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Re: Dolomite Sprints & Grassroots Motorsport

To: british-cars@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: Dolomite Sprints & Grassroots Motorsport
From: msharp@Synopsys.COM (Michael Sharp)
Date: Fri, 21 Oct 94 11:49:05 PDT
Tim Dziechowski writes: 
> Grassroots Motorsports magazine will be starting a series in the next issue
> on converting a Triumph Spitfire to Mazda 13B rotary power.  You probably
> want to read these.

Could someone _please_ tell me how to get in touch with Grassroots Motorsports?
I'd never do anything like this to my current Spit, but this could be a
fun project for a previously abused Spit.


Brian Willoughby writes:
> Subject:      Triumph Dolomite Sprint in the U. S.
> 
> Today, I will pose another question to my fellow SOL subscribers.
> ...
> Anyhow, my question concerns this:  did any of these cars manage to make it
> to this side of the pond?

I don't know if any whole cars made it here, but...

Somewhere in southern New Hampshire (last time I saw it) there was a
red 1980 special edition TR7 convertable with a balance, ported, etc etc
Sprint engine fitted with dual 45DCOE128s, a tuned (very illegal/nonsmog/no 
cat.)
exhaust, a 5spd gearbox and the heavier diff.  The engine was (according
to the shop that built it) spec at ~220-225BHP.  If I remember correctly
it was bored .020 (more?) over, had something like an 11:1 compression and 
_only_
ran on 93 octane when it was in really good tune.  Of course I'm not sure
I beleive the shop's BHP specs since they didn't bother to include the
graph when they shipped the engine BUT this was a very quick TR7!

How do I know about this?  Well, I assembled the car for a guy named
Rob Rimbold.

Last I heard about this he traded it in on a Corvette (boo, hiss).  The
dealership sold the TR7 for something like $1700.  I'm still somewhat
pissed that (a) Rob never let me take this to the track and (b) he didn't
tell me he was going to sell it.  The cost of the motor alone was much
more than the $1700 the dealer got for the car.

        --Mike


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