Not sure where to go with the '70 Cutlass I bought.

"Kanaric" (Kanaric1)
09/24/2018 at 18:28 • Filed to: None

I basically wanted to buy this car to experience owning a classic car from that period. I wanted to work on it and see how parts are and all that vs the JDM stuff I owned. So far I like what i’ve been doing but I’m not sure where I should go next.

I have another, pretty much finished, project ‘89 Skyline. My idea was to have a 2nd “weekend” car to do motorsport with. The problem, which I didn’t think of when I bought it, is that most amateur motorsport that I ended up liking bans JDM cars. So it’s pretty much just a show car at this point.

The Cutlass I bought to see how owning a car like this is. I basically bought it, refreshed issues it had, and am at a turning point here. Do I want this car to be my motorsport car? (autocross CAM-T) Or do I want to do what I was planning on doing originally when I was buying something else. Which is keep it for a year then sell it.

I think I pretty much decided at this point that I like American cars more between owning the both of these. I kind of want to still do something like a Nova or Mustang though . For a larger car I like the 70s Trans Ams and Camaros more. If I decide to stay with it i’d have to make some significant upgrades instead of just fixing issues so I would buy different parts. Trying to decide where to go here.

I eventually see myself as selling the Nissan.

Just thinking out loud and looking for input lol.

DISCUSSION (25)

Spridget > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 18:50

I would sell the Cutlass and move to a smaller car. All of the cars you listed (F-Body, Nova, Mustang) handle better than the Cutlass and have larger aftermarket support for modifications.

WilliamsSW > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 18:54

I gotta think that car is somewhat collectible, for the ram air and unusual paint job? If so, and you’re going to flip it in a year, you might shy away from mods that aren’t irreversible, and a plain Jane Cutlass might be better for AutoX mods.

Of course, if you’re going to keep it for a long time, beef it up to do what you want with it.

My question to you is, is THIS the classic car you want to keep? Your post makes me think a pony car or Nova is what you really want - and those are probably better bases to build a motorsport car off of anyways (lighter weight, better parts availability).

At any rate though, this car must be a lot of fun with the attention grabbing color and 4-speed, plus Oldsmobile made some pretty good V8's back in the day (I know from experience) - enjoy it!

Kanaric > WilliamsSW
09/24/2018 at 18:59

Ya what you say here pretty much matches my thinking. Part of the issue I have with going further with modding the car is that it’s some one off one year special edition. Not a really sought after one but none the less still something i’m hesitant on modding.

It is a fun car to own and cruise around in for sure. I definitely am glad I get to experience this car.

DutchieDC2R > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 19:00

Why the hell are jdm cars banned from the things you want to do with it?

Kanaric > Spridget
09/24/2018 at 19:01

Good point.

I plan on getting this car to a high point than where I got it. When I got this car it had all sorts of rather easy to fix issues and it’s been fun to work on.

Mods for suspension and all that for the a-body are decently available but in terms of the engine, not so much unless I swap to a 455 which I am unwilling to do on a car called Rallye 350.

Kanaric > DutchieDC2R
09/24/2018 at 19:06

Well for SCCA Autocross it’s not “technically” banned but I would be in some basically tube body kit car class so not competative at all and nobody here is even in that class so i’d be racing vs myself. Most reasonable classes flat out ban JDM cars.

By JDM i’m talking Japanese market cars of course, not Japanese cars originally sold in the US.

Any SCCA or NASA event is like this pretty much.

Meanwhile CAM-T here is mostly fox body mustangs and 80s f bodies, g bodies, and trucks which would be much more fun of a group for me.

DutchieDC2R > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 19:13

Thats a pretty lame way of standardizing things. I do understand you leaning towards the US option now. Such a shame about the JDM cars being ‘banned’ though.

WilliamsSW > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 19:13

Yeah, I think it was engineered to sort of be a competitor to the Roadrunner/Super Bee, but with a 350 to reduce insurance rates (which were more of an issue than gas prices on big block cars back then LOL) . I did a quick search, and it appears that the motor was the standard 350 4V available in any Cutlass - I always thought it had a hotter cam like the W-31.

Hemmings only lists 2 right now - one is $33k, other one is being auctioned at Mecum Dallas next weekend. Both automatics though.

Seems like a semi-collectible, I guess. If it were a W-30, I’d beg you not to mod it - but you would have paid big bucks for it to begin with.

But it’s your car and your money - it just seems to me that you *might* be happier building a pony car than this one, based on your comments.

WilliamsSW > DutchieDC2R
09/24/2018 at 19:15

This is pretty stupid IMHO - first I’d heard of it too.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 19:26

My thoughts are... if you just want a weekend cruiser, keep the Cutlass.

But if you want something to race , I’m guessing something smaller and lighter would be better. And if you want to mod it, something less desirable would be better too.

So maybe a Pinto or a Mustang II with a hopped up 302 Windsor V8 or a turbo 2.3L OHC engine would be the solution...

https://classics.autotrader.com/classic-cars/1980/ford/pinto/101006863

https://classics.autotrader.com/classic-cars/1972/ford/pinto/100889113

https://classics.autotrader.com/classic-cars/1978/ford/mustang/101033740

DutchieDC2R > WilliamsSW
09/24/2018 at 19:28

The way I see it, they, the SCCA and/or NASA, are too lazy to properly group the JDM vehicles (by way of letting them run in a certain class and moving them up/down once realizing they’re too fast/slow for the group) and letting them compete.

You cant convince me an AE86 or an R32 GTS-T cant be classed as anything other than a tube chassis kit car. Like you said, stupid.

lone_liberal > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 19:31

If the aftermarket parts for Chevelles fit the Cutlass (I would think they should) then it would be possible to make it handle reasonably well, though not cheaply. The Camaros are smaller and lighter and have a ton of aftermarket support but really getting one dialed in will probably mean a ton of parts thrown at it or an after market subframe if you really want to do it up . These guys did a full chassis https://www.powernationtv.com/post/triple-threat-camaro-gets-a-custom-chassis .

My affections are well known.

Kinja'd!!!

WilliamsSW > DutchieDC2R
09/24/2018 at 19:32

That’s about what I imagined, too. I’m sure they came up with some dumb argument internally about JDM cars being a Pandora’s box that would allow other non-USDM cars in and spoil the class. Because the ONLY REASON I want a Porsche 959 is to wreak havoc on the SCCA.

Meanwhile, my plans to build a Hindustani Ambassador into an SCCA Solo champion are on hold...

Aaron James > Kanaric
09/24/2018 at 19:35

Not the best choice for autocross but no reason you can’t run it until you find a better candidate. *fox body mustang :)

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > Kanaric
09/25/2018 at 00:00

You need to talk to your stewards and your region, possibly even national . That’s complete bullshit.

Historically, JDM cars or cars with JDM equipment have been classified based on their US counterparts except when no US counterpart exists. e.g. a Starion should only ever be tech’d as a Conquest/ Starion regardless of steering wheel side . A DC2 Integra is the same RHD to LHD. Any non-US parts should only push you into mod. Not full prep. (Then prepare to get your ass bumped based on performance.)

Kanaric > Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks
09/25/2018 at 10:42

Well they used to let me run in SSM which I was prepared to build the car for but then a lot of butthurt came around here after multiple people were caught cheating and they tied down the rules some. They let me run in XP after that but it’s still not technically legal there either.

On top of this I would need to switch the turbo on this car to something more autocross friendly. After this happened I went for a more higher rpm power turbo to save money. To save money I mean I was going to go twin scroll.

There pretty much is no hope for me to run this car properly. I mean I can “for fun” and I won’t have problems but the thing is I was starting to do well and that’s when people start to nitpick.

I was hopeful for a bit because some of the early drafts for the 2018 rules were going to allow JDM cars in the SM categories but they nixed that.

Kanaric > Aaron James
09/25/2018 at 10:48

Ya there are two fox body mustangs that run in that. One is a Saleen and the other is a police interceptor notchback with 351w build. I wouldn’t mind going against them but i’ve been tempted on going f-body lol. I always liked the 3g f bodies but the mustang is just way better imo lol.

Kanaric > lone_liberal
09/25/2018 at 10:49

Ya I saw a bunch of the 2g f bodies at optima ultimate street car. That’s what got me on to them though I always liked the late 70s trans ams.

The thing is with those I can probably already find a decently sorted car for this kind of driving.

The main problem of the cutlass is the engine doesn’t have great support and there are no aero options that don’t look ridiculous. Meanwhile track build f bodies look great.

Kanaric > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly
09/25/2018 at 10:53

I like the idea of the mustang II and I saw a lot of info on it.

The thing is I want something that is decently popular so I can more rea dily find reproduction parts. If I wanted to go Mustang and 74 or later I would get a fox body.

lone_liberal > Kanaric
09/25/2018 at 12:08

Late 70s T/As seem to be in a bit of a price bubble right now, with some being down right stupid expensive, but you could build a regular Firebird up to where you want it without too much hassle, though the late 70s F-bodies are heavier than the earlier second gens and you’d be dealing with a Pontiac or Olds mobile engine .

Aaron James > Kanaric
09/25/2018 at 12:40

I’m an F-body fan myself but from about 86 to 92 the Mustangs are better in every way.

Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks > Kanaric
09/25/2018 at 13:19

That is some serious bullshit. Next level bullshit. Way back when I was running, rules on imports were simple: if the chassis had a US counterpart? You tech as US spec, so, like you had before - non-US engine into SM or above as appropriate. Bump class based on performance .

Someone cheating? Kick ‘em out. Period.

Nixing JDM with equivalent US model from SM is complete bullshit. That needs to be brought up at national for sure if it’s a rule change. I mean it’s just complete bullshit. A Civic is a Civic regardless of which side the wheel is on. If it’s a JDM-only drivetrain? Treat it as a US chassis with a JDM motor. JDM-only suspension? Then it’s modified suspension.

My bird IS the word > Kanaric
09/25/2018 at 21:07

While a lot of these cars can be made to handle, the amount you spend would go much further by just buying a different car.

Spridget > Kanaric
09/26/2018 at 14:32

Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t the Rally 350 a bit of a special model? Maybe find a base one to mod instead of a more desirable one.

Kanaric > Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks
10/09/2018 at 16:50

Well part of JDM cars is that they have less safety equipment. The JDM RX7 is like some 300lbs lighter than the US one IIRC.

But if you read the SM and SSM rules it specifically bans “JDM” anything.