I am very happy to say that I am now the proud owner of Tim Werners 1968 Valiant, aka: The Red Brick.

I hit a point in life that I realized I need to be out racing cars rather than watching cars race. I am truly not somebody that likes to sit in a lawn chair at car show all day either. Having raced cars and trucks in various motorsports (circle track, drag & desert racing) it has been to long without something. So I purged all extra projects and excess parts to help spur that decision. That plus attending the Optima races and the Sonoma Historics. Having a fully restored, but bone stock, 68 AMX had me on the fence though. I have owned the AMX since 1988 and it was a somewhat a father and son project. I wanted to put an LS/ 6spd, control freak suspension, cage, etc, etc into it. But a good friend who’s a Ford guy did have a good point that it was too nice and correct to do that too. Having 2 kids also presented a challenge anytime I wanted to take it somewhere and have the kids join me. I was on the fence about what to do with the AMX and in the mean time I was building up my 72 Demon to be a pro touring/ race car.

Then in the A bodies for Sale section was the Red Brick.

I had really wanted to buy this car when Tim put it up for sale originally but I had just bought a house and another car was not an option at that point. Then Scott sold it to Lee a short time later and life went on. So here was my chance again. Lee really wanted to see the car go to somebody who would get it out on a track and race it. So the AMX went up for sale with the sole purpose of buying the Brick. With some mixed emotions the car sold for what I wanted to get for it. Not being sure if it was the right thing to do or not my 9 yr old son reaffirmed the choice. Out of all the cars I have owned he has never been too excited about them, until the Brick. He asked me daily when we were going to pick it up and can he go with me. The AMX left on Friday for its new home in RI and Sunday morning we picked up the Valiant.
Its an amazing car to drive, very quick, very responsive, and has incredible handling.

So whats the future hold?
Optima races at Las Vegas & Fontanta
Hopefully the Spring Fling Speed Festival
Local autocross races in the CAM-T class

I will also be putting the interior back in it and doing a lot of detailing.
New tires, clutch, diff and a trans rebuild are on the short list too.

So I will update this as I go.

Very cool, glad you got it brudda! Fun car eh?

It's the most exciting car I've ever driven. Glad to get it into the hands of someone who will get it out on the track. I just didn't have the time or energy.

Why the trans rebuild? I'm pretty sure it is a fairly new Passon trans. It did jump out of second on me twice, but I figured that was a linkage adjustment.

Awesome! That's why you asked me which events I was planning on going to. Hopefully our paths cross in the future. It will definitely be interesting seeing the Dart side-by-side with the Red Brick as they are very similar in some aspects, but different in others.

Thanks Scott!
YES, its a very fun car to drive. My first drive was the road up to Virginia City, which is very tight and twisty.

Thank you again Lee, I will get it out onto some racetracks for sure! I'm pretty sure its the 2nd gear synchro thats bad. I'll give it a thorough race prep anyways so it would make sense to have the trans gone through during that time,

Mu, yes it will be cool to have them out together. One thing I've noticed is a serious lack of Mopars at most events!

I put this original R0/W0 hood scoop on it once to see how it would look (not very aero but looked cool). It was just sitting on the hood and just happened to have already been painted the same color red.

My last look before sending her down the road

Scott, I plagiarized that second pic for my avatar on Forabodiesonly.com during the time I owned the car. Just removed it yesterday.

Congrats on the new car! It is a very neat car for sure and best of luck with it!
Matt

Thanks matts!

One thing that bugs me is the missing trim and 2 tone reds. I don't plan to paint the car right now, but may do the sides. I found this on the internet and having something similar in mind.

Funny, I had the same sketch saved, I liked it too, it was between that one or the silver one attached here. I think the silver version is my favorite but nothing wrong with either one.

Based on the high speed track runs I made your biggest challenge is aero. The car drives very solid and straight at high speeds but you can really feel the air holding the car back at speeds over 130mph. I'd build a really tight fitting front fascia/air dam combo and fill any areas of the nose that you can to put as much air over the car as possible. Probably add an adjustable deck lid spoiler with height/angle adjust-ability as well.

*Lilcuda, no problem man! Pictures are for sharing

I love that car and will be following its progress!

I may have a spare set of trim, I'll check the barn this weekend

Here's where all the fun happens

Congrats Brent, sorry the AMX had to go but it sounds like you and your son will enjoy this car. Keep me posted.

Thanks Bob. We are all just caretakers of these cars in the long run. Took it out for drive after work for some stress relief! Got the new tires mounted already to go on the other rims. Although i kinda like the Torque Thrust look. Also got some carpet and sound deadener to get the interior cleaned up some soon.

Fresh set of 275 Falkens ready for auto crossing!! I may not do the Optima event in Vegas as its too close to Spring Fling and I'd rather do the Speed Festival. I really like that RO hood scoop...although I need to work on aero in a better way than that right now.

Have you hammered the throttle yet, Brent? Curious what your what your impression of the car is.

No race tires?

Ohh yeah Lee, I've gotten on it a bunch! First gear is almost useless at full throttle unless going downhill. Those Goodyears spin pretty easily. I know what you mean now about there being 2 noticeable peaks in power.
When pushed/ outta shape its very predictable on corrections and steering input. I love how it just goes straight when the tires spin, not sideways like so many other cars I've driven/ owned. Its really hard to put into words how well it handles and drives. You would think with the giant Tbars that it would ride like crap but it doesn't, my 89 Saleen was stiffer but didn't handle anywhere close to as good as the Valiant does. Its quick, with traction & gears I bet it could lay down a pretty impressive time in the 1/4 mile. It is just the most visceral experience of a classic Mopar that I've ever been in.

The tires are for the SCCA CAM T & Optima series rule that dictate a 200 tread wear tire. Full slicks would be fun too if I lived close to a track.

Yep, the powerband is pretty interesting. The first time I rolled into the throttle, I was going downhill in second and thought it wasn't going to spin the tires, then the tach needle went past 4 grand. It did step sideways a bit, but was controllable.

The ride is pretty good. It's because the rear springs aren't very stiff. They are actually 40 plus year old 340 springs. I drove it on several 50 mile round trips and the thing that gets you is the heat and noise, both of which can be addressed with sound deadener/insulation.

Can't wait to see how it does in CAM-T. Keep us posted!

The "It" tire right now are Bridgestone Potenza RE-11. Everyone is running them.

I read about those tires but they don't make them in my size, 275/40/17. I'll probably try some Toyo R1R's once these wear out to compare the two. We'll see how long this set lasts.....

Yeah, 17's are a dying breed as most people are shifting to 18's. Although it's not the best autocross tire (still pretty good) I run the Michellin Super Sport. It handles almost as well as the "it" tires, but still has good street manners to it and it doesn't wear as much just in general.

Finally got some decent weather to get some work done in the garage. I got the wheels and tires swapped around today and was going through some race prep items on the car. Heres some pictures of the suspension & sway bar set up. And one pic from last week during a drive up the mountain. I have a pile of parts to install hopefully the weather stays warmer, after record snow, rain, and cold I'm ready for spring time!

Man, that's a cool view! I've been wanting a picture with my Dart near snow. Lol. I'm not sure if I'm going to make Optima Vegas as I haven't gotten rid of or calmed down the drone. Still working out little bugs. I need to play with the fuel system a little bit.

Have you looked into some Dynamat extreme or something similar (Roadkill mat) to help kill the sound/drone? 2 bulk boxes of Dynamat will do the entire floor pan, sections of the roof, and the inner door skins.

Right after that picture I was coming down the hill and hit a rock the size of a soda can that rolled onto the road. Thought for sure I put a hole in the pan, luckily it hit the skid plate and broke into pieces..it was loud inside! Theres lots of good canyon roads around LA, I grew up 2 blocks from Angeles Crest Highway.

I am looking into it right now. I already have a headliner so I won't be putting some on the roof. Luckily, the doors don't rattle. But I need to do at least the trunk area for the electric fuel pump. Hopefully pulling the carpet back shouldn't be too difficult and allow me to apply some to the floor.

That sucks. Angeles Crest Highway is on my list after I fix some more small issues. I'd like to attempt going through Angeles Forrest and exiting the North side, heading back down through I-15. I also have some beach runs planned.

Luckily, it seems my class next quarter will be Mon/Wed and end by 6pm so I should be able to make it to the Spring Fling Speed Festival. I believe that will be the earliest our paths may cross.

One of my reasons for selling the Valiant was just that - too noisy for me. You know the saying "If it's too loud, you're too old"? Well, I'm too old. I do miss it sometimes, though. I miss the sound and visceral excitement of it at WOT.

Glad to see you're getting to enjoy it, Brent. Keep the pics and updates coming. Have you installed the 3.23s yet? That will make the car way more fun on the street.

I actually liked the gears, yes, you had to throttle it and slip the clutch to leave a stop but you get used to it, hard to beat the rocket ship acceleration getting on the freeway full blast, now THAT was a HOOT!

I haven't put the gears in it yet, although I have a set of 3:91's I may throw in it for fun to see how it runs. Having the trans gone through is the biggest priority, along with buying some more street friendly brake pads and painting the sides (the mis matched doors REALLY bug me). Honestly I haven't got to really do much with it due to the weather. The snow, rain, and cold has been non stop since I bought it.
I did get a backseat, so the cage will get altered at some point soon. I've got till August to have it ready for the Sept Optima event.

Got the new tires and wheels put on. Very noticeable difference from the rock hard & skinnier Goodyears that were on it.

Finally had some good weather so I decided to put the insulation and carpet in it. The bare floors were getting pretty noisy. I tried "Roadkill" insulation, very similar to Dynamat Extreme, but seems a little thinner. Of course it will cut the [censored] out of your fingers all the same. I'm going to get the front spoiler done this week too. Got to get it looking spiffy for the Speed Festival.

I got the interior finished up and finally got it out on the track.
The sound deadening made a huge difference!! Well worth the added weight 25lbs or so. You can carry on a conversation in it while cruising. The carpet just covers it up basically and helps its sleeper status.

I had a blast down at the Spring Fling Speed Festival and I got to check that one off my bucket list! Willow Springs is a fast track. I had more to go a the end of the straight, so 3:23's would have been ideal. It was great to meet everyone and to be part of all the cool cars out on the track. I accomplished my goal of staying out of the dirt, no spins, and having fun!

Next up will be some local autocross races and some needed detailing.

This past Saturday I finished building the front spoiler for the Brick. Not perfect, but good for using a bench vise and angle iron for a brake.
Also took it to a local show which was ok, most people don't get this car or really have any idea of what its capable of. Although an M5 owner found out on the way to the show. The guy in a nice Mid/late 2000's M5, tastefully modded exterior wise, cut in front of my getting on the freeway, his mistake was thinking he'd lose me on the clear 360degree on ramp. I was right on his bumper as we exited the on ramp onto the freeway. Which then turned into dragrace onto the clear freeway straight away, i pulled 3 car lengths on him when he shifted, I hit 4th and watched him disappear!

That's a mean looking little fella. I like it. Good job, and I like the front spoiler. Again, good job.

Thanks Killermopar!

What a super cool fun car! What engine does it have in it?

I'd love to build something like this one day, but I got a thing for fastback A bodies.. (duster or demon)

Thanks! Its a 427, 340 based LA motor.
Heres one of the articles on the engine.
http://www.hotrod.com/articles/mopp-1106-1968-plymouth-valiant-427-engine-swap/

I'm glad to see you're back to working on your RoadRunner.

Sounds like an awesome engine! I am jealous of your car! Enjoy it..

I experienced that last week. I went to the Aliso Viejo Cars & Coffee and the Dart got zero attention... until I started the engine. Then everyone started huddling around my car and my driver's door asking me "Where do you go racing? What engine you have? Blah Blah Blah..." as I was putting on my racing belts and setting my GPS. Then no one gets out of the way when you're trying to leave your spot.

That's too funny!

Is the spoiler rigid? If so, does it come off easily for when you put the car on a trailer?

Don't feel bad about people not getting what the car is about. I had Mopar people walk right by it at a Mopar show. It's not shiny, and it's not a Barracuda, so it doesn't grab most people's attention.

I only wish I had open roads to drive it on when I had it. Way too congested where I live for those sort of shenanigans.

Car is looking good, nice job on the interior, I agree, it needed it!

Apologies for revving an old thread...but that made my morning! Too cool, man. Showing-up BMW M cars has got to be one of driving's greatest pleasures, especially in a car like the Valiant.

Any progress since May?

This car was mentioned in a discussion over on the "corners are best" section and I had to read up. This thing is just too cool for words.