I just "discovered" this NG a couple of days ago, and noticed a long ago
thread regarding a Gazelle kit car with a 2.3 liter engine and manual
transmission which had a very low maximum cruising speed--around 50 mph.
The discussion centered on the possibility of changing the final drive
ratio
to require less rpm for a given road speed.
I am curious whether the problem was ever resolved; because that really
looked like exactly the wrong solution for a two reasons:
1) Nothing is geared that low, and kit and custom cars nearly always
have
oversize tires (compared to the donor) which results in a sort of
overdrive--whether you want it or not.
2) It was not uncommon for the early belt driven overhead cam engines
to
advance a tooth or even two on a very hard shift, and that can cause the
symptom described. It would not have been uncommon for a less than
knowledgeable owner of something like a Pinto to have that happen, correct
the ignition timing, and eventually give up on the car which still ran
like
it was old and tired.
It does seem improbable that any of those engines are still running with a
belt old. However, if the present owner never did any serious engine
work,
there is no telling what the previous owner may have done. Possibly even,
very carefully, replaced the belt with the sprockets in exactly the same
(incorrect) relationship!
Just very curious.
Peter
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