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Posted by: Chris Julian Apr 8 2004, 03:33 PM

Hey Guys,

I'm new to the board and forums in general so please forgive the technical stumblings I am about to put you through. I've attached a couple of photos of my project. Brad R says the BBS is messed up so I can't really preview the pics, I hope it works, Ha Ha he says. the car is a 1974- 914 that died early in it's prime from an engine fire. The car bounced around for many years as a v8 conversion project when I found it in 1991. As with most of this projects it started out as a 1-2 year minor project and grew into something much more. The car is more street rod then authentic Porsche, although I have always respected German engineering, and the Porsche name, I wanted to create my own car.
Here's a couple of highlights,

Body: The body kit is an "American International Racing (AIR)" fiberglass kit which I had to cut way down. The original rear fenders had the overall width of the car at 84"-86"s wide. After I cut 4"s off each side the thing still looks like a Testerosa from behind. The car is painted Maytag White and looks more like a race car and less like a modern day Porsche.
Engine: The motor is a 4 bolt 350 with a 400 crank i.e. stroker motor 383 cubes, Trick Flow heads, loopy cam, and a recent purchase, soon to be installed, 4 48 IDA Webers with a Moon Racing manifold. I will get the car on the road first, then install/tune the Webers (which seems to be the number one reason these carbs ever get sold, they are very hard to tune but once perfected, the throttle response of a nitro car. They must be tuned by a professional with a dyno and lots of spare jets?.

Cooling, I am running two 1" copper lines down the center tunnel inside the car with 16AN bulkhead fittings at both firewalls and braided 1 1/8" OD hose connecting the motor and radiator (I am worried about the ID of this hose), large aluminum racing radiator with two powerful "Scotts" electric fans, I have extensively cut into the front inner fenders but have reinforced all the suspension tie-in points with sturdy roll cage downbars/xbars, the car probably has 75'+ of 1 1/2" steel tubing. The water pump is Rod Simpsons cast AL housing with the Chrysler impeller. The front air inlet/opening is about 160 sq. inches, the
exit somewhere near double the inlet. If that doesn't do it, I'll install dual oil coolers and Renegades Radiator.
Tranny: Pantera ZF, any knowledge of the ZF tranny/installation would be very helpful (shifter, linkage, gearing, ect...) The car has dated Centerline Champ 500 wheels, Tires are 345's out back and 285's up front on 15" rims. Need bigger tires/rims and brakes. I can't find a tire wider then a 335 in a larger rim size (17"-20"). Any suggestions?.


Chris Julian


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Posted by: Chris Julian Apr 8 2004, 03:35 PM

Photo #2- Chris Julian 74-918


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Posted by: Chris Julian Apr 8 2004, 03:36 PM

Photo #3_ Chris Julian 74-918


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Posted by: Chris Julian Apr 8 2004, 03:38 PM

OK resized images

74-918


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Posted by: Chris Julian Apr 8 2004, 03:40 PM

Resized motor image 74-918


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Posted by: mike_the_man Apr 8 2004, 03:44 PM

Wow! Very nice! That thing will fly. What type of tranny are you using? How much horsepower do you estimate you'll be laying down? Very impressive, keep us updated on your progress.

Posted by: Ferg Apr 8 2004, 03:48 PM

WOW
When do you plan on completing that project? I want a ride
Very nice.
Ferg

Posted by: rick 918-S Apr 8 2004, 03:51 PM

Now that's What I'm talkin about!

Posted by: ! Apr 8 2004, 03:53 PM

Mmmm, Mongo LIKE,,,,,,

Posted by: ablose58 Apr 8 2004, 04:12 PM

Way cool project! That thing looks like it will fly like a rocket sled on rails, and welcome aboard. PS you gotta take me for a ride when done I love a good adrenaline rush. AL

Posted by: nebreitling Apr 8 2004, 04:18 PM

HOLY CRAPOLA

it scares me, mommy

Posted by: John2kx Apr 8 2004, 04:26 PM

Chris,

Glad to see your input here. Looks like you just raised the bar. Great job!

John

Posted by: Jeroen Apr 8 2004, 04:28 PM

Hey Chris,

First of all, welcome to 914world.com
That's quite an introduction you made!
I hope it's an inspiration to other (lurking) new members (hint, hint)

Now, give us all the dirty and intimate details on your car

cheers,

Jeroen

Posted by: Mueller Apr 8 2004, 04:32 PM

looks slow, I'm sure my stock 1.8 can blow him away, LOL

very nice......it's not going to be easy to find steamroller tires wider than what you want........

Welcome aboard !!!!!

A few of the Pantera BBS have some decent forums for the transmission, at least last time I looked a few months ago.

Posted by: 72914S Apr 8 2004, 04:34 PM

Welcome ! I`m afraid very afraid!

Posted by: TimT Apr 8 2004, 05:16 PM

Wowsers..........

Posted by: scotty Apr 8 2004, 05:31 PM

I saw it suck Billy into the carbs!



Nice job -- I really like the exhaust!

Posted by: 415PB Apr 8 2004, 05:42 PM

Holy shit.........I think I am leaning toward a V8 now

Posted by: Brett W Apr 8 2004, 08:49 PM

BBBBBBBBBBBAAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDDD AAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: Brad Roberts Apr 8 2004, 08:54 PM

Welcome Chris. You have stumbled into a wealth of knowledge. I wish I could assemble "clean room" cars, but it would take me FOREVER...LOL (oh wait.. how long have you been working on this one ??)

Mueller.. he wants/needs a set of the roller bearings (we discussed this a few weeks back here at the shop)



B

Posted by: trekkor Apr 8 2004, 09:18 PM

For us V-8 wannabe's, give us a heads up on total dollars in thus far and those to the finish.

Really nice. oh yes. I need to sit down now.

Trekkor

Posted by: SpecialK Apr 8 2004, 10:29 PM

DAAAAMMMN!!

Posted by: rhodyguy Apr 8 2004, 10:38 PM

yaaowzzza!!!!


ot: that's the wwiiddeesstt thread i have ever seen.

kevin

Posted by: boxstr Apr 8 2004, 10:44 PM

Chris, Thanks now I have V8 envy..and I have a V8 914.
Beautiful car, I hope we get to see it sometime soon on the street.
CCLINANDYOUTOCANHAVEAV8

Posted by: Rgreen914 Apr 9 2004, 02:25 AM

Nice car! But yank those Webers (sell them to club members) and put the Q-jet back where it belongs!

Posted by: Gint Apr 9 2004, 07:08 AM

Very nice Chris! Welcome to the board.

Posted by: lmcchesney Apr 9 2004, 07:27 AM

HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL!!!!
Half the car and twice the motor.
Welcome to the club Chris.
We all will be awainting your update.
Any way we can help, let us know.
I do hope you realize, that the best way we can give you the BEST information is following sitting in that front seat for a few laps.
L. McChesney

Posted by: dakotaewing Apr 9 2004, 08:09 AM

Chris,
with as much money as you you presently have in that motor, you might consider
going with a proven cooling system.... (the RH rad, shroud, pump etc...) I know
it's an extra $1000-$1300, but how much would a blown head gasket, and a set of warped heads cost on top of that? (Total of about $2500 + labor?)
If you research this forum, and the porschev forum, you will probably see that the
general consensus is that the other systems don't work -

By the the way, your car looks AWESOME -

Thom

Posted by: itsa914 Apr 9 2004, 08:09 AM

- Garold

Posted by: Chris Julian Apr 9 2004, 01:23 PM

Hey Guys,

thanks for all the positive feedback. I guess I was expecting more of the "that's a sacrilege" comments.

To answer a couple of the questions.

Completion time frame:
I would love to have it on the road within a year. Iv'e said that before but after watching monster garage and junk yard wars I guess it is possible to build something up in a weekend. It really hasn't taken 13 years to get this far. Maybe 12-15 months spanned across many years.
The electrical system is next. Custom dash and fusepanel.

Drivetrain:
The engine is a balanced and blueprinted 350 four bolt with 400 crank. Balancing was a little tricky. The 400 motors were externally balanced so we had to balance the complete spinning assembly as a unit, this caused a little problem with the grooved harmonic balancer which is required with the v8 swap. The aluminum heads are Trick Flow with the 1.6 x 2.02 valves. Cam is comp cam 280H, I think? I will toss the Corvette rams horns (past smog concerns) after the car is running most of the gremlins have been worked out. I think the Supertrapps will also have to go?

Cost:
Most of the custom work was fabricated by myself so that cuts down on the labor cost and most of the components were purchased over 10 years ago. I think I have between 18-21K into the project to date and will probably need to spend another 2-3K to finish the car. Not including the Weber setup.

I am currently looking for some of the interior components, upper moldings @ rear window door panels, ect... Any suggestions would be great.

I'm also looking for oil cooler information, I want to run twin oil coolers behind the air ducts in the rear quarter panels. I do not want to fight the cooling issues. I would immediatly jump on the RH radiator setup if I knew for sure I wouldn't have to deal with the cooling issues, but I have heard of overheating problems with the RH system, actually I have witnessed them.


Chris

Posted by: Howard Apr 9 2004, 02:46 PM

Hey, Chris. That is beyond neat! My single quad 3/4 SBC scares the shit out of me, so don't even want to know (OK, maybe a little) what that sucker will run like.

Do you have a paint code for 'maytag white'? PO painted mine the same color and paint shops look at me like I'm nuts.

Posted by: neo914-6 Apr 10 2004, 11:02 AM

Chris,
You need more closeups to show your design and fabrication details.

I hope you're not referring to witnessing my car overheating up the hills. I have a kink in the return line from my Simpson pump that I haven't fixed yet...it never had a problem on the flats. I don't think the RH radiator would fit with your cage bars through the trunk. Yeah non-RH rads can be made to work, it just takes alot of time and R&D which can be bought for ~$1.3k. As Thom noted, you may not want to put your nice motor at risk.
Felix

Posted by: Lawrence Apr 10 2004, 12:35 PM

It's all been said.

I'm speechless.

-Rusty

Posted by: Chris914n6 Apr 10 2004, 06:03 PM

I highly recommend a http://www.rondavisracing.com/ radiator. Tell them you have a 1000hp Hot Rod and give them the dimensions to fit in your car. Tim (used to handle custom sales) has a 914-v8 with a custom tube front end. He's a cool cat. Ask for pics.

Oh, RH had a bitch'n 400 crank counter balance made once that bolted to the harmonic balancer, kinda late for you but something to keep in mind. There should be a pic on the website with one on the demo engine.

Chris

Posted by: djm914-6 Apr 10 2004, 07:08 PM

I've been skipping a few threads including this one 'till now. Wow, this car looks bloody sweet! Well, since I started my 914 addiction with a six, maybe my next one will have to be an eight. After all, I do have an desire to own a rod.

Nice car, welcome to the nut house.

Posted by: J P Stein Apr 10 2004, 07:24 PM

Well it don't look like no "cruiser"
Whatcha gonna do with it when it's "done"?

Posted by: scottb Apr 11 2004, 05:29 AM

ok, that's it...... gonna start piecing together the pars for a v8 conversion. a little here, a little there and before you know it..... BAM!! a pile of parts and no money!!

damn you chris and your nice car!!!!!

really, keep us up to date on the progress. take pics. set up a web site. sell vidoes of the make over. sell a parts list with distributors. if/when the 4 popper dies, this looks like the way to go.....

Posted by: majkos Apr 11 2004, 10:04 AM

OMG! What a beautiful work of ART! AND you can drive it!Jesse James,eat your heart out!This car ROCKS! and a Rocket! Just BEAUTIFUL!

Posted by: Brad Roberts Apr 11 2004, 11:50 AM

I personally would run twin 964 oil coolers with fans in the rear fenders. Worst case scenerio..dont turn on the fans/and or remove them. Mount one cooler in one side and one in the other. Stainless mesh in front of the coolers that is removable for cleaning.


B

Posted by: rdauenhauer Apr 11 2004, 12:04 PM

Chris, chek out the classified, HPH or PM me I have a
mission to clean out my shed.
PS its hard for evan purists to bag on your prep. Nice work!

Posted by: neo914-6 Jun 18 2004, 03:52 AM

Chris,
How's progress??? Will it run in time for our summer GTG?
Felix

Posted by: Mar7ck Jul 14 2004, 07:13 PM

Nice webbers...

I don't see the white BBR car. So... make some room.

Mar7ck

Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 08:47 PM

Ok it’s been long enough and it’s time for an update. I have been busy it’s just that all the custom pieces take time to fabricate. So here are a couple of the highlights:
Front Compartment
The front compartment is almost done. Pictures tell the story!
Pretty much just wiring and AN fitting/hoses to go. Anybody have any tricks when installing AN fittings? My cooling system has #16’s they are the worst to install.


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Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 08:48 PM

Dash
The dash is in, yes you do see two water temp gauges, tuning the cooling system is critical and my setup is unconventional to say the least so I have one sensor up front just past the radiator so I can monitor it’s cooling effect and one at the motor to monitor the temp as it exits the motor.
Anybody have a competent fiberglass guy in the SF Bay Area? My plan to glass the upper and lower dash is still in place unless I can upholster it without too much trouble? Any thoughts?


Chris


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Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 08:50 PM

Dash2





Chris


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Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 08:51 PM

Center Console
The center console bracing is mocked up and the cardboard helps to show it’s final shape
The center console will house the fuse box, brake proportioning valve, parking brake (hydraulic valve), cooling lines, fuel line, hydraulic clutch line, and a lot of high temp shielding to ward off the heat.


Chris


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Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 08:52 PM

Rear Compartment
The rear compartment is almost ready to accept the drive train. Most of the systems are in i.e. Cooling, brake lines, clutch line, battery able, and fuel layout, ect….


Chris


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Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 08:55 PM

And lastly, the aluminum grill work. Lots of opening to close up with custom grill panels. Should I anodize them or powder coat?


Thanks for looking,

Chris


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Posted by: ppickerell Jul 20 2004, 09:18 PM

Chris,
Send them to me if you want and I will pull some strings at my plater.
Patrick@peridot

Posted by: Chris Julian Jul 20 2004, 09:18 PM

Front Compartment Resend- can't get the first image to display


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Posted by: Headrage Jul 20 2004, 09:46 PM

WWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ttttttooooooccccoooollllllllll. THAT IS GREAT!!!! Give me more pics!!!!

Posted by: dan10101 Jul 20 2004, 10:23 PM

Is this street? or pure race?

Looks seriously bad ass. If you dont mind, I would love some detailed pics of the front radiator setup, and that tube work you've done up front as well as anything you have..

If you dont want to post em you can email me the pics at adalen@pacbell.net

Thanks, and your car looks like I want mine to!!!

Andrew

Posted by: spare time toys Jul 27 2004, 09:15 AM

Who makes this fuel cell?

Posted by: rhodyguy Aug 19 2004, 12:08 PM

is this the one you are looking for brittain?

kevin

Posted by: neo914-6 Jul 3 2005, 04:35 PM

Visited Chris today with MikeP to see his exhaust progress...

Nice "over the top" headers!

Are they hot enough?

Notice the webers (just for conversation for now)


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Posted by: neo914-6 Jul 3 2005, 04:38 PM

Hood exhaust is next...


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Posted by: Andyrew Jul 3 2005, 05:05 PM

sick stuff!!!

Asside from the 90's in the headers, they look true race!!!!

webbers look good as always...

Hood radiator exhausting? Copycat He was just jelous that my cooling on the track was 5 degree's lower Jk Chris!

Cant wait to see it in 3 weeks!

Andrew

Posted by: neo914-6 Jul 3 2005, 05:22 PM

He went to some historic races and noticed ALL the mid engine race cars had hood exhaust. If you ask MikeP, hood exhaust is a catchall for alot of garbage and his radiator was not designed for easy access...

Let's hope he get's his house projects done! If you saw what he's working on, your jaw would drop...

Got July 24th clearance from his wife Shirley She asked how many of "us" are there and I said our group is growing...

Posted by: redshift Jul 3 2005, 08:28 PM

I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread I must not view this thread

Posted by: porschev8 Jan 30 2006, 09:58 PM

QUOTE (Chris Julian @ Jul 20 2004, 07:18 PM)

Front Compartment Resend- can't get the first image to display

Hey Chris,
So did it run cool or overheat?

-Tim

Posted by: grantsfo Jan 31 2006, 12:01 AM

Why did you ruin a pefectly good 914 with a V8? Holy crap that is a beautiful car. Incredible work!

Posted by: neo914-6 Jan 31 2006, 12:53 AM

QUOTE (porschev8 @ Jan 30 2006, 07:58 PM)

QUOTE (Chris Julian @ Jul 20 2004, 07:18 PM) Front Compartment Resend- can't get the first image to display Hey Chris, So did it run cool or overheat? -Tim

His cooling system did not overheat on it's first long distance drive to SoCal last summer for WCC05...

Posted by: rick 918-S Jan 31 2006, 01:02 AM

Hi Chris!


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Posted by: rick 918-S Jan 31 2006, 01:04 AM

I call this "Passing anything but the gas station"


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