Looking For Budget Project Car Ideas

[tracar91]

Early third gen Z28 (82-84) with a ecotec and 6 spd sourced from a solstice or sky. 100+ more horses than stock and way better gas mileage. Plus, imagine the looks you'd get opening the hood on cruise night!

[Rocco]

Being a road racing enthusiast, I've always been interested in mid-engined designs and I'm sure many of you have seen the mid-mounted smallblock Chevy Corvairs (originally created as a conversion kit in the late sixties by Crown). These cars varied in build quality but the best of them were very impressive - and light weight. Now a while ago I had seen an article in HOT ROD mag about a Viper V10 going into the front end of a Karmann Ghia, but wouldn't it be better to put a lighter V8 in the middle of one of these little cars. They sit low, with very small frontal area, are easily streamlined and are lightweight. (Of course you would pitch the stock suspension, etc.)

[MonzaRacer]

The yeloow car had a 355, TCI thm350, 3.42 geared S10 rear on swing arm suspension. 15x8.5 Outlaw IIs 275/60/15s and 15x7 w/225/50/15 fronts.S10 front brake conversion from V8Monza.com.
The blue one will have 283 with either the thm 350 or maybe a 4l60/4l60e.
Newer idea will be custom designed (also will be for sale) 4link bolt on rear kit with Air Rides CoolRide .
Up front will be SC&C SPC upper control arms, may try for some type of tubular lowers if I like design and most likely a set of Air Rides ShockWaves as front has little extra room.
Front brakes with ZQ8 spindles upgraded to C5/C6 brakes and may look for Blazer 8.5 and either with stock rear disc or adapt Vette or Fcar rea disc or some other incarnation.
My hope is to be able to add small To4b Vtrim turbos later on.
Cost cutting ideas will be Megasquirt (I will not spend over $1000 on complete FI set up, ever, unless building for much richer people thzn me).
The blue car will have some subtle low buck ideas like my own modified bucket seats(take 4 make 2 to fit)simple interior mods, reasonable (ie built on near zero budget) yet LOUD and sound good stereo.
I dont inted it to have cubic dollar paint job, maybe even drive way paint job if not a roller job(yes roller paint can look good). you want low buck, I have always had to do low buck, since I grew into car building that way spending more than couple thousand on a car is real foreign to me.
But times change, and so must I.
Now I always wondered about using a modified 2.3 Quad 4/2.4 TwinCam either turboed or supercharged even, but other car I was going to use for such a plan had to be crushed when metal was up and it sucks cause it was factory V8 with lots of good parts but I was BR?OKE due to unscrupulous past employer.

[MilesSpeed]

Ok guys, I'm coming up on the last couple hours before I turn this story in and there are a few things I'm missing. I was hoping you guys could help me out.

The first thing is I need a high-res, high-quality photo and couple sentences about it including year of the following cars:

Monza '75-'80
Fury '65-'73
Ventura '71-'77

I also need a website to refer people to for information and owner communication for the following cars:

'71-'72 Dodge Dart (Demon- if there is a specific site)
'72-'74 Dodge Challenger
'64-'74 Plymouth Satellite



Any help would be much appreciated! The cars will be featured in the December issue of PHR!

[Bill Howell]

Here is a good cuda-challenger site Liz

http://www.cuda-challenger.com/

[Damn True]

So this is just one of those "suggestions" pieces? Bummer. I thought you were going to build something.

Hunkins nixed the 510 idea huh?

[MilesSpeed]

thats for the cuda-challenger link!

yea, no 510 :(

[GrabberGT]

So this is just one of those "suggestions" pieces? Bummer. I thought you were going to build something.

I guess thats fine with me. It means that the Maverick idea can still become a future PHR project.

[Damn True]

yea, no 510 :(

Wouldn't want to build something that is light, handles well, cheap, plentiful and supported by a healthy aftermarket.

....and with the powertrain out of a Solstice GXP it would have been a HOOT!

[Tony_SS]

Hows about a Laguna! Oh wait..

I'd like to see PHR pick up the eco powered Chevette featured in a build thread here and finish it!

[MilesSpeed]

sorry guys, the laguna is on the list

[MilesSpeed]

I've got everything i need except for the Demon website

[6'9"Witha69]

http://www.valiant.org/

[shortrack]

I'm thinkin' "disco" era Nova. Cheap to buy, odd but not too odd, and really not to hard on to eyes! Keep it real world - LS powered, 5-speed, 'Vette brakes etc. Try sourceing(sp) used parts as much as possible while still keeping your advertisers happy!
Just my 2 cents worth - or your could finish the car in my sig!!

X2 - but go ballz out on the handling......like autocross level......get some steelies and some slicks for the autoX.....the suppliers will love it.......they got that camaro front clip......get some stock car susp parts if you want to go another direction....the dirt cheap route.....hell go to a race .....the racers will give you used slicks for free.

[shizzy]

I agree with the Alternate A body suggestion. Buick, Olds, Poncho. there must be plenty of More door Skylarks, Cutlass' and Lemans' laying around for cheap.

before I bought my 72 Cutlass Supreme I had my eye on a 70 Chevelle or a 71-72 Chevell as a second choice. It was near half the money for the same amount of car by going with the Cutlass. A clean 70 Chevelle was close to 10K, and I got my cutlass for 4K.

a 4 door 64-72 BOP A body with an LSx and over drive tranny swapped in. 8.5" 10 bolt (a few Olds had bolt in axles) and your choice of brake and suspension parts. keep the wheel and tire combo simple and a back yard paint job and there you go.

[ANIMOSITY]

Ill throw a vote for a late 80's T-bird super coupe. Fox body plateform, Throw in a 03 cobrs drive train with the IRS. or build-up the wicked turbo (Talk to Huber is St Louis about his 82 stang) and add the Irs still, and a t-56, and of couse lay it down in the weeds.

[blown9746]

actually I would say a less popular model usually ends up costing more to build because there is less aftermarket support. Parts may need to be modified or one off pieces fabbed where if you had a popular car you could just go buy an off the shelf piece.

[GMachineDartGT]

Dodge Dart. Not expensive to buy, and has the potential to wipe the floor with much more expensive pro touring style musclecars.

Moparts and ForAbodiesonly.com - Pro Touring is usually a bad word in the Mopar world though....

[shortrack]

- Pro Touring is usually a bad word in the Mopar world though....

why?

[vsefiream]

It's probably too late for this thread but I see a lot of '77 through '95 Corvettes for cheap. Usually averaging between 5-10 grand. That's a lot of bang for the buck!! Throw some nice wheels and tires and a good engine package and you could have a great car for under $15 grand all day long.