Jay Leno & John Willhoit Drive A Speedster

[HobieMarty]

https://youtu.be/hAz1zXRK7p8?si=sMY9GIW8ZDqlAM4v

Is anyone familiar with John Willhoit and his restorations?

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[speeder]

I am. He's a great guy and does absolutely phenomenal work. Not cheap but if you want to take your Speedster to Pebble Beach, he's your guy.

[HobieMarty]

That Speedster sounds really good.
I am wondering what it would be like to have a Meyers Manx dune buggy with one of those engines in it?

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[wdfifteen]

Thanks for posting that. I really enjoyed it. I’d like to have one of those engines - wow. Hard to believe it started life as basically a hot rodded 25hp VW. I have a 912 engine in my Speedster that I modified for autocross. It’s about 100 hp. At 100 hp the car is a lot of fun, I can’t imagine it at 170 hp.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by HobieMarty

That Speedster sounds really good.
I am wondering what it would be like to have a Meyers Manx dune buggy with one of those engines in it?

It would be a huge waste of money. You can buy a kit to build a 2300cc VW engine that they claim 200 hp for less than half a Wilhoit Porsche motor. Wilhoit takes the “Porsche tax” to a whole new level. It would be nuts to pay the Porsche tax on a dune buggy.

[HobieMarty]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

It would be a huge waste of money. You can buy a kit to build a 2300cc VW engine that they claim 200 hp for less than half a Wilhoit Porsche motor. Wilhoit takes the “Porsche tax” to a whole new level. It would be nuts to pay the Porsche tax on a dune buggy.

Good point.

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[masraum]

I've sized this to a medium size that hopefully won't be too much of a pain for you folks that surf on a phone or a pad.

[3rd_gear_Ted]

He's a SoCal legend in the resto world out here in la la land.

[GH85Carrera]

He does great work if you have deep pockets. I guess if you do the best, you can charge what the customers will pay.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I wish I could do his clear cadmium for him.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

He does great work if you have deep pockets. I guess if you do the best, you can charge what the customers will pay.

Around 15 years ago was the last time I was at his shop, (time flys), and they had a printed menu for a 356 restoration with prices starting at $200k.

[HobieMarty]

Originally Posted by masraum

I've sized this to a medium size that hopefully won't be too much of a pain for you folks that surf on a phone or a pad.

Thanks, sorry for any inconvenience, I post things from my phone.

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[oldE]

This week a representative from Scout brought a couple of prototypes to Jay to discuss and drive. Jay obviously holds a special place with manufacturers. Mercedes, GM, Ford and now the VW group have all brought pre production vehicles for the exposure they get on his channel.

Best
Les