The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Our Crappy Race → One of the coolest Lemons cars ever: Chopped V8 Benz!
Here's a BumperCam II shot of the Son Of A Blitzen W124. This car had a 3.5 liter V8 and 4-speed out of an early-70s 350SL, which was pretty cool in itself. But it was the chopped top that really made this car great. At first, we thought we'd have to bust these dudes for cheating, but the car really was a legit 500 dollars in hardware/50 grand in sweat Lemons car. 15th place overall and sounded beautiful. We want more cars like this!
Here's another view, so you can see how good the chop treatment looks on this car.
THat was a great car. The car did well on the track despite its size. I didnt realize it was chopped. I have some video from our rear cam of it chasing us around the track. Ill get it up to youtube by the end of the week. It needs to be editied due to the 10 minutes of yellows when getting every one on the track on Sun.
Very well done chop. It is a good thing you dont penalize for blood and sweat. Great cars can (and will) be built within the rules but the amount of labor and time that goes into them will always make them seem like cheaters.
Very well done chop. It is a good thing you dont penalize for blood and sweat. Great cars can (and will) be built within the rules but the amount of labor and time that goes into them will always make them seem like cheaters.
That's my worry. I'm just finishing a Lexus LS400 that I easily built under budget without selling off a single part (hope to come out ahead after that!).... Loved the Benz! - Looks totally badass.
JThw8 wrote:Very well done chop. It is a good thing you dont penalize for blood and sweat. Great cars can (and will) be built within the rules but the amount of labor and time that goes into them will always make them seem like cheaters.
That's my worry. I'm just finishing a Lexus LS400 that I easily built under budget without selling off a single part (hope to come out ahead after that!).... Loved the Benz! - Looks totally badass.
I think its my worry too, since we are building for events outside Lemons, namely GRM, we are in the GRM mentality which is build the best car you can with the least money. We are working on some very creative grassroots solutions to the problem at hand. The total budget will be kept legal, but I garuntee noone will feel that the car is right for Lemons. But I just feel this car deserves something wild done with it. So its either build the car I want to build and leave Lemons out, which I'd hate to do since they gave us the car, or make it a Lemons banger and feel I've wasted the potential of the vehicle. My team is already on edge with me because Im paranoid about destroying the car in Lemons now. And it wont be the loss of money, it will be the loss of hundreds of man hours in building this thing. Parts are cheap, you just gotta know where to look.
And I personally am soooo looking forward to seeing that Lexus out there!
That's my worry. I'm just finishing a Lexus LS400 that I easily built under budget without selling off a single part (hope to come out ahead after that!)
We totally believe a cheap LS400. We have a harder time believing a Benz V8 with a manual transmission. Hardest of all would be an LS400 with a manual transmission (hint, hint).
Spinnetti wrote:That's my worry. I'm just finishing a Lexus LS400 that I easily built under budget without selling off a single part (hope to come out ahead after that!)
We totally believe a cheap LS400. We have a harder time believing a Benz V8 with a manual transmission. Hardest of all would be an LS400 with a manual transmission (hint, hint).
Yeah, I got the hint 
thing is, how is a manual benz more beliveable!? I sure hope they got some laps! That thing kicked butt. It was faster than me, and this ain't my first rodeo. (we ended up 5th).. must have had other factors or hopefully lots of laps on the benz?....
I was thinking of bringing up the lex to Nelsons for a shakedown cruise on Friday (no cage in it yet) to see if its really lemon worthy (I don't want to be a bottom feeder - I want to contend for the win). I've been posting up all the details of the build on my facebook page.
Now we have to decide of our now leaking/overheating Celica or our unfinished/untried MR2 will be next up for the "official" team... See you at nelsons!
thing is, how is a manual benz more beliveable!? I sure hope they got some laps!
They got no laps. They had obsessive documentation of the 350SL engine/trans donor car, which was a complete basket case with trees growing through it. I've done Project Car Hell on Jalopnik long enough to know that you can get trashed Benz R107s for nothing, and a lot of them have manuals.
You, on the other hand, would need to find a cheap late-model V8 Toyota truck (ever notice how you hardly ever see the word "cheap" right in front of "late-model Toyota truck" unless it's prefaced by "you can't find a"?) to serve as your transmission donor. Or you could claim that Toyota actually built lots of manual-trans LS400s and you found one in the junkyard for $100... but you'd have to be Bill Clinton to get that lie past us. Or you could go ahead and import a 6-speed Soarer tranny from Japan, which ain't gonna fly either.
Spinnetti wrote:thing is, how is a manual benz more beliveable!? I sure hope they got some laps!
They got no laps. They had obsessive documentation of the 350SL engine/trans donor car, which was a complete basket case with trees growing through it. I've done Project Car Hell on Jalopnik long enough to know that you can get trashed Benz R107s for nothing, and a lot of them have manuals.
You, on the other hand, would need to find a cheap late-model V8 Toyota truck (ever notice how you hardly ever see the word "cheap" right in front of "late-model Toyota truck" unless it's prefaced by "you can't find a"?) to serve as your transmission donor. Or you could claim that Toyota actually built lots of manual-trans LS400s and you found one in the junkyard for $100... but you'd have to be Bill Clinton to get that lie past us. Or you could go ahead and import a 6-speed Soarer tranny from Japan, which ain't gonna fly either.
Ah-ha! You are right of course, but you missed one. For years, the Aussies have been using old supra trans's with adapter plates. Would it count that here at work we just happen to have all the parts laying around? Even have a full new sequoia engine/trans lying round the back shop! Back to fairness, I can get the trans for $75 at a local junk yard, and since I'm a former machinist/welder/fabricator with a machine shop in the basement, and a nice tig welder in the garage, I can make the adapter plate, mod some random flywheel etc.. its actually doable with almost no money, just more effort than I want to do right now, and more worried that you guys won't believe me anyway. I mostly did the lex to show it can be done quickly, cheaply and run reasonably well. Once I finish proving that, I'll probably go on to something else unless its also fun to drive.
Just think, if/when the LS400 blows up there can be another "remove the starter from this car" penalty.
the Aussies have been using old supra trans's with adapter plates. Would it count that here at work we just happen to have all the parts laying around?
We don't like the "had it lying around the shop" story very much when the stuff is worth a lot on the open market, so a free Sequoia engine/trans wouldn't really bring smiles to the faces of the Lemons Supreme Court. But a Supra trans with adapter plate would be fine... with us. Maybe not so fine with your competitors, but that's between you, them, and the Curse.
Spinnetti wrote:the Aussies have been using old supra trans's with adapter plates. Would it count that here at work we just happen to have all the parts laying around?
We don't like the "had it lying around the shop" story very much when the stuff is worth a lot on the open market, so a free Sequoia engine/trans wouldn't really bring smiles to the faces of the Lemons Supreme Court. But a Supra trans with adapter plate would be fine... with us. Maybe not so fine with your competitors, but that's between you, them, and the Curse.
Yeah, thus me sticking with the auto trans... though if the benz didn't raise an eyebrow, maybe as a "phase II" idea
that benz was badass. i was laughing right until it dusted me down the back straight. then, not so much.
i wouldn't get too worked up about a manual LS400 unless it was driven like the superkak mustang. then i'd probably care. otherwise i say go for it.
I hear the President of Paraguay will be racing at Lemons Thunderhill in a V12 Mercedes S Class.
Spinnetti wrote:the Aussies have been using old supra trans's with adapter plates. Would it count that here at work we just happen to have all the parts laying around?
We don't like the "had it lying around the shop" story very much when the stuff is worth a lot on the open market, so a free Sequoia engine/trans wouldn't really bring smiles to the faces of the Lemons Supreme Court. But a Supra trans with adapter plate would be fine... with us. Maybe not so fine with your competitors, but that's between you, them, and the Curse.
From what I hear, the curse is dead....... mwaaahhhaaahhhaaa. 
that benz was badass. i was laughing right until it dusted me down the back straight. then, not so much.
i wouldn't get too worked up about a manual LS400 unless it was driven like the superkak mustang. then i'd probably care. otherwise i say go for it.
LOL.... I felt exactly the same about the benz.. way too cool, and fast too. I'll just try it with the auto, and if the handling is ok (should be as its way better designed than strut cars), I'll start scrounging parts to give the benz some competition.
The Benz got through the BS Inspection unscathed because the suspension was convincingly crappy. We pay more attention to suspension stuff than anything else. Those guys work in a Mercedes-Benz shop, yet they somehow resisted the temptation to "find" some high-performance parts "just lying around the shop" and "buy" them for "5 bucks."
If you can resist the same temptation with your LS400, you'll be fine. We might even be willing to believe the adapter-plate/Supra transmission story if you want to put a manual transmission in your car... but the V8 in the Lexus makes 250-300 horses (depending on which one you're using, and before you work your hot-rod tricks on it- yes, yes, I know you'd never do that), i.e. way more than the Benz motor, we know you're an experienced race car builder AND you work on Toyotas for a living, so we're going to be quite inquisitive about the car when it shows up for the BS Inspection.
That said, we like the idea of more big Japanese luxury cars racing at Lemons, just like we like the idea of more big German luxury cars racing at Lemons, so we're totally happy to give zero BS laps to a car that's all sweat/no checkbook.
That Benz was Bad Ass!!! it sounded sweet sliding sideways through T1!
The Benz got through the BS Inspection unscathed because the suspension was convincingly crappy. We pay more attention to suspension stuff than anything else. Those guys work in a Mercedes-Benz shop, yet they somehow resisted the temptation to "find" some high-performance parts "just lying around the shop" and "buy" them for "5 bucks."
If you can resist the same temptation with your LS400, you'll be fine. We might even be willing to believe the adapter-plate/Supra transmission story if you want to put a manual transmission in your car... but the V8 in the Lexus makes 250-300 horses (depending on which one you're using, and before you work your hot-rod tricks on it- yes, yes, I know you'd never do that), i.e. way more than the Benz motor, we know you're an experienced race car builder AND you work on Toyotas for a living, so we're going to be quite inquisitive about the car when it shows up for the BS Inspection.
That said, we like the idea of more big Japanese luxury cars racing at Lemons, just like we like the idea of more big German luxury cars racing at Lemons, so we're totally happy to give zero BS laps to a car that's all sweat/no checkbook.
I'm looking forward to it! Hard to believe I know, but Toyota connection doesn't do a thing for me, and I don't wrench em, I work in computers! As to the motor I didn't so much as pull a spark plug or change the air filter. Seems to run ok, so I'm gonna try it as is (I hope to not regret that). I'm a 4cyl guy and don't know squat about getting power out of these, and it probably doesn't need any more anyway (This is the first gen 250hp one). As to suspension, stock everything, pluse ebay coilovers and junk yard struts (LF is a newer one replacing air suspension - all 4 for $100 from pick and pull). I may try drilling and putting heavier oil in. As light as it is now, it doesn't feel fast, but maybe thats just because of its lame tranny and the fact that its 100hp down on my 1.8l 4cyl Audi street car Probably see you next year with it, mebbe even CMP?
You can see every detail of the build blow by blow with comments on my facebook site for it. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=1 … =645133029 See something questionable? Just ask!
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Our Crappy Race → One of the coolest Lemons cars ever: Chopped V8 Benz!