The Sandy Cranbrook Soap Opera: Episode Six – As The Engine Turns (with video!)

Thanks to Jim Thwaite at Asphault Adventures, Sandy’s seized engine has been set free! It is too early to call the patient cured, but hopes (and pulse rates) are running high. A new head gasket will be applied shortly to facilitate a more complete diagnosis of the patient.

Stay tuned for Episode Seven – With The Turn Of A Key…

 

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Uh oh… Sandy’s Sandy experience was worse than we thought…

Apparently, Murphy continues to ride as an unofficial and unwelcome Third Horseman…

Looks like the engine in the Cranbrook has some…er… small… issues contrary to what was represented by the seller. Friend Jim Thwaite at Asphault Adventures  is showing tremendous ingenuity (and patience) in trying to get thing moving again, but drastic action may be required if the Cranbrook’s “freely turning” engine proves to be anything but…

A couple of possible options being explored:

1. Find a replacement running Flathead 6 engine and swap it in. While the most easily executed backup plan, these engines are not as pervasive as the Slant 6 and finding one could be a bit of a challenge. The team is putting word on the street to its many Mopar fans that such an engine is being sought… perhaps Murphy will look the other way for a moment and one will turn up.
2. Rebuild the existing engine. This option looks costly and complicated, especially as compared to swapping in an identical replacement engine. However, if we can diagnose the exact point of failure, it may be a less-ambitious endeavor.
3. Go Rat Rod-lite and swap in something other than the correct engine. On the plus side, this is potentially inexpensive and comparatively easy, especially since conversion kits for both Mopar and Chevy V8s are readily available. Finding a more contemporary replacement engine shouldn’t be a big deal, and would result in a far peppier Cranbrook than the Chrysler engineers ever intended. (For the record, a Slant 6 is not really a viable swap no matter how much we want it to be. We checked.)
4. Go full-on Rat Rod and do a chassis swap. Friend Jim discovered that there is less than a 0.5″ difference in the wheelbase of the Cranbrook and of a Chevy S10 Extended Cab. While not an the least expensive or or complicated option, it would yield a Cranbrook-looking street rod with plenty of pep, modern brakes and suspension and possibly even air-conditioning. However, the team is just not sure how driving a Chevy in Mopar clothing will sit with the team’s Mopar fans…

Stay tuned!

 

 

 

 

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THOTC-sponsored car show nets 750+ toys and $2,500+ for Toys For Tots!

Georgia Cool Cruisers‘ annual Cruise-In for Toys For Tots at the Galaxy Diner in Atlanta, Georgia was a resounding success! Dozens of interesting and exciting cars, hundreds of attendees, and a huge outpouring of support for a great charity made for an exciting Saturday. The final tally was 762 toys with an estimated value of $10,500 that will find their way to hundreds of needy and deserving children and over $2,500 in cash to help Toys For Tots acquire even more toys and offset the costs of getting those toys into children’s hands.

Many thanks to Georgia Cool Cruisers, Rick and Sharon Ellis, and the many volunteers who made this event happen. Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse is humbled and honored to have played even a small role in it.

Enjoy pictures of some of the great cars that turned out for this spectacular event in the slideshow below.

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Crash’s folly…

 

There is a wrinkle to THOTC’s participation in the 2013 Explore The Shore Rally. The original plan was for Burn to fly down to Atlanta and for Crash and Burn to share the 850 mile drive to the starting line in northern New Jersey. However, this will not be possible due to Burn’s knee injury and surgery earlier in the year. The team’s backup plan was to have Crash fly to Albany and for the team to drive the rally in Burn’s daily driver in the Open class instead of running Dodge in the Banger class.

That backup plan hasn’t been sitting well with the team for a couple of reasons, not the least of which is that the original plan *also* called for Dodge to go home to Albany with Burn and begin a well-deserved restoration.

Crash spent a day getting Dodge ready for the road before the Georgia Cool Cruisers Cruise-In and was pleasantly surprised at how well the car did after sitting for a few months after the last BABE Rally. There are a few small issues — a power steering pump hemorrhaging fluid with every turn of the wheel, a more-gradual-but-equally-concerning disappearance of motor oil and transmission fluid, brake lights that turn themselves on at random when parked, a brake shoe that has gotten a little too snuggly with its drum, and so forth — but nothing that would physically prevent Crash jumping in Dodge and starting to drive north.

And so, with the same reckless abandon and disregard for personal safety and sanity that got Crash and Burn into banger rallying in the first place, Crash will be driving Dodge solo to the starting line. As Crash has now booked a one-way ticket back to Atlanta from Albany for the Monday after the rally, he is committed — and probably should be.

Watch for updates on www.thotc.com as Crash finishes preparations for his folly and strikes out on his Kerouac-esque (sans the drug use, of course) journey up the Eastern seaboard for the wilds of Northern New Jersey!

If you haven’t already, please visit the Pledge page and pledge your support for the two great charities THOTC is supporting in the 2013 Explore The Shore Rally — Hot Rodders Children’s Charity and Toys For Tots.

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It begins… (again!)

From the darkness rises a new flaming beacon for fans of banger/beater/crapcan rallies everywhere — Asphault Adventures!  They have announced their inaguaral event, a one-day trip into the madness that is the state of New Jersey – Explore the Shore 2013! Those who survive will be changed forever. Those who win will become the stuff of legend. And THOTC will be there!

Follow along as we prepare Dodge for a record-setting (for THOTC, anyway) third consecutive rally run on the way to his new home in Burn’s swanky New York garage. Even better, participate in the event! Asphault Adventures is making it easier than ever by offering not only the traditional banger/beater class, but a “Drive What You Bring” open class and a class for motorcycles too! To secure your own ticket into the annals of history, visit the Explore the Shore 2013 event page on Facebook and sign up today!

As always the team will be supporting two eminently worthy charities — Toys for Tots and Hot Rodders Children’s Charity. Please pledge your support today!

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THOTC 2013 BABE Rally Wrap

The 2013 BABE Rally is over… It was a fantastic experience, as always.  The array of crappy old cars (and one crappy old semi-truck) was staggering, Costume Day the most humiliating one yet, and the parking lot parties in the evenings still the stuff of legend. It also was a bittersweet experience as the 2013 BABE Rally was the last BABE Rally ever.

 

Dodge (the team’s beloved 1969 Dodge Dart Custom) had few mechanical problems… A broken oil pressure switch caused an oil leak of massive proportions that caused the car to be temporarily re-christened “The Exxon ValDart.” A weepy power steering pump at the start of the Rally degraded over four days of hard driving and threw a tantrum (and all of its power steering fluid) all over the Night 4 hotel parking lot. Dodge’s  44 year old un-rebuilt suspension proved strangely unsuited for off-roading and the car has developed a marked list to starboard. Best of all, after off-roading also loosened Dodge’s exhaust system in its mounting brackets, an unexpected encounter with a raccoon corpse in the road separated the muffler from the downpipe and necessitated a challenging (and icky) roadside repair. However, Dodge came through the ordeal with flying (albeit sun-faded) colors and is awaiting transport to Burn’s New York garage where a survivor restoration (and potentially a turbo-charger re-fit) await.

Team Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse successfully completed four of the five stages of the Rally, racked up 1,250 miles, and raised $1,328 for two great charities – the Hot Rodders Children’s Charity ($682) and Toys For Tots ($646). (The team was unable to complete the fifth stage of the Rally due to a friend’s medical issues requiring the team to return home early.)

The Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse would like to thank StreetSafari, Misfit Toys, Allpar.Com, North Georgia Mopar Club, Year One, Leverage Corporation, Pathfinder Advisors LLC, our (very patient) families, our friends, and all our fans for all their support on the 2013 BABE Rally and those two great charities. It isn’t just that we couldn’t have done it without you… we *wouldn’t* have done it without you.

Though the BABE Rally is no more, Team Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse remains committed to driving beat-up old Mopars in wacky automotive events to raise money for worthy charities. Have a look at Asphault Adventures (www.asphaultadventures.com) and 24 Hours of Lemons (www.24hoursoflemons.com) for hints about what lies ahead for Crash and Burn and look for more details in the near future.

Thanks so much for coming along for the ride… See you on the road!

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Why THOTC rallies

It is great fun, but it also is an opportunity to raise money for very worthy charities. Clark from our friends at Team Foolswagen reminded us why Toys For Tots and Hot Rodders Children’s Charity (which supports Toys For Tots and many other charities focused on providing for needy children) are so deserving of support.

For those of you who already have pledged your support for those two great charities, thank you. If you have not yet had the chance to do so, please click the Pledge tab at the top of our website and pledge your support too.

Thanks for reading, and see you on the road!

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THOTC 2013 BABE Rally Day 3 Update

Some wrenching on Dodge, the truck, the other truck, and… oh yeah… the *other* truck made for a busy morning. After a quick lunch, the team took Dodge on an unplanned (and ill-advised) little jaunt up and down some gravel and dirt roads and enjoyed a little relaxation by Tannerite. All in all a good day for the team, though Dodge’s power steering pump may require a little attention come morning.

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THOTC take Dodge a little off the beaten path…

True, the 1969 Dodge Dart Custom sedan was not designed for dirt tracking and hill climbing, but the old girl did pretty well with it. Special thanks to Justin (the BABE Rally organizer) for providing the musical cue that accentuates the video.

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THOTC BABE 2013 Night 0 Update

Dodge is in better shape than we thought last night, and certainly in better company.

 

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