"CodyVella" (codyvella)
01/25/2018 at 14:53 • Filed to: None
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"CodyVella" (codyvella)
01/25/2018 at 14:53 • Filed to: None | 2
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I know this is a long shot. But would anyone happen to know what engine Nissan was using in their old trophy truck circa late 80s/early 90s? It’s hard to dig up any real solid info on the old Mickey Thompson Stadium Series from the 80s/90s so I’m not even sure if they ran V6s or V8s. If it was V6s I’d be inclined to think the motor was at least based of Nissan’s VG family. ANY info at all about these trucks is appreciated.
Monkey B
> CodyVella
01/25/2018 at 15:09 |
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iirc they were purpose built rear engine jobs, I assume they used V8's.
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CodyVella
> Monkey B
01/25/2018 at 15:15 |
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I know they were rear-engine’d from at least 1992 onward. But there seems to be very little info about the late 80s trucks, specifically the stadium trucks. I know they all had windshield banners that read “Nissan Hardbody V6" but I’m not sure if that was simply for marketing.
Nothing
> CodyVella
01/25/2018 at 15:24 |
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Interesting to try and research. At a minimum, it appears it was a V6, but I haven’t found anything else yet.
http://articles.latimes.com/1986-08-18/sports/sp-18120_1_roger-mears
Sunday’s win, in a Nissan V-6 in the desert mini-pickup class, was special to Mears because it was his first as a team owner/manager/driver. The victory also ended an 18-month odyssey trying to make his own Roger Mears Racing Team a winner. And it also ended a three-year drought here at Riverside on a track where he was once unbeatable.
“That first win, running against Parnelli and all that, was very special, but this was certainly as satisfying,” Mears said. “This was my own creation and for the V-6 to win the first time out is a definite turnaround for me.
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CodyVella
> Nothing
01/25/2018 at 15:41 |
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Interesting, I’m assuming it was either based off the 3.0L SOHC VG30 that was in the Hardbody at the time, or a purpose built unit built by Rick Mears Racing. I know rules were lax since Toyota was using a CVT at the time, when some manufacturers ran a 4-speed stick, and others were running a 4-speed auto.
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Nothing
> CodyVella
01/25/2018 at 15:44 |
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A little more info from the LA Times:
http://articles.latimes.com/1986-08-17/sports/sp-16752_1_world-championship
The new desert truck was designed by Trevor Harris, longtime sports car and Indy car designer, with help from Mears.
“It was the first time Trevor had done a truck from the ground up. We started with a Nissan frame and engine. Everything else was fabricated, piece by piece.
“Harris amazed me. He would draw it out on paper and give us blueprints to scale. I would take them to the fabricator, and he would build a piece to Trevor’s design. It was like building a model airplane.”
Mears estimated that because of the man hours involved in creating all the pieces, his truck will cost $135,000 before it turns a wheel in today’s race.
“It’s been a whole new game for me,” he said. “I had always loved to drive, to race, but now I enjoy the challenge of the technical end, putting all the combinations together.”
Mears will also drive another Nissan truck, the $180,000 Electramotive-built V-6 injected mini-pickup, in the Mini-Metal Challenge, but in it he will be a hired factory driver.
“This will be its first race, too,” Mears said. “We had hoped to debut it at Mickey Thompson’s race in the Coliseum, but I felt we ought to do more testing before showing it off.”
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CodyVella
> Nothing
01/25/2018 at 16:02 |
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This is awesome thank you! This confirms what I thought. They were running (in the early days anyways) modified VG30 3.0L V6s. I was able to tell from some of the photos that the truck was built on a modified factory Nissan frame, which Nissan still uses on the current D40 Frontier.
It’s strange how little love the old Mickey Thompson Off Road/Stadium Series gets these days. Those were fun races to watch. They had a lot of different body styles too; Nissan Hardbody, Toyota Pickup, Chevrolet S-10, Mazda B2200. Ford Ranger & Jeep Comanche.
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Nothing
> CodyVella
01/25/2018 at 16:27 |
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Agreed, I loved watching those races! While not the same vintage, I have a few of the later Toyota V8 Trophy Truck diecast models laying around. One 1:18, the rest are all Hot Wheels.