any aircooled "stock car" racers here?

BUGMAN II · Post by **BUGMAN II** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 6:32 pm

went to the local speedway last night
its a 1/4mile paved oval
just wondering if any one here is running an aircooled vw at these kind of races
what class do you run?
4cyl stock or 4cyl modified
what kind of motor/trans set up are you running?
suspension?
any pics?

thanks
clint

Paul Illick · Post by **Paul Illick** » Thu Sep 08, 2005 3:37 am

Local VW shop built two. One was dressed up like Herbie, and he went through the stands giving out candy to the kids after races. He's in modified and did real well. His problem was getting rear-ended, which on his car, no matter how well it was reinforced, ruined more than just sheet metal...

4agedub · Post by **4agedub** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 6:21 am

Hi
I use to race in the local oval track series with a beetle.

The engine was a 2900cc type 4 with a 1300cc gearbox. We used 3rd gear with 205/60/13" tyres.

Won the regional champs a couple of years, but never got to win the RSA national champs with it, we never had the $$$ for it.

HAM Inc · Post by **HAM Inc** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 12:29 pm

One of my customers J.B.Bugs, runs bugs around central and south Florida dirt tracks and does pretty well. He has a bunch of photos posted on his web site. www.jbbugs.com

Once I can scan my racing scrap book I'll post some photos of the aircooled powered circle track cars my dad and I raced around the south east and up and down the east coast in the '70's and 80's, until the rear engine, aircooled cars were banned. We won over 200 races in a relatively short time. Sure wish I could run one now!

BREEZE · Post by **BREEZE** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 5:45 am

man i wish i could have one of these for the street!!

Post by **Marc** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 8:54 am

In the Northwest we've had organized foreign stock car racing since the mid`60s. At first it was mostly bugs, Renault 4CVs, and Saabs running around on tiny indoor flat-tracks, then they moved up to a 1/5-mile paved oval that encompassed the Figure-8 track at the county fairgrounds. Later on a 3/8mi slightly banked track was put in and a new class started running there; the 1/5-mile remained as an "entry-level" venue. In its heyday there were three dozen little-track cars and over two dozen big-track cars every Saturday night for six months of the year. A new Street Stock class was formed that ran on the 3/8-mile track with strict preparation limits and DOT-legal tires; that caught on great and the 1/5-mile class was phased out. The sanctioning club had a falling-out with the track promoter in the `80s when the promoter was courting NASCAR affiliation and wanted to cut back on the foreign-car program so they hit the road and started touring the Western states, competing with the California-based Pro-4 series (predominantly Esslinger Fords); meanwhile the track started up their own loosely-regulated version of the club's Street Stock class - they literally reprinted the club's rulebook with a few clumsy edits, but never hired anyone with enough knowledge of foreign cars to provide competent enforcement, so that class ran wild...we called 'em "Cheat Stocks".
Over the years the club's rules developed from stock chassis & 1300cc engines to full-blown tube-frame/plastic-bodied racecars and 2500+cc. The current cars are indeed awesome, but few can afford to run them so the car count is nothing like it once was.
A classic scenario in almost any form of racing - everyone wants to try something new to go a little faster, without considering that the competition will gain too...eventually they price themselves out of the market (promoters don't care much for shows that only field a few cars).
Aircooleds are prohibited in many 4-cylinder classes these days; in some they're allowed but the modifications allowed favor other cars to such an extent that it's impossible to run up front in an aircooled. At one time there were many classes which banned FWD cars too, but considering that they're about all that's being produced these days you see less of that. Today the only thing winning at the Cheat Stocks is Honda, displacing the GTI-head VWs that once dominated. Aircooleds never had a chance, the only one I ever saw manage a top-5 finish was running a 2180 - the rules say .040" max overbore and stock crankshaft; as I said enforcement is a bit lax

Stock-pan "AA" car (1650cc limit, stock-valve heads):

Street Stock bug (.040"-over limit, 9:1 max, 5200 Holley):

First plastic-bodied "Mini-Super" (2050cc/open carbs or 2500cc/500CFM limit) - this one was dominant for years with a 1775 and an incredibly talented driver - NOT me):