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MAIN
FRAME:
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The
center body section of the HydroCar is built around a space frame and
roll bar constructed completely from 304 stainless steel.
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SPONSON
FRAMES:
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The
articulating sponsons, which become the vehicle’s fenders while in
land mode, have frames fabricated entirely from 6061 aluminum.
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OUTER
SKIN:
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Both
the center body section as well as the side sponsons are covered with
a 5086 marine-grade aluminum skin. The wall thickness is .125".
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The
front wing as well as the roof mounted wing and air scoop are also
fabricated from 5086 marine-grade aluminum with a wall thickness of
.090".
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The
auxiliary sponsons are constructed of .125" wall thickness 5052
aluminum and are braced with aluminum bulkheads for added strength.
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FLOATATION
FOAM:
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The
center body section has closed-cell urethane foam added to many open
areas within the wheel wells to aid in the floatation of the craft.
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The
articulating sponsons are filled with marine-grade cavity-filling foam
from RHH.
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The
auxiliary sponsons are filled with closed-cell urethane foam that can
easily be removed or installed to change the floatation
characteristics of the craft.
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ENGINE:
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The
HydroCar produces power from a fully dyno-tuned World/Merlin
all-aluminum roller-cammed 572 cubic inch Chevrolet engine, producing
762 Horsepower @ 5,800 rpm and 712 Pounds of Torque @ 4,200 rpm.
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ENGINE
COMPONENTS:
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A
16" x 3" K&N high-flow air filter supplies the
carburetor with adequate air flow.
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A
single AED 1050cfm "Pro-Street" Dominator carburetor feeds
the engine.
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The
intake manifold and valve covers have a show-quality polished finish.
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The
crankshaft is a 4340 forged Eagle unit.
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The
connecting rods are Eagle H-beam 4340 with L-9 bolts.
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The
pistons are Mahle-coated by Manley.
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The
piston rings are by Total-Seal.
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The
bearings are Clevite H-bearings.
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The
camshaft is a Comp Cams hydraulic-roller with .647 lift on the intake
and exhaust.
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The
valves are Manley Race-Masters. The intake is 2.300" and the
exhaust is 1.880".
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The
rocker arms are made by Scorpion.
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The
oil pump is a high-volume unit made by Melling.
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The
Moroso oil pan is a high-capacity design.
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ENGINE
ELECTRONICS:
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The
distributor is an MSD billet marine unit.
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The
ignition controller is an MSD 7-ML-2 Pro Race Marine unit.
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The
ignition coil is an MSD HVC-2 unit.
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The
charging system comprises of an MSD 5111 APS 160-amp one-wire
alternator.
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The
starter is a 3-horsepower high-torque MSD 5095 unit.
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The
main battery is an Optima D31T with 900 cold-cranking amps.
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The
auxiliary battery is a Bosch 78/77B with 770 cold-cranking amps.
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ENGINE
COOLING:
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The
all-aluminum, multi-core Afco radiator measures 18.5" x
35.5" x 6" and is mounted in the front compartment.
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The
radiator transfer tubes tie into two of the main stainless steel frame
rails, running from the front compartment to the engine compartment.
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The
radiator has a custom made shroud with dual 16" diameter electric
fans.
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Under
the engine there is an auxiliary coolant tank, which contains an
additional three gallons of coolant to increase the overall coolant
capacity.
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Below
the craft there is a completely enclosed, 3 gallon, 16 tube,
all-aluminum keel cooler, so the HydroCar will never have an
overheating problem.
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A
Derale 15820 8-pass oil cooler complete with a 10" cooling fan
aids in the cooling.
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EXHAUST
SYSTEM:
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The
exhaust begins with JBA large-tube stainless steel headers and a
titanium coating.
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There
are dual 3" stainless steel exhaust tubes – outfitted with two
expansion bellows on each side, covered their full length in exhaust
wrapping by Thermal-Tec.
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Dual
Supertrapp 3" stainless steel racing mufflers keep the sound
level to a legal limit.
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TRANSMISSION:
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The
power is transmitted through a fully manual Quadzilla 4L80-E 4-Speed
racing automatic transmission specifically built for the HydroCar by
Performance Automotive & Transmission Center.
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A
Derale 13720 8-pass transmission cooler complete with a 10"
cooling fan helps to cool the transmission fluid.
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A
B&M Magnum Grip Street Bandit shifts the transmission.
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TRANSFER
CASE:
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Behind
the transmission is an Atlas fully gear-driven transfer case splitting
the power to the front wheels for LAND MODE or to the prop in WATER
MODE.
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Levers
up front also let the driver select both front and rear driveshafts
simultaneously during launchings or landings to make entering or
exiting the water much easier. The low-range ratio is 3.0:1.
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AXLES:
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The
front axle is a Currie Enterprises RockJock all-aluminum Dana 60 with
a 3.54 ratio. It houses a Dana limited-slip, heavy-duty shafts steel
and aluminum one-ton F-350 Ford style axle hubs with six half-inch
studs on a 6.5" bolt circle for the wheels.
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The
rear axle is a straight type with an open center for propshaft
clearance. It is also equipped with one-ton axle hubs and six
half-inch studs on a 6.5" bolt circle for the wheels.
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DRIVESHAFTS:
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The
custom-made three-piece 3" FleetPride driveshaft, powering the
front axle, features heavy-wall construction and 1350 series U-joints
for strength. There are also three pillow-block supports, which help
to keep everything aligned properly.
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The
rear propshaft is also a custom-made 3" FleetPride unit, powering
the Arneson Surface Drive. The propshaft uses 1410 series U-joints.
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SUSPENSION:
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Both
the front and rear axles are supported by three Firestone Ride-Rite
air bags on the top for suspension in LAND MODE and two air bags on
the bottoms to raise them in WATER MODE.
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Stainless
steel 4-links and stainless steel panhard rods locate both axles.
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There
are two Sensa-Trac shocks at each corner of the vehicle, yielding a
total of eight.
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WHEELS
AND TIRES:
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The
wheels are Alcoa forged, polished aluminum 17" x 8" rims
with eight round holes.
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The
tires are P265/70R17 Michelin LTX Mud and Snows.
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BRAKES:
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The
brakes are Stainless Steel Brake Corporation’s Elite aluminum
4-piston calipers clamping onto plated and vented rotors on all four
corners.
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There
is one cable-actuated auxiliary driveshaft brake for the front axle.
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There
is one cable-actuated auxiliary propshaft brake for the prop.
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The
brake lines and brake line fittings are all stainless steel from
Classic Tube.
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There
is an auxiliary brake vacuum pump by SSBC, to make sure there is
always plenty of vacuum in the braking system, even when the car
isn’t running.
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FOUR-WHEEL
STEERING ON LAND:
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The
steering operates through a single Flaming River stainless steel tilt
column, with a heavy-duty chain drive engaging two Superwinch locking
hubs, mounted below the dash, enabling the driver to select the front
axle steering, the rear marine drive steering or both at the same time
for launching and landing.
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The
steering box is a Flaming River manual unit for the front axle.
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The
rear axle utilizes an electric actuator for the rear steering. The
front and rear axles may be turned independently of each other, so
they can be used to either decrease the turning radius or
‘crabwalk’ the HydroCar to either side. (It’s great for parallel
parking.)
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WATER
PROPULSION:
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The
‘750-Horsepower-Upgraded’ version of the ASD-6 Arneson Surface
Drive, from Twin Disc is equipped with a 1.56 ratio gear-drive for
reliability.
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The
Rollo 6-blade, stainless steel propeller measures 17.5" Diameter
with a 22.5" Pitch.
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TRIM:
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The
trim pump is a 12-volt electric/hydraulic Parker unit delivering the
fluid through high-pressure stainless steel braided lines to the trim
cylinder.
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An
extra long trim cylinder was custom fabricated by Nu-Way Hydraulics to
enable the Arneson Surface Drive to be raised adequately for driving
on the street.
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MARINE
STEERING:
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An
engine driven March compact power steering pump and remote reservoir,
powers a Char-Lynn hydraulic helm unit for effortless steering on
the water.
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The
fluid transfer is handled through Parker and high-pressure stainless
steel braided lines to the steering cylinder.
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INSTRUMENTATION:
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There
are twenty-five VDO Cockpit instruments on the dash.
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The
three instruments over the steering wheel include a programmable
speedometer for the land, a tachometer and a pitot speedometer for the
water.
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Other
VDO instruments include, oil press, oil temp, water temp, trans temp,
engine vacuum, brake vacuum, voltmeter, ammeter, left fuel level,
right fuel level, rear axle steering angle, Arneson Surface Drive trim
angle.
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In
addition, there are ten air pressure monitors, including the main air
pressure, regulated air pressure, sponsons up air pressure, sponsons
down air pressure, axles down air pressure axles up air pressure,
auxiliary front axle air pressure, auxiliary rear axle air pressure,
sponson doors open air pressure and sponsons closed air pressure.
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CONTROLS:
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Below
the instruments are the three levers that control the sponsons, (up
and down) the axles, (up and down) and the wheel well doors, (open and
closed).
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There
are forty-five Oslo Controls and switches to activate all of the
systems.
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There
are 16 LED indicators for the sponson doors, so the driver can be sure
that they are fully opened or fully closed.
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The
steering wheel is a Flaming River 13.8" Revolution.
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There
are two Superwinch locking hubs under the center of the dash to select
the steering between the front axle, the marine drive, or both.
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A
B&M Magnum Grip Street Bandit shifts the transmission.
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There
is a horn button for the electric horn and a lever for the air horns
under the dash.
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LIGHTING:
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The
headlights are hidden. They are raised and lowered with the touch of a
button located inside the cockpit.
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The
headlights are Hella Xenon Blue bulbs.
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The
taillights have double sockets in each position, so there are a total
of twelve bulbs in the rear assemblies. These include four amber turn
signals, four red stop lights and four white reverse lights.
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There
are no side marker lights.
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The
radiator compartment has two lights.
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The
front suspension compartment has four lights.
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The
passenger compartment has two lights.
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The
engine compartment has six larger lights.
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The
rear suspension compartment has four lights.
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There
are also three Navigation lights – Red on the Port side, Green on
the Starboard side and a Clear one for the Stern light.
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SAFETY:
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The
Superwinch locking hubs that are used to engage the steering shafts
are safety-rated for a 1-Ton truck axle, so there is no chance of
failure.
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Every
piece of glass on the HydroCar is PGW Solex laminated glass for added
comfort and safety.
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The
car is equipped with Deist 4-Way seat and shoulder harnesses on both
seats.
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There
are two fire extinguishers mounted in the cockpit, behind the seats.
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There
are two safety latches on each door, the hood and the rear deck hatch.
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There
are two stainless steel safety pins in the front of the rear deck to
make sure it doesn’t open at the wrong time.
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