Hemmings

[Editor’s Note: Some engine swaps are simple bolt-in affairs, while others require complete re-engineering of the vehicle. Swapping an air-cooled three-cylinder motorcycle engine for the air-cooled three-cylinder motorcycle engine already in his Berkeley should have fallen under the former category, but ended up more like the latter, as James Bornhorst details in this story he sent along.]

In 1968, I was at Texas A&M University, working part time at the Hydrodynamics Lab doing instrumentation for grad students working on thesis projects. My best friend at the time was Jeff Kirby, an electronics tech and 1st Lieutenant in the National Guard who had helped me avoid Viet Nam. Jeff worked in the Wildlife Management Department and built radio tracking collars for animals, all kind of animals; deer, turkey, bobcats, and even snakes. He was a sports car enthusiast who owned an old Volvo P1800S and a beautiful white Jaguar E-Type. We were such fast friends that my wife was jealous at times. I would ride late nights on weekends to South Texas with Jeff in that Jag, at breathtaking speeds, to deliver tracking collars and test them at wildlife refuges. He liked to drive with his right shoe off so he could curl his toes over the top of the big aluminum throttle pedal and better feel the machine.

At A&M we would attend local gymkhanas together and were constantly impressed by a little yellow car owned by a local bachelor photographer, Roland Chatham. He would always beat the socks off of the other competitors. We learned the car was a rare and unique British fiberglass job known by its British pronunciation “Ba-kli”, Americanized to “Bark-ley.” It came to pass that Roland was getting old and wanted to sell the Berkeley so Jeff bought it, for $300 as I recall. It was so unique with its two-stroke air cooled three-cylinder motorcycle engine and front-wheel chain-drive (unheard of in 1968), incredibly small, and fetchingly cute. Oh, and it was fast as hell! We were both completely smitten. Not long after, Jeff was moving on for a new job and needed to sell the car. I couldn’t pass it up. I paid him $250 and drove the car home to our rental duplex where it tucked neatly in the gravel-bedded carport next to our “real car,” a Volkswagen SquareBack.

Photo courtesy James Bornhorst

Eventually, I discovered that this was a rare production model of which very few, if any other at all, still exist. Records show that between October 1957 and March 1959, Berkeley Sports S-E 492 chassis numbering from 1 to 666 were produced in Biggleswade. Of those cars with chassis numbers up to 120, which was produced in April 1958, all had backward slanting door front edges with external hinges and no external door latch. The slant allowed the door to swing slightly upward when opened allowing for easier access. My Berk was chassis number 40, so it is either a late 1957 model or an early 1958. Berkeley could have easily produced 40 cars in the last three months of 1957 so I call mine a ’57. But I have no proof.

The car’s shortcomings soon became apparent. It smoked like a chimney due to the 6:1 gas/oil mixture required by the Excelsior engine. The plugs fouled all the time and there was always an oily smell and mess associated with the car – and, as a result, me. It ran hot and inefficient because its center cylinder never properly cooled. Turns out that Excelsior had taken a relatively good 328cc twin, cut it half, and added the middle jug to boost displacement to 498cc. Unfortunately that cylinder had much less fin area for cooling, plus it was irradiated by the adjacent two!

The biggest problem with it, though, like so many British cars of that era, was the ignition system. The two-stroke high-revving three-cylinder engine required three hot sparks every revolution. At 5,000 RPM, the spark frequency was 250 Hz (4 milliseconds/spark), far too fast for a Lucas coil to recharge and deliver at the time. The Excelsior solution was to pack three independent sets of points with three individual condensers around a cam shaped extension of the crankshaft. Each set of points fired its own individual spark coil which connected to its plug. No distributor necessary. The points assembly occupied an inaccessible spot on the lower passenger side end of the engine accessible only through the wheel well with the tire dismounted. And the points constantly needed adjustment because the phenolic cam followers wore at an alarming rate on the hot crankshaft. To time the engine, the screws holding the single plate mounting all the points had to be loosened and the plate rotated with the No. 2 piston at 11/64” BTDC. A nearly impossible task.

The first improvement I undertook was to design a new ignition system for the engine. New high-voltage power transistors were becoming available as were CD (capacitive discharge) ignition systems. In my spare time, I designed a replacement assembly for the points employing photo diodes and a rotating light shutter to trigger the spark timing. The trigger worked pretty well but the downfall was the CD system needed to jolt the spark coils. Partially due to my lack of design skill and partially due to the state of HV transistors at the time, the CD system never worked.

The Berkeley sans hood on a road trip in 1969.Photo courtesy James Bornhorst

Other problems were to be lived with at the time. I began to use marine two-stroke oil to reduce smoking and ran with the bonnet off in the summer for improved cooling. The leaky rag top and side curtains and lack of any defrost or heater, other than a hole cut through the fire wall, dictated it stay garaged during inclement weather. Not a big sacrifice in Texas, but what did the British do?

On a National Guard weekend drill I was telling stories of the car to some of the other ground pounders and complaining of the problems I was having. One of the guys recommended I just replace the whole engine. He happened to have recently acquired a Kawasaki H1 MACH III 500cc street bike, which was designed by Kawasaki to compete with Honda’s new 750cc transverse four-cylinder four-stroke street bike and would do a quarter mile in 13 seconds. The H1, with its three-cylinder two-stroke half-liter air-cooled engine, should have been a perfect replacement for the Berkeley’s Excelsior. The big plusses were its unique (at the time) oil injection system and a CD ignition system! So no smoke and no fiddling with points. And by the way, the H1 produced 60 horsepower, twice the Excelsior’s 30, with just half of the mass of the old iron Excelsior engine. And it had a five-speed transmission.

The Kawasaki with the BerkeleyPhoto courtesy James Bornhorst

So the guy said he would sell the bike to me cheap. The problem was that the bike was stolen. Well, I thought, no matter. If I stripped the engine out and dumped the bike frame no one could possibly trace it, right? The Berkeley would take on a new life! So we did the deal.

The Kawasaki was an almost perfect fit. I couldn’t believe that even the final drive sprocket lined up perfectly with the Berkeley’s sprocketed rotating differential. The old drive chain was a #40 and was always breaking, but the Kawasaki had a #50 roller chain at about double the strength. I could easily make a new #50 sprocket from a blank on the lathes at the Hydro Lab.

The Kawasaki engine in the Berkeley chassis today. Note the strengthened aluminum substructure.Photo courtesy Geoff Hacker

The rest of the Berkeley’s front-wheel-drive scheme consisted of two telescoping Spicer half shafts driving the front wheels. Each shaft had a simple U-joint at each end. The U-joints and telescoping mechanisms of the drive shafts allowed for suspension movement of the twin A-arms on both sides as well as left-to-right steering motion. The clever differential was bearing-mounted in a fixed cradle with a limited rocking motion allowing for chain tensioning. Simple but effective.

The only complicating issue was (and still is) what to do about an exhaust system. The Berkeley exhaust had a cylindrical collector connected to the cylinder ports that dumped gasses and unburned oil from the end of a small output pipe extending through the engine compartment floor. This was a poor solution because a two-stroke greatly benefits from a tuned exhaust and the massive collector blocked cooling air at the front of the engine. Furthermore, the hot collector itself compounded engine cooling issues. I decided I had to use the Kawasaki individual expansion chambers that came off the bike, but where to put them?

Undeterred and excited to experience the performance boost, I ripped the old Excelsior Talisman triple out of the car and began to fit the Japanese power plant. Other issues needed consideration, though. The Excelsior engine was equipped with a dual-purpose electric generator/starter motor uniquely incapable at both tasks. The generator function was unable to provide enough juice to keep the battery charged if the headlights were on and the starter drained the battery in a flash as you tried to start the car with fouled plugs. On the other hand, the Kawasaki had a great alternator that kept the tiny, by comparison, motorcycle battery topped up under all condition. But the engine had no self-starter. The other issue, motorcycles had no reverse gear back then. Initially, I solved these issues by opening the bonnet and sticking a foot in the engine compartment to kick-start the engine. The reversing issue was solved by just lifting the car from the rear. Parallel parking was a snap.

Kyle Feller demonstrates the Berkeley’s reversing technique.Photo courtesy Geoff Hacker

So the H1 engine was in and mounted to the sheetmetal bottom pan of the Berkeley’s engine compartment. Ignition components were hung on the compartment bulkheads as was the engine oil injector tank. A gear shift was rigged using the Berkeley shifter components through the firewall; one-down, four-up didn’t exactly match the four-inline pattern of the Excelsior, but the shifter worked snappily. The stock Kawasaki clutch cable worked just like the Excelsior’s, as did the throttle cables. They were of course, both motorcycle engines. Fuel lines and electrical support, no problems. It was almost ready to go. Still, what to do about exhaust? The two-stroke would not run right without proper back pressure timing. I finally decided to simply hang the bike’s expansion chambers under the front end of the car, sacrificing the little bit of ground clearance the vehicle had to begin with. The Kawasaki’s curved exhaust tubes exited through the front grill, which worked well with my under mount exhaust scheme and all was well, for the time being.

The first time I started the car with the new engine, it fired right up. The energy of the new power plant was also unmistakable. I eased out of the driveway going forward and immediately dragged the mufflers. Undaunted, I hit the streets and had a thrilling ride, better than I had imagined. The H1 was incredibly responsive and breathtakingly quick when it reached about 4,000 RPM. It literally smoked the tires in second gear. Yahoo! I remember driving it around for a few months, taking care not to bottom out on railroad tracks and the like. It was fun to pull up to a muscle car at a stop light and smoke the front wheels on take off. The exhaust had a wonderful throaty sound that seemed way bigger than the car. But there was a downside.

The Berkeley front end was entirely constructed of .040” aluminum sheetmetal bonded into the fiberglass monocoque body. Remember, Berkeley was a caravan (travel trailer) manufacturer in the first place, so axle weight was critically important. The engine pan was very flexible and the H1 moved around a lot as it produced torque. The front suspension components were literally hung off of the aluminum side bulkheads, which were also very flexible. The suspension A-arms seemed remarkably wispy now. It became immediately apparent that the car needed some significant reinforcement if it were to be truly functional.

My wife’s family lived in Waco and had rental property there. I needed a proper place to work on the car as our exposed gravel-floored carport in Bryan was a miserable place to work. So I drove the car north, pulled into a proper garage my father-in-law graciously provided and began again. My mission was to completely rebuild the front end structure and refit the engine. I had also begun serious research into the design of expansion chambers for two-stroke engines. Then, another distraction. I became aware of a wrecked Berkeley Sport SE 328 that had hit a tree (driver survived, I was told). The owner was willing to give me the car, so what could I say?

Both Berkeleys on the trailerPhoto courtesy James Bornhorst

On our many weekends visiting Waco family, I spent most of my time at that garage working on the two cars. The first task was to remanufacture the front A-arms and their hangers, which I accomplished between weekday study halls in the A&M Hydro Lab shops using their machining tools and welding equipment. Progress was slow and eventually stopped. But my vision remained and was determined to drive that car again. I just needed a better environment to work and needed time. Hopefully graduation and a new job would yield both. Well, it didn’t. I couldn’t find a job as Viet Nam was winding down as the defense industry was shutting down. My wife and I eventually moved to Dallas with the two cars where I could conduct face-to-face job interviews.

Over the next several years, I managed to do some work on the yellow car in slow times, fabricating an aluminum engine cradle and forming front end structures from square structural aluminum tubing in Showco’s shop. The black car moldered. I gave it away to a workmate in 1985 and have no idea what happened to it after that.

The yellow car moved with us from house to house, always under cover with the dream of restoration not far out of mind. The project eventually became slated for retirement years, which came way too soon. At 77 years of age, two things became painfully apparent. One, I was not skilled enough and didn’t have the proper tools to do what rightly needed to be done. Two, I was getting old, and I was never going to finish the car. It was time to find that Berk a new home with someone who would appreciate the forward thinking that came out of Berkeley Coachworks’ design studio in Biggleswade in the mid-1950s.

I would have been satisfied if the car was just cleaned up and added to someone’s collection of dusty hanger queens. But in late November, I was introduced to Kyle Feller, a young and gifted restorer with a focus on small and unusual cars. Perfect!

Kyle now has the car at his St. Louis area shop and has begun work on it. He has committed to restoring not only the Berk, but also the old Kawasaki engine. The H1 was put up years ago with care so hopefully it is salvageable. And speaking of commitments, Kyle is shooting for a first showing in September of this year. He says he will film me driving the Berk again!

This is why I kept that lovely little car all those years.

Who doesn’t love finding an old former racing machine that still has some life inside? Enthusiast Matt Kurek of Mullica Hill, New Jersey was lucky enough to grab a 1972 Plymouth Duster that once lived its life a quarter-mile at a time. “I got a tip from a friend of mine that this car was sitting in a backyard near my house. I figured I’d head out and take a look. I’m happy I did,” states Matt.

Though the car’s racer origins are most prominent, the Duster was born with a solid pedigree. Originally this A-body was a 340/4-speed car with a 3.91 Sure Grip-equipped rear axle. The B3 Basin Street Blue paint is the original paint for the car..

Kurek made the short trip over to the yard in question to find this forlorn Plymouth sitting in the high grass. From the looks of things, the Duster had been there for quite a while. “I took a quick look at it. For what this car had probably gone through over the years, it was still in reasonably good, restorable shape. I mean, it needed work, but it wasn’t a basket case. The paint really grabbed my eye and as you could tell, it had been a racer for at least part of its life.”

The “shark tooth” grille was available for 1971 and 1972 Dusters and is a coveted item. The J54 scoop was a 1971-’72 Dodge Demon item, though finding one on a Duster is pretty common. Note the tow tabs on the front bumper…before everyone had a truck and trailer, the race car was flat-towed!

A quick look-over said that even without the drag racing history, this Duster was something to have. The twin snorkel scoop, an option on the 1971-’72 Dodge Demon, is commonly installed on A-body Mopars to give them a proper muscle car look that separates them from their pedestrian Dart/Valiant origins. Of course, that shark-tooth grille up front, a 1971-’72 option, is something every A-body fanatic wants on their ride. The Duster’s grille appeared to have a dose of body color added to it along the way. However, there was one more modification that really stuck out when Matt checked over the car.

The craziest modification were these light-up “440” callouts on the rear quarter panels. After cutting out the numbers, the previous owner created a light box behind Plexiglas. Hit the switch, light up the numbers, and show everybody what they were up against.

That one customization was the “light up” 440 call-outs on the rear quarters. “This guy went out of his way to let everyone know what he had under the hood. He devised a neat system in the trunk to “light up” his engine call outs.” On the rear haunches of the Duster, the previous owner built lighting fixtures to illuminate the “440” numbers, which he cut out of each quarter panel. Then Plexiglas was mounted in the numbers to finish off the look the owner wanted.

The engine bay of the Duster tells the tale: fender well headers and an engine plate meant for a 440ci big-block application.

Under the hood, there were also remnants of days gone past. “Someone cut out the inner fenders for a set of fenderwell headers, which are still present. The car also had custom-made aluminum engine plates installed to mount the big 440. There is a fuel cooler can still attached to the radiator support up front,” Kurik told us. A set of rusty tow tabs on the bumper and a set of crusty Cragar Super Tricks at the corners give blatant clues to this car’s past drag race history.

A mainstay on drag racing machines in the 1970s, Cragar Super Tricks were some of the lightest wheels you could put on your ride. Don’t confuse them with the SS/T (Street Super Trick) that were DOT-legal…these aluminum classics aren’t.

Matt got some info on the history of the car when he purchased it. “The Duster is an original B3 Basin Street Blue ’72 four-speed 340-motivated ride, built up nice from the factory with a Sure Grip and 3.91 gears. Somewhere down the line, the owner wanted to do some serious drag racing, so the 440 was installed and was backed up by a 727 Torqueflite. It also has subframe connectors and a trunk mounted battery.”

The interior of the Duster was left mostly stock, minus the auxiliary panel for ignition, the fuel pump switches and the fuel pressure gauge, and the line-lock button laying on the carpet. The wide center hump and third pedal are from the car’s stock form as a 340/4-speed junior supercar.

The interior looks pretty much the way it was born, except for the hole made for the automatic shifter that was installed over the years, and an aluminum panel which houses the ignition and fuel pump switches and a gauge to keep track of fuel pressure. The buckets are still there, and the dash isn’t chewed up too bad.

After the powertrain was swapped into another car, the Duster was parked for about thirty years before Matt Kurek was able to purchase the car.

The car was raced at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey and was a street brawler as well for many years. At some point the powertrain was extracted and installed in a Plymouth Road Runner. The Duster was then parked behind the owner’s house for storage. After about thirty years of sitting, Matt made the move to make it his own. Maybe one day, this Duster will make its way back to the street, and who knows, it might have a few good runs left in it!

Bob’s son, Jeff Stange, notified the world of his father’s passing on social media just days after receiving the news. Bob Stange reportedly passed away peacefully in his home in Zionsville, Indiana on Monday May 22^nd. He was 84 years old.

“A life so wonderfully lived deserves to be wonderfully remembered,” Jeff wrote on the Strange Engineering Facebook page. “My father loved this way of life that we choose in the racing community. The racing, the industry, the innovation, and most of all the people who make it all come alive.”

In the post, Jeff mentioned that Bob did not want anyone to fuss over his passing and that he did not want people to feel sorrow. “Please know that when we are able, we will be sharing his memories, his achievements, and the magnitude of influence that he has had on this industry,” he wrote.

Henry Robert “Bob” Stange began his career working for Portland Cement in Skokie, Illinois, after graduating from high school in 1956. It wasn’t long before his supervisors recognized his talents and allowed him to use the building on weekends to pursue his passion of innovating car parts to make vehicles faster and safer.

In 1964, Stange founded Strange Engineering and fully committed himself to the growth of his company. His hard work, innovativeness and charisma led to Strange Engineering becoming one of the most influential and widely-known manufacturing companies in drag racing and in the automotive performance market as a whole. By 2010, Stange was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame.

Alongside living the fast-paced life of building and maintaining his company, Strange Engineering, Bob was also an avid woodworker and cabinetmaker. A true lover of life, he is remembered as a humorous storyteller, an amazing cook and a gracious host to those who had the pleasure of knowing him. Details about an upcoming celebration of life will be announced by the family in the near future. Keep an eye on the Strange Engineering Facebook page for more details.

Thank you for making time in your busy schedule to look at the latest results of the always-exciting Hemmings Auctions. The following is a sample of the broad range of vehicles that have recently crossed our virtual auction block. We saw 64 cars, trucks, and more launch between Sunday, May 28rd and Saturday, June 3rd. Forty-five of them sold, which comes out to a sell-through rate of 70 percent; this figure included 15 post-auction Make Offer listing sales. Check out the latest consignments by subscribing to the daily Hemmings Auctions newsletter.

1984 Excalibur Series IV

Reserve: $57,000

Selling Price: $65,154

Recent Market Range: $49,000-$69,000

By design, Excaliburs don’t appeal to everyone, but those who love them really do. That was evident to the more than 13,000 people watching the auction of this sub-10,000-mile 1984 Series IV Roadster, which eventually sold near the top of its value range after five time extensions. It turned heads in shiny black over re-trimmed red leather (including the rumble seat) with walnut accents, and all of the interior appointments promised to work, including air conditioning and the original stereo. The car’s 305-cu.in. GM V-8 enjoyed recent service, new whitewall tires were recently fitted, and the undercarriage was clean. It having Alice Preston’s approval sealed the deal.

1978 Porsche 911 SC

Reserve: $38,000

Selling Price: $51,975

Recent Market Range: N/A

In the world of late air-cooled 911s, the Slant-Nose gets everyone fired up. This 1978 SC underwent major modifications in its life to become a full soft-top Cabriolet (a body style not offered by the factory until 1983) with a reportedly all-steel Slant-Nose conversion, complete with wide-body fenders and a Turbo-style whale tail spoiler. The badge on the engine cover was fibbing, since the naturally aspirated 172-hp 3.0-liter flat-six remained in place and was said to run without issue. Some small paint chips were noted, but the soft top was recently fitted and the black leather interior appeared fresh too. It didn’t go as fast as it looked, but that didn’t matter to its winning bidder.

1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 396

Reserve: $67,000

Selling Price: $70,875

Recent Market Range: $59,000-$81,000

A mere four bids were all that it took before the virtual hammer fell on this 1970 Chevelle SS 396. It obviously had the right stuff, including the matching numbers that enthusiasts seek; the restored Chevy also had unusual features for a hot performer, including a bench seat and column-shift automatic. Its Cowl Induction-fed 350-hp, 402-cu.in. V-8 was upgraded with aftermarket high-performance parts, but some originals went with the car. No demerits were noted in its white-striped Fathom Blue paint or white vinyl top; the white interior looked equally nice and had add-on gauges, but the horn didn’t work. Minor chassis mods were present, and older tires needed replacement. It sold well.

2004 Audi TT 3.2 quattro

Reserve: $12,000

Selling Price: $15,750

Recent Market Range: $10,400-$16,200

Until the full-tilt, turbocharged five-cylinder RS was unveiled in the model’s second generation, the 3.2 quattro was the Audi TT’s hottest offering. The 247-hp VR6 engine could be mated to a DSG paddle-shift automatic and quattro all-wheel drive, as this example was built, and it promised complete and regular maintenance. While an accident was in the car’s past, only minor issues were mentioned regarding its paint and power-folding roof, and the black-leather interior showed patina and wear commensurate with its circa-72,000 miles. The factory 18-inch wheels were included with the sale, and the TT wore a set of aftermarket 17-inch alloys with older tires. The price represented real value.

1955 Chevrolet Bel Air

Reserve: $24,000

Selling Price: $49,350

Recent Market Range: $22,000-$35,000

The cleanly styled, classic 1955 Chevy Bel Air Sport Coupe is a perennial American favorite for good reason; it offered equal parts looks, comfort, and in V-8 guise, roadability. This Regal Turquoise and India Ivory example had an undated older restoration that appeared to be holding up smartly, since negligible surface rust was noted along with one paint chip and “a couple paint bubbles” were present. The two-tone interior looked comfortable, and flaws divulged included a small section of split vinyl outside of the seating area and a stain in the headliner. Some age was visible underhood, but the 265-cu.in. small-block was believed factory-installed. This car nearly doubled its reserve.

1971 Dodge Challenger

1971 Dodge Challenger

1971 Dodge Challenger

1971 Dodge Challenger

1971 Dodge Challenger

1971 Dodge Challenger

Reserve: $55,000

Selling Price: $57,750

Recent Market Range: $52,000-$79,500

The popularity of today’s reborn Dodge Challenger has inspired fresh love for the original, a muscular coupe that responds well to the restomod treatment. This 1971 Challenger started life with a 318-cu.in. V-8 under a standard hood, but it now sports a fuel-injected 440 under a scooped R/T hood. Its recent Plum Crazy paint looked great with black accents including ’Cuda-style stripes and a trunk spoiler. The TorqueFlite automatic was shifted through the center console that divided the restored black-vinyl interior. Four-wheel discs under alloy wheels set off a clean undercarriage. A/C and power steering weren’t installed, but parts went with the car. This custom coupe got a fair price.

Purchasing a vintage car can carry risks that give second thoughts to even the most seasoned enthusiasts. Those trepidations are amplified when it comes to putting your money down for a classic Corvette.

They’re Chevys, but in a world of their own when it comes to value, maintenance, and the ownership experience. As a Corvette restorer and NCRS judge tells us: “To get the most out of a classic Corvette, you’ve got to be very sure about what you’re getting into.”

In other words, you’ve got to do your homework — especially if you’re buying your first vintage ’Vette. There are plenty of questions to ask the seller about the car’s history and originality, but it’s crucial to get down on your hands and knees to inspect a prospective purchase from top to bottom. It’s the only way you’ll know for sure if the car is exactly as the seller is presented.

That may sound obvious, but far too many people take sellers at their word, only to be disappointed later. In some cases, the seller may have been outright deceitful, but in many instances, a car owner may not know the full story of his or her own vehicle. The Corvette is one of those automotive icons that draws speculators and casual car fans who are more interested in flipping the car or simply having the classic Corvette driving experience for a while. They don’t necessarily know the nuts and bolts of the car.

It’s particularly true when it comes to the C2 or “mid-year” cars from 1963-’67. They’re the classic Sting Ray models, and a thorough inspection is essential to ensure you don’t end up with a fiberglass-wrapped money pit. Frame and/or body repair needs can quickly add up with these cars, and the specialty work involved with making one right can easily surpass its value.

That’s our focus with this story: A C2 inspection that helps even first-time Corvette buyers feel confident about their purchase. In fact, we recently tagged along with a friend on the inspection of a 327-powered 1967 Corvette coupe wearing an older restoration. While he was chatting about the car with the seller, we stuck our camera lenses underneath it to document its condition, which we’ve outlined in the accompanying photos.

The big irony with vintage Corvettes is the assumption that, because of their fiberglass bodies, rust isn’t an issue, when it’s actually the most important factor to consider. The two areas of concern are the frame and the “birdcage” structure that serves as the underlying framework to which the body is attached.

The birdcage structure includes the windshield frame, door hinge pillar, door lock pillar, the underlying framework for the roof, and the rockers. Because most of the birdcage is hidden by the body, it is difficult to discern if there’s a problem, but telltale clues include window moldings that have popped off their mounts and/or won’t sit flush against the window frame. Also: The condition of the radiator core support lower channel is a good indicator. If it’s bad, it’s a good bet the birdcage is, too.

Frame rust is common, too, and much easier to discern during an inspection. It is not necessarily a deal-breaker, though, especially compared to the birdcage. Depending on the extent of frame rust, it can be repaired. It’s not an inexpensive project, but it’s doable. Birdcage rust, on the other hand, should be considered a deal-breaker. It’s not a financially feasible repair project.

Additionally, these Corvette bodies were assembled from many components that were joined with reinforcing lengths of fiberglass known as bonding strips.

They have always been difficult to repair — or, at least, to repair properly.

Over the years, many do-it-yourselfers and inexperienced body shops tackled it in the best ways they could, but the results often manifested in flaws that emerged later. Uneven body gaps and panel flushness are the biggest indicators of less-than-stellar bodywork. It’s true the factory tolerances in the early days were comparatively generous, but Chevrolet actually did pretty well at it, so poor body fit that is readily apparent is a red flag.

Even if the gaps look good, examine the car indoors and under fluorescent lighting, whenever possible. It will reveal flaws or signs of repairs that sunlight masks. Typically, this will show where splices in the fiberglass may have been made, such as where the nose of the car was cut off and another section joined.

Much of the rest of a C2’s inspection follows the guidelines for examining other collector cars, which we’ve applied to the ’67 our friend was interested in purchasing. Notably, we’re not talking about prices or value here — only whether the car’s physical condition lived up to his goal of finding a fair-weather driver and not a project vehicle.

In other words, it was all about not getting stung by a Sting Ray.

One great item that we probably don’t spend enough time talking about is our Repair Service Coupon, which can be found in several Jump-N-Carry jump starters and Light-N-Carry LED work lights. The Repair Service Coupon allows a customer to receive a one-time, fixed-fee repair of their unit after the warranty period has expired, for the amount shown on the coupon.

What’s great about the coupon is that it never expires, doesn’t require the customer to provide a copy of their receipt and it is a no-fault situation where we don’t care the unit no longer works. This makes it pretty easy, actually. So, what do we mean by each of these great features of the coupon?

NEVER EXPIRES

The coupon is valid for as long as the customer possesses the unit that the coupon came with. So, if you had a JNC660 unit you purchased in 2010 and it came with a $60 coupon, we would honor the coupon and repair the unit for $60. We really don’t care how old the unit is. The only caveats are that the vintage of the coupon must match the vintage of the unit and that it is an original coupon (no copies or reproductions allowed).

NO RECEIPT REQUIRED

Since we don’t care how old the unit is, we don’t need to receive a receipt from the customer when they seek service under this program. We simply need the unit, the original coupon and a check/money order for the amount shown on the coupon, along with the address where we should return the unit. It’s that simple.

NO FAULT / NO BLAME

This is a big one. We don’t care why the unit is no longer operable. Many of our coupons state this point in no uncertain terms:

“Use it…abuse it. Heck, run it over with a semi-truck. No problem, we’ll take care of the unit. It doesn’t even have to be assembled. Simply return your [unit] (or all of its parts, properly and safely packaged), along with this coupon and your original sales receipt.”

Again, simple. We won’t shame you for dropping a jump starter off a radiator or driving 4000 miles with your LED work light connected to the bottom of your vehicle. We’ll just fix it.

So, that’s it really. But it is a big deal, especially for the thousands of customers who have utilized their coupons to have their units repaired under the program. So, when you consider your next purchase of a LED work light or jump starter, remember the guys who include a “get out of jail almost free” card with every unit. You may just need it someday.

We talk to vehicle owners every day about the challenges of keeping their car, truck, SUV or van road worthy and reliable, whether that’s via phone, email, blog post, marketplace review or other means. One of the most common topics in those interactions is related to preventive maintenance charging and maintaining of their battery(ies) to be sure that their equipment will start when they need it. For sure, this is a top three most popular topic for us.

Preventive maintenance charging is a great topic and one that we love to talk to customers about. It’s a useful exercise, whether you drive your vehicle every day or only occasionally, as we will get into in a moment. It’s also useful regardless the size of the vehicle or equipment to be serviced. Finally, while it is more critical during periods of extended cold, it is a process that makes sense all year round. There are many ways that it delivers real value to professional technicians and consumer alike, but today we are going to focus on three key benefits for vehicle owners.

The first key benefit is to the general long-term health and longevity of your battery(ies). Regular charging of any lead acid or lithium LiFePO4 starting battery type, using a quality smart charger, is very beneficial for long term battery health. As a battery expert friend of Clore’s has noted on numerous occasions, driving patterns can be quite detrimental to battery health, especially when the vehicle is primarily driven for short trips. This often leads to an undercharge, or excessive discharge, condition, which invites sulfation and battery deterioration.

In addition, the significant amount of electronic drain on the battery in late model vehicles during operation (which largely didn’t exist twenty years ago) also can result in the vehicle’s battery often being short charged, with the same adverse impact as the above scenario. In other words, many factors are working against your battery’s health. Regular charging (every 1-4 months, depending on your specific situation) can go a long way toward negating these impacts, again assuming that you are using a quality charger that features temperature compensation and a battery repair mode.

I cycle through my vehicles every three months, preventive maintenance charging each one, and believe it is the reason why I get as much as a five (plus) year lifespan from my batteries, despite the brutal Kansas City summer heat. Remember – summer heat is especially damaging to your battery’s internal chemistry. Our expert friend, who is even more diligent than I am, has reported even better results over the last ten years, with his PRO-LOGIX charging routine significantly increasing the life of his batteries. This is despite the fact that his family’s primary vehicle usage mode is “short trip” usage, which is the worst for battery health.

The second benefit is related, but worthy of standing on its own as a key point. This one is very simple. Batteries are very expensive these days. Back when Clore was formed in 2001, a decent replacement passenger vehicle battery could be had for $75-$90. As we all know, those days are long gone. A quick survey shows that a quality flooded lead acid battery for a 2019 Toyota Camry will set you back almost $200 and, if you choose an AGM replacement, it will cost much more. So, it is totally worthwhile to invest in a simple process (preventive charging) that could extend the life of your battery one, two, or even three years, depending on several variables.

Separately, worn out or depleted batteries are very taxing on the rest of the system, particularly rotating electrical components like the starter and alternator. The professional literature is awash with articles and case studies highlighting spent alternators that met their demise due to a bad/weak/compromised battery. Keeping your battery well charged and in good health helps to avoid wear and tear on these critical components, which can be expensive to diagnose, repair or replace. If the $200 required to replace your vehicle battery sounds bad, wait until you see the bill for an electrical system overhaul.

Finally, preventive charging and battery maintenance is critical for seasonal use vehicles and the battery(ies) that power them. The absolute worst thing you can do for your seasonal equipment (motorcycles, third cars, wave runners, boats, ATVs, riding mowers, tractors – you name it!) is to let them sit unattended all winter longer. We can’t begin to tell you how seriously bad that is for your battery(ies). Even if they do start your equipment come spring, which is at best a 50/50 proposition, you will have significantly reduced the lifespan of the battery.

Keeping the battery connected to a quality battery maintainer during periods of non-use (whether that occurs for you in winter or any other time of the year) is a much better option. First, it ensures that your equipment will start when you are ready to use it. Second, it is great for your battery and its long-term health. Third, it will save you tons of money over time. We all know that seasonal use “toys” typically involve a lot of batteries. If you could extend your battery replacement cycle by two to three years, the cost savings would be significant. We have a customer who owns a cottage in Michigan who has multiple boats and personal watercraft. Their total battery investment easily exceeds $1000. With regular preventive maintenance charging and off-season maintaining, they have been able to extend the life of their battery fleet by two to three years. That results in a huge savings, not to mention the hassle saved by cycling through their batteries far less over time.

SOLAR PRO-LOGIX PL4020 12V Multi-Bank 2A Smart Battery Charging Station

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Keeping your batteries in good health is what PRO-LOGIX is all about. With advanced features like temperature compensation, battery repair mode, soft start mode (for excessively discharged batteries) and an enhanced maintenance mode, beneficial charging with restoration of reserve capacity is delivered with each unique charging sequence. Whether you need an all-purpose charging solution, like our PL2320, a dedicated maintenance solution, like our PL2140, or a multibank solution to manage several batteries simultaneously, like our PL4050, there is a PRO-LOGIX model for every application need.

Although my son is five years removed from participating in the Boy Scouts, I still assist his troop with issues related to power and battery management. It’s a big troop and they bring lots of scouters to each campout, especially their large summer camp experience in the Ozarks. Often, they have limited access to AC power and face challenges to power the equipment needed to keep 150 scouters and 50+ parents going for 8-9 days.

As I worked with them to determine their power needs for 2023, we kept coming back to the need to charge multiple 12V batteries daily to run everything from laptops and AV equipment to popcorn poppers and smokers. Of course, these discussions also involved their needs related to power inverters (more on this in a future article), but this week’s topic was charging. And, no matter where we started, we always ended up in the same place – the PRO-LOGIX PL4050.

That’s because the PL4050 does many different things and does them very well. This Battery Maintenance Station can charge and maintain four batteries simultaneously, with each battery serviced independently. This is great because it means that a problem battery on one channel cannot adversely impact the other batteries under service. Also, it means that each channel can be programmed for the specific battery type being serviced, whether the battery is a flooded construction (Flooded, Maintenance-Free Flooded, Deep Cycle Flooded, EFB) or and AGM construction (AGM, Spiral Wound, Deep Cycle AGM, Start-Stop AGM).

With 5A per channel power output, it can make quick work of bringing even large batteries to full charge. This is important when, like the above camping example, time on the charger is limited and you need to charge quickly and efficiently. In addition, on this model, channel four provides either 6 or 12 Volt charging and maintaining (the other channels are 12V only). This versatility can make a huge difference if your battery population is made up of widely different batteries.

Lastly, the battery maintenance mode on PRO-LOGIX chargers is enhanced to deliver exceptional long term storage charging, improving battery reserve capacity and extending battery life. This is critical in situations such as the one outlined above. These batteries are used only 40 or so days per year. Keeping them maintained using the PL4050 during periods on non-use will allow the troop to achieve a much longer service life from them than if they weren’t maintained. This saves money in the long term and also ensure that the batteries, when needed, are ready for service.

In this article, we address the features and characteristics that contribute to the design and construction of a quality jump starter. These factors are typically what separates a lasting, powerful unit from one that is likely to result in disappointment. When it comes to jump starter design and construction, many things have changed in the last ten years, but – spoiler alert – much remains the same.

Many More Options

The first thing to note, when it comes to jump starters, is that the product category has expanded massively in the last twelve years, with far more types of jump starters available today than existed in 2010. We can essentially group today’s jump starter market based on the power source deployed, with three primary power sources – lead acid, lithium and ultracapacitor. Lead acid jump starters have the longest history and are characterized by their reliability, simplicity and heavier weight. Lithium jump starters have about a ten year history and are characterized by their high power density (power to weight ratio), the complexity of the electronic envelope required to keep them safe and sensitivity to cold temperatures. Ultracapacitor jump starters are the newest kid on the block and are characterized by their exceptional cold weather performance, extremely long service life and relatively high cost. We will address each of these below, identifying what makes them tick and what to look for when considering each.

It Starts with the Power Source

The heart of a jump starter is its power source. As we like to say, you can have a bad jump starter with a good power source, but you can never have a good jump starter with a bad power source. The power source is the most important contributor to jump starter performance. It impacts everything from the jump starter’s maximum power output, the number of jumps that can be performed per charge, its ability to withstand abuse and the overall service life of the unit. Its importance can’t be overstated, and even though there are more options than there were 10 years ago, its crucial nature remains unchanged.

Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) Jump Starters – This type of jump starter uses an AGM battery. This is a mature technology, with over 30 years of performance history, but as is typical of most things in life, not all AGM batteries are created equal. The honest truth is that, historically, many lead acid jump starters used AGM batteries redeployed from different industries, such as telecom. This was a classic square peg in a round hole situation, resulting in poor performance, early unit failure and low customer satisfaction.

Conversely, our ES Series (Booster PAC) and Clore PROFORMER (Jump-N-Carry) batteries have always been specifically developed to perform vehicle jump starting applications. As a result, they are designed to deliver exceptional power in a quick, concentrated burst. We utilize a high quantity of thin lead plates to increase the total lead plate surface area, which increases the total power of the battery. In addition, our plates contain few impurities, which can sap power and accelerate depletion of the jump starter between charges. Our battery cell construction features enhanced structure to better allow power to flow through the battery quickly and efficiently, enabling more power to be sent to the vehicle without damage to the battery itself. The electrolytic paste in our batteries is a high quality composition that enables more efficient recombination for better discharging (jump starting) and recharging. These enhancements serve a single purpose: deliver the power you need, even in extreme conditions, over and over again.

Where this comes through is in the Cranking Amp ratings referenced for our Booster PAC and Jump-N-Carry models (e.g., JNC660 @ 425 Cranking Amps). A Cranking Amp is an industry defined (BCI) term that means the same thing to everyone and, therefore, should allow a discerning customer the opportunity to properly compare these models from manufacturer to manufacturer. Beware if a unit is not rated in Cranking Amps, it is not a good sign. Peak Amp is a footballed term that could mean literally anything and, as we like to say, “Peak Amps don’t start vehicles.”

Lithium Jump Starters – This type of jump starter uses a lithium battery. That’s the first tricky part. There are many different lithium chemistries out there, so a lithium jump starter power source could be composed of any of a wide variety of lithium variants. The term lithium ion doesn’t really say much, nor does lithium polymer. Any lithium jump starter battery could have these terms slapped on them. Just like AGM batteries, not all lithium batteries are created equal. Although they don’t typically reference this rating system, lithium batteries have C ratings that refer to their ability to quickly or slow discharge and recharge. For jump starting, higher C ratings means more jump starting power. This is particularly critical because lithium batteries are more sensitive to cold temperatures than lead acid batteries. As a result, the C rating becomes that much more important, as higher C batteries of equivalent size can deliver high discharge (jump starting) power. This C rating differentiator can also explain why two lithium units rated to the same capacity, say 20000mAh, could have very different starting capabilities.

In addition to C rating, battery construction plays a key part in unit performance and longevity, just as with lead acid batteries. Jump-N-Carry lithium batteries, like our Clore PROFORMER lead acid batteries, are specifically designed to meet the needs of the jump starting application. They feature high grade paste, robust grid structure and advanced intercell welding to not only achieve high C ratings, but also to enable them to deliver long service life despite the harsh nature of the professional jump starting duty cycle.

Similar to the monkey business seen with Peak Amp ratings for lead acid jump starters, beware of some of the ratings you see attached to lithium jump starters. They are usually undefined and have an undefined level of usefulness for someone seeking to understand them. The reality is that there is no industry standard power ating for this category. Cranking Amps don’t apply, because the Battery Management System (BMS) in most lithium jump starters will not allow them to crank for 30 seconds, which is the basis of the Cranking Amp rating. At Clore Automotive, for any jump starter that cannot be rated in Cranking Amps, we use a Start Assist Amp rating, which is the unit’s current delivery (in amps) for 5 second at 32˚F. You should be looking for this type of defined rating (how long and at what temperature) to allow you to accurately compare competing products.

Ultracapacitor Jump Starters – This type of jump starter uses a set of ultracapacitors (caps). The ultracapacitors are arranged in a way that provides a sufficient level of voltage and current for jump starting, like the cells of a lead acid or lithium battery. Ultracapacitors are capable of providing a very quick burst of power, making them an ideal power source for the jump starting task. Like lead acid batteries and lithium cells, ultracapacitors come in many different grades and levels of robustness, making it important that the caps chosen for jump starters are properly suited to the task that they are being asked to perform.

The caps used in our Jump-N-Carry ultracapacitor driven units feature industrial grade components and a robust construction (they boast a lifecycle of 10,000 recharges), giving them the potential for a very long service life. In addition, the caps used in our JNC units are rated to provide the same power output in almost any temperature, whether you are jump starting in warm temps (70˚F) or very cold temperatures (-20˚F). For users operating in places where it can get very cold, this is a big advantage over even lead acid driven units, which see a degradation of power as the mercury drops. The advantage is even greater over lithium driven units, which are much more sensitive to cold temperatures.

One major disadvantage of cap driven units is that ultracapacitors do not provide a very durable store of power. If you charge the caps, they likely will be fully self-discharged within two weeks. With JNC units, we get around this by pairing the caps with a small lithium cell that has sufficient energy to charge the caps multiple times. This way, if you need to charge the caps on the go, you have the power within the unit to do so.

The Importance of the Power Path

The next most critical aspect of a jump starter, after the quality of the power source itself, is the design and specification of the components that sit between the power source and the disabled vehicle, which we refer to as the power path components. It does us (and the user) no good if great effort is taken to create a robust and powerful power source, but corners are cut when it comes to components such as the output cables and clamps.

Output cables must be sufficiently conductive to deliver the battery’s energy without introducing excessive resistance, which would result in a voltage drop, diminishing the jump starter’s capacity to start the vehicle. The more powerful the power source, the greater the requirement on the output cables. Booster PAC and Jump-N-Carry output cables are specifically mated to each power source to ensure optimal results. They are extremely conductive, flexible in cold temperatures and resistant to vehicle fluids and chemicals.

Like the output cables, battery clamps must facilitate an efficient transfer of power from the jump starter to the vehicle. This comes down to two factors: their conductive capability and their ability to create a proper physical connection to the vehicle, be that a battery post (positive cable) or the vehicle chassis (negative cable). Booster PAC and Jump-N-Carry jump starters feature industrial grade clamps with high tension springs to penetrate battery corrosion. Many units feature our Hot Jaw^TM clamps, which are wired on both sides of the clamp jaw for maximum power transmission to the vehicle. Some models feature our PowerJaw^TM clamps, which kick the rated carrying capacity even higher, making them suitable for the most demanding tasks.

Recharge Convenience

Another critical aspect of jump starter design involves the process of recharging your jump starter. How can this be done? When should it be done? How easy is it to accomplish this task? All of these issues are related and can impact the longevity of your jump starter. Clore Automotive jump starters feature automatic charging, which allows the unit to be connected to an AC power source indefinitely, without concern for overcharging the battery. But it goes father than that. Our lithium units feature numerous charging protections to make charging safer and more efficient. Our ultracapacitor units enable three different charging methods: they can be recharged from a 12V battery through the clamps (even if that battery is dead, as long as it is above 9.5V), they can be directly charged from a 12V power port in a vehicle using an included adapter, and they feature an onboard lithium battery for recharging the caps on the go, as noted above.

Designed for Jump Starting

It sounds redundant, but at Clore Automotive, our jump starters are designed for jump starting. There are competitive products around that perform more functions, whether they incorporate lights, radios, power inverters or other ancillary features. Our focus is on repeatable, reliable, lasting power. Thousands of discussions and interviews with professional technicians, tool dealers, counter staff and others have boiled down to one common theme: give me the power I need to get the job done! So, we have invested most in those aspects of jump starter design and construction that support extreme power delivery, as noted above. When it absolutely has to start, you can rest assured that your Booster PAC or Jump-N-Carry jump starter has what it takes to power you through.

Knight Industries Two Thousand, more commonly known as KITT, was more than David Hasselhoff’s trusty steed when he played the role as Michael Knight, an independent crime fighter in the popular 1982 television series Knight Rider. KITT was a turbo-boosted, bulletproof, self-aware sidekick that could talk, track down rivals and drive itself thanks to its built-in high-tech cybernetic processors.

Word has it that 23 KITT cars were made for the series, but there could have been as many as 25. After the show was axed, all but five cars were destroyed. The lovable character has lived on through the decades in replica form, many of which were built by diehard fans of the show.

1982 Pontiac Trans Am KITT replica listed on Hemmings Classifieds

This KITT replica is a modified 1982 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, the same year as the real Knight Rider movie car. The seller states it is one of the best KITT Knight Rider replica cars in existence. At 40,000 original miles, the car underwent a no-expenses-spared rebuild from the ground up. It has seen only 150 miles since completion.

It may not be self-driving, but the custom 550-horsepower 383 Stroker engine teamed with a 700R4 automatic transmission and an all-new Spohn suspension makes for a thrilling cruising experience. Spoiler alert: The real KITT cars weren’t self-driving, either. During driverless scenes, a stunt person would pilot the car by laying on the floor.

The TVs are original black and white new old stock, the same models used in the series. Each is connected to HD media players, and one doubles as the display for the front camera.

The slew of buttons, switches and light up displays circling the dash and console are an accurate representation of the real KITT car and will take the driver and passengers back to the ‘80s to relive the adventures in the Knight Rider series. Speaking of accurate, according to the seller, the Buttons were left over from the show and purchased as new/old stock.

This KITT replica features an ultra-rare collector’s item: The actual Pilot/Season 1 license plate is mounted on the rear. Original plates from the show can cost between $7,500 to $10,000 depending on the condition and car it was on during filming. Additionally, the clear windshield was brand new leftover stock from the show. The rear taillight was copied directly from an original example, as was the front bumper and fog lights. The seller also points out that the blackout turn signals do not sit flush with the hood line, which is exactly the way the original KITT looked.

The above details only skim the surface of what went into the four-year build. More information can be found here on the Hemmings Classified listing.