http://autoweek.com/article/wait-theres-more/get-ready-next-big-thing-racing-spec-land-yacht (http://autoweek.com/article/wait-theres-more/get-ready-next-big-thing-racing-spec-land-yacht)
QuoteSo, let's get into the basic rules of Spec Land Yacht. Rather than just sticking to a single make/model, the Spec Land Yacht organizers understand that all proper land yachts are more or less the same, and so this series will be open to any 1958-1990 passenger car with a wheelbase of no less than 109 inches and a minimum factory curb weight (3,500 pounds for 1958-69 cars, 3,600 pounds for 1970-1979 cars, and 3,700 pounds for 1980-1990 cars), and that has appeared as a participant in a chase scene in at least one cop show or movie released during the 1970-1989 period. There will be no limits on engines or transmissions (trust me, race organizers don't want to get bogged down in the quagmire of running-gear inspections if they can avoid it), but all cars must have a single functional tailpipe with an inside diameter of no more than 2-3/4" and mufflers that limit maximum noise to 85 decibels.
The reason that competitors won't gain much from modified engines or manual transmissions will be the spec tire of the series: the Douglas Xtra Trac 2 all-season radial, available in great quantity at any of 4,900+ Walmart stores across the country. This skinny, long-wearing tire, with a tread compound as hard as the finest old-growth mahogany, will ensure that each Spec Land Yacht competitor will present a spectacle of iffy traction and exciting squealing noises. Imagine the glorious sight of a trio of Lincoln Continental Mark VIs going three-wide into a corner, Xtra Tracs shrieking!
And just to make things more interesting, Spec Land Yacht's rules will mandate both factory steel wheels and full hubcaps... and if a car loses all four hubcaps, the driver will need to pit and apply a complete set of replacements (at the end of each race session, the wrecker crews will gather up all the hubcaps and the racers will be required to play poker to win them back, using hubcaps as chips). Each race team will need to bring at least a few dozen hubcaps as part of the crew's equipment. - See more at: http://autoweek.com/article/wait-theres-more/get-ready-next-big-thing-racing-spec-land-yacht#sthash.5ZvI9UYd.dpuf (http://autoweek.com/article/wait-theres-more/get-ready-next-big-thing-racing-spec-land-yacht#sthash.5ZvI9UYd.dpuf)
I GOT A FEVER
A FEVER FOR MORE HUBCAPS
GOD SAVE THE LAND YACHTS
- a sporty haiku
Ha! Those Douglas Xtra Tracs have a 420 treadwear rating, which is downright gooey compared to the 620 treadwear rated BFGoodriches that came on my Mustang (which I ran through multiple autocross seasons with).
Quote from: MX793 on December 09, 2014, 04:12:45 PM
Ha! Those Douglas Xtra Tracs have a 420 treadwear rating, which is downright gooey compared to the 620 treadwear rated BFGoodriches that came on my Mustang (which I ran through multiple autocross seasons with).
Those are the cheapest Walmart brand tires you can get. Total junk. Unsafe at any speed.
How many of the enormous land yachts still exist? I thought nearly all of these cars were scrapped decades ago. I'm not really sure you can build a viable racing series around a bunch of increasingly rare cars that haven't been made in over thirty years.
Old beater minivans, however, are a dime a dozen. Nobody wants them, apart from hard-up taxi drivers, so I can envision minivan racing being sustainable for the foreseeable future. Most of them handle just as badly as any 1970s vintage land yacht and there's plenty of room inside for roll cages, fire extinguishers and "success" ballast for the faster entrants so as to even-out the playing field. Top Gear hit the nail on the head with their "Historic People Carrier Championship Series" and I think we should take our inspiration from them......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VJDIeeSdAE (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VJDIeeSdAE)
:lol:
I wonder if I could get the wagon exempted- or even pass it off as a 1990?
Quote from: 12,000 RPM on December 09, 2014, 11:47:26 AM
I GOT A FEVER
A FEVER FOR MORE HUBCAPS
GOD SAVE THE LAND YACHTS
- a sporty haiku
:golfclap:
Quote from: Madman on December 09, 2014, 06:45:11 PM
How many of the enormous land yachts still exist? I thought nearly all of these cars were scrapped decades ago. I'm not really sure you can build a viable racing series around a bunch of increasingly rare cars that haven't been made in over thirty years.
Old beater minivans, however, are a dime a dozen. Nobody wants them, apart from hard-up taxi drivers, so I can envision minivan racing being sustainable for the foreseeable future. Most of them handle just as badly as any 1970s vintage land yacht and there's plenty of room inside for roll cages, fire extinguishers and "success" ballast for the faster entrants so as to even-out the playing field. Top Gear hit the nail on the head with their "Historic People Carrier Championship Series" and I think we should take our inspiration from them......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VJDIeeSdAE (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VJDIeeSdAE)
:lol:
I could get behind this
No 1G Odysseys though. Or Mazda 5s. They would dominate
The historic people movers race is one of my all time favorite Top Gear segments.
My life would be complete with these! :wub: :wub: :wub:
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/1972_Lincoln_Continental_1.jpg)
(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HzTH3l5_3ME/T1WB7x0GaUI/AAAAAAAADTo/bj-UDMQIVf4/s1600/01+1972+Mark+IV.jpg)
(http://static.hothdwallpaper.net/51b6b732d29ee32535.jpg)
(http://www.classiccarstodayonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/1971-Chrysler-New-Yorker-Sept-2013.jpg)
Quote from: cawimmer430 on December 10, 2014, 10:16:32 AM
(http://www.classiccarstodayonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/1971-Chrysler-New-Yorker-Sept-2013.jpg)
Without question Mopar made the best land yachts of the '60s and '70s - that 440 Magnum/Commando + TF727 combo was unbeatable.
Quote from: GoCougs on December 14, 2014, 06:46:43 PM
Without question Mopar made the best land yachts of the '60s and '70s - that 440 Magnum/Commando + TF727 combo was unbeatable.
I like all of the big land yachts from GM, Ford and Chrysler and AMC. The '70s remain my favorite era for automotive styling. '30s, '50s and '60s are great as well.