It is tiny, it is yellow, and it is a distinctly classic hatchback. No, it is not a Mini; it is a Honda N600 from the early Seventies. Initially, it got here with a tiny little 600cc-ish kei automotive engine that, on a very good day, underneath ideally suited circumstances, made about 40 complete horsepower.
Beautiful to take a look at; much less beautiful to drive. Perhaps even to the purpose of frustration, relying in your explicit temperament and given degree of persistence on a selected day.
However that is all about to vary on the Cars and Cameras storage. Yearly, they collect a bunch of pals for a problem they very merely name Construct Week. In it, they try to finish a whole insane venture in only one week, working flat out via the entire thing to get it completed. There are breaks, certain; however the hope is that, by assembling a whole crew of consummate DIYers, they’ll get heaps of labor completed in far much less time than it might take with fewer arms on deck.
For 2025, they’ve determined to take this humble little Honda N600 and stuff a special type of Honda engine inside. What engine? It is a CBR1000RR superbike mill. Which suggests, amongst different issues, that it was by no means going to be a straight swap for that dinky little N600 engine. They’re changing it to rear wheel drive, and finding a bunch of issues just like the gasoline tank, radiator, and battery within the former engine bay up entrance to assist stability the load of the completed venture.
In fact, there’s additionally the small concern of the CBR1000RR engine making round 170-ish horsepower. That is greater than 4 occasions the unique horsepower that the N600 was constructed to deal with, they usually’ll be placing the engine within the rear as a substitute of the entrance. So clearly, a bunch of supporting mods should be made so the little kei automotive does not twist itself right into a scrumptious gentle pretzel in movement.
It is a veritable hodgepodge of elements they’re placing collectively right here, together with the rear axle from a Mazda Miata, some suspension bits off a Polaris RZR, and some different issues they pull in to make all of it come collectively. For the reason that donor N600 got here from Texas, it is remarkably rust free for its age, however that does not cease them from needing to slice up the rear to get the engine and suspension to suit the place they should go.
How insane do you assume it will be when this construct is finished? They’re planning to take it to the Virginia Worldwide Raceway go-kart observe for a rip as soon as it is full. Would you wish to drive this factor, or are they out of their minds? Inform us your ideas within the feedback.
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