Mopar Euro Nats 2014 [PICS]

[mwggriffiths]

This weekend is the Mopar European Nationals at Santa Pod (Its on on Sunday 27th as well, so if you're not doing anything get down here!)

I'm always looking for ways to improve my photography, so rather than do the normal picture dump I've decided to try and select a few of the most interesting vehicles and do a post within this thread about them, with 10-15 images and some poorly researched words to go with them kind of like a Speedhunters "Spotlight" post. Having said that I might end up doing a picture dump anyway at the end....

Sound good? Let me know what you think! In the mean time here's a Charger staging for the Run What Ya Brung session:




DKW Junior

Willys Pickup

Bentley ContiMental

Thunder Road Plymouth

Pontiac Bonneville

And better late than never, a full picture dump to finish this thread off

[mwggriffiths]

Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_012 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

First up is the little DKW Junior I stumbled upon in the Run What Ya Brung queue:


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_001 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Given that DKW's of any sort aren't exactly common in the UK it could feature in this thread for rarity alone....


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_002 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

... But this car is WAY more interesting than "just" a standard little DKW, because someone has turned it into a Monaro slaying drag car!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_004 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The interior is typical drag car minimalist, with a beefy rollcage making the already small cabin even tighter still. I love the retention of the stock steering wheel and speedo.


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_003 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The truly bonkers stuff happens as you wander 'round to the front of the car!

What's that sticking out of the grill there?


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_005 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Oh its the front of the engine!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_006 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Yup, the crazy French creators of this DKW have tried (and arguably failed) to wedge a V8 under the bonnet of the little Junior!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_007 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_008 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Lifting the bonnet it becomes abundantly clear why the engine is hanging out of where the grill used to be - there is absolutely no space left under there whatsoever!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_009 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

After a few teething issues had been resolved it could be put through its paces on the 'strip


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_010 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The Monaro got the jump on the Junior away from the christmas tree, but within 50m they were level pegging....


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_011 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

... Before the Junior disappeared into the distance leaving the driver of the Monaro slightly confused as to what he'd just seen!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_DKW_20140726-27_013 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Told you these would be poorly researched! If anyone can fill us in on what the engine originates from, or the times they were clocking that'd be great!

[PhoenixCapri]

Excellent idea Matt, this is great for those of us who seem to be lacking in getting to shows! Looking forward to the next few

[ratchart]

Jul 26, 2014 23:27:14 GMT mwggriffiths said:

Told you these would be poorly researched! If anyone can fill us in on what the engine originates from, or the times they were clocking that'd be great!

All the visual clues I can see suggest small block Chevy, but I may be mistaken.

[luckyseven]

Excellent thread so far! I spotted the DKW literally just as we were leaving, so it's nice to see what I missed. Saturday was probably the best day to spend mooching around what was waiting in the fire-up lane... there certainly wasn't much going down the track. Sooooooo many clean-up stoppages made it a very frustrating day. Plus the temperature hit 34 at one point, it was a bit relentless sitting the grandstands waiting for something to happen.

I'm now hoping you're going to do a pic essay on that Ford Hauler... not least because I've an unhealthy amount of love for any vehicle called a "C750 Big Job" In the words of Mek-Quake "Too much talk, not enough BIG JOBS"

[mwggriffiths]

Jul 27, 2014 10:35:16 GMT luckyseven said:

I'm now hoping you're going to do a pic essay on that Ford Hauler... not least because I've an unhealthy amount of love for any vehicle called a "C750 Big Job" In the words of Mek-Quake "Too much talk, not enough BIG JOBS"

No dice on the COE I'm afraid, like a few of the more interesting cars (The DKW and Bentley for example) it disappeared overnight

[mwggriffiths]

Willys Pickup


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_001 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

It was the aged paintwork that first drew me to this Willys


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_002 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

It looks like it was pulled out a Texas paddock after years under the sun, fitted with some massive drag radials then parked in the paddock


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_003 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

But then I started noticing the smaller details like the shiny, original brightwork and I began to realise this wasn't just a simple pantina'd work truck


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_004 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

When I spotted hood scoop and vintage signwriting and it became clear....


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_005 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

This wasn't original patina - every little 'imperfection' and spot of rust has been masterfully airbrushed onto the paint!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_006 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Speaking to the owner the paint is less than a year old.

Even the Willys logo on the tailgate is airbrushed on, not stamped into the panel!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_007 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Don't believe me, have a look at it at an angle!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_008 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Inside is very fresh, clean and simple


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_009 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Then the owner showed the best bit of paintwork on the car: That glove box is painted on! It was so convincing I had to try it myself!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_010 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

So, all show no go?


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_011 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Hardly! It spent much of the weekend in the Run What Ya Bring queue


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_012 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

When it made it to the staging area it revealed the other side of its character - it's a tyre slaying monster!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_013 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

That is mostly thanks to a bored out 440 big block Chrysler engine


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_014 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

I'm reliably informed that equates to ~600 rear wheel horsepower! Sufficient, I'm sure you'll agree! 


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_015 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The biggest issue with the truck is that interior is a tad cramped - you really are hunched over the wheel!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_016 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The best bit about the owner/car pairing however was this: This 600rwhp 40's pickup truck is fully road legal, taxed and tested!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Willys_20140726-27_017 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

It was driven 100 miles to Wheels Day earlier in the year, and apparently the engine is streetable enough, but the owner swore he'd never do that trip again because that interior was so uncomfortable!

[Rusted Pistons]

Excellent pics mate! Got home a couple of hours ago myself - such a good show!

[mylittletony]

love the charger GIF, great idea

[mwggriffiths]

Now, as they say, for something completely different:

Bentley ContiMental

This wasn’t a badge I expected to see at Santa Pod, so it was worthy of further investigation


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_001 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

When you think about it a Continental GT should do pretty well in a ¼ mile drag race – From the factory they came with over 550bhp from a twin turbo W12 put to the ground via all 4 wheels. The biggest thing holding the stock Conti back is the weight – there are houses that weigh less than a Continental GT!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_002 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

As you might have guessed from the last image though the car is heavily modified, with the weight issue thoroughly addressed by the use of carbon fibre for large sections of bodywork. The parachutes aren’t just for show either!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_003 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

This Bentley is a Mikey Thompson murdering mad-man. Obviously it’s no longer 4wd, otherwise it wouldn’t be able to do these epic burnouts, but the engine is pretty special too!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_004 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The most pertinent number on the engine spec sheet is 615. Six hundred and fifteen.


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_005 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Six hundred and fifteen isn’t the number of crank horsepower this thing puts out, or even the rear wheel horsepower - It’s the number of cubic inches the big block Chevy under the carbon front clip displaces! (Just over 10 litres to those who don’t speak Imperial)


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_006 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

I’d have thought a 615CI BBC would have been sufficient to motivate this Beast down the quarter mile, but apparently not because that big block has two huge turbos hanging off it!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_007 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The interior has been sold off to offset some of the cost of the base car (Yup, it’s a real Bentley!) and replaced with yet more carbon fibre. The quality of the build really becomes apparent in the interior – rather than just put some flat sheet together to make a make-shift dash the team at Webster Race Engineering put in the extra effort to producing a dash panel that closely follows the contours of the original part – nice!


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_008 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The extensive weight saving and monster powerplant make this Bentley one of the fastest ways to destroy a set of tyres. Unfortunately for the team it also destroyed what I believe was the transmission after a particularly spectacular staging burnout


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_009 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The failure becomes a bit more understandable when you realise the car was only finished in May, and when you see the dyno graph for the engine....


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_010 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Are you sitting down? This Bentley puts out 3000 crank horse power on an engine dyno


Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bentley_20140726-27_011 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Mental indeed.

The full build is on rodsnsods, you should check it out!

[SmokeEm]

Amazing. Road legal too.

[dbizzle]

Yep, there's a feature on that Bentley in the current Performance VW mag.

[fred]

Hell- some real quality threads of late
this one is up with them - Great stuff

[joem83]

Jul 28, 2014 16:30:38 GMT dbizzle said:

Yep, there's a feature on that Bentley in the current Performance VW mag.

Just popped in to the thread to say the same lol

[thebaron]

Awesome thread .. thanks for putting the effort in.

[mwggriffiths]

“Thunder Road” 1970 Plymouth Road Runner

I’m at it again with the patina! There will be other cars that are shiny soon, but the next couple definitely aren’t and are all the better for it!

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_001 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

This particular car is a ’70 Road Runner given some serious NASCAR vibes by cutting away the front fenders, lowering it and then fitting aggressive Hoosiers and banded steels.

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_002 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The graphics appear authentic to the type of sign writing that could only have come from the USA in the 70’s, but I believe they have been reproduced here in UK by a company called Thunder Road Cars.

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_003 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_004 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Chime in if you have any more information but I’m assuming its some kind of shop demo car?

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_005 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Under the hood it looks more cared for, although this is still no concours car! It’s a car built to be driven

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_006 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

This Road Runner isn’t running a modern engine, nor have they gone overboard messing with the little factory details. That gives the car an honest simplicity that, if anything, adds to the mean stock car vibe

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_007 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The simplicity continues inside. I love a good horizontal speedo!

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_008 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

I think I spotted it in the RWYB queue, but is that what this car is all about? I don’t think so - I reckon it’s built to be driven on the road, and every time you do you’ll park up with a massive smile on your face.

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Thunder_Road_20140726-27_009 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

[penski]

There's a photo of that Plymouth in the dictionary next to the entry for 'purposeful'

*n

[mwggriffiths]

Pontiac Bonneville

I’m not going to say too much about this one because I know nothing about it!

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bonneville_20140726-27_001 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The tail lights suggests it’s a ’68, other than that, who knows!?

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bonneville_20140726-27_002 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

The interior has been nicely tidied, the seats looked mega comfy and the only departure from stock were the extra dials under the dash to keep an eye on the what the engine was up to. Perfect!

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bonneville_20140726-27_003 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bonneville_20140726-27_004 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

It was parked up in the paddock all weekend.

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bonneville_20140726-27_005 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

I think the owner was more interested in seeing all the other cars than hanging around his and/or running it up the strip.

Mopar_Euro_Nats_Bonneville_20140726-27_006 by mwggriffiths, on Flickr

I don’t think the owner realised the amount of attention the car drew - there was always someone around it!

[59impala]

Nice photos! However the last car is a 1968 Pontiac Bonneville, not a Plymouth. Top of the range model, should have either a 400ci or 428ci V8 to propel its hugeness down the highway. Brings back memories (sort of) of the 68 Parisienne I drove some years ago.

[mwggriffiths]

Jul 30, 2014 0:32:34 GMT 59impala said:

Nice photos! However the last car is a 1968 Pontiac Bonneville, not a Plymouth. Top of the range model, should have either a 400ci or 428ci V8 to propel its hugeness down the highway. Brings back memories (sort of) of the 68 Parisienne I drove some years ago.

Doh! I must have Plymouth's the brain from the last post!