Chris wrote:
> I finally put my V6 Alpine V on the road this weekend. It has spent
> I have several observations/questions. First, when I go over 70 MPH,
> the front end is very unstable. i.e. if I turn slightly, it is
> difficult to bring the car back in a straight line. It wants to over
> compensate. The steering is tight and it doesn't veer to the left or
> right. Is this an alignment problem? A weight problem? - I have
This seems strange to me. I put a Ford 2.8L V6 in mine over 12 years
ago and it handles great. I even manage to outdo most cars in the
autocross. At 50-100 mph, she handles more or less like the
origonal. The weight difference between the pre-swap Alpine and the
post-swap Alpine is that the V^ combo was 50 lbs lighter in my case.
I didn't change the springs at all. I suspect that you have
something odd going on in the suspension independent from the weight
difference.
> noticed that the car is significantly harder to turn when the car is
> not rolling. Also, the rear axle is not original. I don't know where
> it came from (Capri?) and the previous owner put adapters on the hubs
> to accept the wires. This pushes the tires out approx 2-3 inches. Is
> this a factor in steering?
It could if it is installed at a slight angle - this would cause the
rear end to track to the left or right behind the car. You should
have someone follow you and watch for this.
> Second, my speedo does not work due to the differences in
> transmissions. Is there a fix for this?
I combined the origonal head from the Alpine cable with the cable
from the Capri. It works great (for the last twelve years).
> Otherwise, the car is great. However, I still cringe at the thought of
> driving a bastardized Sunbeam.
Oh now ! Its an improvement in my mind if its done right. If its a
hack job, on the other hand, watch out !
Kind Regards,
Jim Cantrell
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Tue Sep 05 2000 - 09:29:29 CDT