++> Alas, I'm growing weary of my under-powered little 79 Spitfire... I'm
++> considering sticking a GT6 engine under the bonnet to spice up my life. Doe
++> anyone have any experience in this conversion ? I know I'll have to put in
++> some different springs, trans, and rear end. What the heck, maybe I should
++> just buy a GT6.
++> But seriously, on the surface it doesn't appear to be that major of a jo
Having just completed this project (starting with a 79 spit too) I
think
I've got a little experience with this conversion. First off, you have to
decide
what you want to end up with. IMHO, I don't think a 79 Spit with a GT6 engine
in
it would be that great of a car. The brakes would be weak, the rear suspension
very problematic, and it would weigh a ton. Not to mention second order
problems
like never being able to pass emissions inspections again. A much better car
and a car I think very worth your time and effort is a convertible GT6. Your
Spitfire has many of the parts you'll need, but you will need to find a GT6
mk III with a rotoflex rear end. (many people on the list don't agree with me
about this, but the rotoflex is the way to go). The MK III is the only one
with a compatible bonnet. The conversion is pretty straight forward, you'll
basically take the GT6 body shell off its frame and replace it with the spit's.
The only slightly difficult things you'll have to deal with are cutting
the firewall a little, routing the emergency brake cable, and adding reinforcing
brackets where the rotoflex suspension control arms mount. There are some
other
alternatives which would not require moving your Spit shell from one frame to
the another, but the one I'm describing is a basically a bolt together
proceedure
and I think it ends up with the best car. You might, for example choose to
keep
the swing arm rear end like the last of the GT6's had, and simply add the GT6
driveline, bonnet, brakes, and bumpers to the Spit frame.
When finished, you'll have a car built to 71 or 72 specs (i.e. one heck
of a lot more power and braking) and you'll have considerably less weight
than either the GT6 or your current Spitfire (actually, I'd better be careful
in saying that, as I don't have the numbers in front of me. But I'm pretty
sure the loss of the beefed up bumpers and emission 1500 engine more than
offset the heavier 6 cylinder engine) My car is an absolute joy to drive.
I really think it is the car the factory should have built.
If all this isn't enough, you could consider fitting the vacuum
assist brake servo from the late GT6 mk IIIs, or stroking the engine with a
TR6 crank too, or ... :-)
--
William Woodruff woodruff@caen.engin.umich.edu
Ann Arbor MI
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