Odd(non-grassroots) project car ideas

I'm sure most of us have at some point thaught up "interesting" project cars that most of us will simply never get to pull off. I just feel like getting those ideas out there.

1. Mustang wagon. Take a Fox platform LTD wagon, install an older, boxier mustang front clip. Power from a 327/347 stroked(and blown?) 5.0 backed up with a T-5. Full set of Fox body suspension goodies, upgraded brakes and 17" Mustang Cobra R style wheels. And paint it (neon)purple.

2. V8/RWD Neon Coupe. This one is the REAL out there idea. Gut the sub-frames, floor pan, fire wall and most of the interior. Push the seats back to the rear foot well. Push back the fire wall to make room for the engine. What mopar V8 has the smallest external demensions?(4.6 OHC/ A-block(magnum)/5.7 Hemi) I am the "Purist" who wont just slap in an SBC/LS1 into a Ford or Chrysler. The gas tank would be a fuel cell in the trunk. I don't feel up to taking 2 more paragraphs to describe the rest of what I realise would need to be done.

I'm looking forward hearing some of your interesting build concepts and pipe dreams. Brian

geo metro with hayabusa engine. i have a vert, so its not going in the back, but i have seen it done with the cbr 600. the hardest part would be making your own diff.

Hasn't the LTD Mustang wagon been done before? I thought I remember reading about it on the old board. Sounds interesting, but I don't like Fords enough to try it out.

The Metro with the Hayabusa is interesting as well.

I've always thought that a AWD locost (kind of like the Quadradeuce) would be fun.

Ok I'm game.

A few that I will probably never get to, but could be done.

Wenkel powered miata. Cause I'm sick. Faded red with a sewer pipe sticking out along the passenger side. No top or stereo either. I want it to be loud and ugly.

GM 5.3L Thunderbird. Cause I'm not a purist. Mustang cobra brakes all around. Dropped 2-3".

Some that are doable but I'll never have the money to be able to do.

LS644- 944 with a c5 z06 ls6 up front and t56 transaxle in the rear. Caged with side pipes. Gold with shark teeth. Though with the ls9 coming out i may have to re-think this one.

LS7 or 9 in the GTO. Cause there is no such thing as too much horsepower.

And then the really off the wall one.

A twin wenkel powered locost. Take 2 rx7 engines, point them at each other. Flip over rear axle of the front one. Add steering to it. Wrap in 7 skin to taste. Serve with a dish of reality.

LSx powered Audi S4. Hot car, awesome drivetrain, now with more awesomer engine (and less weight).

LSx powered R34 Skyline. Hot car, good drivetrain, and its so wrong. And it makes a E36 M3-ton more accessible power than their tiny 6cyl. Oh yeah, less weight also.

LSx powered Ferrari. Because its wrong. When people here upgrade to the newer ones, they usually get rid of the old ones pretty cheap. I know I've seen a few around for <$20k.

Duramax Diesel powered C4 or C5. Retarded highway gas mileage, sports car handling, and pretty good power too.

1.9 TDI powered Locost, designed to fit the widest R comps available.

One of my daydream projects is a LSx/t56 powered E39 5 series. More horsepower and gas mileage than stock with better reliability!

Transverse mid-engine VR6 Karmann-Ghia.

Just a fantasy - I have nothing close to the skills to pull it off.

I really want to make a blown, K24-powered, midengine DC5 Integra hatch.

Twin-turbo high-revving V6 mid-engined single-seater with HUD displaying augmented reality information and carbon fiber body panels, with lots of active aero surfaces. The unrealistic version of the NA high-revving I4 mid-engined single-seater with computer dash and fiberglass body panels and maybe a little active aero...it would just be too expensive with that engine and all those fancy gadgets and materials.

Also, a badass offroading vehicle with 4WS and the capability to fit caterpillars. Think of the Warthog from Halo. Obviously too expensive and not worth the effort compared to the other project.

Take an AWD V8 Explorer driveline, add supercharger,and Locost chassis Mix well.

Same driveline, long travel 4WS off road buggy

Slightly less radical (no, really!), twin turbo V12, Megasquirted Jaguar XJS, T56 swap

Finally build my Stratos with modern high output V6, or maybe a fun 4 cylinder turbo

I like the idea about mounting a mid-ship Mopar engine in a Neon.. but not a V8.

I already have a spare Neon sedan in the back yard, and a rusted out van with a (wait for it..) Slant Six.

Weird, huh?

i want to put an LSx into a lincoln LS to get rid of the tiny ford v8.

i'll probably do that in a couple years when i need a fun sedan, LS prices are dropping and i really fell for the one that i rented and it was only a V6.

I always wanted a subaru justy with something bigger in the engine compartment. maybe something fwd and around 2.0L? You won't need too much with the 13" tires. I suppose a motorcycle engine would be great, but I have been dreaming of this long before someone put that idea in my head.

And Locosts... Why would you not build one around a DOHC Jag or BMW v-12? Add side draft carbs and giant dual magneto ignitions(quad that is... ). One of our fancier somewhat local junkyard had a jag v-12 pulled and sitting on a shelf, its a pretty engine. Needs a seat and wheels strapped to it. A somewhat "realistic" to make Blastoline tank car.

The last one I have bumping around is a dual engine minivan. In my mind it is a Lee Iacocca minivan with 2x turbo engines and the fwd setup bolted to the floor of the rear axle. This one could easily seat 5 people and have plenty of cargo room even with half the back taken up by a engine setup. I suppose a Honda oddesey with dual engines would be slick too, wouldn't that be around 450 hp with stock motors? the only problem being hondas higher initial investment and their silly rear floor setup.

LS7 powered E30 with massive fender flares...

I always wanted to make a 79-ish zypher into a fox clone.. (my dad had a 79 zypher)

ford 302+audi getrag (350hp-ish limit) into a single seat formula car (locost construction) for a middy.. think F5000...

bike powered locost (been done, still want to do my own)

i also want to build my own A-mod car..

I have crazy ideas that almost no sanctioning body would allow.. variable pitch turbine wheels to simulate the chapparel 2-J, with cockpit control of the pitch. always wanted to do a variable geometry suspension system with computer control. (essentionally robotic arms holding the wheels... I am not sure if the technology is there to be feasible (especially weight wise) but it could get there i think..

hehehe! I've got way too many ideas floating around. hell, I'm thinking my 5 speed, 1UZ powered '63 Mercury Comet convertible project is way out there, as well (considering everything else I'm planning on doing to it).

One that's been done is the motorcycle powered Honda Z600 coupe. I had been thinking CBX powerplant, 'cause the tiny inline 6 sounds wicked.

Some quick photoshops of a few other projects:

Olds Cutlass Ciera wagon, cleaned up, tunerized, and with a Syclone/Typhoon drivetrain under it:

Wagonmaster

Mustang II convertible, either late model 5.0 turbo or built 460 (with things like aluminum heads and intake to get weight back down and power up even farther than my old 500 hp daily driver 460). But other small things, like front suspension moved forward 4" for better f/r weight distribution and stability, wheelwells raised a couple inches for proportion as well as bumpers sunk in slightly for proportion. retains Mustang II identity while fixing a lot that was wrong proportionally with the body:

Mustang II covertible

RWD V8 Taurus Coupe...

Taurus Coupe

Not grassroots at all, a new Jaguar XJC:

Jaguar XJC

Along those same lines, an E38 coupe:

740i

And I wish I could have actually finished this one:

V8 6er

1) 4.6 turbocharged Pantera.

2) 5.9 Cummins powered Auburn boattail replica.

3) 331 stroker turbocharged or 4.6 supercharged '57 Thunderbird.

4) 13BTT powered datsun 1200 sedan.

5) 604ci powered '93 Lightning.

Miata with a Hartley V8.

Miata with 20b.

AMG V12 motor in my craptacular 300d with some sort of awesome suspension to embarrass supercars. This would be with the bike rack still on the roof and the paint just as faded as it is now. And hey, it'd be smog legal too.

I was screwing around at work thinking of what engine I could swap into a miata..

Miata with 3.4L SHO V8

AWD Lowered ranger / Bronco II, turbo-four or SHO V6

Odd fox body, 80-82 cougar, granada, etc with a turbo 4.0L inline six from australia

bludroptop wrote: Transverse mid-engine VR6 Karmann-Ghia. Just a fantasy - I have nothing close to the skills to pull it off.

Neither do I but I think anything more powerful in the Karman Gia would be cool. Upgrade the suspension/brakes to match would be awesome.

I think a modern replica of an old Austin 7 with modern DOHC 4-banger, good 5 or 6-speed manual and matching suspension/brakes would make an awesome autocross car (A-Mod?). Locost style, only smaller scale. Miata donor?

Speaking of pipe dreams....

Neon Coupe with near stock engine and Baja Trophy Truck level custom suspension designed specifically to laugh off speed bumps and train tracks while rolling at 40mph or more. I'd need plenny of money, Baja Trophy fab skills, and an engineering degree to do it right, I fear.

VW Golf GTI, fully electric, 100 mph top speed, at least 200 mile range (at 100mph all the way), with interchangeable battery packs so I can swap dead batteries for fresh in five minutes like a giant four wheeled screwgun. Only the high price of new-tech batteries really makes this an "out-there" idea.

Hmmm...

Doable ones:

1970 AMX/3 (the new fiberglass re-pop bodies) on a lengthened FFR GTM chassis, retain the LSx motor (think either wild N/A tuned LS7 ~650HP or a Twin-Turbo LS3 at the same power level) or drop in an AMC 390/401 with a positive-displacement blower/MegaSquirt (for 800FtLbs). That car would be soooooo fast and sooo sexy.

LSx FB RX-7. Take a 1st Gen RX-7 (hardtop preferably), mix in a little 6.0 Truck motor goodness (aluminum block of course), slap LS3 heads/cam/intake on it for ~430HP, gut the snot out of it, cage, and Z-flares with 275's. Insane autocrosser...

LSx Cop Car (this one is dangerously close to becoming reality within the next year). If/when the 4.slow and fancy AOD in my 'Vic goes I'm budget-swapping in an LS-based 5.3/6-speed auto in from a GM truck. Instant 50 more HP and 100 more Ft/Lbs of torque, plus 2 extra gears and better MPG.

Extreme? You better sit down...

C3 Vette (68-71) with an LS9 and C6/C4 suspension and a T56, retain the factory 427 look and sidepipes. Drive it to the National Corvette shows...

Brutal power car... Take an AMC Spirit (one of the 2-door hatchback ones), drop it 6" on a tube-chassis (NHRA style), drop in an AMC 401 with the full build and a pair of turbos on E85, add in a Lenco. Think 850+ HP and less then 2,000 Lbs on a wheelbase shorter then a Miata.

OK, all of those involve really only 2 engines, one of which I have (the 401). I need to think more...

I really want to do an Lo-Cost style Indy roadster (like front-engine 50's Indy cars with those crazy-long pipes) running a 401 Buick Nailhead with 6 1Bbl carbs for the authentic sound/look.

A 13B Turbo RWD Berkley is sounding good too...

Slant Seven: Locost with a Slant Six.

Stretched T-bucket with a V-12 Jag engine, zoomies, and 6 dual Webers on top.

well i allready posted, but i missed my dream car. or rather truck, i recently visited guatemala, and if i were to live there i would want a new chevy shortbox regular cab truck with a swapped, chipped duramax. for ~500hp 800lbft. oh plus a mad suspension kit.

and a incredible alarm system too. lol

Hmmm. I already have one funky setup in mind which should start becoming a terrifying reality before much longer.

From the dream (nightmare?) department:

MG RV8 with a nastified twin turboed Lexus V8 and a Fast Cars front/rear indie suspension setup.

20B in the middle of a two seat SCORE type buggy with 2 or 3 feet of suspension travel. Don't forget the supercharger.