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Dwight FitzSimons

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Posts posted by Dwight FitzSimons

  2. R3 engine

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    4 hours ago, VtMike said:

    I don't get this one.  And I think John Lennon may have said:  Most Peculiar, Momma.

    I understand the importance of A/C to someone living in SoCal.  I also understand that, back in the day, A/C was not available in a supercharged Avanti.  But I would not have expected Andy G to recommend an r3 engine w/o its supercharger in this circumstance.  Instead, I would have expected Andy to recommend an r4 engine.  Wouldn't an r3 engine w/o S/C have lower compression and one less carb than an r4, and substantially less HP than an r4?

    Is it possible that r3 engines were available at the time but r4 engines weren't?  Even if that were the case, if he had the parts, it would have been easy-peasy for Andy to swap out the heads and intake manifold, and turn an r3 into an r4?  Maybe I am missing something (as usual)?

    I think it is crying shame that the Avanti in question doesn't have its supercharger.  It seems there are a good many supercharged Avantis that have a modern A/C system in them these days, and I think that is the route folks ought to go.

      

    I agree with gunslinger, plus:

    There was a '63 Avanti with a crate R4 engine near me back in the late 1960s.  I followed the car through 2 or 3 owners, probably NONE of which understood the implications of a 12:1 C.R.; i.e., necessity for using racing gas.  Who is going to do that in a street-driven car?  Having 12:1 compression ratio on a street-driven car is a very bad idea.  Plus, the R4 is very over carbureted.  The cam would have been either 276 or 288 deg. same as an R3.  An R3, with its 9.75 C.R., would have been a much better choice than an R4.  Simply remove the carb enclosure and install an R1 air cleaner.  (also dist. advance, carb jets, etc would need to be revised, but those aren't big deals)

    BTW, the R4 Avanti locally ended up with two badly damaged cylinders, and most if not all broken rings.

    Perhaps R3 engines WERE available and an R4 wasn't.  There were a hundred or so R3 engines built, but only something like 10 R4 engines.

    Note that R3s and R4s used the same cylinder heads (479).  The difference in the comp. ratio was in the pistons, not the heads.

  4. R3 engine

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted · Edited by Dwight FitzSimons

    On 6/12/2022 at 12:36 AM, Rob Dudley said:

     The engine has the R3 heads, the aluminum water manifold, intake and pullies and the R3 headers.

    Note that the original R3 & R4 water manifolds are cast iron, not aluminum.  Lionel Stone made some out of aluminum and sold them for a while.  The idea here was to save weight, although the cast iron ones aren't very heavy.  The original pulleys are cast iron also.  Aftermarket ones have been made out of aluminum.

    --Dwight

  10. Avanti Delamination!

    in Avanti Trivia

    Posted

    I hate sunroofs/moonroofs because they leak, and, worst of all, take up essential headroom, especially in the back seat.

    However, I once had a car with a moonroof that I liked, a 1988 Pontiac Fiero GT.  This wasn't the elaborate apparatus that dropped and slid backward, taking up a couple inches of rear headroom.  It simply tilted up (hinged at front).  It could be closed, tilted up, or removed and stored in the trunk.  The seal was simple and easy to replace.

    Of course, Fieros had a plastic (SMS?) body, so installation might not be too difficult in an Avanti for those who want a moonroof in their Avanti.

    --Dwight.

  13. New Avanti Owner

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Be sure you deal with the mold properly and safely.  Mold "dust" (spores) is not something one should inhale.  Also, the mold may have already caused irreversible discoloration of the vinyl - that remains to be seen.

    -Dwight.

  18. 63 Avanti Gray Paint

    in Avanti Information

    Posted · Edited by Dwight FitzSimons

    Black doesn't show the lines of an Avanti, plus you have to wash it after every drive to keep it looking good.  Plus, it's hot!   Although I love red I personally like to see a variety of colors at Studebaker meets.  I have had two Avanti-Gray Avantis and the color looks great to me.

    --Dwight

    BTW, doesn't your local automotive paint store have a palate of each colors from light to dark to find a close match from.  Maybe TCP Global does also.  Maybe borrow a gas filler door from someone who has a gray avanti.

  21. Studebaker Workhorse!

    in Avanti Trivia

    Posted

    1 hour ago, wdaly said:

    I DON'T deserve this Honor due to the misspelling.  I could make excuses, but I will save those for another time!😬

    It was just a typo.  We all, at one time or another, type faster than we think.  No one gets flogged for a typo.

    --Dwight

  25. Avanti Pulleys!

    in Avanti Trivia

    Posted

    I'm not making up the story about chasing away a skunk, just stretching the truth a bit.  Actually, I was out after dark and walked back to my porch oblivious to the skunk on my porch eating the cats' food.  When I stepped onto the porch it trundled off and retreated without incident.

    I wasn't so lucky when I was about 6-7 years old.

    --Dwight

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