Double Action
Mazda rotaries are a relatively rare sight these days - but not at Dave Winfield's house! You see, Dave has two of Mazda's finest - a collectable Series 4 RX-7 convertible and a supercar Series 6 RX-7.
The most recent acquisition - the Series 6 - was bought interstate in December '01 with just 29,000 kilometres on the clock; a real gem. In standard form, the car pushed out 140kW at the rear wheels (on a Dyno Dynamics chassis dyno) but, as Dave discovered, simply installing a new down-pipe to the cat picked up an extra 10kW and improved response. Since then, the entire exhaust has been replaced with a stainless 3-inch system from Exhaust Technology.
Aside from making some handy extra kilowatts - and sounding a whole lot rortier - Dave has added an Autometer boost and temperature gauge in a GReddy A-pillar mount, enhanced braking with EBC Green Stuff pads and whacked on some 17-inch Advantek rims clad in sticky Bridgestone Potenza RE540s. A Haltech management system and cold air intake are items still on the agenda.
Despite being a few years older - manufactured in 1988 - the Series 4 convertible is just as much of a thrill to drive thanks to a greater number of mods. Most importantly, the stock atmo engine was flicked to make space for an ex-Series 5 RX-7 13B single turbo motor and 'box. The engine has been set up to run on Haltech management and breathes easy through a 3-inch exhaust and K&N air filter. A lightweight flywheel and puck clutch were also included in the conversion. Dave says the car is "a delight to drive, is VERY quick and turns the odd head or two." Yep, no doubt cruising with the top down and the 10-stack Eurovox CD sound system pushin' tunes life ain't too bad... Future plans include swapping from the existing Simmons V4 wheels to some polished 17s or 18s and, just maybe, a front-mount intercooler and bigger turbo. Fun, fun, fun!
Dave is actually the chairperson of the recently kicked-off Adelaide car club known as SA Rotors. Visit the club at www.sarotors.org or, to check out both of Dave's cars, go to http://www.rx7.bnis.net.au/index.htm
XR6 With Xtra
A true Ford man, Jamie of NSW has only ever owned blue oval products - he wouldn't dare buy anything else! Seen here is his October 2001 AUII Falcon XR6 that has been spoilt to a few subtle but effective aftermarket goodies...
While the thrust of the stockie 4.0-litre 164kW Tickford tuned XR6 isn't too bad, Jamie has significantly improved on-road performance with a T-series air intake, SMC intake plate, K&N filter and Herrod Motorsport 2 ½-inch stainless exhaust, including mandrel tuned-length extractors. A BPT short shifter also reduces dead time during gear changes.
Jamie enjoys displaying the car at shows hosted by the NSW FPV-Tickford Club of NSW and has also added some beauty enhancements. The glass is tinted, AUIII indicators and front fog lights have been fitted and the guards are filled by SVO 5-spoke 17s wearing 255/45 and 235/40 Kumho Ecsta 712s. The boot lid carries a Hawk rear wing, matched to the factory Venom Red paint. Some other nice touches are colour coded brake calipers, custom rocker stickers and display plates.
Plans? Hmm, well, it looks like a new XR6 Turbo might be stealing Jamie's attention in the near future. Either that or a supercharger for his existing car! See how things are progressing at
http://members.hn.ozemail.com.au/jamieh/index.htm
Nothing Can Stop Me Now!
So you reckon your AWD performance car has it all over 2WD vehicles when the road gets a bit slippery - yeah sure but, let's face it, it's only pretending to be something grander. Something like a Hummer!
Allan Madar of Texas owns this '93 Hummer Hard-Top Wagon, which can open the doors to worlds otherwise completely inaccessible - it's rips through rivers, screams through sand, pushes through flood areas (as pictured) and is capable of climbing the unclimbable. This is certainly not your average off-road 4WD. At more than 7300lb (3320kg) and 86.5-inches (220cm) wide - a GMC Suburban, in comparison, is a skinny 76.7inches (195cm) - this is essentially a military spec vehicle come Joe Average bush basher.
Powered by a 6.2-litre diesel (generating 155hp at 3500 rpm and with strong torque), the giant go-anywhere machine is officially listed with 19.6-second 0 - 60 mph (96 km/h) acceleration and a governed top speed of 71 mph (114 km/h); it's no rocketship, but this baby doesn't slow down for anything! As Allan says, "the engine doesn't have an ECU like later models, so I guess even if we have a nuclear blast my truck should still keep running"...
Allan has made extensive mods to his vehicle including a 10,500lb 2-speed winch, air compressor, run flats tyres, continuous wheel balancers, ladder and rack, armoured windshield, bonnet scoop, a GPS tied to a Pentium notebook, an array of communications equipment, lights, sirens and horns and plenty more. There's even a sub-woofer sound system with LCD television.
To check out this truly big rig visit
http://www.redhummer.com/index.html Allan has also got some useful tips on buying and maintaining a Hummer and some brilliant scenic photography.
The Sweetest Saab
We haven't seen too many Saabs featured in AutoSpeed, but Canadian Vincent Tong's '88 Saab 900 Turbo SPG makes us wonder why. This is an extremely sweet ride - prestige, comfort, handling and, of course, plenty of mumbo all in one...
Now unless you live in the 'States, chances are you've never heard of the 900 Turbo SPG. The SPG division (an abbreviation of Special Performance Group) sold a slightly revised vehicle to American buyers from 1985 to 1991 - the '88 model gets lower bodyside mouldings, uprated suspension 3-spoke alloys, leather trim, a specific selection of colours and comes minus a few badges. All SPGs are based on the Saab 3-door body. Power output from the standard 16-valve turbomotor is 165hp at 5500 rpm and a 5-speed manual 'box is standard fitment.
Vincent acquired his Saab 900 SPG back in 1999 and began doing some of the usual bolt-on stuff - a 3-inch exhaust, a fiddle with the boost control system, a larger MMC Starion intercooler, bigger injectors, a rising rate fuel pressure regulator and altered timing. All this did, though, was feed the desire...
In 2001, a completely rebuilt performance engine was slipped in - a beauty with custom forged JE pistons, balanced rods and more. Out tuning the standard Bosch ECU, however, Vincent suddenly heard a strange rattling noise from the engine bay; this later turned out to be a damaged piston. Damn it!
It was time to step it up another level.
To date, Vincent has been busy rebuilding almost the entire car. The B202 engine has been bored to 91mm, new JE forged pistons (for a 8.6:1 compression ratio) have been slipped in along with, polished, shot-peened and balanced rods, a balanced crank and O-rings. Twin oil coolers and a large electric cooling fan serve to provide added protection. The cylinder head, meanwhile, has been flowed, ported and polished and built with Crower cams, larger valves, port matched intake and exhaust manifold. The exhaust manifold is also heat wrapped.
The turbocharger is now a Turbonetics T3-60, teamed with a '91-onward Saab 9000 front-mount intercooler (with custom tanks) and a HKS SSQ blow-off valve. This time 'round, Vincent got serious with the engine management using a SDS EM3F programmable system working with Accel injectors, an AEM adjustable regulator and 750 gph pump. Boost pressure is controlled by a GReddy Profec-B unit and, depending on boost, the total power output is somewhere around 300 horses.
Particular attention was also paid to the strength of the FWD gearbox.
The 'box is a reworked 4-speed that's strengthened and manufactured in Sweden by Jorgen Eriksson - Vincent runs the so-called 'Evo 2' version. In short, there are now absolutely no problems with the strength of the driveline - just its ability to put torque to the pavement... A front LSD is in the pipeline.
The suspension arrangement comprises front and rear Koni adjustable dampers, Abbott Racing springs, a SAS rear swaybar and a large number of poly bushes. The rear bump stops are also modified. The brakes are pretty much standard, but Vincent has plans for a pair of front Wilwood 4-pot calipers.
Visually, the SPG looks sporty and classy - not much needs to be done. All Vincent's added, are clear corner lenses and smoked OE Saab side indicators. Standard 16-inch Aero rims are employed during summer and 16-inch Griffin rims during winter.
Indoors you'll find some custom flashes of paint, white face gauges, Sparco Torini seats, a Nardi wheel, Sparco belts and pedals, Richbrook gear knob and AutoMeter gages for boost, EGT, AFR, oil pressure and temperature and water temperature. Vincent isn't keen to add too many kilograms in the name of a sound system - there's just two JBL 6 x 9s in the rear shelf, Alpine 4-inch fronts, a Kenwood amp and a Panasonic deck.
Go to http://members.shaw.ca/saaboteur/ to check out the complete details of Vincent's Saab SGP (number plates "SAABOTR") as well as the 1974 Saab 99LE that he's turning into a rally car. A nice site.
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