1971 1800E Rally
This 1971 1800E has been a street car for most of its life but the new owners have something else in mind: Peking To Paris 2028. Consulting with Phil Singher, and with input from Stein Johnsen, we worked to bring the customers' vision for the car into being. Many thanks to Chapman Style and Speed for fabrication, our anonymous metal/body/paint master, and brilliant assistants Tim Werner and Marc Williams for their tremendously valuable help.
The engine is the original B20E, fitted with a modified F head to bring compression down to around 9:1. Ports and combustion chambers are improved, K grind cam, steel/aluminum timing gears, custom Ross forged pistons, everything carefully balanced. The intention with the engine - as with the car as a whole - isn't high power nor top speed but durability.
Front crossmember is reinforced; suspension bushings are poly in some spots and rubber in others, stock height springs, Bilsteins, 1" front sway bar, Panasports with 205 75 15s. Currently fitted with an M41 transmission, 22 gallon fuel cell, 4 point roll bar, 4 point harnesses and a whole array of rally timers and other fun stuff. Custom made seats with adjustable lumbar supports, lots of sound and heat insulation, dual 9" electric fans on separate relays with manual overrride, Hella H4 headlights with stainless stone guards, Cibie Iode 45 spot and fog lamps on separate circuits.
2" exhaust passes between the skid plate and the floor. Skid plates are the result of 3D scanning of the underside of the car before laser cutting and bending pieces to match - plates are completely flush with one another and their mounting provisions, with access for oil changes; secured to captive nuts welded inside the box sections of the (unibody) chassis. Exhaust and skid plates (and other neat things) courtesy of Chapman Style and Speed.
Initially, our completion target date was based on participation in the 2028 Peking To Paris. In July of 2025, the car was accepted as a late entry into the Badawi Trail to the Last Oasis and our 'maybe a year' timeline became "the car needs to be loaded onto transport in Los Angeles on December 5." Maybe a year became absolutely 4 1/2 months. For the engine builder (not me this time) to work his magic, to rebuild an M41 using two thrashed old transmissions (no time for a T9 conversion), for a whole lot of fabrication, and complete assembly of the car's powertrain, braking system, suspension, fuel system and navigation equipment.
We haven't faced a deadline like this maybe ever. Pretty cool.
The engine is the original B20E, fitted with a modified F head to bring compression down to around 9:1. Ports and combustion chambers are improved, K grind cam, steel/aluminum timing gears, custom Ross forged pistons, everything carefully balanced. The intention with the engine - as with the car as a whole - isn't high power nor top speed but durability.
Front crossmember is reinforced; suspension bushings are poly in some spots and rubber in others, stock height springs, Bilsteins, 1" front sway bar, Panasports with 205 75 15s. Currently fitted with an M41 transmission, 22 gallon fuel cell, 4 point roll bar, 4 point harnesses and a whole array of rally timers and other fun stuff. Custom made seats with adjustable lumbar supports, lots of sound and heat insulation, dual 9" electric fans on separate relays with manual overrride, Hella H4 headlights with stainless stone guards, Cibie Iode 45 spot and fog lamps on separate circuits.
2" exhaust passes between the skid plate and the floor. Skid plates are the result of 3D scanning of the underside of the car before laser cutting and bending pieces to match - plates are completely flush with one another and their mounting provisions, with access for oil changes; secured to captive nuts welded inside the box sections of the (unibody) chassis. Exhaust and skid plates (and other neat things) courtesy of Chapman Style and Speed.
Initially, our completion target date was based on participation in the 2028 Peking To Paris. In July of 2025, the car was accepted as a late entry into the Badawi Trail to the Last Oasis and our 'maybe a year' timeline became "the car needs to be loaded onto transport in Los Angeles on December 5." Maybe a year became absolutely 4 1/2 months. For the engine builder (not me this time) to work his magic, to rebuild an M41 using two thrashed old transmissions (no time for a T9 conversion), for a whole lot of fabrication, and complete assembly of the car's powertrain, braking system, suspension, fuel system and navigation equipment.
We haven't faced a deadline like this maybe ever. Pretty cool.
It begins.
