In reply to bgkast: Good catch!
The radiator was installed for the photo. The muffler needs a quick edit with a mig welder to sort out the problem.
In reply to fastd58:
The paint is Rustolium camouflage over a coat of primer. Its basically OD green.
I like OD green and in this case the color works because nothing else would look right.
fujioko wrote: Epilogue, Engine Swap math is generally easy, for instance a Daihatsu truck only needs a direct drive small block Chevy to get out of its own way. More power= less math.. it just works. On the other hand, less power = more math... because it doesn't work . The curb weight of a Ford Model T is around 1200 pounds. Generally a Model T drivetrain on a skid will weigh in at 550lbs. So that puts our project vehicle in the 700 lb neighborhood without an engine/trans. The new drive train weighs in at about 100 lbs... so basically the goal is to move a 800 pound vehicle up to a top speed of 15 MPH. 3.63 rear axle with 30 inch wheels needs an additional 5:1 reduction ratio to go 15 MPH at 3000 rpm. The Comet torque converter TAV-2 also adds an additional 2.7:1 ratio in low range 1:1 in intermediate and a slight overdrive at top speed. There is a brick wall, barb wire fence and a acid filled moat that separates the Hot Rod camp from the purest camp. Being a double non-conformist is the way I roll and I won't pretend otherwise. This built thread has certainly taken an unexpected turn.... and neither camp will have me. This engine platform will get the T moving again and will not destroy the car. Oh its unconventional to say the least, but if you have read any of my build threads this is normal....welcome to my world. While the engine is comically small, it should be fine. This truck is an eye catcher and is used for advertising. The little Honda engine makes the truck into a self-propelled sign of sorts. The engine and transmission are to be crated and put in storage. At some point the truck and it's ?original? engine will be reunited. Before the truck is released back to its owner, I'll gather some performance data and whatnot. Should be fun..
The art of this build was to make it completely reversible, honoring and preserving the historical nature of the car.
If it's still intact, route the exhaust to the stock system?
It moves!
Spent some time sorting out some details and eventually determined a road test was in order. A single effortless pull was all that was necessary to fire up the engine. While Honda makes a great engine, I miss the drama and suspense of the cranky old flathead.
The owner wants a foot throttle, but in the meantime it was simpler to put the old hand throttle back in service. I'll sort the foot throttle out soon enough.
Anyway, hopped in and gave it some throttle and off it went. Drove the car around the yard and it stops ok when the throttle is released (no brakes).
Next was a quick ride up the road, The car did pretty good, it felt like about 10 MPH and there was still some throttle left. The only real issue is the driveshaft belt will slip when the car hits an incline. I have parts in stock to add a second belt, so I figure I'll deal with the belt issue first.
Made a heavy duty bracket to tie the engine to the right angle gearbox. This bracket worked out great and really stiffened up everything.
bicycle cable connects the Honda throttle to the T linkage.
The muffler got whacked and mig welded to keep from melting the radiator. I like Kenny's idea of plumbing the exhaust into the Model T's old system and need to do some investigating.
Brilliantly done!! I love it. 
This image has never been more appropriate.
Some brilliant work here.
LOL,
The old engine leaked more oil than the Exxon Valdez.
Thanks for the comments!
Your work is awesome! I love the design and execution of it all. Are you going to put a disc brake on the go-kart axle for the brakes? Does the gear box have a reversing gear?
I have never seen a go kart motor stuffed into something that large. Its effectively a full size cycle kart.
This is soooo cool. Thanks for the show.
My only "complaint" is that the engine isn't electric start. It would be nice if you could fire it up without people seeing the pull starter.
(I wonder if the hand crank could be incorporated somehow.)
I love the whole concept.
In reply to RossD and Dusterbd:
This project is sort of evolving but is basically a big go kart
The flange on the drivshaft is reserved for a brake of some kind. My thoughts were to use a drum and backing plate off a Saturn. Not really sure at this point.
Reverse is also another problem, this car really needs a way to back up. Yesterday when I went for a quick drive, I had to ask some neighbors for help to push the car backwards to make a three point turn. Can't always depend on the generosity of a random person so reverse needs to be sorted out.
In reply to dimarra:
You read my mind, I was just checking and an electric start kit is available for the GX160.
fujioko wrote: Reverse is also another problem, this car really needs a way to back up. Yesterday when I went for a quick drive, I had to ask some neighbors for help to push the car backwards to make a three point turn. Can't always depend on the generosity of a random person so reverse needs to be sorted out.
Do like the BEC guys and install a starter motor somewhere on the driveline to reverse?
Keep up the updates. This thread is motivating me into working on my speedster project again.
In reply to fanfoy:
Like a flywheel and starter bolted to the gokart shaft. Have a clutch disc rigidly mounted and use it as a brake. Anything worth doing is worth over doing!
For reverse, you could mount a DC brush motor somewhere in the driveline and use it for both reverse and charging the battery to run lights. Something like an old Delco starter/generator would probably work with the right gearing.
EDIT: Better idea, get this style of mower transmission, stuff it with more grease, and replace your right angle box with it.
fujioko wrote: In reply to dimarra: You read my mind, I was just checking and an electric start kit is available for the GX160.
Sidecrank FTW...
I love it, the original plan was to get an old heap running and now we're proposing hybrids with regenerative braking. Sort of.
Hearing the pressure washer engine while the T drives around has got to mess with your head. Almost as much as the MAT Model A with the Cosworth BDA.
I did not expect to see that, awesome idea. My racing kart basically has the big brother of that engine (GX 180, 196 cc) and you can get ~20 HP out of them for under $1k. Maybe adopt some ideas from the DIY minibike crowd for starters and exhaust? I don't have any suggestions for reverse.
Also, instead of electric start you could just re clock the recoil to point towards the firewall and extend the rope into the cabin. Kind of like an old snowmobile.
Bonus points for labeling the pull cord "choke".
"Just give the choke a pull, she'll start right up..."
Winner winner chicken dinner! Putting the pull cord in the cabin is genius! Count on that happening.
As far as reverse, I think electric may be the simplest solution. Time to do some research.
I reckon it's time for a Model T update.... Expect more updates tomorrow but for now let's see what is going on...
Well, not much is happening....Sort of lost momentum while focusing on other projects. Reverse is still an issue and for now I'm Ok with that. Whatever the solution is for reverse, a major re-work is required..so we'll put that on the back burner for now.
The driveshaft belt slippage was the other major problem....so sorting that out was a good place to start.
The belt and pulley system was scrapped and a chain drive took it's place. I had most of the parts in stock and only needed to get one sprocket from tractor supply.
A second hanger bearing was added to take the load off the output shaft.
Some plywood was used to cover the exposed shafts. This particular area is reserved for the brake system but until reverse is solved I wont be doing any fabrication on the brakes. I'll have a look at reconnecting the parking brake. That should be adequate for slowing this jalopy down if necessary.
Tomorrow The engine will go back into the T and we'll see how fast it will go... should be interesting!
Tractor Supply sounds like the most mystical place. I hope they come to my part of Canada one day.
Tractor supply is like a candy store. They sell nuts and bolts by the pound/kilo... just grab a hand full and no fuss at checkout. Now, Canadian tire that's a mystery...
Canadian Tire is like playing Russian Roulette in a Hobby Lobby that just rear ended a Home Depot.
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