This is my first post, so I'll introduce my self first

I'm a newbie from the north east, looking to build a Locost 7.
I've been a fan of lotus 7 type cars for years, and the idea of building one to your own specification is really cool.

Anyway, to the point.
I understand there isn't a great deal of space in a Locost, and you can usually get around some issues by building a wider chassis.
BUT, to me, the chassis fabrication seems like the most daunting part of the build, and I was considering buying one pre-assembled from eBay.

I'm not too tall, I'm only about 6' but, I'm worried I'll be too wide and the foot space may be too small(less worried about the feet, just didn't want to focus entirely on the waist)
I'm "big boned" and have a 44-46" waist and size 13 feet.
Would a standard locost chassis be big enough to accommodate a porker like me? Or should I consider contacting a company that makes locost chassis and see what they can do?
Would a removable steering wheel and less padded seat be enough to squeeze in?
The only 7 I have ever been in was an old K-series Caterham, and that was before I got this big.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Hiya, Blades! first up, let me extend a great big welcome to you from LCB (which is, incidentally, the best Kit car forum around!).

To answer your question, I have a Luego Locost which at 5ft9, 34" waist, size 8 shoes (feet are also a big consideration - the pedal area can also be a bit tight, too!) and 11 stone I am a good fit in it - the car is the same dimensions as the original 'book' chassis.
I thinkYou would struggle to fit comfortably in a 'standard' 7 but there are quite a few other options which 'big people' build - The one that you would be best with is probably the Luego Viento which is still a Lotus 7 style, but bigger all round - some guys get these purely to fit a V8 engine in easily. There are also several (I am not clued up on these but there will be some other guys along when it gets nearer daytime ) other kits which have a +2 or +4 designation (referring to extra inches width/length) which would also tick your boxes.

The Luego company are going through a bit of a change in direction at the moment, so I don't know what sort of response you will get from them, however, have a look at their website, the homepage shows you a photo of a viento alongside a velocity (standard 7).

Luego link ----> Luego sportscars


There are quite a few around, and you should have little trouble finding a 'part built' one or even an 'unstarted' kit if you want to on ebay - but try and get original reciepts for them if you can - it makes registering them easier.

As I said - there will be many more replies, but good luck and welcome once again!

Regards, Steve.

AS above really. Im 6ft and 13 stone 34 waist and i fit nicely in my Luego locost. I think youd be uncomfortable in it. Luego Viento would be perfect for you. Plus it opens up the engine choice immensly as theyl take pretty much any engine.

Hi and welcome, ime 6ft 5 and 18stone, 40 waist i found the standard locost a little small for my tastes so i built the mcsorley +442 chassis, which i find to be good for me






tony

I'm "big boned" as well.

Here's a couple of short vids of me in my Haynes Roadster.
I fit fine,.........Well I think I do.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kX10xoDYIU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8oAz0ebp1c


David

Welcome to the madhouse!!!

When i started building mine, i was 5'11, 16st and 40" waist. My car was mainly haynes roadster dimension so +442 and there was tons of room!

Welcome to the forum Blade, nice to have another North East member

As others have said, there are a few cars out there for the "Bigger Boned " driver , maybe consider the Haynes Roadster, it is 2 inches wider & 4 inches longer than the Ron Champion Locost chassis, its also based around the Sierra as its donor, although other donor,s are usable too...MX5 etc.

Have a look at Saturn Sports Cars, based in Hartlepool, www.saturnsportscars.co.uk they supply everything for the Roadster, & the guy that owns Saturn is 6ft 7in tall, huge feet & 17 stone , he chose the Roadster as it was able to accommodate his size,

With regard the actual build, they can supply the chassis either flat packed or fully welded, & they have some great " kit" packages on offer at the mo.

Which ever route you take , have fun ,

cheers
andy

None of you would fit in my Locost !!

quote:

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Originally posted by steve m
None of you would fit in my Locost !!

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erm I have the same pie retention as your self and another 3" in hight and simlar size flippers.

I have built my self a book sized locost. Its a bit small for comfort but still drivable. I would go for a roadster if doing it again as its a bit bigger.

Stick your location in and some one will let you sit in one to give you an idea.

quote:

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Originally posted by t16turbotone
Hi and welcome, ime 6ft 5 and 18stone, 40 waist i found the standard locost a little small for my tastes so i built the mcsorley +442 chassis, which i find to be good for me

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At 5 8, you would fit, but wouldnot be able to drive mine,
As its designed around mmmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

at 5'3"

I'm 6' 4" and around 16 1/2st and I went for the +442 and glad I did. It meant a bit of faffing with bodywork, and I used a live axle so needed to get a wideish one, independant rear suspension won't give you the same grief. I have cobra roadster seats and they fit easily in the wider chassis and are well comfortable

If you need anymore info/measurements etc. I will be happy to help.

Oh, and welcome to the forum too, you won't regret it

John

I,m 6ft 2 34 waist and fit in my haynes roadter with a litytle room to spare, like yourself i had a good look before finding one i would comfortably fit in.

Welcome.

If it's any any help I'm 6ft 2, 17.5 stone with size 11 feet and find my MK Indy fine providing I'm not wearing big soled boots.

David

Im a lanky bugger but even with me 32inch waist the bucket seats ive shoehorned into the westfield (narrowbody) are tight enough.

Feet wise, as size 12 the skateshoes i wear almost continouosly are right out and are towcapped botos, normal 'work' shoes just about ok, but for long trips or on track I wear puma speedcats or karting boots.

Ive dropped the seats to floor (litterally mm's floor to arse) and this brings me down enough that i could fit under the roof till i fitted a rollbar which is well above the roofline. Its ok, although my eye-line isnt mich below the top of the screen. A dropped floor would be an option but not on i wanted to go with.


Daniel

quote:

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Originally posted by t16turbotone
Hi and welcome, ime 6ft 5 and 18stone, 40 waist i found the standard locost a little small for my tastes so i built the mcsorley +442 chassis, which i find to be good for me
tony

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welcome to the mad house!

Depending how desperate youare to get started either...
Get down to Stoneleigh show (May 1st-2nd) and have a good look around the cars. You should be able to beg a sit in several and might even get a ride.
Or do a search for NE7ERS club, who must have some sort of meet you could go along to if you can't wait 'till May.

I'm the same height and width as you although my feet are smaller (11), I could get reasonably comfortable in my Westfield widebody version but only with the standard (non bucket) seats. My son an inch taller much thinner but with size 14 feet could not drive it safely. I would think the Haynes roadster is the smallest you should consider and when you sit in one (a must) don't compromise too much. It is a lot of work to find you can't drive it more than a few miles.

Best regards

Keith

Welcome to THE madhouse....

All these guys are off their heads! What you need is a Quantum Xtreme (now XT).

I looked at a number of cars with varying degrees of success in sitting comfortably IN the car. I dropped straight into the Xtreme no probs. ( 6'4" and serious investment in pies under my belt)

{ducks and runs away fast}

See! I told you there would be some others along with better ideas when it got daylight By the way, Blade - are you a nightworker (judging by the fact you posted at 20 past 4?) -

By the sound of some of the other guys on here (apart from the 4ft 3inch one) you are a bit under - nourished!! Your feet sound like they could cause you the most problems, but if you are building the car, then you will be able to modify that area to suit.

I know I have problems with my pedal area when I am wearing my chunky trainers - and my feet are size 8.

Regards, Steve.

4'3"

hahahaha,

makes note of posters name to send hatemail!!

First off, thanks for the welcomes.

Thanks for all the information, that's quite a lot to consider.
I had looked at the Luego website, and I couldn't find any prices for kits/components, so I almost forgot about it.
I had been looking at a Robin Hood/GBS Zero, but I'm probably going to be working on a modest budget, and the cheaper kits don't include loads of things. The Tiger Avon Lowcost is one I'm still keeping in mind, but I'm not ready to make any decisions yet. Also looked at the Quantum website, and found a post with pictures of the new XT and the guy on the pictures has loads of space (but he is much more slender than me!) But, I was put off by the lack of prices.
I'm not ready to start a build yet (still have to save all my pennies) and if possible, I wanted to set out a rough price plan before starting. I don't fancy getting to next summer and having to sell up because I can't afford to finish.
Now the Saturn option, that is very appealing, only an hour and a half away, and the fully welded chassis is not much more expensive than the book chassis I'd been pricing up on eBay.

To answer the night shift question, not really a night worker. I'd been helping out a friend but I'd usually be tucked up in bed at that time.

So yeah, thanks for all the advice and information.

like adithorp said if you can wait till May then all the major kit manufacturers should be at the stoneleigh show with there demo cars
also there will be a hundreds of cars out on the owners stands (espesialy if the weather is good)
with lots of owers to talk to (normally quite a few folk from this site)

That does sound like a good idea.

quote:

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Originally posted by Blades
The Tiger Avon Lowcost is one I'm still keeping in mind, but I'm not ready to make any decisions yet.

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yeh I cant get in an Avon, it was my first choice being just up the road.

Welcome to the Mad house!

Please can you put your rough location in your profile as it helps with people offering help etc. Namely if you are in John 'O Groats I would not offer to pop over and show you my Viento, but someone more local might do.
It doesnt have to be exact, but GB is a bit too general to be useful.

Well if you a a big bloke, and I fully understand cos I was 5ft 10" and 21st when I got my Viento, exactly for the reasons you are considering. It was the only one I could EASILY get in and out of. Oh yes I had a 48" waist at the time!

I would reccomend you visit the Stoneleigh Show before making any real decisions. I think its the 1-2 May and near Coventry.
You will be able to seen Hundreds of built cars, and talk to their owners.
Also you will be able to sit in them (with owners permission) and see how it goes. This is well worth doing as it will focus your mind on which way you want to go.

Of course the Luego Owners club will be there, and a good selections of Vientos as well.
Luego company is in a state of change (so I am led to believe) and might not be at the show due to this, so Make sure you seek out the owners club as the Viento is a real contender for the larger driver! Also you can cram more camping kit on when you visit the shows!

The only other car I can easily get into .... Funnily enough is the MK Indy, which surprised me! However I had always dreamed of a V8 two seater (for over 30 years)
The Viento just cries out for a V8, however it will take anything from a straight 4 Crossflow (would look a bit lost under the bonnet) to a Straight 6 cylinder BMW, there was even a chassis with a V10 Dodge Viper in it!

So think long and hard before spending your money.
Your choice of chassis design/ suspension setup will dictate what Donor car you will be best off with. This ALL affects the amount of money you end up spending.

Many are Ford Sierra based, and these are getting scarcer. The original Locost was based on an Escort, and they are now valuable and are being restored.
One manufacturer now uses the BMW, as its one of the last Rear Wheel Drive cars, making the donor bits more useful, and less wasted bits.

Think about what engine you want as it affects the emissions for the IVA and MoT.

There is much to think about and budget for. Oh... it will generally cost twice what you originally budget for.
I budgeted for £5k and spent £8k but that was 6 years ago and I used a lot of new parts. However, £2k was the refurb of the V8.

Do use the search facility on here as many things have been done to death and are in the archives.
Also dont be afraid to ask, this is one of the best sites going, and can answer questions on almost any subject!

Good Luck, and we hope to see you at Stoneleigh in May.