[ferrari328gt]

Now that I have installed a Chevy rear end in the car, I'm convinced the car is well sorted out and dead reliable. Since I am really a car builder, I am ready to move on to the next project. It's been a blast to drive for the last two years, and I hope someone else will enjoy it, too. For those of you that haven't followed my journey, here are the two threads on the subject. The first is the original, the second is the update:

V-8 Build

V-8 Update

More detail and price are in the "update" thread. Thanks, guys.

Steve

direct e-mail is [email protected]

 

[ferrari328gt]

V-8 Spider

I finally got time to list the car on eBay. The ad got a little screwed up, some my fault, some eBay's, but I hope nobody holds that against me. Let's see what happens in the next several days.

V-8 Spider eBay Listing

-Steve

 

[randyleepublic]

Good luck! Nice job by the way, purists be gone!

One question: did you reinforce the front "frame" any. S4 spiders are famous for needing some extra welding up there, mainly cause of power steering. The V8 would only add to the stress, I think.

 

[GTV-GR]

how much hp? how much the engine weights?

 

[randyleepublic]

Steve says the whole package is 40 some odd pounds lighter than the S4 started out.

 

[[email protected]]

Insanity. Hooray for insanity.

 

[Orange Alfa]

When building mine... My friend dared me to drop my 351W into it... surprisingly it fit very well. What stopped me was the gear box in the #8cyl exhaust port and having to cut the tunnel out. Opted for fast and easy and stuck with the stock motor. But now as the stock motor has met its end... I am thinking a nice little 347 stoker with a almost stock cam and such may be just the ticket... Very beautiful work by the way. Nice and clean. Would love to see the engineering on the brakes and more details on the rack and pinion work. Thanks for Sharing!!

 

[ferrari328gt]

V-8

My apologies for not looking at this thread for a few days. I've been busy with the eBay ad. Someone submitted it to Bring-A-Trailer, which has brought a huge response - both good and bad. Purists really hate me. Too bad.

Now to answer a few of your questions:

I have not seen the need to reinforce the frame. The chassis feels stiffer than my 328 Ferrari, and that's good enough for me. I suppose a roll bar might serve a dual purpose - protect the passengers, and stiffen things up. The new owner can make his own judgement on that.

The engine in its current configuration is probably 100 pounds heavier then the Alfa, but I've taken weight out elsewhere, such as the steering, A/C components, driveshaft, exhaust system, etc.. As stated, the overall weight of the car is less than original. If someone would like to donate an aluminum engine block, I'd be glad to install it. -Steve

 

[ferrari328gt]

Frame twisting

I just thought of something. James here on the BB (alfasax) also has a V-8 in his Spider, and has had it that way for over a decade, with more hp than I have. Why not ask him how the frame has done. I'm curious, too. -Steve

 

[randyleepublic]

>> stiffen the frame.

The frame is pretty stiff - the problems people have had with those is related to stress put on the front steering rack mounts by the S4 power steering. The mounts transfer that stress to the "rails" and somewhere in there is a weak link where things start to come apart. It's no big deal, you just weld it back together, and you're done. I say "done" because from what I've been able to gather, the weak link is weak because it isn't really welded, or not very sturdily. Never caused a problem on the earlier, non-power steering cars, but has on the S4s. Anyway, with a nice sturdy weld, no more problem. With a heavier engine I think that same weakness might get exposed even quicker. I suppose it mostly depends on how you drive the car.

>> Would love to see the engineering on the brakes and more details on the rack and pinion work.

Suggestion: buy the car, and you'd be able to.

Sorry, couldn't help that one...

 

[randyleepublic]

>> Purists

How silly. It's a dang series 4. Now if you did this to a series 1 or 2, I could sort of see their point, but come on, the series 4 was a car that was "impure" on the showroom floor. I mean, after all, Alfa should have completely re-designed the Spider back when the series 3 came out! Hell, they should have re-designed it when the frick'n 2a came out. So the series 4 was a bastardization of a bastardization - and now people want get all purist about it?

 

[ferrari328gt]

The frame is pretty stiff - the problems people have had with those is related to stress put on the front steering rack mounts by the S4 power steering. The mounts transfer that stress to the "rails" and somewhere in there is a weak link where things start to come apart.

Wait, wait, I'm confused. A stock S4 power steering is a recirculating ball box mounted on the frame rails; it's not a rack at all. It weighs about 40 pounds, plus a reinforcing bracket on the other side of the frame. That's what I got rid of, and instead put the Toyota R&P on the crossmember. I think it was the 164 model that had R&P stock. Help me out here, please. -Steve

 

[randyleepublic]

I would like to but I have only anecdotal evidence. Directly from a victim/friend, but I didn't actually get to look when he was fixing this. Since you changed the mounting that much, it's probably a non-issue for your car.

 

[ferrari328gt]

Switching to a rack and pinion steering was the only way the V-8 project could possibly work on an S4. The original box would have been inside exhaust port #8. It would have been a hell of a lot easier had the S4 come with R&P in the first place. -Steve

 

[randyleepublic]

It probably would have been a better car as well.

I'm curious: you say the engine you used is about 100 lbs. more than a Nord engine. How do you think it would compare with an aluminum block?

 

[Sportivo1]

Purists

Someone submitted it to Bring-A-Trailer, which has brought a huge response - both good and bad. Purists really hate me. Too bad. -Steve

Don't fret the purists, they are a left brained conformist lot, they are. I think it was Mark Twain who said, "consistency is the hob-nob of small minds." There ya go.

I really like the work you did, with very few exceptions. Very cool!

 

[ferrari328gt]

Don't fret the purists, they are a left brained conformist lot, they are. I think it was Mark Twain who said, "consistency is the hob-nob of small minds." There ya go.

I really like the work you did, with very few exceptions. Very cool!

No two people would ever choose exactly the same parts. The stuff I've been getting hammered on are easily changed things, like emblems! And funny thing about the hood - about 9 out of 10 people at shows really like it. Anybody that doesn't can modify the stock one, which is included! Jeez.

 

[randyleepublic]

Don't fret the purists, they are a left brained conformist lot, they are. I think it was Mark Twain who said, "consistency is the hob-nob of small minds." There ya go.

I really like the work you did, with very few exceptions. Very cool!

AUTHOR: Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
QUOTATION: A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.

That out of the way, I agree. One of the cleanest conversions I've ever seen.

 

[wutdhec]

AUTHOR: Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
QUOTATION: A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.

Indeed.

Steve, your car is awesome, if I had the money I'd bid it up and try to snatch it! I love the sound of Cobra engines and love the looks of the Spider, putting the two together is a dream car to me. Anyways, automotive history, as you well know, is full of American/Italian hybrids like the ISOs, DeTomoso's, Bizzarinis, etc. not to mention the new one from Zagaoto that combines an AR-like body on a Viper chassis. This happens to be a one-off that AR should've done, but didn't think outside the box at the time. Kudos to you for putting it together...good luck to the winning bidder. I hope its someone in SoCal so I can see it at C&C some time

 

[ferrari328gt]

I'm curious: you say the engine you used is about 100 lbs. more than a Nord engine. How do you think it would compare with an aluminum block?

I think an aluminum block would be lighter than a cast iron one I don't really know by how much; never researched it, and I know I wouldn't have paid for it.

You know, when I started, I really didn't know if or how well the finished product would turn out. If it had been a disaster, I was willing to sawzall the thing up and sell it for parts. So I didn't want to spent $3,000 on an engine, $3,000 on a richmond 6-speed, $2,000 on a Ford 9-inch ,etc.. As it turned out, the car works better than I expected, and I ended up with a lot less money in it. It would be easy to put $40K into a car like this, and never ever get it back. I'm happy with the finished product, and I can sell it at a reasonable price (IMHO) without losing my shirt. -Steve