The AMC Javelin build thread!

Paint scheme ideas/examples:

Dad's old 70 Mark Donohue:

Dad's SS/AMX--as 1970

Same car in 1969 livery (car was a 69 as were all SS's)

So glad to see activity back in this thread! Keep it going Michael, can't wait to see what's next.

In reply to ST_ZX2:

Have you submitted those to the S/S AMX Registry? Which car # was it?

Javelin wrote:

OK, you've done it. You've found THE pic of an AMC product that looks good. Go for it.

Adrian_Thompson wrote:

Javelin wrote:

OK, you've done it. You've found THE pic of an AMC product that looks good. Go for it.

That's my Dad's old Mark Donohue Javelin. He sold it to rebuild the motors in his plane when I was 15. I drove it on Daytona Speedway at 15. I loved that car. It was an original Red on Red MD that Eddie Stakes owned and had painted in the (incorrect) Trans Am scheme with the Red/White/Blue. Dad swapped the interior to Black. We built a killer 360/727 combo for it. The guy that bought it lived in San Jose, and I saw it a few years after he sold it, but that's already been over ten years ago. I would sell my Javelin for that car, no question.

Javelin wrote: In reply to ST_ZX2: Have you submitted those to the S/S AMX Registry? Which car # was it?

Number 38 http://ssamx.com/38.htm Called The Buran Hustler (Buran AMC in West Allis, WI)

The car was last in Bulverde, Texas.

My 70 AMX that I bought in 1987 was Mr. Buran's personal car. 360/AT It had under 20K miles on it when I bought it.

In reply to ST_ZX2:

The SC/Rambler headrests in the Buran Hustler are wicked! I like your 70 AMX, too. There's a guy in our AMC club who has (and is restoring) the Sheriff of Nottingham (and has the only Breedlove Aero pieces).

Gramps most successful S/S was his later one: http://ssamx.com/41.htm Originally the Nolt Rambler car, he raced it as the AMX Magic. The paint job was wild, six different shades of real Kandy. I was heartbroken when the Finn's he sold it to repainted it.

Those were some wicked cars...not many folks know about 'em any more.

They were running low 10's in the day, and my understanding is that they today are in the 9's

...and then there were the ProStock AMCs. 8.6's at over 157.

Updating through 10/20/2012:

Natural enemy...

An old boss and friend of mine owns this 1969 Trans Am (clone, but done right), a natural enemy of the Javelin. We got some good pics. He sold it hours after this photo for a 1957 Chevy Bel Air hot rod. Now that’s for sale and he wants a GTO. Sheesh!

Test fitting some big wheels

In preparation for the upcoming autocross, I borrowed a good friend’s Enkei RPF-1 from his FD RX-7. Looks good from this side.

285/30/18

That’s the size of the Kuhmo V710. The height is okay, but it could be taller. We are at maximum fitment inboard, there’s about 1/4” to the leaf spring there. There’s still a good three inches outwards we could go though!

The fronts, not so much...

That same wheel is horribly sized for the front, however. The 285 is the absolute max you can get on a stock front suspension and fender. This is with a 3.5” spacer. The 2.5” didn’t fit inwards enough. Honestly, this particular wheel needed a 3” spacer, but that’s so not the right way to do it. I would go with a wheel that has 3” less offset and maybe 1/2” less width and run a 275.

Landing pad

More time, more drives, more miles. Just driving this thing on mundane trips, like here to the hospital for an appointment, are fun. Parking garages and V8’s just go together…

Catch can

One of the glaring defaults with my car is the lack of a coolant overflow bottle/catch can. They just weren’t installed in 1973. Unfortunately, you have to have one for drag racing and most autocrosses. I picked up this plastic universal unit from Summit Racing and installed it next to the radiator, in front of the core support back panel. It tucks in there perfectly!

Better light

I finally got the stupid lights to all work, too! I had to replace the headlight switch as my rebuilt one was still just too worn out to make the contacts work correctly. I also replaced all the remaining bulbs and now everything functions as per factory, excellent! Notice how bright those headlights are? Yeah, they’re H4 conversions from Flyin’ Miata!

And day of the actual autocross:

Oh yeah, here we go!

Can you believe that less than 10 weeks ago this thing drove for the first time in 25 years? And yet, here it is on the starting line of an autocross track.

So far, so good!

Well it can make it around a course! Nothing has broken, nothing is leaking, and we didn’t kill or maim any corner workers.

Wheels are working, tires are not.

So we had the car on jackstands before our run group went to decide on tires. We had a set of 17” RPF-1’s with 275 Kuhmo wets, and the 18’s with the V710’s. It was damp, clear, and a drying track. We went for the V710’s. Then guess what happened? Yeah, monsoon. The fronts are rubbing the bottom of the fenders at full lock, but otherwise we are all clear.

And what's not working

Okay, so now for the truth. My codriver got DFL, and I only beat a handful of total novices. The tires hurt us the most, but there are definitely other issues. Item one is rear traction. Even when it was dry, the open rear diff caused inside wheel spin, and the 360’s torque made it 1-wheel-peal out of every corner, not good. Next was the steering box, it’s just too slow lock-to-lock for autocross. Finally, the carburetor needed some serious work as it would cut out during hard corners like crazy.

Conclusions

Even though the Javelin still has teething issues, it really does drive well. Plus I drove it 50 miles to the track and 50 back, plus my co-driver and I both got 6 runs. The battery did die on us, but a quick trip to the local parts store grabbed me an Optima (holy crap they got expensive!) for the ride home. Ultimately, I can call my project a success. Just over 2 years after purchasing a totally dead, abandoned for 25 years car I had it on the race track.

The actual autocrossing thread:

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/autocrossed-the-javelin/56055/page1/

Javelin wrote: Ultimately, I can call my project a success. Just over 2 years after purchasing a totally dead, abandoned for 25 years car I had it on the race track.

I agree wholeheartedly. Well done, man.

Alternator drama

The big news since the autocross is that my original alternator was dead (which killed the battery while we were there). A lot of poking, prodding, and book-looking finally led me to a few points. The Motorola unit on my car is the original one, and is 33 amps. The later AMC’s switched to the 10si style GM/Delco unit (one of which I have in my garage), but they also totally switched the v-belt system and brackets around. You have to get the whole setup to have a clean swap. Luckily my dad has a local guy down in Florida that rebuilds these units into the original 65amp HD spec for reasonable. Turns out, the original design is actually for tractors and quite a few industrial engines. So months later, I finally have a completely rebuilt alternator that bolts into the factory location!

Charging system complete

Here’s the Optima I had to buy to make it through the autocross. This stupid thing cost more than an entire season’s entry fees! At least I will keep it charged and it should last a good, looooong time. (The el cheapo NAPA battery in the car had been powering various projects and derelicts for 6 years, so I can’t complain too much).

Notice the new alternator snug in it’s brackets and the new voltage regulator as well.

Cherry on top

One thing that was really bugging me in the engine bay was the original oil filler cap. It had a breather tube (sort of like a pseudo-PCV) that had been capped and vented when I swapped on the open element air cleaner. Dad stepped in again and sent this earlier style breather cap with no vent tube, still in original EN-66 blue. Much nicer!

This thing looks amazing carving through the cones! Love what you've done with it.

I think its official. Rpf1's look good on everything. I haven't forgotten about the carb, either. Just need to get over the flu.

Mid 80s "fast ratio" F-Body Trans-Am/Z28 steering boxes are purported to work on AMC/Saginaw steering.

The red/white/blue may have provenance but I'm sorry, I just have to go with the Penske blue/white/red. If that's the way you're leaning.

Personally, the Orange doesn't look bad, either.

Shameless plug!

Vote for the Javelin so I can win some swag to make it better:

http://www.alwaysachampion.com/king-of-the-road/challenger/1498380

Thank you!

Jav, does the name Tom Reffner mean anything to you?

stroker wrote: Jav, does the name Tom Reffner mean anything to you?

It does to me. The Blue Knight...was Dick Trckle's counterpart (The White Knight) as well as Johnny Bogeman (the Black Knight). Reffner always raced AMCs...and very successfully at that.

Javelin wrote: Shameless plug! Vote for the Javelin so I can win some swag to make it better: http://www.alwaysachampion.com/king-of-the-road/challenger/1498380 Thank you!

how do you vote? I don't see a button.....is this one of those things where you have to be on facebook

In reply to JoeyM:

No book of faces required. You have to give them your email address in a registration form though:

https://www.alwaysachampion.com/king-of-the-road/register

Then vote buttons will appear.

Well now, I have sucked at the build thread for over a year...

I pulled the Javelin out of storage last night:

Obviously some things have changed! I'll get working on bringing it up to speed.