There’s an old saying that states, "If you want something done right, do it yourself." While the millions of people that have uttered that phrase a time or two mostly do it when co-workers screw something up or when something at home goes array, Yannick Sire of Sire Performance Custom Performance in Inglewood, CA meant it on a much bigger scale. He didn’t want to provide better landscaping or execute a perfect parallel parking job; he wanted to build a car. And not just any car, he wanted to build the perfect hot rod. A few years - and some spare parts and elbow grease - later, Sire had hand built himself a car that he felt earned the name of Priapism.
Priapism is actually a medical condition that was named after the Greek god Priapus who was known for his disproportionately large and permanent ----. Go ahead and look it up; you know you want to. But whatever its name translates into, the Sire Priapism has got some balls in the form of two Chevrolet 350 small block engines producing a total of 1000 HP. Adding that power to a comfortable 2,370 lbs car gave Sire a hot rod worth getting into.
Hit the jump for details on the Yannick Sire Priapism.
History
"No one has been building anything really cool. They say they want Pro Touring or whatever, but it's all heavy cars with a lot of power and not enough brakes, and nothing is really different..."
Yannick Sire used to spend his days racing in his 1968 Chevy Chevelle and working for Ted Toki at Westside Performance. He developed a passion for hotrodding and all of the wonder that can be found in cars, and decided to open up his own shop in Inglewood, CA called Sire Custom Performance. Time went by and Sire tired of the same old vehicles coming in and out, so he started making plans to build something that would stand out in the crowd.
"No one has been building anything really cool. They say they want Pro Touring or whatever, but it’s all heavy cars with a lot of power and not enough brakes, and nothing is really different. Don’t get me wrong, I still love Chevelles and those. But I just had to get out. I had a break in my workload and wanted to finally put together something unique that connected an IndyCar look with rat rods. Rat rods are fashionable and everything, but they don’t really perform and are uncomfortable. I wanted a car to be reliable and really work and drive anywhere."
Part 1
Exterior and Interior
The Yannick Sire Priapism measures 42" high, 82.5" wide, and has a 128" wheelbase. It began life as some random leftover car parts and a few cheap pieces yet to be purchased. Its chassis was constructed of home bent tubular chrome-moly - mostly 3/4" but some 1 1/2" and 1 1/4" support bars. Future plans consist of a complete one-off aluminum body.
The entire setup sits on 20" wheels borrowed from the BMW X5 wrapped around Continental 275/35 R20 tires in the front and 315/35 R20 tires in the back.
Inside the Priapism, Sire took the bare bones approach. Metal consumes most of it, but ProCar by Scat bucket seats, a steering wheel, a B&M shifter, seat belts, and gauges can all be seen. Other luxuries like air conditioning are simply not in the cards for this machine.
Part 2
Engine
One engine for the Priapism is simply not enough to meet Yannick Sire’s high standards, so he went ahead and dropped two Chevrolet V8 engines into the hot rod. These engines are fitted with hydraulic roller cams and AFR heads, and can produce a total of 900 HP. This, coupled with the fact that the hot rod weighs 2,307 lbs, allows the Priapism to hit a top speed of 211 mph, matching that of the Lamborghini Reventon.
Handling for the Priapism is taken care of with a Dana 60 holding 3.54 rear gears and stopping power comes from some Corvette Z06 brakes Sire had lying around.
Posted on
03.2.2012 @ 03:53