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Went down to VMC on Friday to get some measurements and ideas for the Spyder. While there Greg showed me an outlaw speedster with a Subaru Engine and transaxle in it. He raised the engine a little more to get the shorter oil pan even higher for safety. This is not a mid engine installation so the space behind the front seats is still intact. What was really cool is how the clutch cable and Bowden tube are moved and re-secured. Also the shifter and linkage work perfect. Since a little of the sheet metal had to be trimmed due to the new overall height of the engine and trans, a new cover for that area had to be fabricated. It looks similar to a little saddle but is centered so it divides the seating area back there into two little mini seats ! Quite clever and will look nice and finished.....Photo's below............Bruce

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Images (3)
  • Subaru EJ25 in Speedster: Note routing of air intake and air cleaner.
  • Speedster with Subaru 5sp transaxle: Bowden clutch tube to opposite side. See shifter clearance.
  • Upholstered floor cover for Subaru 5sp.: It's totally mounted flat in this photo.
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Li-rick, nope, not yet.   Greg just got the last Spyder off the welding jig before mine. Possibly next week he will start on the frame.  First thing will be a visit from Kevin Zagar, Mendeola Suspension, to confer with Greg on how best to build in his suspension and still get a radiator in up there as well.

By the way, the radiator in the Subaru Speedster looked really good in as much as how it was installed up front. Greg uses AN hose and fittings for all the coolant hoses so this means that  the coolant stand off tank/manifold on the engine will need to be removed and weld on an AN fitting in lieu of the std. hose connection. The photo below is of my engine and that tank/manifold. This little vertical tank was added by John over at Outfront and solves the air entrapment issues since it is the highest point on the system.   looks good too !  Most likely the intake manifold will need to be removed for access.............Bruce

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Images (1)
  • Subaru EJ25 with Outfront captive coolant tank: Lower connection will be an AN fitting
JMM (Michael) posted:

I took some pictures of that Subaru wide body when I visited the @VSpyder shop in April. I really liked the way Greg had laid out the cooling system.  Some real thought and quality components went into the execution. Seeing it firsthand cemented my thoughts that if I couldn't do it myself, then Greg should do it.

IMG_20190415_120938IMG_20190415_120901

Could you explain how he laid out the cooling system, please ? How did he route the hoses from front to back especially where he had to get through the front beam ? Just curious if it was a similar system to what I did. Thanks.

I don't know David,  I looked at the radiator from underneath just as they were lowering it to move it so I didn't have time to study it. I know that the radiator is a Two Pass unit, ie, the coolant goes thru half the radiator then turns around and goes thru the other half. The top and bottom tanks have sealed baffles inside to direct the coolant this way. The core is a I" tube, two row aluminum unit with welded tanks and giant AN connections. The square inch area, size and construction of it is about the same as I used to cool a Jeep V-6.................Bruce

Sure thing, @David Stroud IM Roadster D. The install was in process when I saw it, and Greg was quite busy when I was there, so I didn't bug him much with questions because most of it was pretty obvious. Anyway, here's what impressed me. First the materials chosen:

-AN fittings instead of hose barbs and clamps allowing smooth but tight 90 degree bends with no restrictions, and one assumes no leaks if installed properly. Ask @Jim Kelly about restrictions and ask @Stan Galat about leaks (...or anything to do with pipes, he probably knows more than the rest of us put together about the subject).

-All aluminum radiator, possibly double pass and definitely big enough, no plastic end tanks. The radiator was installed with the top higher than the bottom (with the outlet on the high side I think). The high part of the rad looked to be much lower than the swirl pot at the engine.

-He had John at Outfront Motorsports (engine builder) put a welded on aluminum swirl-pot/coolant fill tank on the coolant outlet of the engine, that in turn has an AN fitting welded on. This swirl pot is the highest point in the system.

-The hoses weren't installed when I was there, but it looked like they would be able to run through the tunnel and in the picture I just snitched off Greg's instagram feed it looks like the return line is coming from that area. I'll attach the photo. We'd need info from greg on this, but whatever he did, I'm confident it's up to snuff.

Lastly, The whole thing looked factory. Clean, sensible. It looked like a COMPLETE SYSTEM, not an assortment of parts and a few coins thrown in a fountain in the hopes it would do the job. Here's that instagram pic (also, look at that rorty exhaust!)

Screen Shot 2019-05-26 at 2.32.41 PM

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  • Screen Shot 2019-05-26 at 2.32.41 PM

This whole thing (as well as the ride in Phil's Spyder) is making me rethink my great love-affair with the Type 1.

A Subaru 5-speed, not more rare that shards of the true cross (like a Berg-5) and a legit 200 hp engine for considerably less dinero than the attendant air-cooled stuff sounds really, really good right about now... as my own car sits on jack-stands, waiting for parts from Italy and GB to make their way back to my garage.

Todd...I think he's talking about this (see photo).

Another thing will be the exhaust routing. Hopefully equal length. Greg said that with it being a mid-engine and IRS, it may be necessary to route it up-over the trans and down again. With a Spyder there's a lot more room to work with back there.  That remains to be worked out though. Besides himself, he has some pretty swift craftsman in his employ......Bruce

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Images (1)
  • IMG_1717
JMM (Michael) posted:

I might have the terminology wrong, but look at the coolant tank with the radiator cap on it. The coolant comes out of the engine, swirls around, and goes out the outlet. All the air is burped out as it's the highest point.Screen Shot 2019-05-26 at 2.51.56 PM

Thanks.  That makes perfect sense.  I did not even know that was the coolant output from the engine.  I assumed is was the intake because it is on top and the other port is on the bottom.

Stan Galat posted:

This whole thing (as well as the ride in Phil's Spyder) is making me rethink my great love-affair with the Type 1.

A Subaru 5-speed, not more rare that shards of the true cross (like a Berg-5) and a legit 200 hp engine for considerably less dinero than the attendant air-cooled stuff sounds really, really good right about now... as my own car sits on jack-stands, waiting for parts from Italy and GB to make their way back to my garage.

Heresy! The weather or Jeanie being in Colorado......or something....is rattling your brain. go sleep in your VW panel bus for the night and call me in the morning if this persists and I'll talk you down.

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