PbPied@aol.com wrote:
>
> The Oldsmobile with the turbo was labeled the "Jetfire", as has been said.
> The little alloy V-8 is still popular with some rodders and racers. Wasn't
> it also the TR8 motor?
>
> My brother had a V-8 Starfire (n/a) and the family had a Corvair (also n/a),
> but one of my high school friends had the Jetfire. I may have been new to
> driving, and therefore impressionable, but... That car was FAST!
>
> A year or two ago someone offered one described as "original" for sale via
> a flyer on the local post office bulletin board. I should have gone and
> looked
> at it, but value domestic harmony too much to bring home another car. Seems
> to me that particular version of the Olds must be quite uncommon now, and the
> asking price was $6500, I think... Hmmm....
>
> Alan Sheidler
> (still have the '66 Corvair Dad traded the '64 for...)
>
> >Nope again :-). Buick never had a turbo back then. The other GM Turbo was
> >the Oldsmobile Starfire (same chassis as the F-85 however) with a
> >turbocharged Buick V-6. The Starfire came out in '62, same as the Corvair,
> >but was built for 2 years only before being dropped.
>
> > - Alan Dahl
Alan,
and Alan!
You are correct about the Jetfire, it was a 215 CID
"BOP"(Buick/Oldsmobile/Pontiac). It was the Olds version of the little
aluminum 8, which had slightly different cylinder heads featuring six
head bolts per cylinder. One of cylinder head bolts doubled as the hold
down for the rocker arm shafts. The heads also were identifiable as
Oldsmobile parts in that the valve cover was not in the classic Buick
"Nail head" position. It was made in such a way as to resemble the rest
of the Olds line. If memory serves, Pontiac used the Olds version of the
engine as well with minor changes.
Yes, British Leland bought the tooling for the BOP Aluminum engine and
the TR-8 motor is actually a Buick derivative, it's similar but not
identical. BL felt they simply had to "improve" it.
The Jetfire was a modified Olds with slightly lower compression (to
prevent detonation) and Iron main caps that were substantially beefier
(These were, at one time, high prized by boat racers until someone
figured out how to make complete lower end gurdle.) It was a single
turbo, blow through, style setup. It worked so well that Olds recalled
them all and reconfigured them to single four barrell setups at their
expense. Too many melted pistons I guess! The owners that refused to
have the turbo removed have really rare cars now!
I've seen lots of this stuff first hand, because when I put a 215 in my
TR-7 to make a homemade TR-8, I was lucky enough to have found a Jetfire
to use as the basis for the swap. Lots of parts interchange and many
are different. Baker Engineering in the Seattle area was one of the
leaders in modifying these motors and had som erally innovative parts
combinations. The Buick V-6 is simply an iron version of the Buick
aluminum eight with the back cylinders lopped off and a bigger bore.
They are so related that the front accessory covers off of certain later
model V-6s will fit on the old eight allowing the use of Buick V-6
NASCAR oil and fuel pumps!
One of the most interesting BOP Factiods is that the Repco Brabham V-8s
that powered Jack Brabham and Denny Hulme's F-1 cars of 1966/7 used BOP
blocks with overhead cam heads of Repco design. Since 215 CID = 3.5
Liter, It was relatively easy to use a short throw crank to make down it
to the 3.0 Liter limit. It was an inexpensive and reliable alternative
to other engine options of the time. It was never the most powerful F-1
motor, but it still became World Champion, twice! Very cool!
--
Thanks,
Jim Wilmot
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