The Frog - Out Of Hibernation
 
     

 

For those of you who do not know "The Frog" is a street strip beetle that evolved through the mid to late 1980's under the guidance of Keith Poole, Mark Poole and Toby Smail. The car is based on a 1963 Beetle with many weight reduction tricks and a "killer donk", which is my favourite part of the car.

 

On the 21st of October 2001 due to unfortunate circumstances many of the vehicles in the Poole Collection came up for auction. After a week of looking at photographs on the Internet, two inspections and a series of firm nudges in my fathers side during the auction, to keep him bidding. The Frog was mine although I still had to sell my red '69 beetle to pay for it and the rest was history.

I was uncertain about the history of the car but was kindly informed of its impressive history by many people including: Toby Smail (builder/driver) and Richard Newbury. The tales of awesome performances against V8's and the like, interested me greatly.

The next step was to begin the process of getting the beetle back on the track and to fly the VW flag high and proud. After much time sitting around one of the Weber IDAs locked up, so they were both sent off with Darren Bryant for a full recon. At the same time the motor came out for a check over.

 

In the fastidious hands of Alf Kamilow (performance VW and Autocraft expert) the motor was dismantled with extremely pleasing results. It was discovered that not only was everything in excellent condition, some items were bigger and better than expected. This news came as a great relief as rumours had circulated about the state of the motor and gearbox (I found out later that the gearbox was OK too). While the motor was apart a few alterations were made; case shuffle pinned, some more port and combustion chamber massaging and the addition of Berg 160,000 PSI pushrods along with new Shadack oil pump. The exhaust was sent off to get ceramic coated (mainly to promote a longer life), a new Holley blue, Moroso lineloc, EMPI gear shifter, and second-hand Nardi steering wheel were all added to the equation. After a long period of spending the majority of my Austudy and weekly ice-cream wage (I have a very understanding girlfriend), it became somewhat disheartening (all spending with no immediate reward). However, once Mark Strybos and I had the motor in, five seconds of life dismissed any regret. Hearing the 2332cc roar into life first pop made it all worthwhile. Not to mention test driving (at the dismay of my father) - the sound of twin IDAs, steel on steel straight-cut cam gear and straightcut close ratio third and fourth gearbox….. yep I was in love (again I have a very understanding girlfriend).

With a street meet (drag meeting) the following weekend I wanted to give the motor a little more run time not under race conditions. So late that Friday night I forced my father and reluctant brother to help me trailer the car to the back blocks of Wingfield (I guess it was more of an excuse to get to drive the car). That Street meet I had four runs all of which were very gentle: giving the motor a little more run time and not wishing to break anything for the 4,6 & Rotary Nationals the next week. It took a while to get used to the car and the AIR drag experience, but this was made much easier by the help and guidance of Michael Clarke.

  
 

The 4,6 & Rotary Nationals was my second time out at the drags. The day began with brake woes as we loaded the Frog onto the trailer. Thankfully the woes were alleviated by the Debiasi's and Richard Newbury The race day was long and eventful with many rotaries pulling huge wheelies and sliding all over the track and me finding quite a large breather problem. The engine didn't run any different it just looked like sh**, going down the track with a cloud of smoke (this was later rectified with a standard breather and oil catchment setup). My times on the day (high 13s) again reflected not being used to the car and traction problems, the replica BRMs with brand new BF Goodrich 205/70/15 were taking a hiding as I struggled to find the correct launch RPM. After advancing to the second round of elimination by default, due to Adam DeBiasi having had gearbox problems, I went on to run my best time of the day. Setting a dial in time of 13.8 I went up against a White 200B SSS with an SR20 Turbo, leaving first (by a lot as it was a low 12 second Datsun) I ran a 13.2 second quarter with a large break out, but I was happier.

A couple of months later it was on again, with the breather set up altered and cut down type three bump stops (with the aim of getting the car to squat and hook up off the line). The first three runs saw marginal drops in my 60 foot times and wheel spin was still high. Believing that 13.142 was the best I was going to be able to do at the wheel, I headed out again. Pulling out of the gates the usual nerves rise as you wait in line to get to the burnout patch. Once in the patch I stayed there with the line lock engaged and tyres roasting more than normal (to release frustration!) and headed to the line. With a launch RPM of about 4700 I let the clutch go and all felt well right through the run, it felt better and the time card agreed quoting 12.295 @ 110.29 mph against a nitrous competition Torana's 11.546, I was pleased that I had not let the car down.

Throughout the following month Barry Lord was able to locate and deliver the original wheels which made a huge difference to the way the car launched and handled down the end of the track. The original wheels were 3.5" Centrelines with Formula V tyres for the front and Streakers with 205/65/15 Brigdestones, the only change made was a second hand set of rubber with the same dimensions for the rear which I picked up for $30.

 

At the next meeting I had an absolute ball, with three out of the four runs under 12.24, not to mention a few unhappy V8 drivers. With the slightly lower profile tyres the car felt so much quicker off the line and a lot more lively up top. My best time to date is a 12.057 @ 117.01mph on a 1.99 second 60ft time, my best 60ft time is 1.7 second. I hope there is more to come for the Frog with me behind the wheel. Who knows what will happen with a pair of slicks? I am still not sure if I am game enough to find out!

I have received lots of support from many people such as friends coming out to watch, the offering of parts, advice and information for which I wish to thank everyone. I especially wish to thank my Father and Brother for their financial assistance, storage and help in the shed and at the track. Finally, thanks to all the participating Volks Enthusiasts for making our club such a cool place to let the passion for VWs flourish.

To build on the words of Jon Kruger "Keep those pistons banging sideways", and Bang Hard! Especially on the 1st and 2nd of November at the Volks Fest 2003.

Thanks. Tom Laube