1967 Honda S800

[bozwell]

if you'r a purist Honda fan the this thread is not for you ;D

i bought this car a while ago now and did drive it for a very short while. even though it had a tuned engine it just didn't have the performance to match the handling. also the engine had a slight knock under load which would not normally be too much of a worry if it were not for the fact the engine would rev to 10,000 rpm.

to cut a long story short. i sold the engine for £1000 even with the noise declared and i have decided to fit a Honda S2000 engine with webers ;D

for those that don't really know what a S800 is , it is a tiny , and i mean tiny, sports car that came in either a Coupe vesion or a Convertible version.

both types had exactly the same chassis so it is quite strong and weighed in at a hefty 780kgs for the size. i'm 6ft2 and can fit in no problem.

if your still not sure how small these cars are then compare it to an early CRX ;D



this is how much shorter it is (they are level at the front)





more pictures







and here it is with the engine and gearbox sitting in place





amazingly i only had to do a minor alteration the the passanger side of the transmission tunnel to get the 'box in and a lot further back.

there is still a lot to do like make the engine mounts, manifolds etc and give the car a full rebuild at the same time

this is a link to a more indepth version of the conversion on the S800 club website

i will update here every so often but at the moment it is a slow process due to the tiny lock up it is in as well as short days and being a little skint.

[ChasR]

Great conversion going on there. Look forward to seeing this finished and I really like the idea of this. I've always liked the charm and idea behind the S800.

Only thing is how much more does an S2000 engine weigh compared to the S800 engine, and how will you contend with the engine running 'backwards' compared to other engines or does the S800 engine run this way or are you using the majority of the S2000 running gear (diff, gearbox etc.)

[bozwell]

the S2000 engine turns clockwise .

the S800 engine turns clockwise.

problem is the S800 gearbox drives the propshaft from the layshaft so the prop turns anticlockwise.

not a problem as i have managed to buy a ready chopped Ford Atlas axle and seperatly a LSD ;D

the Ford axle has been chopped slightly shorter than the S800 axle but this is great as i can get adapters made to change from the Ford four stud to the S800's five stud. this will bring the wheels to the correct position and also means i can use the original Honda wheels or remove the adapters and fit deep dish Ford wheels.

the engine is a fair way back compared to the original engine, infact the front pully of the engine is inline with the centre line of the front wheels so the extra weight will not be a problem ;D

[devilishdesigner]

Fantastic project, I hadn't realised just how small these are!

[grizz]

That is a beauty of a plan, and the S800 is dinky and perfectly formed.

[luckygti]

Wow, amazing project. Didn't realise these came as a coupe, or how small they are! Plans sound awesome, so will be keeping an eye on this one!

[Speedle]

my god thats cool!

[dollywobbler]

Crikey. I adore these. This thing is going to be mental!

[leigh]

I glanced at this earlier but only just read it through - this should be mental when its done man, fair play to you what a great project!

[lotdave]

love the look i remember the white convertable in an old bond film and see that actual car at goodwood last year, you have a great and interesting project on the go so keep us up to date.Will the bonnet shut over lovely engine without alteration?

[bozwell]

Mar 16, 2009 19:37:46 GMT lotdave said:

Will the bonnet shut over lovely engine without alteration?

just got to move the hump over a bit then it will

[Seth]

As said in that modellign thread, this is just superb!

[Colonelk]

you sir are INSANE. That thing is going to be bonkers.

Surprised how easy it appears the block sits in there!!

[reanimation]

Wow never realised how small they were! Cos they have got a bit of an Aston Martin look about em always thought they were bigish

My Dad crashed one of these with my Mom in the 70's before I was born, scary mary blowout sent them over a 50 ft drop or summat. car was abit of a mess but they survived. really must sort those pics now.

Cool car like really cool to see. bike engine and small as hell sports chassis and classic looks, my Dad had good taste if bad luck.

Gonna be a NUTS install no doubt!

[testacorsa]

Wow - i envy you so much!

In my mind the car that is completely true to the recipe "small, fast and good looking" - i love them!
I guess yours will be "small, jetlag fast and good looking" ;D

Good luck with the build - keep the pictures coming ( and uhh - if you have one of the stunning dash and instruments - please post it

[stealthstylz]

I'm lucky to have done mega miles in one of these driving a mates down to southern France for him. I'd love to own one at some point - was great fun. Yours is going to be stupidly quick with 230? bhp.

I love little J cars that make the stuff made in the rest of the world look ancient.

Matt

[bozwell]

seems the car used to have some race history but no one can find it. (the reg number used to be LTV640F)









the only mod on the transmission tunnel to get the gearbox in


S800 gearbox and S2000 gearbox side by side


when i get more time i'm going to turn this brand new old stock engine block into a coffee table



and somehow use these to hold up the glass top


a job for the summer ;D

[bozwell]

bit more stripped out






the front end is fibreglass and very light


the only rot


otherwise everywhere else looks very solid

[bozwell]

thats the engine mounts done











chassis next

[mrzee]

amazing!!!! This car looks sooooooo good, it makes me want one myself