PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin? - Jalopnik Comments

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Tanshanomi — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 10:06:56 EDT

Bantam. Mo useless, mo betta.

Tanshanomi

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

SundaySunday — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 09:16:27 EDT

Which would I rather have? The Devin.
Which one is pure hell? The Bantam.

First, you would have to go through the hell that is the state and/or federal legal system as there are probably 2 or 3 legal actions waiting to happen as the "seller" tries to flip that car. Then, if your successful in suing the "seller" to get posession of the car (because you know he'll try to pull some funny business with you as well), then you're just beginning the hell of making that thing roadworthy.

SundaySunday

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

NovaloadMissesPolar — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 07:03:40 EDT

@IamZardoz: Call me crazy--oh, wait, you just did.
"What's that?"
"It's a Bantam."
"A Phantom?"
"No, a Bantam."
"You mean, like a miniature chicken?"
"Yes. No. Wait, come back--"

NovaloadMissesPolar

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

bozoerrebbe — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 04:31:52 EDT

Hey, I once came close to pulling off the same kind of deal. A radio station near my home had a nice 30' Airstream outfitted as a remote broadcast station / diner. I was close to closing the deal with the station manager who was going to take whatever I offered him just to get it off their lot (like $1,000) and I already started posting on Airstream forums, but he ended up bartering it to the company that painted their tower. The thing was worth about $30K.

bozoerrebbe

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Number_Six — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 04:09:36 EDT

Harumph. Devin. My fellow Jalops have lost the plot on this one.

Number_Six

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

dankicksass — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 03:54:56 EDT

Austin Bantam, 1300 pounds of pure adrenaline. Crank it up to eleven with that beast.

dankicksass

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

IamZardoz — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 23:57:51 EDT

Basically, if you dont pick the Bantam, you are likely insane. Easiest choice ever.

IamZardoz

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

discontinuuity — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 23:57:36 EDT

Early Hemi > anything else

Did anyone else notice the bizarre and scary-looking front suspension on the Bantam? I've seen single transverse leaf-spring suicide axles before (where the axle sits in front of the chassis frame), but never with a single centrally-located coil spring. That thing must roll side-to-side quite a bit when all the rotational inertia of the engine and drivetrain start a-twistin'. Hell indeed.

discontinuuity

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Spasticteapot — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 23:17:27 EDT

Definitely the Devin. With the Bantam, you've got an American engine, and with the massive popularity of all things Mopar, you could likely remove pretty much everything British about it. It's going to be just another old-school hot-rod in the end, and that's neither new nor interesting.

Also, drag racing is silly.

On the other hand, the Devin is a car that will go around corners and, because it looks like a vintage Ferrari, won't make you look like a redneck either. Of course, the car is British through and through, which means that you'll be ordering parts from Liverpool every ten minutes.

Spasticteapot

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Number_Six — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 21:39:07 EDT

It's seem's there's a eppidemmik of shit's in peeple's spelling's and apostrohie's these's day's.

Anyhoo, Anglia. Just so you can say, "a guy told a guy who told me that it'll run a 9.60."

Number_Six

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

something_unique_and_descriptive — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 21:32:03 EDT

I hate you Murilee. The project itself is supposed to be hell, not deciding which one.

I voted Devin, but getting that Bantam registered for street use would be a project so hellish Satan himself would run in fear... especially if you lived in California.

something_unique_and_descriptive

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

thunder — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 21:28:41 EDT

Bantam FTW. I'm thinking as long as you've got the second engine on hand, stretch the frame two feet or so and make a twin-engined Banshee out of it.

thunder

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Nicko — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 20:56:46 EDT

You're screwed either way. You buy the Austin, people are going to think it's a '32 Ford. You buy the Devin, people are going to think it's a '60s Ferrari.

Nicko

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

NovaloadMissesPolar — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 20:39:05 EDT

Devil-Devin--by default. For all the reasons cited, anti-Bantam and anti-Bantam poster.

But dang, when I saw the picture of the Devin, I thought it was carved out of wood. Or maybe a genuine P.O.S. drying in the sun.

NovaloadMissesPolar

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Bernie530 — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 20:37:11 EDT

My grandfathers name was Devlin, so there is my vote!

Bernie530

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

dulcamara — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 19:28:54 EDT

"Looks like a Ferrari"

my ass

dulcamara

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

brandegee — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 19:09:01 EDT

The Devin is actually worth a try. The Bantam? Oh man, that poster's got big brass truck nutz. What does he plan to do, drug the owner, grab his hand and sign the sales slip for him? P-C-H.

brandegee

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

FLB — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 19:06:01 EDT

@Mike the Dog: Same, although some California hot-rodders managed to build them pretty reliably. Dan Gurney drove a Buick-powered, Mickey Thompson-designed rear-engine car at the 1962 Indy 500 and thought the engine was actually pretty good.

FLB

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

ShastaMcNasty — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:58:13 EDT

You know, even though all my preferred forms of motor racing involve turns (preferably in both directions, thanks), I've got to give the nod to the Bantam.

ShastaMcNasty

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

SLR_BlowerMania — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:25:30 EDT

@Mad_Science: ditto

SLR_BlowerMania

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Mad_Science — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:10:59 EDT

"Costly Toy" indeed.

The fee?

You soul!

Bantam.

Mad_Science

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

lascauxcaveman — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:09:03 EDT

The Buick/Devin was the car of the young hero in the book "Drag Strip" that was read to us as one of our storytime books in 4th grade. As it happens, I went to a Catholic school.

I'm sure I don't need to tell you that being read a book called "Drag Strip" (featuring Buick/Devins, supercharged T-buckets and fuelie 'Vettes) read by an 80-year old nun named Sister Marguerite is an unbelievably awesome life experience.

So the Devin, for old times sake.

lascauxcaveman

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there! — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:01:12 EDT

Bantam selling dude is, at least, earnest about what he's aiming to achieve...

Personally, I'd take the hell, give it a proper bonnet to conceal the motor ('s? Dual 392 setup? Oooh, my trousers are twitching), stretch the chassis by 20" and make it into a dual-bench six seater.

A Bona Fide family dragster. I can drive, the rest of the family can flip pancakes.

Altered, no, funny, no, silly, no, stupid car FTW.

Rust-MyEnemy is stll out there!

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Indiana Bento and the lost Temple of Citroens — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:59:37 EDT

I gotta say Devin....just so I can call it the Devin Miles

Indiana Bento and the lost Temple of Citroens

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Mike the Dog — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:58:47 EDT

Gotta go Devin here. It probably wouldn't be much hassle to finish and get running, but that (all-aluminum) Buick V-8 was notorious for cooling issues related to its dry sleeve design (there's a reason they sold it to Rover for a song).

Mike the Dog

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Elhigh — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:57:12 EDT

The helluvitall is the Bantam. A car that may or may not be FUBARed into utter worthlessness, a seller trying to sell a car that is neither his nor entrusted to him to sell, and after all of that, no idea what it's going to set you back.

Give the bastard this: he's got Truck Nutz. He won't try to buy it from the current owner until his top bidder's check clears, and then he's gonna cry poor to the owner until he can carve off a zero or two.

I'm not saying the Bantam ain't Hellish - we know it is. But the seller is an absolute demon. Run. Run like the wind.

Elhigh

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

way_down_east — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:56:31 EDT

Got to be the quarter miler. That's motoring at its finest.

way_down_east

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

badco/LoJ — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:50:31 EDT

The Devin, for the fact that the body looks like it was crudely splashed from an actual Devin.

badco/LoJ

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

graverobber- Two BEER minimum — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:48:55 EDT

I'm going with the Bantam as the Devin body alone is worth some bucks and if you could get your hands on it cheep (pun intended) you turn it easily.
Unfortunately it appears that the Devin owner knows what he's got, and so it will likely eat your wallet whole. It also appears to be only about 4 miles from my office so I could probably squint and see it from here.
The Bantam looks more hellacious, and I don't think will be as valued when finished. Still would make a nice conversation piece in the living room.

graverobber- Two BEER minimum

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

MeMikeYouNot — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:48:46 EDT

Yeah, it looks about as much like a Ferrari as the Fiero did. Maybe that's what it needs!

MeMikeYouNot

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

P161911 — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:41:15 EDT

Pretty sure the Bantam once moved under its own power, probably pretty quickly too. It appears that someone gave up on the Deving 50 YEARS AGO! If it couldn't be made to run then, imagine the fun now. tough call, but I'm going with the Devin.

P161911

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Vintage Racer — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:39:40 EDT

and the name on the Bantam sure looks like truth in advertising.....

Vintage Racer

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

DrJeffie — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:39:30 EDT

I need the Hemi's

DrJeffie

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Tomsk — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:38:44 EDT

Near-as-damn-undriveable altereds for the win.

Tomsk

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Schm is not particularly sure what he is ranting about. . . — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:38:24 EDT

"Looks Like a Ferrari!!!"

Well, good enough for me! Ill ride anything that looks like a Ferrari, and is as expensive to repair as a ferrari staright to Project Car Hell!

Schm is not particularly sure what he is ranting about. . .

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

Vintage Racer — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:38:15 EDT

The great thing about the Devin is that you can put just
about anything in them. And when they're done, they are stupid fast, handle really well, eligible for just about any vintage grid, and fairly cheap.

Vintage Racer

PCH, Priceless Race Car Edition: Hemi Bantam or Buick Devin?

danio3834 — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 17:35:33 EDT

The Austin is just too cool. I want that.

danio3834