Quote:
Originally Posted by Wayne Maybury
(Post 805953)
Strangely, he didn't use much duct tape this time.
Have you seen the one where he takes two "K" cars, cuts them in half, then tapes the front ends back together. He then has a 4 wheel drive with 4 wheel steering. I think he probably used more duct tape in that one than in any other of his projects. :LOL:
Wayne
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Somebody sent me the "K-car" one with astonishing timing.
The week before I had just discussed with my son, an old Corsica (4cyl GM) that he was thinking of getting rid of. He had mentioned his admiration for a VW powered dune buggy that a co-worker had.
I noted that it was possible to convert the front wheel drive configuration (of the Corsica) as a rear engine/transaxle drive like GM had done with the Fiero. I've seen some pictures of custom frame dune buggies done in this way. As the discussion ensued, my son expressed that such a combo would be nice, but way too much expense and trouble. He thought he could sell the car cheap, possibly to his buddy who also had a Corsica that had taken a rear hit. Made sense at the time.
Unable to just drop this, something like the Red Green character might do, I brought it up again after I had given some thought to his "time and expense" argument. I had come up with the ultimate cheap dune buggy plan while hopelessly stuck in a rail siding in the middle nowhere.
The plan was to acquire both Corsicas for little or nothing and cut them in half. Knowing full well that duct tape wouldn't hold them, my plan was to save the cost of tape or welding rod by cutting patch strips of sheetmetal from the leftover rear body panels and holding the assembly together with sheetmetal screws, used screws to save cash preferably. Screws are very strong when there is enough of them and they don't fall out. Maybe a little loctite. :JEKYLHYDE
One of the subtle errors that Red Green made was to allow the rear half of his 4 wheel drive to run in reverse which would severly limit his top speed. My original plan was much better. Yes, much better. After cutting, matching and securing the two front halves, the
superior plan called for cutting what was to become the rear drive off of the back, right between the windshield and cowling, the cowling firewall staying with the engine bay. This, of course, to keep the engine bay assembly strong. Then, in a stroke of brilliance, this engine bay assembly is to be turned around to face forward and re-inserted to directly match up edge to edge inside the cowling cut it was just taken from. Now, as opposed to the lame Red Green plan, the two halves would be going the same direction. :D
At this point the rear engine will be sitting right behind the driver, in a forward facing direction, where the rear seat used to be... or the front seat of the rear half... or whatever. Naturally the two cut edges of the rear cowling, one inserted in the other, would be held together by low-cost sheetmetal screws. It may pay to use new screws in this area since if the rear engine/transaxle assembly ever came loose, it would probably run over the driver and sit there and burn rubber up against the front windshield. Not good. The double thickness of the two-edge rear body would serve as a suitable rollbar. Good. :MECOOL:
After the appropriate linkage and brakelines to the rear are hooked up, and a fuel tank fab, the new short wheel-base 4-wheel drive dune buggy is ready to go for hardly any money at all. The upholstery can even stay since it wouldn't scorch from welding. **)
Shortly thereafter, somebody sent me the Red Green 'two cut "K" cars' video which I immediately passed on to my son as a validation of sorts.
My son sold the Corsica to a junkyard. :o
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