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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:00 PM

I thought these photos documenting the preparation of my vintage racer would be of interest. We started with a run-of-the-mill 72 car (purchased on eBay), stripped it to the metal, straightened it, welded in a cage, powder-coated everything, added a new pedal-box assembly, AIM display and the best components we could find. FAT performance built a powerful 4 cylinder engine and we are off to the races!

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:02 PM

added the cage

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:03 PM

suspension

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:04 PM

more suspension

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:05 PM

engine

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:06 PM

transmission

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:07 PM

exhaust

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:08 PM

pedal cluster and AIM display

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:09 PM

fuel cell

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:11 PM

getting closer

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:12 PM

maiden voyage

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:13 PM

Jefferson 500

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:14 PM

Lime Rock

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 10 2012, 08:16 PM

"minor" setback

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Posted by: bulitt Nov 11 2012, 07:22 AM

Beauty! What's the haze on the bare body? Zinc?

Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 07:36 AM

After it was stripped it was coated with a rust preventative

Posted by: Matt Romanowski Nov 11 2012, 10:03 AM

Gorgeous car. I saw it at LRP right before you went out.

Posted by: sixnotfour Nov 11 2012, 10:28 AM

Very Nice....type 4 sale ?? 2.0 Six

Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 10:32 AM

The first engine was built by SCAT and was a disaster(see photos). FAT is just finishing up the replacement type 4 engine.

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 10:33 AM

Here is what it looked like after the first race!

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Posted by: brant Nov 11 2012, 11:21 AM

I've seen so many of those cases vented like that over the years.... Sorry for your misfortune.

beautiful car though!
nice job

Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 11:28 AM

Thanks Brant- this time we are adding a dry sump system with a larger oil cooler.

Posted by: brant Nov 11 2012, 11:39 AM

do you have any pictures of how the cage ties into the engine bay?

I'm not allowed to attatch my cage to suspension points unless its bolt in, but was considering something to the back

nice to see another vintage teener
I honestly believe you will see more and more of them being built.

I'm certain there are 20-40 more teeners running vintage than there were 10 years ago... heck even 5 years ago
914's are getting old and not really competetive with modern cars.. but they are great vintage cars! This is going to grow and grow.

Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:19 PM

I will add a few photos of the cage next. I have been involved in vintage racing for 15 years and there have always been plenty of 914-6s. I have had two of them (one an original GT car, the other a GT replica) and have become discouraged by the constant escalation of performance and all the blatant cheating. 2.5L short stroke and 2.8L engines are not uncommon. That Is why I went with a narrow-bodied 4 cylinder car that competes in Group 3. Remember " ... it's just as much fun to drive a slow car fast as it is to drive a very fast car even faster ..."

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:20 PM

engine compartment tie in

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:22 PM

one more

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:28 PM

a better shot

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:41 PM

First 914 vintage race car. 1998 at Watkins Glen 50/50

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:47 PM

Driving the GT at Monterey

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:49 PM

Watkins Glen

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 11 2012, 01:50 PM

2 914s

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Posted by: brant Nov 12 2012, 09:10 AM

Nice pictures..
a friend of mine that I race with built a tribute to your car
his was a real M471 with factory flares, balsa hoods, and the factory cooler/thermostat.

he copied your paint though. The car is now in germany and the owner of it is on this board from time to time. I believe it went through a full restoration since these pictures were taken in colorado.

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Posted by: mettelman Nov 12 2012, 09:22 AM

Very nice ... where is the right side mirror and fuel filler?

Posted by: brant Nov 12 2012, 09:35 AM

we still have cheaters out here but it is really always from the 911 guys
we have gone from 1-2 teeners 5 years back, to nearly a half dozen these days

here is my 2ltr, twin plug:

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Posted by: 396 Nov 12 2012, 10:24 AM

Very nice, thanks for sharing

Posted by: mettelman Dec 11 2012, 04:29 AM

New engine arrived yesterday. Let's hope all the expertise and hard work of Greg at F.A.T. Performance pays off. We have dry-sumped the engine and will be adding a cooler up front for added cooling. Dyno results showed 179 hp @6,500 rpm and a nice flat torque curve peaking at 171 ft lbs at 5,000 rpm. Can't wait for Spring!

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Posted by: Woody Dec 11 2012, 06:12 AM

What size engine is it?

Posted by: brant Dec 11 2012, 10:18 AM

how big does your club let you build too?
doesn't sound like a 1.7 (which would be vintage legal out here)

2500cc ?

Posted by: mettelman Dec 11 2012, 01:53 PM

It's a 2 liter, actually 2056cc. Legal for SVRA/HSR and others for Group 3 racing

Posted by: ned911 Dec 11 2012, 04:18 PM

With CVAR (SVRA owner is a member) we are not allowed to run front coolers which apparently is part of the '72 GCR's.

Posted by: mettelman Dec 18 2012, 09:10 PM

If I do not go with a front ail cooler what do you recommend? A 914-6 oil tank?

Posted by: sixnotfour Dec 18 2012, 09:25 PM

I ran this set up for yrs in a street track -6..this race unit ran a long time.
http://www.pbase.com/9146gt/image/36622522

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Posted by: ned911 Dec 19 2012, 09:50 AM

My wife's car is going in for an oil cooler to get it DE ready for 2013 with the goal of having it vintage ready for the fall. Same shop that built the Ginther copy in the FS section.

Pretty sure he uses 2 coolers with fans inbetween (think of the coolers as the bread in the sandwhich). Places it behind the engine.

Without using the front there really is no perfect place in a 914.

I would check with others in running 4's and see what they have done or email SVRA and ask. You don't want to ge caught up in a rule change or when they decide to forego selective enforcement.

Posted by: Racer Chris Dec 19 2012, 11:07 AM

With the right 4 cyl. exhaust system a rear mounted cooler is very effective.
In a race car I would probably let the cooler hang down just a little lower.

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Posted by: Randal Dec 19 2012, 12:51 PM

Just wanted to say that a front mounted oil cooler is a great way to go. You might not be able to do that (rules), but if you can that configuration is a winner.

I haven't seen over 180 degrees with my set up, even after flat out runs as hard as I could go at Medford, on a hot day, in second and third gear. Typical runs there are 4-5 minutes which will be a lot less time than you'll see on the track, but the combination of Nickies and front mounted oil cooler work great.

Posted by: brant Dec 19 2012, 01:19 PM

I think track work of 20 minutes up to a couple of hours (enduros) really just are not compairable to autox.

the heat sink is just so so much greater

its an area where car build and design, are just apples and oranges.
(our enduro is 210 minutes on track)

Posted by: Randal Dec 19 2012, 02:16 PM

QUOTE(brant @ Dec 19 2012, 11:19 AM)