New Addition . . . Needed like a hole in the head!

Scott-Drolet · Post by **Scott-Drolet** » Sat May 08, 2010 7:42 pm

Yeah, I know, it's not a Manx, but it has a place in Dune Buggy History. Now that my son has hit 15, I've been searching for a Burro or Manx that he can pilot on next year's runs. Yesterday, I drove by this and am currently in negotiations. If all goes well, I'll pick this up before the Manx Club Lone Pine rally next week and my quest will have ended. A couple cool things. . Second owner, mostly all original (just needs wheels, seats, and replacing the side bars covered in ghastly orange floaties with the correct shaped ones) and most likely a factory build as it has the "Empi Convertible " designation listed as the manufacturer and model on the title. Also note the '56 oval window era gas tank in the rear bed area.

Here's some advanced photos of my latest addition to the fleet, The Sportster:

BuggyBob · Post by **BuggyBob** » Sat May 08, 2010 11:59 pm

Its a b-a-uety!

FulsGld · Post by **FulsGld** » Sun May 09, 2010 2:56 am

I like it!!!

Scott-Drolet · Post by **Scott-Drolet** » Tue May 11, 2010 12:36 am

Thanks, you guys, for the nice comments.

It's home now and I've had a chance to crawl all over it. Pretty well put together. I can't tell if it's an actual factory built model, except it does have "Empi" on the title as the make. What's a little odd is it wasn't first titled until 1971. If it's not factory, someone did a pretty good job shortening the pan! I'm also not sure the paint is original because there is a red or orange color under the various chips. So, it was probably red at one point it it's life. All the lights and signals work, including the horn. Wipers don't work, but frankly, if they did, it would be the first buggy I owned that had them! It has a 1600 with some small dual solex carberators. Puffs out some smoke at start-up, but purrs after that. Solid shifting and brakes, and very forgiving clutch. It'll be a perfect learning buggy for Jake. It's exactly 11 feet long from exhaust tip to nose, so I should be able to fit both the Burro and this one on a 24 ft. long trailer. Let the search begin:-)

louisb · Post by **louisb** » Tue May 11, 2010 2:52 pm

Looks like a great buy. Not crazy about the color but otherwise it looks great.

--louis

MyBlueBuggy · Post by **MyBlueBuggy** » Tue May 11, 2010 3:13 pm

Nice find Scott!! I say strip it down to bare metal and powder coat it red.

I've got an old issue of Road & Track that has an article on the Sportster. I'll have to drag it out and send you a copy.

Scott-Drolet · Post by **Scott-Drolet** » Wed May 12, 2010 12:07 pm

Thanks a lot Tom, I could really use any info I can get my hands on . . .Not much out there about Sportsters.

I'm trying to resist the urge to completely go through it, although I agree with both you and Louis that the car would look a lot better if the paint was taken back to original. The thing I like about the way it is now is I won't be afraid to use it. Everytime I completely restore a car I tend to shy away from what it was designed to do: drive off road. The way it sits now, I don't worry about a little scratch here and there.