Before anyone flips out, I'm not gonna ask how to build a RWD V8 J-body. I know how touchy some people are about it. No, my question is a bit more umm... vague. See, I asked if anyone had done a RWD J in the early days I was here and most people were of the opinion that it was impossible to convert a front wheel drive car into a rear wheel drive car for logistical reasons.
On the surface, this seemed right. There's no transmission hump, there's no room for the driveshaft... ect. However, changing a few floor panels isn't exactly rocket science and hooking up a RWD differential onto a FWD car isn't THAT hard either. It may require lots of floor modifications, but when I look at all the time and trouble that some people have put into their ricers to make them hideous and expensive I keep thinking that this is hardly the most time consuming thing you'd encounter in the realm of car mods.
Cars are just boxes of metals hooked atop a suspension and driveline. There's really not that much more to it. Just look at old Ford model T Hot Rods. The whole process really isn't all that different. Ford even made a Focus RWD V8 car themselves. As for the time.... again, it'd take what? A year? Cost? Almost nothing if you have a donor car like a rusted out Vega or Chevette or something. If you have a welder, a cutter and some air tools, this isn't some uber insane or complex task.
Personally I 100% agree with the comments in the previous topic that it'd be cheaper and simpler to buy a rear wheel drive car if that's what you wanted. But it's still not something impossible to do and there's some nice looking front drivers out there that could only be improved with a rear drive layout. So yes, it's a pointless waste of time, but no it's not impossible or too expensive.
Thoughts?
with time and money, you could do a lot with a J.
Desert Tuners
“When you come across a big kettle of crazy, it’s best not to stir it.”
I've seriously considered it (and still am), but while the motor/tranny/diff/suspension/sheet metal wouldn't be that hard...the steering rack is
fortune cookie say:
better a delay than a disaster.
You can doo eet!!!
with an S-10 frame. That was how the GAGT's I've seen were converted.
it's possible. one of the 9 second grand prix is a turbo 3800 RWD car. it's non street legal, but that's because half way through they realized it was going to take twice as much work to do so. but yeah, it's possible. and awesome, i might add. just make sure you put hard core bracing in there. you think a RWD unibody flexes, wait till you see a FWD unibody torque down it's center
Andy
it's not how fast you go, it's how you get there that counts.
ZZP XP cam, 1.6 rockers, 105# springs, speedbuilt FWI, 3.3" modular pulley, TOG headers,
3" exhaust, flomatched injectors
'97 GTP 14.06@100.6mph pre cam w/ 3.5" pulley, I/E
there used to be a member of this forum with a 95 or 96 j with a 350/rwd setup. It wasn't streetable, the rear-end wouldn't stay down. I'm sure there's a few old schoolers from the forums with links if they happen to nose around to this thread
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knowah
1996 Pontiac Sunfire 2.4L GT
i've seriously thought about trying it. But as of a couple dayz ago i got an offer to get a 240 sx fixed my prob can't wait. do any of you know of normal problems 240's have ?
4 door civic on the way
i need a daily driver
With enough time and money you could just build a whole car from the ground up. That isn't the issue, the real issue is "is it worth it" and the answer has to be a resounding "NO!" unless of course you are fullfilling a life long dream or something. Lets face it, most car mods are not worth it, the grin factor may be though
How about a tube chassis with a j-body dropped on (funny car style). That might actually save a ton of money over trying to modify the existing unibody. Something to consider anyway.
If you're gonna do it, go all the way and take some car show money home, if you can.
PAX
PS: This is what part of the alphabet would look like if Q and R were eliminated
- Mitch Hedberg (RIP)
Hahahaha wrote:
How about a tube chassis with a j-body dropped on (funny car style). That might actually save a ton of money over trying to modify the existing unibody. Something to consider anyway.
PAX
by the time lots of FWD to RWD conversions are done, that's basically what they are
Andy
it's not how fast you go, it's how you get there that counts.
ZZP XP cam, 1.6 rockers, 105# springs, speedbuilt FWI, 3.3" modular pulley, TOG headers,
3" exhaust, flomatched injectors
'97 GTP 14.06@100.6mph pre cam w/ 3.5" pulley, I/E
2002 Camaro Z28 chassis/driveline + 2002 Cavalier Z24 body
I have a personal preferance over the FWD to RWD swap.
Put RWD in, and leave the FWD intact.
Muahahahahaaa.
Seriously though... Twinengining a car is no where near as hard as you would imagine. If you can fabricate metal(more then just welding skills needed here... a new rear suspension is in order) then its a simple case of trial and error. And the end result would be SO much more badass.
I've got it all planned out... but Im not giving away all of my secrets ; )
^^^^^some guy did that before. he was using a vw sirrocco, (sp?) but he called it the durroco. search you tube, for durroco. hes got a web page, videos, and all.
Like the Civette i posted???
http://www.smithperformance.com/
This guy has probably made as many as have been thought about on this site.
That gets me thinking. I know of a 500hp plus ls1 driveline. Hmm.
There is one around here, not sure on the specs, but a shop turned a sunfire into a rwd drag car.
Ace140 wrote:I have a personal preferance over the FWD to RWD swap.
Put RWD in, and leave the FWD intact.
Muahahahahaaa.
Seriously though... Twinengining a car is no where near as hard as you would imagine. If you can fabricate metal(more then just welding skills needed here... a new rear suspension is in order) then its a simple case of trial and error. And the end result would be SO much more badass.
I've got it all planned out... but Im not giving away all of my secrets ; )
I saw a video about a guy with a dual engined Hyundai Tiburon. It was pretty f-ing cool. One engine up front, one in the back, both turbocharged...
wysiwyg wrote:i would say they bang, they don't really pound so much. but if
you want to bump, then they will bump and hit real hard and a lot good. 
LOL
CompuBob wrote:There is one around here, not sure on the specs, but a shop turned a sunfire into a rwd drag car.
Look at the link I posted. Pretty sure it would be the same one. Driven by a very sweet young woman. I wish my dad was as cool as hers.
Craig Lewis wrote:CompuBob wrote:There is one around here, not sure on the specs, but a shop turned a sunfire into a rwd drag car.
Look at the link I posted. Pretty sure it would be the same one. Driven by a very sweet young woman. I wish my dad was as cool as hers.
nope, this is a shop in Windsor Ontario, not Cayuga.. and they just got it running a few weeks ago
What's this? Some one wants to to go Pro-Street? Cool! Or as was said in 80s-speak: Dude, Awesome! That is so radical! This has been done many times in the day, primarily as fairground cruisers or trailer queens (AKA: Showcars) but they were based on the styling found in the engineering of Pro-Stock drag cars which existed since the late 60s. Check any Car Craft or Hot Rod issue from the mid-to-late-80s and you'll see one in there. Still, there's no reason you can't build one that's street legal & runs likes stink on a humid day while lookin' good. Hell, ever see a ricer do a wheels-up launch? Look, chassis will need to be full-tube frame w/ ladder bar or 4-link rear suspension & probably MustangII/Pinto up front. Don't worry, the aftermarket equivelents of the suspensions for these cars are prefectly okay in terms of safety. Big brakes are available to if you want them. The main question is: What are emission exemption laws like by you? In my state any vehicle that is of a model year that is built 25 years or more prior to the current test year is fully exempt and qualifies to register for antique vehicle plates. Needless to say I envy the guy who just got a clean '82 S-10 to put a 350 into. But anyway... if you can get by the laws like that, then you can just style it how you wish. And power it how you wish. Wanna go Banks Big-block? Cool. Jimmy-huffed Small-block? Okay then. Hair-dried V6? Fine with me! Just don't go F.I.4 with it unless you feel that bold. That would be the Pro-Fooler look and that didn't have much staying power when it came 'round the first time. 'Course, you know how things get when they are retro (hee,hee)... Viva Pro-Street!
Go beyond the "bolt-on".
