One More Time

In the World of T-Buckets Total Performance Has Always Made A Difference

It has been said that the more things change the more they stay the same. Well, it can also be said that the more things stay the same the more they evolve. The T-bucket has continued to be a mainstay throughout the history of street rodding. Decades ago Norm Grabowski treated us to his famous Kookie T from the television series 77 Sunset Strip. The T-bucket has enjoyed many different build styles over the decades but it's always unmistakable in its presentation.

Next up is the Total Performance T-bucket from the past 30 years. The time has come for the Total Performance (Wallingford, CT) T-bucket to evolve to the next stage. The staff of STREET RODDER has been fortunate to be involved with Total and their T over the years. (For collectors of SRM, look back to 1984 and you will see a Total T in its purest kit form as a cover scenario.)

While Mickey Lauria, owner and president, and the staff of Total Performance refer to their latest ride as the Tangerine T II, the car is actually based on TP's New Generation T-bucket. There's no mistaking that it's a T but it doesn't take long to notice the numerous evolutionary changes. Total Performance has always been dedicated to helping the newcomer into rodding and this latest effort is no different. Let's take a quick "ride" over, through, and under the New Generation T-bucket from TP--the Tangerine T II.

The body is familiar but it's the composition that isn't. The traditional medium for T-bucket bodies over the years has been fiberglass. Not the Tangerine T, its body and fenders are made from carbon fiber, yes, space-age carbon fiber. (The production New Generation buckets are fiberglass and feature all of the innovations found on the carbon fiber version.) Showcasing the carbon fiber T-bucket is the use of House of Kolor (Duncanville, TX) candy Tangerine paint with "ripping" graphics applied by Painthead Designs (Seymour, CT). The graphics accentuate the firewall, cowl, and forward body edges, giving the appearance that the candy paint is ripping off the body exposing the carbon fiber beneath--very cool. Rear lighting is a combination of taillights and third brake light from Lambert Enterprises (Norris, TN) while the Headwinds (Monrovia, CA) carbon fiber headlights and stands are TP items.

The New Generation T-bucket was designed back in 1995. The intent was to come up with a T-bucket that was more user-friendly and the result cab be seen here on the pages of SRM. The body sides were lowered 3 inches while the back was raised 3 inches. In affect, it gives the car a look found in the early body style of the '60s. Total's Hi-Tech fiberglass dash is clean in its appearance and showcases another TP item in the unique cluster gauge panel that houses the Custom Rod Guages (Fresno, CA). The gauges are: speedometer, tachometer, oil, fuel, water, and volt--all are neatly arranged, giving the dash a modern car appearance.

The seat insert is another Total Performance item and was designed to give the driver and passenger more comfort. T-buckets have long delivered on their promise to be fun cars but often come up short on comfort. The new seating also allows the occupants to see through the windshield, which yields an exceptional view of the road. Mullins (Torrington, CT) engineered the steering column for TP while the 13 1/2-inch diameter steering wheel is an IMPY Smoothie. A Corvair box conducts the actual steering chores along with a TP Pitman arm. More interior appointments include a Lokar (Knoxville, TN) shifter and pedals. The sound system is based on a vehicle speed controlled stereo from Custom Autosound (Anaheim, CA) and features a remote controled hideaway dash-mounted radio. The sub-woofer rests under the driver seat while a 6-disc CD changer is found under the passenger seat. The inner workings of the radio and the amp are all securely fastened within the pickup bed along with the polished stainless steel fuel tank. Covering the cockpit is a Carson-style hardtop that has been covered in black hued material and headliner installed by Fairfield Upholstery (Fairfield, CT.)

The carbon fiber body with integral bed is mounted to a polished stainless steel chassis built by the Metal Shop (North Branford, CT) and it's a duplicate of the standard steel chassis built and constructed by TP for their standard production T-bucket. The front suspension is based on the TP All-Rod frontend that features a 46-inch width (centerline of kingpin to kingpin), 5-inch drop tube axle with friction shock tabs already mounted, TP chromed spindles that hold Wilwood (Camarillo, CA) hubs, rotors and calipers, and integral front fender mounts. Other TP items include steering arms, spring, shackles, friction shocks, and drag link.

The rear suspension is based on a Currie Enterprises (Anaheim, CA) 9-inch aluminum rearend with 3.89 gears featuring a polished centersection and painted axle tubes. Again, Wilwood got the nod for the disc brake package while Air Ride Technologies (Jasper, IN) received the go-ahead for the ShockWave air lift/shock combo.

Residing at the front corners you will find Colorado Custom 5x15-inch billet wheels wrapped with 135x15 tires all neatly tucked under the 5-inch wide "raw" carbon fiber fenders. In back there are a pair of Nitto 31 1/2-inch tall tires mounted to, again, Colorado Custom 20-inch diameter wheels. They too tuck neatly under 14-inch wide Fat Bob composite fiberglass fenders.

And now for the piece de resistance: Any street rod worth its scrub line should have ample amounts of power. Yes, good ol' unadulterated horsepower that responds on command with a simple touch of the Lokar throttle. The Tangerine T II is no different with its '99 Corvette LS1 coupled to a 4L60E transmission. The good folks at Street & Performance (Mena, AK) prepped the awesome twosome engine/tranny combo with electrical wiring assistance from Painless Wiring (Ft. Worth, TX). Oh yes, you will find Cool-Flex radiator hoses and plenty of other TP engine appointments, such as a pair of Sanderson headers, a Walker radiator, a recovery tank, and an electric fan.

Maybe you can't get yourself one of these carbon fiber T's but you can come mighty close with the production T-bucket from Total Performance. But then again, when talking to Mickey, anything is possible, tell him ol' Brennan from STREET RODDER sent you and see if that helps you get your very own Tangerine T!