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Don't know the car but the side view of this Vintage Speedster reinforces my complaint about Kirk/VS not being able to do a better job at trying to center the front axle/wheel placement in the body front fender arch. 

I have a 2000 VS and its not as bad as this, but the front axle and front wheels are still positioned relatively rearward of the body front wheel arch.  I mean after 15 plus years couldn't he iterate the front axle placement towards the front of the car maybe just a few mms a year to hit center target. 

I remember before I bought mine, I met with Kirk and was talking with him about a build and I mention this very thing, and he said that yes he could move the front axle a little more forward if I wanted.  First I felt great because Kirk was willing to build a car the way I wanted.  But then I thought, hey am I the only one that am able to see this glaring issue ?  Has nobody ever brought this issue up before ?

Listen, I know we all love it and accept Kirk and the cars he makes for a relatively inexpensive price . . . but really.

Just my thoughts.  Other that that, and the price, I like this white one if I was in the market.

Grant

"Listen, I know we all love it and accept Kirk and the cars he makes for a relatively inexpensive price . . . but really"

Apparently the price justifies the goods(?).....he gets away with it AND either does NOT recognize the short comings in his design/execution of the BUILD....OR.....does not care. In any case, the buying public has enabled these SNAFUS that have some of you "STEAMIN". Would be nice for all for this to get better.....hope it does

Hello Ryan:

It's a pisser right ?  But when you're in your car you forget all about it.  It goes away for the most part.

Then there are those times, when I am coming up on my car parked somewhere appreciating it form a distance, and it sticks out (almost as much as the black windshield wipers) and says "hello". 

Then you turn the key, hear the engine, and it goes away again. 

The angle of the camera to the car matters a lot, as does the depth at which the tire sits inside the wheel well. And if the wheels are turned a little....well.

I doubt any VS wheel placement is very much different from any other.

But the fix is pretty straightforward: Buy a half dozen sets of caster shims and two sets of longer beam bolts. Unbolt your steering shaft at the rag joint. Unbolt your beam. Put a set of shims on the top beam and three on the bottom, bolt it up and see how it looks. Repeat with different shim sets until it's good. Always make sure the bottom beam sticks out a little more than the top.

When the beam is situated right and the wheels are centered in the holes, measure the gap (if any) where your steering shaft meats the steering box. You're probably going to have to either adjust your column down to meet it (there's usually like an inch of wiggle room) or  weld in an extension there. Figure that out now.

Then put it all back the way it was and take the shim sets to a machine shop. Tell them you want four slugs of mild steel done up exactly like the stacks-o-shims you have in your hands. Give them a hundred bucks and a cheap sixer. Something like that. Maybe a scosh more if you need them to make something to extend your steering shaft.

Wait.

When they are done, pick up your parts.

Weld the extensions to the beam.

Bolt your beam back in using your long bolts. (Or weld it! Strength!)

Rejoice in the fact that you have just spent time and treasure fixing something that not one person in a thousand would ever have noticed.

Be The Madness! 

aircooled posted:

Banzai...you got me confused... here you say you have a tough time tolerating "ALMOST PERFECTION to accept half assed, carelessly planned, negligent oversight" but on another post you said that carburetor flat spots  were acceptable and we all should learn to live with that....Please explain. I know you will have something to say about it.....Bruce

YES SIR..more than happy to: "I" NEED to because my 11 year old WEBERS have some small air leaks. My mechanic offered to remedy them with a pair of NEW PMOs for $7000 or $4500 to rebuild the WEBERS. WEBERS almost always, over time, develop these leaks around bushings, etc that CAN cause flat spots......TINY flat spots! I'm NOT of the mindset to drop some large BUCKAGE at the moment...... More than happy to RETRACT the "WE" and substitute "ME" in that I NEED to learn to live with that.

When PMO came out with their CARBS, they eliminated ALL of the short comings in design and engineering of WEBERS except that some FOLKS are hung up on the WEBER name....despite the fact that PMO is largely a SUPERIOR product. SO....its "ME" that has accepted these flat spots....YESSIR...MY PROBLEM..MY CHOICE and my mechanic thinks that I should keep the WEBERS for originality/historic purposes and allow him and EUROMETRIX to rebuild/rebush/remachine my WEBERS!

But....if I may BEG for mercy....the flat spots are almost negligible and small...but THEY ARE THERE...much to my CHAGRIN

Bill Prout posted:

I have had a bit of a hard time accepting that CARBS on a 2.7 will NEVER be as smooth as electronic fuel injection.....the technology is plainly incapable which has also forced my acceptance of the air leaks. Just need to get past it and embrace the WEBERS as they are.

In my DEFENSE guys....a bit of flat spot is DIFFERENT than delivering a new car WITHOUT SEATBELTS, or WITHOUT a fully attached SHIFT LINKAGE, OR doing a thorough TEST DRIVE of a NEW vehicle.

Last edited by Banzai Pipeline

Cool car! I'm guessing price might be set to give 'seller' wiggle room in negotiating. Also, if a 'buyer' is influenced by "the-heart-wants-what-the-heart-wants", then any given price can almost always be justified in that buyer's mind (I think most of us have been there at some point).

In the K.I.S.S. world of Musbjim, every day is a gift! Life is complicated enough (family, health & well-being, food on the table & a roof over our head) without creating angst over the 'small stuff' on a hobby car (aside from safety issues). If the car, or whatever hobby, affords you some form of joy, then appreciate & enjoy the moment as well as the other gifts in your life.  

I'm sure the next owner of that Speedster will enjoy it as we all enjoy our own and subsequently be consumed by 'The Madness'. 

Need to add TAX/SHIPPING...and PAY my mechanic to do the switch with NEW linkage, gaskets, tuneup, etc....so we are talking $3200 to EURO for full micrometer/one thousandth of an inch rebuild, another $300 for new linkages/gaskets/etc. and then LABOR to the MAN....$1000. It is way beyond the scope of a me-do-it effort.

MUSBJIM suggests,"the heart wants what the heart wants"....indeed he is correct. I fell in love with the IM6 and bought it despite the fact that it had a few PIMPLES ON ITS ASS.

Last edited by Banzai Pipeline

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