1970 LT-1 C3 Auto-x & Road race build
05-17-2015, 12:49 PM
#1
1970 LT-1 C3 Auto-x & Road race build
I figured this might be the best place to start this thread beacuse the of the cars intended purpose.. I currently build C2's, C3's & C5's for this specific reason.. This is my personal car that I am currently building as mainly for Auto-x but will take it to the road course.. The C3 will be good for small course's like Vegas infield, Buttonwillow, & Streets of Willow.. Which are tracks that are close to me..
Here is how my story begins!
My new toy! It has been some time now that I have wanted to get into an early Vette.. I had been looking around & bought a 69 but really did not do anything with it other than just sit in my garage.. So around the USCA event in Thunder Hill I was sitting @ the shop wishing I could be out there racing with my friends but did not have a car built.. I have a bunch of started projects but just don't have the time to complete them.. So I opted to find a car that I could bolt on some parts & go out & have some fun racing.. I remembered this 70 Corvette that Mary Pozzi told me about up north.. So I called her & asked her about the car & asked to see if it was up for sale! I was in luck.. Mary had me on the phone with Jan & Speedy Knudsen within a hour but also have one of my friends from American Auto-X Jesus Villarreal in NoCal also knew about the car.. I always wanted a NoCal old Auto-x car.. So with the advice from Jesus I bought the car without even looking @ it.. Especially because it was an original LT-1 Vette
This is the memorable car purchase in my life.. Jan & Speedy were some of the greatest people I have ever met.. She boxed & labeled every original part that had been removed off the car.. She sent me pictures & made sure that I had all the information I needed with the before I left to Napa to go pick it up.. I also happened to be traveling the weekend that Speedway was having a SCCA Auto-x event in Crows Landing & wanted to test the car that weekend so they gave me a full tank of gas & installed a new set of Hoosier R7's! This car had been Autocrossed most of its life & was a bit tired & needed some maintance but still ran great...
My goal for the car is make it a street car that I can race.. I wanted to bring something different to the USCA events & have always had a soft spot for old Corvettes.. I will update with changes as I find the pictures but in the mean time here is picture of me driving it in the rain in Vegas! Upgrades since purchase: Ididit column, Sparco wheel, new bolt on cage, Van Steel suspension, Moog Steering linkage, JRI Shocks, Wilwood Brakes, & Forgeline wheels.. I happen to be selected to get a new Legend transmission @ the Vegas event which is great with the new LS conversion I have coming.. My USCA Vegas experience! I had a great time @ this event.. Me & the crew busted late nights to get the car completed as best as we could & was not sure how the old corvette would do but managed to hang in the with the best of them.. The car performed great for its first event out.. I was a bit nervous driving the car on the road course for the first time because I did not know what to expect.. but let me tell that that is where I felt most comfortable driving it! The only thing that kept me from going faster was that the car was popping out of 3rd gear on the straights & had a hard time down shifting to 2nd gear.. Only managed to drive for 3 sessions & then my power steering pump decided to stop working.. I guess it did not like those long sustained stretched in 3rd gear up to 7800 rpm! The brakes worked awesome with the suspension.. The Auto-x was a struggle because it was a cold day out there & could not get the wanted grip out of the tires.. but still managed to place well.. The speed stop was also struggle due to not being my favorite thing to do.. I did not want to lock up my front tires & get flat spots..
Here is how my story begins!
My new toy! It has been some time now that I have wanted to get into an early Vette.. I had been looking around & bought a 69 but really did not do anything with it other than just sit in my garage.. So around the USCA event in Thunder Hill I was sitting @ the shop wishing I could be out there racing with my friends but did not have a car built.. I have a bunch of started projects but just don't have the time to complete them.. So I opted to find a car that I could bolt on some parts & go out & have some fun racing.. I remembered this 70 Corvette that Mary Pozzi told me about up north.. So I called her & asked her about the car & asked to see if it was up for sale! I was in luck.. Mary had me on the phone with Jan & Speedy Knudsen within a hour but also have one of my friends from American Auto-X Jesus Villarreal in NoCal also knew about the car.. I always wanted a NoCal old Auto-x car.. So with the advice from Jesus I bought the car without even looking @ it.. Especially because it was an original LT-1 Vette
This is the memorable car purchase in my life.. Jan & Speedy were some of the greatest people I have ever met.. She boxed & labeled every original part that had been removed off the car.. She sent me pictures & made sure that I had all the information I needed with the before I left to Napa to go pick it up.. I also happened to be traveling the weekend that Speedway was having a SCCA Auto-x event in Crows Landing & wanted to test the car that weekend so they gave me a full tank of gas & installed a new set of Hoosier R7's! This car had been Autocrossed most of its life & was a bit tired & needed some maintance but still ran great...
My goal for the car is make it a street car that I can race.. I wanted to bring something different to the USCA events & have always had a soft spot for old Corvettes.. I will update with changes as I find the pictures but in the mean time here is picture of me driving it in the rain in Vegas! Upgrades since purchase: Ididit column, Sparco wheel, new bolt on cage, Van Steel suspension, Moog Steering linkage, JRI Shocks, Wilwood Brakes, & Forgeline wheels.. I happen to be selected to get a new Legend transmission @ the Vegas event which is great with the new LS conversion I have coming.. My USCA Vegas experience! I had a great time @ this event.. Me & the crew busted late nights to get the car completed as best as we could & was not sure how the old corvette would do but managed to hang in the with the best of them.. The car performed great for its first event out.. I was a bit nervous driving the car on the road course for the first time because I did not know what to expect.. but let me tell that that is where I felt most comfortable driving it! The only thing that kept me from going faster was that the car was popping out of 3rd gear on the straights & had a hard time down shifting to 2nd gear.. Only managed to drive for 3 sessions & then my power steering pump decided to stop working.. I guess it did not like those long sustained stretched in 3rd gear up to 7800 rpm! The brakes worked awesome with the suspension.. The Auto-x was a struggle because it was a cold day out there & could not get the wanted grip out of the tires.. but still managed to place well.. The speed stop was also struggle due to not being my favorite thing to do.. I did not want to lock up my front tires & get flat spots..
05-20-2015, 05:19 PM
#5
Safety Car
Is it a track day car or a race car?
Autocross is going to be really tough. I can't think of any C3 Corvettes that win. It's all about the SCCA class structure. It's a little difficult to find a class for the older cars.
Richard Newton
Autocross is going to be really tough. I can't think of any C3 Corvettes that win. It's all about the SCCA class structure. It's a little difficult to find a class for the older cars.
Richard Newton
05-20-2015, 05:39 PM
#6
Racer
Your welcome Cris
05-21-2015, 01:29 PM
#9
I will do a few SCCA CAM events for sure!
Richard- I would consider it both.. In SoCal we have events going on all the time for street cars/race cars.. Not really into the SCCA but do an event from time to time.. I have more seat time in a C5's doing Auto-X & road racing.. the goal is to be able to both things.. My buddy Danny Popp comes into SoCal twice a year & helps me shake out my cars.. Older cars are a challenge but that is where I like the push the envelope!
Here is one that Danny helped me set up..
My other C5 that I bought from Steve Abbott..
New Forgelines are on order with deep dish!
Richard- I would consider it both.. In SoCal we have events going on all the time for street cars/race cars.. Not really into the SCCA but do an event from time to time.. I have more seat time in a C5's doing Auto-X & road racing.. the goal is to be able to both things.. My buddy Danny Popp comes into SoCal twice a year & helps me shake out my cars.. Older cars are a challenge but that is where I like the push the envelope!
Here is one that Danny helped me set up..
My other C5 that I bought from Steve Abbott..
05-21-2015, 01:31 PM
#10
Got some time finally to post what I did to upgrade the suspension.. The car had already been set up for Auto-X but need to freshened up.. So I just went ahead & rebuilt the whole suspension with Van Steel, JRI Shocks & Wilwood brakes.. I built my own front sway bar.. Modified the the rear trailing arms so that I could run the shocks on the back side where the leaf spring would go for quick adjustments & spring changes.. The car already had a quick ratio steering box in it.. Very basic simple bolt on stuff with just some minor changes..
The LS Conversion has begun! We already built the gas for the car.. Went ahead & changed the location by dropping it to get the center of gravity lower.. New thing we are doing in our gas tanks is Vapor domes.. Next step is to build an Aluminum radiator support using a C6 Corvette radiator to bring the cold air tube out the front of the car..
The LS Conversion has begun! We already built the gas for the car.. Went ahead & changed the location by dropping it to get the center of gravity lower.. New thing we are doing in our gas tanks is Vapor domes.. Next step is to build an Aluminum radiator support using a C6 Corvette radiator to bring the cold air tube out the front of the car..
05-21-2015, 05:36 PM
#13
Le Mans Master
Congratulations
You have a great looking car, and you are obviously a master fabricator. I would have asked which sanctioning organization you intend to run with as my first question, because you must meet the rules and regulations of that group first, and it may limit which groups you can run with. However, you have already modified your car, so I hope you have some group in mind and I wish you well.
Had you not already modified your car, I would have recommended Vintage racing as the fastest growing and most fun for the buck.
You have a great looking car, and you are obviously a master fabricator. I would have asked which sanctioning organization you intend to run with as my first question, because you must meet the rules and regulations of that group first, and it may limit which groups you can run with. However, you have already modified your car, so I hope you have some group in mind and I wish you well.
Had you not already modified your car, I would have recommended Vintage racing as the fastest growing and most fun for the buck.
05-21-2015, 09:49 PM
#16
I plan on doing something like what we did on this C5 on the radiator angle with cold air tube .. last night we set it up to see what would work the best & we have a plan.. As for ducting the hood.. I am still thinking on that one but it will come to me later as I build more & test it on the track..
Thank you for the props! I drive this car on the street.. my daughter luv's when I pick her up in the old Corvette.. I am not really building the car for any sactioning group.. I just like to drive the crap outta my cars.. SO the LS conversion just makes sense for me.. I usually race in events that you have to run 200 tread wear tires on the road course for time trials & Auto-x.. In SoCal we have events with Speed Ventures & Extreme Speed... Speed Ventures is having a event that is the Corvette Wilwood Challenge in Laguna Seca that has unlimited sound that I will miss this year.. but next year I will be there.. but the main events that I run are with Ultimate Street Car Association..
Congratulations
You have a great looking car, and you are obviously a master fabricator. I would have asked which sanctioning organization you intend to run with as my first question, because you must meet the rules and regulations of that group first, and it may limit which groups you can run with. However, you have already modified your car, so I hope you have some group in mind and I wish you well.
Had you not already modified your car, I would have recommended Vintage racing as the fastest growing and most fun for the buck.
You have a great looking car, and you are obviously a master fabricator. I would have asked which sanctioning organization you intend to run with as my first question, because you must meet the rules and regulations of that group first, and it may limit which groups you can run with. However, you have already modified your car, so I hope you have some group in mind and I wish you well.
Had you not already modified your car, I would have recommended Vintage racing as the fastest growing and most fun for the buck.
05-22-2015, 01:03 PM
#17
Team Owner
Member Since: Mar 2001
Location: Boston, Dallas, Detroit, SoCal, back to Boston MA
Posts: 30,607
Received 239 Likes
on
167 Posts
Thank you for the props! I drive this car on the street.. my daughter luv's when I pick her up in the old Corvette.. I am not really building the car for any sactioning group.. I just like to drive the crap outta my cars.. SO the LS conversion just makes sense for me.. I usually race in events that you have to run 200 tread wear tires on the road course for time trials & Auto-x.. In SoCal we have events with Speed Ventures & Extreme Speed... Speed Ventures is having a event that is the Corvette Wilwood Challenge in Laguna Seca that has unlimited sound that I will miss this year.. but next year I will be there.. but the main events that I run are with Ultimate Street Car Association..
http://solomatters.com/introducing-c...can-muscle-cam
05-24-2015, 11:49 AM
#19
05-25-2015, 10:55 AM
#20
Burning Brakes
Great... Now I have to rethink my C3 frame off project.
Did you get ALL the suspension parts from Paul at Vansteel?
Looks like you modified rear trailing arms?
Did yall fab that tank or do you have a source for it?
Did you get ALL the suspension parts from Paul at Vansteel?
Looks like you modified rear trailing arms?
Did yall fab that tank or do you have a source for it?