Another Spitfire build

We're building a Spitfire for the $2015 (hopefully, if not, the $2016) Challenge. We found the Spitfire, a '64, out in the California desert for $200.00. No engine/trans, which was fine as we didn't want to use it anyway. We have an '88 Tbird turbo engine and T5 trans, and we found a '91 Supra that had an engine fire and had been stripped of many parts for $150.00. Most importantly it still had the front and rear suspension. Right now it looks like we'll get close to what we paid for the whole thing in scrap metal. I'm going to have to figure out how to post photos here. It seems like every forum does it differently.:-/

DLD

That's the turbo lima motor right?

Photos post with the typical HTML img src tags(they need to be hosted offsite), the forum will do it for you if you hit the little camera icon above the row of smiles when you make/edit a post just copypasta the "direct" url(the one that just gives the image with a white background) in there.

Hmm... a Spit with a Ford turbo 4... sounds like the Abomination.

Bonus points if you can stuff the Supra IRS under the rear.

Kenny and Ian, I'll try to post some photos this weekend. I'm no expert on 2.3L turbo engines. I don't know if it's a Lima. I did enough research to know it has 195HP stock, and without spending much cash at all we should able to get 225-250HP. We picked up the Supra for the suspension and it's limited slip diff, needed for the extra HP. We're going to use both front and rear suspension, so we get the bigger brakes and all. We got the Supra for next to nothing because it was sitting in a field out behind a guy's house in Stockton. He actually had two of them. When I post photos you'll understand. I'm working on a scheme to narrow it that budget-wise is perfect for the $2015 Challenge. I'm half way there, I'll post details and photos when I get it accomplished.

DLD

I like where this going.

Yes, you have a Lima 2.3 if it came out of the 'Bird. Solid engine, pretty tall though. Have a sawzall handy during trial fitting!

The actual engine isn't all that tall. The intake that goes over the top of the engine makes it tall. We're planning on changing that, so the throttle body is lower and facing forward. One of the cool things we got off the Supra was the intercooler. It's huge compared to the Ford unit, and it can be placed out front.

<img src="" /> Here is the Desert Spitfire as found;

Here are three photos of the Supra donor as we found it for $150.00. In the third photo you can see the second one he had.

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In the spirit of "don't fix what ain't broke" (especially on a $2015 budget):
Consider leaving the front suspension alone, and concentrate on getting the rear suspension done properly.
Believe me, the rear will more be than challenging enough, and executed well, will enable you to put the power down.
The Spitfire front suspension is not perfect, but it's good enough to have won many, many SCCA Championships, and served as the basis for some very successful racecars.
It's not likely that the Spitfire front suspension will be the limiting factor on your build.

In reply to erohslc:

It might. The narrow width of the upper control arm mounting towers tends to limit engine mounting options. Of course, for a race car there's less concern about shoving the engine into the interior.

<img src="" /> I'm not overly concerned about using the Supra suspension, front or rear, and I'm doing the front as much for the brakes as anything else. The last car I built was all hand fabricated chassis and suspension, so I'm looking forward to having a lot of parts ready made. Over the last 30 years or so, I've designed and built 5 SCCA road race or autocross cars from the ground up, along with multiple production and one-off cars modified for competition. Ian, one of the things I plan on doing is moving the engine rearward, so the front suspension won't matter much either way. Here is a photo of my other car, designed and built by me from the ground up;

Oh, and in the spirit of GRMS, that car was built with a few parts robbed from another retired race car and a KZ1300 6 cylinder motorcycle engine, and the total investment was only about $3000.00. If it looks a little dated, it's because it was built in 1990! We just recently got it going again after a long time sitting in my friend's shop. Here is a photo taken this month (the two photos of the car were taken almost 25 years apart!)with new wider wheels and tires;<img src="" />

And here is a photo of it's bare chassis. 65 lbs, and quite stiff;<img src="" />

Here is a photo of the Desert Spitfire the day we picked it up in Ridgecrest, CA for $200.00 <img src="" />

Just because you CAN,
Doesn't mean you SHOULD ;)

Ah, but I love doing stuff like this!

Here's a link to an album I've started; http://imgur.com/a/UVVgs

Some days I miss my spitfires.

Where is all the rust?

The one on the right was at The Show with a 2.3 Lima. I think it had a solid rear axle. If memory serves I believe they got into the 13s at the drags.

I read some threads on those Spitfires. Cool stuff. I have done a lot of lurking on forums looking for interesting builds and ideas. I've owned lots of interesting cars over the years, but never a Spitfire. Of course I don't own this one either. My partner Wes is the financier, I'm the designer, builder, and driver.

spin_out, how do you get the photos to just show up on the page? I have only managed to get the link from my Imgur account to work.

Use, >img src="URL-HERE" /> the first arrow should be a <, I used the other one so the forum would show the code. The url should have quotes around it.

Trying the photo thing out. It worked! Thanks Kenny.

These three UOP Shadows from the 70s, Can Am, F1, and F5000 belong to a friend of mine, Dennis Losher. He used to have the Mk1 with the tiny front wheels, but it went away and wound up being replaced by these. How cool is that?

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These are the 15 x 8 wheels we found for super cheap to mount slicks on. They are kind of odd looking, but they were definitely "Challenge" priced! Mounted on the Supra front suspension for measurements.

And these are the 17 inch wheels and tires we plan on using if we have wet conditions.

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