Mazda Miata is what some people modify for the caterhams,
locost and lotus 7 replicas all over the world.
Google cut and shut rack and pinion miata should come up.

if your gunna keep a light engine and a reasonable wheel size theres no reason the 1200 steering box wouldnt cope, plus they have more travel than most R&P's anyway. im having a hard time findimg a R&P that i can use in my coupe, most racks that are close to the width i need dont have anywhere near the travel i wont.. any ideas??

oh there is a dude here in vic (can never remember his name) building a s14 i think it was, with a manualised 2spd power glide with a cluch, but with full hand controls (brakes, handbrake, air operated clutch) as hes wheel chair bound. should be interesting to see how this gearbox setup goes, when he finishes it.

looks good Shmitty, I reckon one of the toughest
things about an early car for drifting is the
lack of rack and pinion steering. It makes it much
easier with R&P not to mention less frustrating.

now if i only had 300g to build a 350z

went to see ken on the weekend and it gave me to bug

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At least you're getting out there and having a go!
Needs moreeeeeeeeee low tho dude.
Mk1's look sick in the sun too.
Lovin the straight pipes on the s13, looks well setup.

Just thought id throw a couple of pics up of my datto drifing. Really good fun but a real handfull:

The biggest problem with autos for smaller engines is that they produce less torque (at least off boost) and so the convertor for a 4cyl is 'looser' by a long way than that of a larger engine. But it will only stall around 1500-2000rpm.. Since you brought up trimatics, putting a 'stock' gemini convertor behind a 173 or 202 will get you an instant 3000rpm stall. The same convertor case can be used (though the input shaft and therefore impeller splines are different on v8 trimatics) for v8s too with some mods.

Since the 4cyl only stalls it at (say) 2000rpm, it 'seems' tighter, but make no mistake, it isn't a tight convertor. And on decel, it'll have lots of slippage. And that's what makes em so bad. For drifting at any rate.

There is another option (yep, yet another one) and that 'might' be useful. Lock up convertors. Generally they aren't 'supposed' to be locked up for full power, just for light throttle economy cruising. But I do know of a bloke or two who have very fast 2jz powered cars that actually engage the lockup convertor toward the end of the 1/4mile and run quicker as a result. Now it might not last 200,000km with that sort of abuse, but clearly they can handle things well enough.

It could theoretically be linked to a push button (engage button to disengage the lockup convetor - maybe a floor mounted button, a bit like a clutch) and when it springs back, the convertor lockup clutch is applied.

You could then take off from a standing start easy enough, then lock up the convertor, and run it like a normal manual, with lightning shifts.

It could work, but I'm just thinking out loud. It'd be nice if someone well funded experimented with it, but I'm certainly not in a position to do so right now.

I should probably also point out that on a personal level, I much prefer manuals, love driving them, and even in situations where an auto could make the car quicker/more consistent down the 1/4mile, I still like manuals.

Quote:

I salivate at this idea of fully manualising an auto
and getting rid of the torque converter. I now the
Jatco and Trimatics have endless choices these days
and no longer bagged like old days.

Im wondering on a similar note "for the street" if I
can fully manualised jatco or Trimatic and run a
supercharged A series and get away without the torque
converter and add an oil cooler for extra insurance?
Some electric vehicle guys do this with a powerglide
with success as E motors are torque monsters from idle.

there's so much throttle control in drift that i dont think a auto works better than a manual gearbox
things like clutch kicks, down shifting to transfer weight ,dropping from 4th to 2nd gear with the clutch in and hand brake / foot brake trick to hold a big slide into a hairpin , we have a few guys that have manuelized there autos in built drift cars but i cant say much good about them and i think they wish they didnt bother

turbos seems to be the best choice over super charger due to the power coming on hard at 3500-4500 on a sr20 pending wat turbo u have , superchargers are the go for the v8 boys imo
over here we have a small v8 seen growing from the 6litre ss motors to the 4.5L toyota v8 with turbo

but bang for buck sr20 with bolt on goodness

madmike runs a hks dogbox but he has more cash than he knows wat to do with