<VV> EM w/LM suspension.

[Vairtec Corporation]

James P. Rice wrote:

>  I remember Bob Marlow doing it some years ago.  LM front cross 
> member and FC rear axles for a killer EM auto-cross car.  Ask him.


Actually, James, its a lousy autocross car, I built it for the 
high-speed track events.

It is a 1964 '500' coupe, with a complete LM front suspension in it 
and FC axles at the rear.  Late model brakes at all four corners, 
which requires a pair of spacers on each side at the rear.

The front suspension is a simply bolt-in.

With the wider FC rear axles (1.5 inches overall) at the rear, and 
following some trial-and-error spring selection, I have an early 
model that has no oversteer at all.

However, as others have noted, when one uses the FC axles you run 
into a clearance issue with the rear tires and the fender 
openings.  Because my car has a nice straight body, I have not flared 
the fenders, which seriously limits wheel and tire selection.


Matt Nall wrote:

>I was at Blackhawk in '01 when Bob   ran his 64....  a nice slide 
>off course  iirc!!  gg

Your recollection is flawed, Matt.  The right rear brake locked up as 
I overdrove into the corner (you late model guys are familiar with 
this quirk of the brakes) and I took a nice slide, but I never went 
off course and I made the corner!

I did spin the car at Pocono and at VIR, both times because I asked 
too much of the tires.

It's a lousy autocross car because at those speeds it understeers 
badly.  A return to stock rear axles and different spring selection 
would help that.  But I really don't care to autocross it.


Now, as for the original question that started all this:

Randy wrote:

>With all the hub-bub about the waning 13" tire situation, I have a couple of
>questions:
>
>1.  Will a late front crossmember bolt up to an early?
>2.  Would it be possible to use late front spindles (5 lug) and  FC rear
>axles (also 5 lug) so one could use 15" wheels?

As you've learned, the answers to these two questions is "yes."  But 
if the motive is better tire selection, there is no reason not to 
stay with the stock EM setup, as there is a sufficient number of 
wheel choices out there and you will into the fender clearance issue 
quite so quickly.

--Bob Marlow