The Build
Super Subs
The Subs' plan revolves around a heavy vehicle, with a low centre of gravity and a great turning circle so they can 'side step' the Taxis, hopefully letting them run out of the ring.
They decided not to bother with offensive weapons, but agreed that more grip would be a good thing, so a rear 'brake' out of tyres goes onto the shopping list.
The Subs seemed willing but their scavengers were quickly bogged down in the 'heap. It took them hours to find a suitable vehicle – a Transit Van that was marooned in a pile of scrap. When it was finally dragged back to the bay, expert Alan got cracking, ripping off the bodywork and working out how to mount a single front wheel rather than the normal axle. The idea was that the front wheel would move like a shopping trolley, giving them the ability to turn the whole vehicle in a tight space.
Back on the 'heap, scavenger Graham found a chain and sprocket for their steering system. Having a great turning circle seemed sensible, but would that single wheel take the weight?
Alan had a cunning plan to help – by moving the back axle forwards he managed to reduce the strain on the front wheel. Captain Steve welded on a disc above the single wheel that was turned by the chain and sprocket set-up – this should have given them the ability to 'crab' sideways.
Taking inspiration from a sumo wrestler digging his heels in, the Subs built a rear bumper out of tyres. This they were sure would help if the front of their sumo car was lifted and pushed backwards. Late in the afternoon Mr B took a sneaky look next door at his son's work and realised they needed to counteract the Turbo Taxis' wedge weapon by welding metal skirts around the sides of their vehicle.
With time running out the Subs got increasingly desperate, tacking when they should have been doing full and thick welds. When the gong sounded the Subs did have a sumo car, but their flimsy three-wheeled dodgem didn't look like a contender.
The Turbo Taxis
The Turbo Taxis decided to make a push-me-pull-you design – two front-wheel-drive cars chopped in half and then joined to make a double engine 4x4 sumo monster! The addition of a winch so they could pull up the other vehicle and ram a wedge under it completed their dastardly plan. But what a huge amount of work they had ahead.
Straight away, Herman's ever reliable scavengers, Matt and Dink, found a car perfect for the job. The Honda Concerto had seen better days but at least it would be easy to drive as it was an automatic.
While Alan and Herman chopped it up Dink and Matt discovered the other half of their plan – an ancient Vauxhall Astra. With the two combined they reckoned on having a three-litre sumo car!
With two engines they had a lot of possible power on tap but they still needed to reinforce it with sheet metal and add a roll cage to ensure they would survive being hit.
The team managed to join the two cars with a ton of box metal and weld. It wasn't pretty, but Herman was sure the car wouldn't break in half come test day.
It suddenly occurred to the team that the engines needed some attention. No-one had checked if they worked since the cars were chopped up. Fortunately the Turbo Taxis are proficient at wiring, and soon Herman had both engines roaring, much to the distress of the Subs next door. As time ticked out the team had their feet up, confident of victory in the sumo ring.
