Todd,
SAS only uses 2 wheel rear drive. Around 2013, they started using Subaru front suspension. Prior to that, they used a Chapman strut with coilovers for front suspension. Subaru rear suspension has been used by SAS for many years.
@Jethro. Isn’t your SAS a 4-wheel drive?
I know he built at least one of them with 4wd.
https://losangeles.craigslist....-356/6754497654.html
IRS too, and 136 miles. The tires still have the nubs on the treads.
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Anybody live near Jackson, MS?
Or Albany, NY?
Todd M posted:You said the suspension is from the donor Legacy. Including the front suspension? AWD or 2 WD?
Actually, the front suspension is from an Impreza, the rear is from a Legacy GT. The drive train is regular Legacy.
It is not AWD. He does away with the rear drive shaft and trans-axle. Basically uses the front trans-axle from the donor to use as the rear trans-axle in the build.
Does water fall from the rear hood vent onto the engine?
Not on an SAS as the grille is not cut out (only for looks). On an air cooled Speedster - there is an inner rain shield in the engine lid that directs rainwater to the back of engine away from electrics and supposedly carbs. Many add rain hats to their dual carbs - available from Beck SE. Others remove the rain shield and have no protection. It is not the car of choice to drive in a rainstorm.
Is it just me, or is your first thought when you see a Subaru in a coupe, "a turbo would fit in there easily"?
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Yes it would, but if it were mine I would either run a small-ish turbo and mated injectors, OR a regular sized turbo with a boost limiter. These are small cars and even the slightly heavier coupe doesn't weigh much. The only speedster I've driven with a turbo (it had the WRX engine) was a lot to handle when you got your foot in it. It certainly wouldn't be fun on slicker roads.
Fitting the turbo is the easy part. Shedding the excess heat load is the tough part. In addition, NA Subi engines are not efficient platforms to accept a turbo. I disagree slightly with Gordon's analysis above regarding high HP and no fun on slicker roads. To me, high HP is always fun, but the driver needs to learn when to lighten up on the go pedal. As with all performance cars, conditions dictate fun vs. danger. Getting close to the edge has its own attractions, eh?
@Jim Kelly you just made me think of the Yes song "Close to the Edge." Man, Jon Anderson sure can write some deep lyrics!
Todd M posted:Is it just me, or is your first thought when you see a Subaru in a coupe, "a turbo would fit in there easily"?
If I did a Soob again I'd put a small blower on it.
@Gordon Nichols "It certainly wouldn't be fun on slicker roads."
I must have a deviant sense of fun.
@David Stroud IM Roadster D "If I did a Soob again I'd put a small blower on it."
As @Stan Galat says, "More is more." Is there any such thing as too much torque?
Too much torque breaks bolts, strips threads or skins knuckles! lol! ;-)
I want to share what happens in my mind when I inquire about a car for sale, am informed that the car has sold, but the seller, (a well known manufacturer/builder), can build one for me, and then leaves the the ad up. It immediately makes me think that I can not trust that seller/manufacturer/builder to build me a car, even if he was my first choice before the bait and switch experience.
What a shame. Instead of generating sales, he has lost a potential sale.
Looking at the Subaru engine, it seems that the oil sump would hang a lot lower than a Type I engine. Does the Subaru sump ever bottom out on the ground?
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My Soob conversion never bottomed out with a stock oil pan. Always had 4.5" + clearance.
It can hang pretty low in a Speedster. If you keep the suspension a little higher than is typical—say an inch up, which is close to where a stock VW suspension would be—then the stock pan is fine. David Stroud ran a stock pan in his car and (he'll correct me if I'm wrong) it did not scrape.
If you're at "normal" SOC-er ride height (which is technically about an inch or an inch and a half below what the factory VW spec would be) then the Subie pan is riding a bit low—3.5 or 4 inches from the pavement, probably—and will occasionally buy it on a speed bump or driveway ramp.
Small Car makes this heavy-duty aftermarket pan that saves about two inches over the stock unit. I have one on Bridget and never regretted the purchase. Bridget is set on the low side and the pan's about 5 inches from the ground; never scraped.
Todd M posted:@Gordon Nichols "It certainly wouldn't be fun on slicker roads."
I must have a deviant sense of fun.
@David Stroud IM Roadster D "If I did a Soob again I'd put a small blower on it."
As @Stan Galat says, "More is more." Is there any such thing as too much torque?
Safety Jim posted:Too much torque breaks bolts, strips threads or skins knuckles! lol! ;-)
I heard a guy once say that too much torque breaks a car in half. Until then, you're good...
For those of you who have built your car yourself, was the seller of your body willing to answer questions after the sale, while you were building the car?
There isn't anything that can't be answered by one of the posted FF/CMC build manuals posted here or folks here (DRClock provides his phone number even). If you buy one of the odd listed bodies on SAMBA or from MX - you might have some fitment issues. If you get a roller - you just add mechanicals (trans/suspension/engine).
Everything I've needed I got from this group or other owners I've met. I was at Bug O Rama about 10 years ago and there were several speedsters there including an IM and a Vintage and Dale and Ernie let me measure a bunch critical dimensions, that really helped me out!
WOLFGANG posted:There isn't anything that can't be answered by one of the posted FF/CMC build manuals posted here or folks here (DRClock provides his phone number even). If you buy one of the odd listed bodies on SAMBA or from MX - you might have some fitment issues. If you get a roller - you just add mechanicals (trans/suspension/engine).
There are BUILD MANUALS?!??! SERIOUSLY? Where? I will try the search. Thanks.
WOLFGANG posted:There isn't anything that can't be answered by one of the posted FF/CMC build manuals posted here or folks here (DRClock provides his phone number even). If you buy one of the odd listed bodies on SAMBA or from MX - you might have some fitment issues. If you get a roller - you just add mechanicals (trans/suspension/engine).
I found the FiberFab manual. And while searching, it appears that CMC and FiberFab are similar? CMC bought FiberFab? Any other build manuals out there? What can I say? I'm greedy.
I need some opinions. As far as I can tell, the cost to build a replica yourself is fairly close to the cost to have JPS or Vintage do it for you. What is your experience?
OMgosh! I am not going to sleep tonight.
If you can find a running roller that needs work and you can do most of the paint and sub out the paint, figure on about $ 8-11G's to nicely refurbish it.
Todd: I ordered a Fibre-Fab kit back in the 80's and it was shipped to me from the CMC plant in Florida. Fibre-fab built a few cars in Buffalo where I live, (but not the Speedsters) and I thought I could save the shipping costs by picking it up. However, I did get down to Miami and visit the incredibly huge CMC plant. Yes, the cars are the same as far as I know. Since you are a supporting member you have access to the manuals. I hope this helps.
FiberFab was a huge producers of a huge range of kit cars in '70's using MG/TR/AH/VW chassis. They started in 1964 in Calif. In '79 they were hq'd in Minneapolis, MN and were sold to their competitor CMC in 1983. Check out their history below and the huge # of really nice looking (but difficult to build replicas) at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiberfab
I particularly like that he shot his wife Jamaica for cheating and ended up in jail! The Jamaican was one of his swoopiest kits! Build manuals are still available for most of their cars. I've always like the very low Avenger GT (Fort GT40 take off) and the 3 wheel Scarab.
Cost the same between building own and VS/JPS? I'm guessing a new base VS/JPS is $30k. Build time is remarkably short too. The original CMC kit was $8k in 1989 plus shipping and without donor VW T1. I've seen used one from $2k (not recently) to $12k needing work. So if you can do work you could refurb for under $20k and you'd know what parts were used and that it was constructed well. If you aren't mechanical - cheaper to go with a finished car. HA, plus you can build at your own pace and as your budget allows.
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Building one "at your own pace" is a bit of a double-edged sword, however.
" at your own pace" ...I believe the current record is 28 years plus...……..
I’m glad I beat that by 21 years..............
@edsnova, @Alan Merklin, @Gordon Nichols, at my own pace was 30 years from start to driving it. Of course, it is never done.
In California, are 'smog exempt' cars exempt from even having to show up at the smog testing facility? Or do they still have to get a smog certificate from a state authorized smog test facility? For those of you who don't live in California, the above may seem like a no brainer, "Smog exempt means exempt from smog testing", but if you live in California you know that making sense has nothing to do with California's environmental or pollution laws.
The reason I am asking is because if you put a JDM Subaru engine in a car, and you have to get it smog tested, it may not pass based on a physical inspection that shows the engine number is not entered into Big Brother's database and can therefore not be passed.
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Michael McKelvey posted:@edsnova, @Alan Merklin, @Gordon Nichols, at my own pace was 30 years from start to driving it. Of course, it is never done.
did you get the cruise done 
'Smog exempt' means never having to say you're sorry.
Every car that needs to be smogged (a newish Toyota, for example) is flagged on its registration renewal form every other renewal period and you can't renew the registration until you take the car to a smog check shop and pass the test. The smog shop has a computer that communicates directly with DMV and notifies the state whether or not your car passed.
But a 1969 VW, for example, never gets that notice that a smog check needs to be done when its registration is up for renewal. If you happen to have a goofy-shaped fiberglass body riding around on your 1969 VW chassis, the state doesn't know that and keeps sending you registration renewals that don't require a smog check.
You get the same smog exemption if you register your car in the 'Special Construction' program. The car is never subjected to a smog test.
If you have a pan-based car that's registered as a VW, you can put a JDM Suby motor in, or a Briggs and Stratton motor in, or a 1948 Tucker helicopter engine in and DMV will never come calling.
Of course, that's how it is today. But no man's life, liberty, happiness, or JDM Subaru motor is safe while the legislature is in session.
"my setup is torsion and air. torsion is set at the lowest. lock pins on front and rear removed, so if air pops, it just goes to lowest (drivable) setting. much safer than those that lay frame."
Could you please explain the above to me? By 'torsion' is set at the lowest, are you saying that you have an adjustable torsion beam VW suspension and it is adjusted to it's lowest setting? And I am clueless on the lock pins removed. Is 'lay frame' when the frame of a bagged car is in contact with the ground? And why did you narrow the beam? I see narrowed torsion beams for sale, but I don't know why they are narrowed. Is a side effect of a narrowed beam the ability to install wider tires? Are 'Avis adjusters' the adjustment mechanisms on the beams?
Thanks in advance.
Thanks for the info.
I read how people as y'all the same questions, i.e. "Is that a kit car?" I just thought of an answer when someone asks you, "Why did you put a Subaru engine in it?
Because I couldn't get the big block to fit.
Todd M posted:"my setup is torsion and air. torsion is set at the lowest. lock pins on front and rear removed, so if air pops, it just goes to lowest (drivable) setting. much safer than those that lay frame."
Could you please explain the above to me? By 'torsion' is set at the lowest, are you saying that you have an adjustable torsion beam VW suspension and it is adjusted to it's lowest setting? And I am clueless on the lock pins removed. Is 'lay frame' when the frame of a bagged car is in contact with the ground? And why did you narrow the beam? I see narrowed torsion beams for sale, but I don't know why they are narrowed. Is a side effect of a narrowed beam the ability to install wider tires? Are 'Avis adjusters' the adjustment mechanisms on the beams?
Thanks in advance.
i have an adjustable from beam with the centre pins still in place, but the lock nuts removed. it's 3.5" narrowed - to allow larger tires/rims to tuck, plus i like that look. my beam had avis style. there are other styles, but functionally all do the same thing.
lay frame: yes. metal on the ground. quite dangerous to have this IMO.,
Generally speaking, ( I say generally because I understand that wheel offset is a factor ), will shortening the rear axles allow a wider wheel/tire combination to be fit within the body lines? I am guessing that the upper shock mount would need to be moved. Any other modifications needed using an IRS?
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The upper shock mount doesn't need to be moved- the wheel/tire can only come in as far as the spring plate. What may need trimming (depending how close the wheel/tire sits) is the upper suspension stop beside the shock mount. It may need to be cut back slightly.
My computer doesn't have the program to open your file, Todd, so I don't know what's there. Al
Does VS no longer make the ultrawide Speedster? It isn't mentioned on their web site. I know they favor swing axle rear - but they would do IRS. Looks like they used 8" wide rear faux Fuch-look rims. I can't see wanting to go larger than 8" wide rim.
