I'm thinking about a hillyard custom...need help and advice

For the last eight years, me and my little 83 mazda rx-7 have been through a lot together. I spent three years as the president of a fairly large rotary powered car club, put on big bbq's, had a yearly event in Wenatchee with a parade, banquet, car shows, mobile chassis dyno, etc, etc, etc.... I've built the car from bone stock to a pretty crazy little machine over the years, and done all the work myself. Hell, I've even been tazed over this car (kind of a long story involving an unstable cop).
So, needless to say, I've got a pretty good history with this car.

About a year and a half ago, I pretty much finished all the plans I had for it, and now it sits in my backyard because the interest faded. I've kicked around the ideas of selling it, trading it for a chevy 4x4, putting it in storage and giving it to my son, etc. but I just can't seem to bring myself to part with all my labor and love that I've put into it.

Now I think I have a new plan, but I'm not sure how I'd go about it. I look at Herbie and Blazabbit and, well you get the picture.
Before


After


It's a uniboby car with just a subframe. There's plenty of room under the hood for a V8, and Grannys speed shop makes a drop in subframe for a small block ford or chevy, but the rest of the drive train might be an issue. Another possibility is to sit it on a geo tracker chassis, but I don't think it would handle any decent power.
Any thoughts?

Brian

You might want to take a closer look at the Blazabbit to see how he did his body mount; axles, shocks etc. Herbie isn't the one you want to go by though...held together by bubble gum and duck tape!

On another note...about chassis... might look into a Bronco II or S-10 Blazer. I am building a smaller street legal V8 powered VW 4x4 and I am using a Bronco II chassis. I measured from the center of the the rear wheel to the center of the front wheel on the Bronco II and on the VW bug and they were almost exactly the same.The frame held up to the 5.0 power just fine...the only issue is that it readily broke the small front axles in the IFS DANA 28. For the I am upgrading to a Ford Exploder IFS DANA 35 which has as big of axles as a DANA 44, just a slightly weaker 3rd member.

Hit me up if you want to ask any questions about how not to build it!

Thanks Wayne. Anytime you need any help figuring out anything, hit us up, we will do what we can.

You've helped already. The rx7 wheelbase is 95.3 inches. I never even thought about a bronco II because I forgot they even existed, but it has a 94 inch wb, where the tracker came witt a wb of 97 inches, and needed HUGE modifications just to be able to handle a dirt road. Also, if I can find a V6 bronco II chassis, it would need very little modding to accapt a 289 or 302.
Aren't you worried that with the exploder front dif, it'll just randomly flip over for no reason? You'd better put a cage in it.

Honestly, my friend had a Tracker about 12 yrs ago, and we put a Pro-Comp 3" lift in it with 28" Thornbirds,
and that thing was a goat! I would use a Tracker or Sami frame, due to already being boxed. For axles,
I'd go with some beefed up Yotas. I would steer clear of the TTB from the Ford, it's garbage! It really all
depends what you are planning to do with it, engine/trans/t-case, tire size, etc. All things need to be
figured out before you even start building.

Well, it's really still in the early part of conception, so I'm pretty open minded now, and am willing to sway towards what's going to work without CRAZY fabrication.
My preference for power is small block chevy. If I could get my hands on a mid to late 80's 3/4 ton suburban for a donor, it would be ideal. I think I could work plenty of power out of the tbi 350, and a turbo 400 tranny is plenty tough enough. For tires, I'm thinking minimum of 38's, but bigger is better as long as I can pull enough torque to turn them effectively. It probably won't be a road rig unless it's a simple task to get registered. I really want to mud race it. My main goal is for little kids to get in trouble for pointing at it and asking dad "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING?"
Oh yeah, and sundays at 7 mile.

I found this pic, so I know it can be done....


And here's one just because it's cool....


I like this one, but I don't think it'd be very stable at 88 mph

But on the plus side, it wouldn't matter what terrain you landed on when you came out of the time circuit.

And what's with the "Hillyard Custom"? I built mine in the valley!

Occasionally I win a day pass in a lottery and I'm allowed to leave the hillyard quadrant. On some of those occasions I sneak into the valley, and there are some similar neighborhoods. Perhaps you're from one of those areas? Or you could research your lineage, and you may find some hillyard blood in there driving you to either
A) put a V8 in everything you own (pinto, yugo, microwave, bathtub (although that's obviously better transmission storage), hell, I've even thought about puting one in my playstation 2, I just haven't figured out the cam, intake, and gearing combination to spin the disc at the right rpm.)
Or
B) Make everything a lifted 4 Wheel drive.

The computer I'm saving for...


The reason I'm not scared of a terrible accident...




If the 3 above pictures make you say "WOW! That's badass!", then I'd bet we're from the same neighborhood.

But, yes, I grew up in Hillyard.

And the truth shall set you free!

Damn it Strange! You just gave away my super top secret project of putting a V8 in my microwave.

I have a bunch of diamond plate and was thinking about doing that myself. Seeing this photo, I think not...just TOO MUCH.

I agree, it's a little loud. It might look better if the diamond plate was black.

Look even better with a REAL VW body!

whats wrong with building 4x4's in hillyard. i got three going in my backyard in downtown hillyard.

you still have the rotorary in that thing i'll take it for my boat