Name: Stephan Szantai
Vehicle: 1957 Beetle
Engine Size: 2276cc
Purchase date: late 1992
Modifications:The car, a US-spec 1957 Ragtop, was built as a Cal Looker by Jim Lowe 25 years ago. Unlike most Cal Look Bugs from the early '80s, it wasn't dechromed and it featured a stock VW colour (Pearl White). Another unusual feature was the aluminium Porsche 356 drum brakes, hidden behind genuine BRMs. Back then, the engine was a 2-liter with IDAs, which allowed high-13-second ETs. Jim Joined DKP in the late '80s. I purchased the car in late 1992, without engine and without BRMs. Jim wanted to keep the rims - and I didn't want them as they were cracked! Bill Schwimmer fully polished the Porsche brakes and I installed one of the very first sets of Flat-4 BRMs. DKP-member Jim Kurlinski supplied the engine, which had already covered 4000 miles. Originally a 2-liter with Berg 42DCNFs, it evolved over the years. The current incarnation of the engine (2276cc with IDAs) delivered 201 horsepower on Geoff Hart's dyno. With a
compression ratio of 8.4 to 1, it's very reliable and allows me to drive the 60 miles round trip from Redondo Beach to Nick's Burgers (home of DKP's Cruise Night) every month. Car has been repainted and redone in 1995; but the interior hasn't changed since 1982.
Future plans: To add more miles!
