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Allow me to introduce myself. I am a 19 year old student who picked up an interest in cars since young like many of you.
Here's a short story made long. So grab some popcorn.
I purchased this car after saving for 3 years in high school, working 3 jobs in the summer in attempt to own my dream car before I was two decades old. I was lucky because my parents were nice enough to give me the garage space needed. I found a super clean body, imported from Japan. The car was made in 1994 (yes, they were made from 1959 to 2000 with relatively the same body style but I won't go into that). I drove it stock for a year, adding small things like wheels and arches.
Im not going to bore you too much with the stock engine, so heres when I wanted a bit more performance. Originally the car came with a very basic and unreliable EFI producing about 60hp so I converted it to a single SU 1 3/4 carb with a Eaton M45 SC setup. This probably bumped it up to 100 HP which gave it a good bang for buck.
I never got it running %100 reliable and it would cost quite a bit to build the standard 8 valve engine to what I want it as, which was a turn key summer car. So I ditched old technology. The real fun started.
There is a certain something you don't get with newer vehicles anymore that old cars have. People call it character or soul, and Ive always had a theory that it was because since older cars were built with a lower quality standards, things went wrong. Things squeeked and made noises that you as the driver became accustomed with.
Imperfections make cars have a very human like characteristic. They make mistakes. They overheat. They give us headaches from time to time. That is where the attachment grows.Of course now with the new B series, I haven't had to lift the hood to keep tuning the engine, but there are always things that can be improved on such as wiring and things making new noises (I swear I fix one squeek or rattle or rubbing and another one appears..). But I don't mind this. Its a machine that isn't perfect and I can live with that.
Maybe a lot of people here can relate, or maybe I am just crazy.
Its funny, because I never got along with "car people". The least favrouite thing I like to do is sit around a parking lot with a bunch of car people. Id rather read a book. Maybe I am just a cynical hipster. It is quite rewarding to see peoples reaction when I drive this thing though. Its great feeling to put a smile on someones face.
Driving the car now, retains much of the stock handling and feeling. Surprisingly the new motor is only 90lbs heavier than the stock cast iron pushrod A-series developed in the 50s. The power figures are nice. For the Honda guys, it is a JDM B18c.
all in all it took me just over 8 months to go from my SC setup to this setup. That was me working on it 7 days a week (when I wasn't working or in school). I lived and breathed to build this thing, because I wanted to get it done for this season. "Do it while you're young" they say, which is a good motto to follow by.
Anyway if you read all of this shit, you deserve a medal. Its been quite a journey. And I think it is safe to say it won't really ever be over.
Here's a short story made long. So grab some popcorn.
I purchased this car after saving for 3 years in high school, working 3 jobs in the summer in attempt to own my dream car before I was two decades old. I was lucky because my parents were nice enough to give me the garage space needed. I found a super clean body, imported from Japan. The car was made in 1994 (yes, they were made from 1959 to 2000 with relatively the same body style but I won't go into that). I drove it stock for a year, adding small things like wheels and arches.
Im not going to bore you too much with the stock engine, so heres when I wanted a bit more performance. Originally the car came with a very basic and unreliable EFI producing about 60hp so I converted it to a single SU 1 3/4 carb with a Eaton M45 SC setup. This probably bumped it up to 100 HP which gave it a good bang for buck.
I never got it running %100 reliable and it would cost quite a bit to build the standard 8 valve engine to what I want it as, which was a turn key summer car. So I ditched old technology. The real fun started.
There is a certain something you don't get with newer vehicles anymore that old cars have. People call it character or soul, and Ive always had a theory that it was because since older cars were built with a lower quality standards, things went wrong. Things squeeked and made noises that you as the driver became accustomed with.
Imperfections make cars have a very human like characteristic. They make mistakes. They overheat. They give us headaches from time to time. That is where the attachment grows.Of course now with the new B series, I haven't had to lift the hood to keep tuning the engine, but there are always things that can be improved on such as wiring and things making new noises (I swear I fix one squeek or rattle or rubbing and another one appears..). But I don't mind this. Its a machine that isn't perfect and I can live with that.
Maybe a lot of people here can relate, or maybe I am just crazy.
Its funny, because I never got along with "car people". The least favrouite thing I like to do is sit around a parking lot with a bunch of car people. Id rather read a book. Maybe I am just a cynical hipster. It is quite rewarding to see peoples reaction when I drive this thing though. Its great feeling to put a smile on someones face.
Driving the car now, retains much of the stock handling and feeling. Surprisingly the new motor is only 90lbs heavier than the stock cast iron pushrod A-series developed in the 50s. The power figures are nice. For the Honda guys, it is a JDM B18c.
all in all it took me just over 8 months to go from my SC setup to this setup. That was me working on it 7 days a week (when I wasn't working or in school). I lived and breathed to build this thing, because I wanted to get it done for this season. "Do it while you're young" they say, which is a good motto to follow by.
Anyway if you read all of this shit, you deserve a medal. Its been quite a journey. And I think it is safe to say it won't really ever be over.
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