Mike!
First, let me introduce myself, I'm the VTR Vehicle Consultant for the
Italia, my wife and I own two, and I enthusiastically autocross one,
although it's dead stock. I just have a few things to add to John's
posting (BTW, he really knows what he's talking about; his TR-4 is the
quickest I've seen..)
R John Lye wrote:
> > On prepping the car; since the chassis and drive train are
> > strictly TR-3 I would think that there is a wealth of information
> > concerning mods and improvements, but I don't know who to talk to
> > about it.
Small note: you'll find the rear leaf springs have an extra leaf;
you'll probably want to re-arch them rather than replace if possible.
If not, a good spring shop ought to be able to take a new TR-3 set and
add a leaf...
> Yup, that could be good advertising. A friend out in Colorado
> with a machine shop did that, and got quite involved in race
> prep after that. Two good places to start looking for information
> about car prep: first, get a copy of the Kas Kastner "Competition
> Prep Manual" for the TR-4 (available from TRF, for example); second,
> give Ken Gillanders of British Frame and Engine in Temple City, CA
> a call. He's a wizard with these cars, and is one of the best
> sources of specialized race parts.
Ken can be reached at 818-443-0939.
> > Since this is a coupe do I still need a roll bar? A roll cage?
>
> It may or may not be required, but I'd run one. This is for
> two reasons: safety, of course, being one, but they also have
> the added effect of stiffening the chassis and reducing flexing.
Warning: The Italia body is very, very flexible. Sometimes during
refurbishment I thought mine was only held together by the lead...I'd
strongly recommend a frame-mounted cage that braced the body, also.
> > but since weight is such a factor(it is isn't it?)
Ok. A good TR-3 will always take an equally prepared Italia due to it
weighing about 200 lbs less. The aerodynamic advantage would largely be
equalled by a race TR-3 losing it's windscreen. Hopefully, you won't
let this discourage you, but keep this in mind if you're going for
outright wins...although most vintage racers I've met seem to be in it
for the fun of it (of course, it's nice to be competitive, too).
Finally: I'll be happy to help in any way I can...and I say GO FOR IT!,
I'd love to see an Italia on the track. One note of caution. If you
have an intact windshield, I'd consider replacing it with a Lexan one.
It doesn't fit anything else, and they are unobtainable. Just a
thought. Oh, that goes for the rear window, too.
Good Luck!
Jamie Palmer
VTR Italia Consultant
TCOC Publications Editor.
P.S. you can see a picture of my Italia at the TCOC Picture Page:
http://www.cris.com/~jamiep/pictures.html
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