Oddball Poll!!!

[Jiveslug]

Hey Oddballers! I must say that I admire your creativity and determination to be unique. I feel ya because Ive discovered that I have the personality of an Oddballer as well. So, I got to thinking, what should be the next great Oddball experiment? Here is what I think:

84-85 Corolla GTS- Drifters can bite me. hehe. According to Jake's spreadsheet, weighs 2210 in race trim, 1.6 4AGE motor, RWD, decent brakes and gearing.

87-89? Alfa Romeo Milano Verde- 50/50 weight dist, 3.0 litre motor makes tons o'power, cool Italian car.

91-92 Saab 900- Ok, so I dont know why, it just strikes me as kinda good. Maybe its because I like the 900 Turbo I had....

What would you guys throw in there as the next Oddball candidate?

[JeffYoung]

There is a Milano Verde in the SEDiv, silver and fast as stink in a straight line (and not bad in the corners too). It won a SARRC race at Lowe's Motor Speedway a few years ago. Cool car.

I've always wanted to see a Triumph GT6 IT car. Cool little six cylinder, but evil, evil rear suspension.

[RSTPerformance]

2 People have raced the Saab 900's in the northeast. nat Wentworth has had a bit of luck. If you are really interested you might want to try and contact him.
He has done his best in the rain.

Raymond

[joeg]

I would imagine anything French, British or Italian would qualify

[BMW RACER]

How about a Ford Cortina GT In ITC? I think I was "FORD RACER" In another web life.

[joeg]

Originally posted by BMW RACER:
How about a Ford Cortina GT In ITC? I think I was "FORD RACER" In another web life.

Absolutely...but talk about vintage!

[m glassburner]

I know of three dodge omni's ,one of which I think is totaled....not a rare car....race car yes...I like it

[gsbaker]

It's not IT, but the old Porsche 914s were fun to drive. Not a lot of motor, and the brakes could use some work, but my old '74 would flat go around a corner--or go around a corner flat.

I know it typically shows up in something like SP (with the six), but could this car be in IT with the four banger?

I know where my old one is.

Gregg

[Jiveslug]

Hey Jeff. I always liked Triumphs and had thought about the GT6 (almost bought one until the wife nixed it for space reasons. Damn her rational brain!!), but the 83 inch wheelbase scares me. I dont think I could FIT in the car. The Miata is tiny to me and its 89 inches. There is a good amount of info on how to set one up for racing tho.
I think the trick to running an oddball might be to find a car that has had some racing success in other countries and see if you can apply those lessons learned to cars brought stateside (i.e. lots of info on racing Saabs in Sweeden, Alfas in Italy, and Toyotas in Austrailia and Japan).
I also thought about the Omni/Charger as an ITB car. Where can you even get racing parts? That seems like it would be a big challenge.

[Jiveslug]

Hey Gregg. I believe there is talk of moving the 914 2.0 to ITB and the 1.7/1.8 to ITC for 2005.... That may breathe new life into them for the IT ranks.

[JohnRW]

Originally posted by Jiveslug:
I always liked Triumphs and had thought about the GT6 (almost bought one until the wife nixed it for space reasons. Damn her rational brain!!), but the 83 inch wheelbase scares me

It's not the size...it's the swing-axles that should scare you. They're treacherous little bastards.

[Renaultfool]

Like Joeg says, French!
I race the Renault Alliance with the 1.7 engine in IT-C. Biggest engine in the class and the car is near minimum weight (and I weigh near 250) without all that scraping needed in some cars. It is reliable, I just replaced the engine after over 50 weekends. Even with the tired engine it would run in the top 5. With a fresh (used) engine it runs in the top 2. There were lots of them around with cages after the Renault Cup. I still have 3. (the fool part)
Typically French, they come with a white flag in the glove box!

[cherokee]

I have a GT6 road car totally stock. I was at a drive up one time and a teeny bopper asked what kind of car it was, A Triumph I told her. Who made it she asked, I told her Standard Triumph and then gave her a 10 minute lesson on LBC. When people see it they just stop and can't help but come over and start talking to you....I LOVE that. When you take a turn at even a brisk speed all I have to say is OH MY GOD! That nasty little wheel tuck can be fixed, and I think IT leagal. Mine is just too pretty to have been turned into a race car. There are a couple of prod GT6 cars that run around here that are just too cool. They don't do very well but they do make me stop and look. Those are the cars that I want to win.


In my worst Frenchy accent:
Viva la difference!!!!!!

[Knestis]

If I had relatives on the continent, a Fiat 124 Sport Coupe in ITC.

I don't see that Corolla as an oddball at all. There were several of them running in the NW in the late '80s and early '90s. They just didn't have what it took to keep up in ITA so they got mothballed.

K

[eh_tony!!!]

Kirk!!!!!!!!!!!

We mostly disagree on rules interpretations, but I just KNEW you weren't all bad..
Finally I found a soft spot..

a 124 sport coupe is a GREAT ITC car... And I know where one is...

Also a Milano Verde incomplete, but with cage...

[Knestis]

Originally posted by eh_tony!!!:
... And I know where one is...

Yeah, but does it have an intact washer bottle? Or is it a bag on that one?

K

[Jiveslug]

Ya know, I have heard rumors about that Milano Verde with the cage for a couple of years now. I believe its in Florida if memory serves. Do you know why its still sitting?
Fiats are cool, but considering that my region has all of 3 ITC cars....
What about 83-85 Celicas? I think anything Toyota pretty much qualifies as an oddball. They all seem to be classed in a fashion that pretty much guarantees they will never have a following. Shame too, because they make some good cars....
Oh, before I forget, Jeff, do you have your website with the TR8 still up? Id love to see how things are going.

[jhooten]

So my ITS 85 Celica-Supra qualifies me for membership in the oddball club then?

So far I have just found Eibach springs for it. It rolls like a hog in a good moist waller around most corners and a quick switch back is a thrill to rivel the best rides at the amusement park.

Looking for some suspension bits for it in the land down under. I hear they have been raced with some success there.

[Ron Earp]

The GT6 is a really cool little car. I've driven and wrenched on a few as well as co-owned one of the little things back in the 80s. Our was crap, but, if you started with a good one I think it could race. Maybe not that great, but, it'd be fun.

There were some that were successful in open classes back in the day. One thing that will limit it is that lump of a power plant - in IT trim there isn't much legal stuff that can be done to help it.

That wheel base is short, as mentioned, but shouldn't be a huge issue if one got used to it and worked on the rear end.

If I didn't have the JH I'd probably be gunning for one of these! Building another Honduh or similar might be the fast way to the top but sure as heck smacks of "me too!".

------------------
Ron
http://www.gt40s.com
Lotus Turbo Esprit
BMW E36 M3
RF GT40 Replica
Jensen-Healey: IT prep progressing!

[cherokee]

What do you all think about a Team Odd Ball site?