\6 Locost...are there any?

The recent thread on the Westy IX got me wondering...are there any Slant 6 Locost builds happening? I know there are at least a couple Beemer slant engine versions, but how about the Mopar longtime standby?

'Kthxby

There's a couple on the LocostUSA forum but I don't know if any got finished.

Not sevenesque, but last weekend I saw this nifty track-nosed slant six t-bucket.

Thanks for that one; I hadn't seen it!! I do know about the XR 27 that Tex Smith built in the '60ies, but I have no pix that I have found.

I don't know enough about what I'm looking at, but is that slant injected (I think I see fuel rails) or are those twin carbs or what? Got any more pictures?

It could be injected, or more likely, triple side draft Webers.

Pierce sells a manifold for the /6.

It looked like Webers to me. 6=8 may still sell it too.

Stealthtercel wrote: I don't know enough about what I'm looking at, but is that slant injected (I think I see fuel rails) or are those twin carbs or what? Got any more pictures?

Sorry, I didn't take any of the engine bay. My recollection is that IanF is correct....triple side draft carbs. Here's the only other photo I took.

As you can see, my earlier "t-bucket" description was not accurate. It is a model T replica, but the turtle deck type, not the stubby-pickup-bed-type that "bucket" implies.

Mikey52_1 wrote: Thanks for that one; I hadn't seen it!! I do know about the XR 27 that Tex Smith built in the '60ies, but I have no pix that I have found.

That one was a bit more Locost-like, at least when it came to the chassis. I seem to recall that I've got a magazine somewhere that featured it. The things I remember most were his ranting that the bodyman used way too much lead, and that the slant six itself was an aluminum one with three Weber side drafts on a sheet metal manifold.

I know there was a slant six Lotus (11 I think). Looks like a tight fit!

Thanks, Joey & Ian! I don't normally "get" the whole Model T thing, but I like that one.

What's the attraction to the slant 6? I assume you're talking about the Chrysler slant 6?

I had one in a SWB Van and used a 4 bbl and headers and while it was better than stock it wasn't all that terrific.

As I remember it, it's kinda big and heavy so why would that be a good engine for a super lightweight Locost when even a light weight engine is already 50% of the total car weight?

carguy123 wrote: What's the attraction to the slant 6? I assume you're talking about the Chrysler slant 6?

a) inline sixes tend to be have a bit of torque....I'm guessing the same is true in this case.

b) The weirder the better. You're talking to people who love isettas with rotaries, wartburgs with subaru engines, etc....

c. Mopar V8 folks sometimes give Slant Sixes away.
d. Not everyone is after the ultimate power/weight ratio. Of course, with a Locost, one has a lot of leeway. e. It's an easy engine to work with.

I can't find photos of a Slant Six Locost (I'd call it a Slant Seven), but I've seen them.

Not a Locost, but there's the Krylon Special '18 Dodge that's pretty cool.

My understanding from Doug Dutra (who is a /6 Specialist) is that a 200hp /6 is a "race" motor. Stock they're about 100hp. I think you can get more modern and lighter alternatives stupid cheap at this point which makes the /6 less desirable for something like a Locost.

Now, if you were building a "Locost" Birdcage Maserati or something like that, a /6 powerplant might be cool ala the Lotus 11 above, but you'd still have the same weight/cost effectiveness/hp problem.

I gave a 4-speed /6 to Volare wagon to a guy a few years ago on the understanding that if I ever needed it, I could get the drivetrain back, but he died a couple of years ago. I doubt his kids would recognize the agreement. :(

Also, IIRC MustangSix has a Locost with a Ford inline six.

I'd say the appeal is easier to understand if you shift your thinking a bit, away from seeing the Locost as purely a clone of a British car and more as a homemade street rod that handles. Sort of in the same line as a T-bucket, track T, or Ak Miller's El Caballo de Hierro. A "nostalgic" American motor can make sense there, but a V8 would be overkill - hence, using an older American inline six.

225 Slant in my '64 Plymouth was rated at 145hp gross so I think this ~100 hp figure is a bit low when using modern net rating comparisons. I think 200hp would be attainable using a camshaft with some more modern thinking to lobe profile and lift as well as port fuel injection, etc etc. Never mind a distributorless ignition in place of factory points and a coil running behind a ballast resister.

That said, they don't love to rev, so they're not my first pick for something like a Locost. I think they'd be much more fun in something like a Barracuda, Dart, or another Savoy like my old car. To each his own of course.

I thought they were getting nearly 300hp from them in the 60's.

Here, found this: http://books.google.com/books?id=Dv7IWoA2KbkC&pg=PA76&lpg=PA76&dq=barracuda+at+bonneville&source=bl&ots=7PRVpKvcAS&sig=rehRClechNJVR5oRtmFND_nEtuI&hl=en&ei=VaXETNbiC4ygnQfVvo3jCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CCsQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=barracuda%20at%20bonneville&f=false

I NEED to be out playing with cars and not staring at a light bulb. Suffice to say though, this guy was killing factory backed teams with a daily driver slant six Barracuda.

pres589 wrote: That said, they don't love to rev, so they're not my first pick for something like a Locost. I think they'd be much more fun in something like a Barracuda, Dart, or another Savoy like my old car. To each his own of course.

I'd go with a 170, or even a 198 - they're a lot more rev happy than the 225 from what I hear. The 170 has the same head and breathing as a 225 with an entire inch less stroke.

slantvaliant wrote: Not a Locost, but there's the Krylon Special '18 Dodge that's pretty cool.

That's close to what I've had pictured in my head for a long time. But I want a longer wheelbase with a mid length pickup bed (not the "fad T" shorty), Offy dual 1bbl intake and something more like the headers from Joey's pic. I was also thinking I would go with the later model Mopar steelies and Mopar dog dishes.

I do have a '24 Dodge grill shell to start with. Someday I'll build the rest of the car to go with it.

JoeyM wrote: As you can see, my earlier "t-bucket" description was not accurate. It is a model T replica, but the turtle deck type, not the stubby-pickup-bed-type that "bucket" implies.

Sorry to thread jack but I've always thought the term "t-bucket" implied the bucket that you sat in.
But back to slant-6's. Extremely torquey motor, used to be common to see them is warehouse/aircraft tugs. Was also told that they used to be popular with the quarter midget dirt trackers. I've seen a few built up that would shame a V8 in short distances - like stoplight to stoplight.

wlkelley3 wrote:

JoeyM wrote: As you can see, my earlier "t-bucket" description was not accurate. It is a model T replica, but the turtle deck type, not the stubby-pickup-bed-type that "bucket" implies.

Sorry to thread jack but I've always thought the term "t-bucket" implied the bucket that you sat in.

Thanks for the clarification. You are correct. Wiki says:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-bucket said: A genuine T-bucket has the very small and light two seater body of a Model T roadster (with or without the turtle deck or small pickup box), this "bucket"-shaped bodyshell giving the cars their name.