by Brian Shorey

After having driven the Spider pretty much unchanged for the past 15 - 17 years, this year I made a few significant changes. Some work to the rear suspension, lightened gears and close ratio transmission, lighter late-model starter, lightened flywheel and Porsche pressure plate, custom made seat bottom, and an Autopower race-height roll bar, modified and enhanced with a fore/aft brace. Oh, and new soft compound tires (five-year-old R1’s tend to get a little bit hard).

First, the rear suspension. The updates consisted of the Performatech trunnion bushings, early trailing arms (small bushings), and a rebushed T-Bar. I’d highly recommend the above. I’ve been looking at a competitor’s panyard rod and thinking of doing the same, but the rear is tightened up enough that I don’t think I’ll bother now.

Next, the starter. Some may remember the inquiry on the Digest a while back. It’s from a late model Spider and bolts right into the earlier Spider, as long as you have a 131-tooth ring gear (that means any Spider ’75 and later, I think). The new starter weighs about half what the old one did, and spins quicker. Thanks to Andy Kress for pulling one out of his parts collection and lending it to me on short notice!

As for the transmission, I’m almost speechless (collective raised eyebrows from the Digest - *bs* without words?). Somebody made a comment on the Digest a few months ago that there were no gurus on the Digest. Well, you need to try driving a car with a gearbox built by Tom Sahines! Tom built me a close-ratio

gearbox with lightened gears, and it’s difficult to put into words what a difference it makes. There is no pause to shift into any gear, upshifting or downshifting. The box is silky-smooth and instantaneous. I highly recommend to anybody who is having a box rebuilt to look into having this done. Thanks, Tom, this box is amazing!

Next was the roll bar. We were informed that the helmet height rules were going to be enforced this year (they weren’t), but either way it pays to be safe, and this is something I should have done a long time ago. As Jim Hayes used to say, "What’s you’re head worth?".

We started with an off-the-shelf Autopower race-height bar, and Paul Glynn did some modifications. First, he welded in some 5/8"-thick plate to the rear parcel shelf, the parcel shelf lip (vertical surface), and the sides. The plates were drilled and tapped so that the bar can be removed by one person without getting underneath the car. Paul then modified the bar itself, first adding a horizontal bar behind the driver’s seat and then adding a removable brace from the top of the main hoop to the passenger side floor, right next to the inner rocker. This fore/aft brace makes a noticeable difference in the rigidity of the entire car, more so than the chassis stiffener. But most important, I now have real clearance above the helmet, and feel really protected.

I looked at some aftermarket seats, but couldn’t find any that would lower my butt any more than the stock seat. On the advice of Nick Fonte, and based on some input from Russ Neely, I ended up getting some of that modeling foam from Pegasus Racing, removing the seat bottom cushion, and making my own seat bottom. This was actually pretty easy, and worked well. Basically, the process consists of putting your seat frame into a garbage bag, mixing up the foam, pouring it into the bag as it starts to expand, and then sitting on it to mold it around your body. You can match the contour of your butt, plus you can work in some side bolsters.

After it dries, you can trim and shape it with a hacksaw, utility knife, and rasp. Racers cover it with duct tape to protect it from crumbling; I ended up gluing on a piece of carpet padding and then part of a seat cover, and it doesn’t look bad. I think I bought another half inch to an inch of clearance.

Last, but not least, the flywheel and pressure plate. We got the flywheel and ring gear down to less than 17 lbs. The Porsche pressure plate weighs about half of what the stock one does. After balancing, we bolted it all together and the friction disk would not unclamp. It turned out that there was a .090" difference between the face of the Porsche pressure plate and the stock one, so we turned the mating surface of the flywheel .045" and measured again. Still wouldn’t unclamp, so we took off the other .045" and it worked.

I had gotten a throwout bearing from a supplier that deals in these things, and prior to installation Paul commented that he thought that the radius was wrong and that the throw was wrong also. Sure enough, once installed the lever was almost up against the edge of the hole in the bellhousing, so apart it came once again.

As a side-bar, I’ve found one more reason for installing an electric fan in front of the radiator: Without the fan and shroud between the engine and the radiator, the engine can be tilted back big time - enough to remove all of the bellhousing bolts from underneath the car. We had the tranny in and out about a half dozen times Wednesday and Thursday (just enough to install the slave cylinder), and it was a breeze.

Paul ended up making a throwout bearing by sleeving a stock one and using the mating surface of a real Porsche one. Pretty impressive.

Finally got it all bolted together and we’re out of there at around 6 on Thursday, stopped home to pack, and headed straight for the hotel. The clutch started slipping almost immediately; I adjusted the free play and it helped.

I really like the lightened flywheel - there is noticeably better response and there are no problems starting the car from a standstill. I wish I had never heard of the Porsche pressure plate, however. After spending two track sessions adjusting the clutch master, trying to get the slipping to stop (and still be able to engage/disengage), I adjusted in more than enough free play, started the car in gear, and ran my next session in fourth gear, no shifting. About half way through the session it started to slip! Definitely a problem with the pressure plate.

So, although I put up a valiant fight, for the first time I can remember I lost the Spider Challenge! It surely would have been in jeopardy anyhow, as Jim Scutti had an awesome drive and turned in an impressive 1.07 and change, less than three seconds off the modified 3.0 GTV6 times! Hats off to Jim - I’ll be back next year to challenge him for the crown!

Jonathan Kirshtein, as usual <yawn> turned in the fastest Alfa time - very low 1.05’s. Car and driver both continue to amaze. Team Shoestring is getting close, however.

With all that was going on, I didn’t have a lot of time to pay a lot of attention to the results, but one that I did catch wind of that I think deserves mention was Bob Brady. I think this was his first session on a track (any track), in a GTV running on street tires, and I believe the time was in the 1:08’s. Looks like some natural ability (or some incredible luck!) - it takes most people quite a while to break the 1:10 barrier. Nice driving, Bob!

I also had the good fortune to meet a lot of Digesters. David Tallerico, Ron Ewing (new caretaker for Earnest the Alfetta), Jay Hinton, Megan Caverly, Bob Brady, Tony Brucia, Kevin Murphy, plus the usual cast of characters.

Thanks again to Tom Sahines, Andy Kress, the folks at Glynn Motorsports, Gene Durso (for helping with the final assembly), and all the others that helped with the last minute heroics in getting the Spider together.