Hi all
I've just returned from a relaxing weekend at the lake ( I wish you all the
same pleasure, whatever it may be) and thought I might share my fuel economy
story.
The car is a '69 GT6 + equipped with a factory tubular header (replicas now
sold) and an Accel 80,000,000 volt coil (spares from a friend's racing car).
Otherwise, the motor is of unknown origin as I pulled it from a '70 parts
car that was recycling its self quite rapidly. I changed the timing gears
but did not bother to crack open the oil pan or pull the head. Compression
is 160 across the board (I can;t believe this!) but the motor smokes like
all good LBC's : -)
This is the same motor that I have raced and otherwise abused (it owes me
nothing) and it still will pull 50 in 1st gear (OK, I don;t feel
comfortable past 40 but I have done 60 in 2nd "just because").
The tank holds 45 litres, which is just shy of 12 galloons yankee (10
gallons in the rest of the world!) I have a nasty habit of running to E,
and then a bit further as a fill here is often 42 litres and about $28. I
run E-10 ethanol gasoline which, despite claims of inferior mileage, is
cleaner burning and has 90 octane at the price of 87 octane! (I know, I
know, the smoking exhaust and and.... I'll clean it up this winter! It's
just that we have no smog tests...and no smog, thankfully).
Driven like a bit of a maniac in town I regularly get 200 miles to the tank
which is about 17 US MPG's. Normal highway cruising at 65 mph gives me
somewhere around 20. Interesting by contrast, my Honda civic gets about 30
and 37, but, well, where is the fun in saving $8 on a tankful when....
The GT6, now all yellow again, turns head wherever it goes - and that feels
great!
The GT6 handles better than the Honda once you learn how to deal with the
inherent deficiencies in a 30 year old design
Now that I've spent a couple of hun on stereo, I no longer feel compelled
to take every corner at 11/10ths and use the throttle as a toggle switch.
Still, I enjoy the sound of gear whine intermixed with my latest favourites.
The wee lip above the license plate is just large enough to support my bike
rack and mountain bike. Very humorous to have a bike that is at least a
foot wider than the car, almost as tall ...but hanging out in the breeze
like a giant windmill, no doubt negating the effect of the superb
aerodynamics (hehehe) of the LeMans design from 40 years ago! Actually, I
made 240 miles this tank with 50 miles of city, an outbound trip that
averaged 75 mph (and a slight uphill run flat out at 95! with bike in place)
and inbound at 65 in the rain.
I kid you all not, since I quit fussing over the car (after replacing the
diff and tranny I sheared an axle and lost a wheel at 20 mph, making for
more bodywork and damn near borrowed a shotgun to shoot the poor thing) it
has done nearly 3000 trouble free miles. I have found another car of the
same vintage and will buy it ASAP. I know of a Mk III in Minnesota that
will be next in line. For any of you who have shunned these cars because of
all their noon-convertibleness, go find one before I get them all. Jonmac
(Mr. BMHIT in London) who has owned one since new, says they slot very
nicely between a TR6PI and spitfire. For "similar" fuel mileage you can
effectively own a 3/4 scale Jaguar for less than the price of a good MGB. I
won;t even BEGIN to talk of the spit-6 conversion that I'll do when I find a
decent donor car.
On a final note, I stopped at the Beer vendor on the way out to the lake.
There was a car full of youngish "kids" headed into the bar. "Hey man, nice
car, what is that, a Porsche?" one says. "No, a Triumph GT" I reply. Geez,
imagine what we're in for in another decade when our cars become really rare
and 80's camaros are "classic"
Dave T
Smiling and sunburnt at Victoria Beach
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