Whatever you think of globalization, it generally has been a boon for us car enthusiasts who get to see all the forms of motorsports and project builds from around the world. This exposure would not have been possible without the Internet. As an example, where else would you see a vintage British car and Japanese powertrain grafted together by an American fabricator? That’s the very creation you see here.
Starting with a 1966 Sunbeam Minx, this American hot rodder swapped in a Honda F20 engine with its 6-speed manual transmission. Originally, this engine was found in the S2000, which gave an output of around 240 horsepower from 2000 cc. On the S2000, this engine output was good for 0-60 times of about 5.5 seconds. The original 1800cc Minx had 65 horsepower and a top speed of about 85 mph or 140 km/h. 0-60 was in the region of, wait for it, 18 seconds. So, again, this swap follows the classic formula of a powerful engine in a small chassis. The original curb weight for the car is estimated at 2250 pounds, or 1020 kilos. Even with the added weight of the modern suspension and powertrain, performance should be much better than 5 seconds for the 0-60 time.
But the real beauty this car is not in its sports car performance but in how the builder was able to fit not only the engine, transmission and front suspension from an S2000. For the rear end, a 4-link suspension with a Jeep diff was utilized. To keep the car as vintage looking as possible, most of the original instrumentation was retained but the internals were modified too to accommodate the electronic inputs from the modern powerplant. The modified instrumentation shows speed, fuel, oil, water and engine RPM. Even though the tach looks vintage, closer inspection will reveal a 10,000 rpm redline. The finished car looks very ordinary, except for the wheels. However, closer inspection will reveal the incredible fabrication skills that went into the car and one must look at the 35-page build thread to appreciate the work involved in putting the project together.
See the complete build thread here.
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