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It all started in 1997.
We were at Wheels Day at Guildford, where we had a 1984 Z28 Camaro, and we decided it was time for a change.
There were lots of cars to go for, but what to go for?
Eventually, Jan found it…….a ’Vette…..
Luckily we had a friend who wanted the Camaro, so that helped with the haggling over the price.
Eventually we bought it quite cheap as it was a 1980 car, but had been in an accident and repaired with a 1979 front end. It was white with blue leather interior & we loved it and drove it everywhere.
One day we went with some friends to North Weald aerodrome for some street machines drag racing and had a couple of runs, and decided it just had to go faster!
The car next to ours had a high rise manifold for sale and it fitted a small block 350. Had to have it! We bought it and took it home and that was the start of a whole new world…….
We rebuilt the engine; cut a hole in the bonnet; put two 400 Hollies on the top of the high rise and took it out for a drive. Well, it certainly got some looks!!
Next was a paint job. I have a friend, Steve Bradshaw, who used to be a top sprayer. Jan and I went over to Steve’s to sort out when he could start and what colour. I finally decided on yellow and purple. I had seen the paint scheme on a ‘Vette in America, but that had been green and silver.
Everyone thought I was out of my head….
”Yellow and purple!! You’re mad!! Yuck!!”
Well they certainly changed their minds when it came out. I’d fitted a new set of “Raiders Billet 5 Spoke” wheels. (I actually bought them off Tom) and it looked wicked.
We took it racing again at North Weald. After a couple of runs, Jan asked if she could have a go. She had driven it a couple of times, so why not? So Jan took it up the strip. When she came back to the pits, John Price was interviewing for the Men and Motors TV programme. He came over and asked Jan if he could interview her about her run up the strip in the ‘Vette? When he asked “how was it?” she replied” Slightly better than sex, and much longer”!!
This went out on “Men and Motors” about 11 o/c at night and by 11:30 you can imagine the amount of calls I had from “friends”. We still laugh at it now! We have been interviewed with the car three times whilst appearing on “Men and Motors” at different venues.
In August 2003 I flew out to friends in Michigan and to go to the Woodward Cruise.
WOW!.. If you like American cars, and Hot Rods you gotta go on this cruise. Believe me, I have the video proof and newspaper cuttings 8,000 cars and 1,000,000 spectators! The cruise is 15 miles long, and six lanes wide, three each side. It starts in the second week of August, and it’s supposed to be just one day, Saturday. In fact, people start turning up on the Monday and cruise around all week. Wednesday is 'Vette night and my friend Bill has a totally restored 1962 convertible, “body off" 2 year restoration job in bronze with the white flash on the side, and this was my ride for the night. It was brilliant. Every ‘Vette that has been born was out there and we drove around for a couple of hours in heaven. Bill is 60 years old, and decided to pull away from the motel quite quickly through the gears and then….Oh Dear, blue and red lights were reflecting in the chrome windshield surround.
The policeman was quite surprised at Bill’s age and said to him, “We have enough trouble with the youngsters, we don’t want OAPs racing now”. Anyway, he let us off with a wry grin and told Bill to go home & go to bed.
Next Day we went to Ramchargers & I decided to buy a blower!! It had to be done & I had seen a blown ‘Vette the night before and had to have one after talking to the owner for about an hour. I bought it home in a suitcase and it cost me £200 excess baggage, but I’d still saved a lot on the deal.
I went to see Doug Ripley at CC Racing and had a chat about fitting the blower on my engine. Ha Ha, another engine rebuild, new gearbox (a Turbo 400), new shifter and new linelock. I took it home then went racing again. It ran quite well, but I decided it had to go faster still. Back to Doug Ripley at CC Racing and said “Let’s really make this go”. So it was decided to strip out everything from the firewall to the back of the car and put in a tubular chassis. We also put in a 9” Ford back axle with a spool diff (which makes both wheels turn at the same time. It’s like having a one piece back axle, and yes it does judder when you go round corners. A 4-bar link, adjustable shocks, disc brakes on the rear, a 35 spline Strange shaft, new propshaft, new wheels (5x15 front and 15x15 rear) 21” of treaded rubber each side as we run in Street Eliminator. It has to be MOT’d, taxed, insured and fully street legal. New fuel tank and nitrous. It’s probably the only blown and Nitrous’d ‘Vette in England.
So we went racing at Easter with the Street Eliminator class and had a really great time until I blew both head gaskets and melted three pistons. End of game.
Went home and re-built engine no. 3! Bored it out to a 383, fitted a SKAT crank, SKAT H-Beam rods, high volume oil pump, JE blower pistons, Crane blower cam, Crane chrome-moly pushrods, roller rockers, titanium lock stainless steel valves, all balanced. The 6.71 blower id 20% over driven, it has two fuel pumps, one feeding the twin Holly carbs, and one for the nitrous. All the pipes are stainless braided hose and anodised couplers and connectors.
Winston Sewell (also from CC Racing) did all the metal fabrication and electrics, and what a great job Doug and Win have done.
How did it get named “Just Mental” you ask? Well when Doug was building it in his workshop, so many people came through the workshop they couldn’t believe it was street legal and that I was going to drive it on the street and the strip. They all kept coming out with “It’s Just Mental!” and so Andy, (Doug’s sign writer) actually hand painted the logo on the side. The Corvette on the rear of the car is also sign written (looks like a sticker doesn’t it?)
Well we are off to Santa Pod this weekend 15th and 16th October to give it a shakedown. So if you’re not doing anything special, come up to Santa Pod (near Podington, Northampton) Come & see us, don’t be shy, we all love our ‘Vettes and all have a common interest. We also need your support.. I will give you an update next week after the racing.
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