LocostUSA.com

I live pretty close to where the car was, so I turned it on it's roof and dragged it home with my truck.

Classic....very funny.....right priced too
Good luck with your new engine.

Nice! Wild and inventive build!

So how do you pull the engine ouot of a Taurus when it's upside down? Well the front suspension, engine, and transaxle are all bolted to a subframe that drops out the bottom after taking out 4 bolts.Unfortunately, I couldn't pull hard enough or shake it with a little engine hoist for everything to come out. So I had to get the car right side up and disconnect everything attached to the assembly from above. Pretty simple process when you're not planning to use the car again. Just lift the nose up until the subframe starts to lift, then cut anything thats tight. Repeat as nescesary to get everything unhooked. Sidecutters, sawzall, and a grinder with a zip disc all got put to work. Oh ya, 1/4" drive stuff too.







Just have to get the car high enough to get everything skidded out from under.



The subframe with everything still attached.



That'll buff right out.

Now tomorrow I can yank the engine off the subframe and install it in the 7.

Kristian

"That'll buff right out."

Love your "git-er-done" attitude!

Well it runs again. Got the engine in on friday, got the intake and distributor swapped on saturday, and put the rad and everything else on sunday. Then took a couple buddies for a rip in it, including the future father in law. All were suitably impressed. This time I put some old skinny tires on it that are probably rock hard, wow what a difference in traction, it's scary in pretty much any gear. I walked past where I was turning onto the street today, and there were black stripes about 150 to 200 feet long. Just from getting on it a little bit in 3rd. Happy to report that both tires were spinning, even with an open diff. I definately need to build some baffles for the pipes though, wow is it loud. Sure is nice to have it going again, and for free too.

Got some baffles fabbed up today. They're just simple tube style, like you can get for motorcycles. Cost $20 for the pair plus about an hour of my time. They slip right in the pipes and actually quiet it down a lot. I took it for a spin around the block and stopped to show the guy that gave me the engine, he didn't think it was loud at all. They cut it down to about the same level as driving while wearing ear plugs with no baffles. Still might not be quiet enough to meet the letter of the law though, but it will be at the discretion of the inspector wether to check with a meter or just pass it.







Kristian

So I have been pondering the lack of an R tube on my chassis lately and think I have come up with a solution. My engine and headers are in the way of a traditional R tube, but my engine is mounted solidly with a 3/8" aluminum block plate bolted to the front of the tunnel and the traditional (but solid) mounts at the sides of the block. The 2 pieces of PVC in the picture will be bolted to the front of each cylinder head with a 3/16" plate and 3 bolts, while the forward end will be bolted to a similar plate welded into the triangle behind the upper shock mounts with 2 bolts. I might even add an X brace in the middle for good measure. I think 3/4" x .065 round tubing would probably be even stronger than the traditional R tube because they will be much shorter. Any thoughts or ideas on this?



Kristian

Just close the segment however you see fit. Any ol poorly concieved R member will make a chassis better when comparied to a car that never saw the point in it.

You're right, I definately can't make it any worse.

Is using the engine block as a structure component a good idea? Seems like it could create issues.

Using the block as a stressed member affects bearing tolerances among other things. It is a bad idea unless it was designed to be a stressed member.

It is sticking in my mind that Colin Chapman was the first to use the engine block as a stressed member. Can't tell you what model, but I believe it was an Indy car. I'm certain it was with a small block Ford (rear mid-engined).
Besides, just my .02, but seeing how that thing is bolted to a solid motor plate, bolted to the firewall, with solid traditional engine mounts... I'm not thinking that at it's relatively light weight, that there is going to be any significant flex, or bearing clearance issues in the block.
Mike Bynum

Chapman tried it, as did the folks who built the Valiant-powered Lotus 11

http://www.valiant.org/lotus.html

http://lotuseleven.org/DarkAges1/LVnotes.htm

http://lotuseleven.org/DarkAges1/open_exhaust.htm

Those are some pretty neat articles there, looks like a pretty similar car to mine as far as weight, power, and front/rear bias go. I don't think I've ever seen a car with the engine as a stressed member before, just bikes. Looks like they did pretty close to what I want to do. Hopefully the engine is stiff enough. Being a V type engine, it should be reasonably stiff in torsion, which is all it will be adding to the frame. I think I will try it, and if I have engine problems because of it, back to the drawing board with another engine. The engine I am using is known for durability and long life, not to mention being cheap like crazy. The point about bearing clearances is a good one though, never thought of that. Thanks to all for the input. Now I just need to find some tube, round is hard to find here.
Kristian

Hey SlantVal,
Do you know what time frame those three article were written during? We are nipping right up against 50 years since that was built.
Being a life long Mopar guy, I'm wondering if any of the five are still alive, and what kind of info they would be able to provide toward building a "tribute". Matter of fact, I wonder if there are even any more, and/or better quality pictures around.
A lot could be discerned from what is seen, but the biggest issues in my mind would be, other than the rear motor plate, how and where they came off the engine. Knowing that they used the lower deck 170, I'm still amazed that it all fit under the hood except the carb and filter housing.
How about a more modern rendition? Still the 170, but with either a fabricated FI manifold or a trio of Webers, should keep it all (or nearly) under the hood. Naturally, a 5 spd instead of the BW or Muncie 4spd. (There is a fellow in Spokane who has mated a Toyo R154 Turbo Supra tranny to his turbo'd S/6.) I sure wish I could see detail pics of the differential mounting. The 6-1/2 degree off of centerline is kind of unusual, but I see how it gets the highest point at the front centered under the bonnet.
Anyhow, I've known of this car for many years, but great to learn more today.
Mike Bynum