teamhampshire
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 07:57 AM |
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new project
Hi all,
well after many years of talking about it, reading the books, seeing other peoples cars i have decided to make my own.
i have managed to persuade 3 of my friends to help through out the build, all of them i have known for twenty plus years and all of them love playing
with oily bits, so i have the labor part sorted.
now then the first time i considered building a locost was when the first edition of build your self a sports car for £250 was released, i was given
it as a Christmas present as i remember.
about 10 years ago i did get sent the vhs build videos for a robinhood sub 1k (i think that's what it was called) and that got me to the stage
of ripping apart an old sierra, i stripped the whole car and started doing it up, but then due to a job change and relocating i had to let the project
go.
so now here we are today.
What donor car should i get? (a one car solution would be best and the sierra inst available any more and i would like something with out an ECU and
i would like something with carbs (although open to all ideas, its just that i understand carbs and dont have a clue about injection and falut finding
on an ECU just scares me lol)
Is engine size important?(we are talking about a very light car here so power to weight would be huge any way but what should we aim for to give a fun
ride, while being reliable)
Who do i get to design and build my chassis (teamhampshire has discussed this and we all agree that we would want to get a company to build the
chassis for us, just in case the worst happened in a crash as none of us would want to blame another for a bad weld)?
Do we go for a steel chassis or do we go aluminum? (if its aluminum how many extra bits of bracing are needed over the standard chassis config.)
should we spot weld the side panels on or use pop rivets? (i dont like the idea of drilling holes in things i dont have to)
i did have a look for an intro thread but couldnt find one so i popped this in here (hope thats ok)
ps what is the quickest any one has built a 7 special.
one last thing, has anyone built a 7 style car using a mid mount engine (ie taking the rear sub frame from an mfg and mounting it to the modified
chassis)
thanks for making this forum. i will have a good look through.
teamhampshire
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D Beddows
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 09:18 AM |
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Forget aluminium for the chassis it wont be strong enough - or if it is it wont be any lighter than a steel one. Have a search there are quite a few
threads about it
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theduck
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 10:01 AM |
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As you are having the chassis made have you consider the kit options such as MNR and MK? These will hold better value and cost the same to build in
the long run.
As for donor you will be hard pushed to get something newer than the sierra on carbs, but you could go
Mx5 donor and fit bike carbs instead of the injection system?
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Nick DV
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 10:26 AM |
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I think that you need to have a good trawl through this forum and look at all of the kits/cars/donors etc available. You also need to look at engine
options - not a BEC v CEC argument again  - but first and foremost you need to decide what you want the car for. Do you want it for a tourer, a
weekend/sunny weather drive, a track car, an everyday drive? This will have a lot of bearing of what to build - IMHO of course
Cheers, Nick 
"The force will be with you, always!"
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A1
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 12:08 PM |
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thats cause its not an argument... BEC!!! :p
as said though, have a look here and see whats what...
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bi22le
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 12:19 PM |
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As said before.
I think you guys should consider a kit.
Its not so bolt together as people say. There is still alot of thinking and customising to do.
There is a midi kit car by mk that are rear engine. Sylva riot is another.
Search is your friend. All of your subjects have been covered.
Good luck and welcome along. This is the best forum in the world for this thing.
Track days ARE the best thing since sliced bread, until I get a supercharger that is!
Please read my ring story:
http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/forum/13/viewthread.php?tid=139152&page=1
Me doing a sub 56sec lap around Brands Indy. I need a geo set up! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHksfvIGB3I
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twybrow
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 12:26 PM |
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teehampshire - I am also in Soton, and have a bike engined car on the road that you are welcome to a ride in... You can get a feel for how silly fast
these things can be!
As for your choice of chassis and running gear - well first you should decide:
1. What you want to use the car for - road, track, or mix?
2. Do you want to solve all the engineering problems yourself, or bolt a kit together - this will make a major difference to budget, complexity and
skills required?
3. What is your budget, and what timescale and availability do you have?
4. Do you have a garage, and every tool you might need? Tools can really add up, so again, a bolt together kit will be more accessible than a scratch
build.
5. Which bike engine did you want to use!? 
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NeilP
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| posted on 10/6/12 at 12:57 PM |
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Worth getting to some shows to crawl all over the manufacturers. The clubs are all populated by like minded folk who will happily let you crawl all
over their cars for ideas.
Exeter probably closest to you but not until Nov...
Welcome to the madhouse - simply fab forum.
If you pay peanuts...
Mentale, yar? Yar, mentale!
Drive it like you stole it!
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