounting and the front suspension looks like it could be. Possible source of parts??

Will second the advice given by S1Steve. and add my plan-- due to rough usage (The part by me greatly enjoyed) my top has some defects and the windshield is getting badly pitted. So when the time comes may try to find the glass guy who said " i can get a windshield to fit any frame" (Who's card is lost) or just make/adapt a flat glass frame to fit the car and new doors with a hard top. Another avenue is to advertise on craigslist in South Africa for parts as when superformance abandoned the S1 they likely left tooling, knowledge and drawings there. They sure are not giving any support to the existing cars (this should be a clue for anyone considering buying one of their current products (ie future orphan). It is a crying shame as the S1 as sold is a good car and about as street-able as it gets that would have improved with increased production. I have one and am glad, but in today's world would have bought one made by one of the leading makers that are likely to give continued support. john

sent you a PM as I am in need of fenders. john

I own #22 and paid nearly as much for a heavily auto-crossed unit with a rotary engine that was nothing like smooth at the time. This one is one of the last made if mot the last and would have all the upgrades, and is nearly new condition. It is tempting to upgrade and a cross- country drive in a S1 would be quite comfortable. john

Wish to chime in, Croc; You have been the "market maker" for 7s for a few years, there is no telling how much time you have saved both buyers and sellers by helping to create a pool of knowledgeable people in both categories. My car is going to out live me one of these days and a realistic value, is of value. Thank you very much for your time and knowledge. john

i have 5 or6 half shafts from rx-7 fc that can be had free with pickup or i will be going to Ogden, UT. first week of Oct. Although- would doubt that this car would ever tear one up they are tough.