Last month President Grant Stephenson requested for Members to submit an article on something of interest to add to the website. This could be about their membership of the Sprite Club, an event of interest, or about their vehicle.

Competition Secretary Pat Miller has responded to Grant’s request and has provided an interesting article on the build of his Ford powered Hot Rod Special – Thanks Pat!

Many years ago, I purchased a TD Ford Cortina with the intention of using the drivetrain in a future project. Some years later, my brother gave me a Ford Prefect chassis. These units look like scaled-down 1930s US Ford chassis—hot rod building material. I have always liked the so-called highboy look of hot rods, where the body is mounted on top of, and not channelled over, the chassis. The idea of a T Ford bucket roadster running the 2-litre Ford drivetrain on this chassis just seemed to click.

Prefect chassis incorporate channel sections, one inside the other, creating a rust trap. The two were separated, and the open section was boxed with 1/8-inch steel. Then a K-member with mounting brackets was welded in, providing some needed rigidity. A 1940 US Ford front axle, a refugee from a street rod I built in the 1960s, was fitted. The spindles are GM items, which were reasonably easy to adapt and provided a ½-degree negative camber. The steering rack came from the Cortina. It is attached directly to the axle, which eliminates bump steer but requires the steering shaft to have universal joints and a sliding joint.

I wanted to use 16-inch wheels, and Falcon wheels from the 2000’s appealed. They have a 114.3 PCD. Falcon brake rotors with VR Commodore calipers have retardation duty up front. A Toyota HiAce rear axle assembly, once again with a 114.3 PCD, has the biggest drum brakes going, and the whole thing is bulletproof. The 4.3 ratio is a tad low. Options are available. At some point in the build, I looked at the 2-litre SOHC engine that had powered my racing Anglia back in 1980, brandishing two twin-throat side draft carbys, and thought, why not? Just to oddball things up, a custom cam cover was fabricated. Lengths of stainless steel and some 90-degree fittings provided a nearly equal-length exhaust system, muffled by a home-built glass-pack muffler. The radiator was abducted from a 3 Series BMW at U-Pull-It wreckers, one of my favorite places. Some of the componentry used in the car is from my hoard of car parts accumulated since I was 16 and intended to use “someday”.

The body is as close as I could guess to a 1926 Ford T bucket roadster. It is a bit wider and a bit longer and profiled to blend with the Prefect chassis. The framework is 19 x 19 x 1.6 tube with 1 mm steel panels. The rear quarters and front panel were formed with an English wheel; the other panels were draped over the frame and riveted in place. It was necessary to cut a vee into the side panels to cope with a compound curve. The engine hood and side panels are 1.6 mm aluminum, with louvres stamped at Marque Restorations.

The paint job was 2-pack undercoat with just a smidge of body filler in a few spots. The red top coat was done with paint I horse-traded, a leftover from a paint job on a Maserati.

I had intended to do the trim myself. My wife, however, suggested that we have it done professionally. Brian at Cool Trimming did a great job.

I had closely followed the guidelines for building a hot rod, in the belief that the technical advisory committee of the hot rod association would be able to give it roadworthy approval. But wait—the bureaucrats noticed that I was dumb enough to state that the body was homebuilt and that it had a four-cylinder motor. “It’s a Clubman and must have full engineering approval.” Months and months, even years later, I had the approval, costing far more than I had spent building the car. One of the reasons I built the car was to prove that anyone with a limited budget and a lot of effort could have a special-interest car. Initially, there were some gremlins to sort out. Now, after three years on the road, there is room for improvement. On a nice day, it is fun to drive. I attended a school educational event with quite a few special-interest cars. The kids were debating whether they liked my car or a Lamborghini best.