Having read through this section, mainly regarding the Avon I see that most people agree that other kits are better bets. However, is the same true once you have managed to build it. In other words if I am not building but buying are Tigers still a bad bet?

I ask as I have been looking for a MK and Tigers are more common - if I find a good one will I be ok?

personally i dont think theres anything wrong with them

k33ts on here has a very nice one

[Edited on 24/5/06 by graememk]

Tigers are not a bad bet. they have a larger range than most so you can select one to suit you and your budget. i have heard comments from some that certain areas of the build are a touch tricky. They would appear to have some of the best bodywork on the market if you like a challenge. personally i wouldnt choose a car that uses the full Sierra back end but for casual road runs they are fine.

At the end of the day there are several factors in choosing a se7en inspired sportscar. What do you want to use it for, performance expectations, self build, factory build, bec or cec, etc etc.
Buying the cheapest shouldnt be the first priority. The car with the best price may cost you more in the long run (and i dont just mean £££).

Get along to a big show and take a look. preferably one with a big owners turnout. They will all talk you to death and offer advice. Initially you will be more confused but your shortlist should be reduced. Then is a good time to visit the factories.

Ref budget - you will find that like for like nearly all of the manufactureres covered on here are more or less the same cost. The problem is that very rarely can you compare like for like due to the huge choices you have to face when speccing one up.

Take your time choosing, i know the sun is shining (ish) but most people keep their cars for a long time and a bad decision is hard to live with.

Thanks Darren, I am only looking to buy built and upgrade. It will only be used on road not track so out and out performance is not such a big issue for me. I am looking for a ready running car that can be upgraded and will not be hard to source parts or tuning elements for, but also handles well and isn't hampered by having to have been built with bespoke or hard to get hold of older parts.

Thats fair enough. Most of the comments concerning tigers have been with the actual build. Once built the concerns have been dealt with. Id personally choose one that doesnt use the full Sierra back end as i have been led to believe the others handle better for occasional track days etc.

Loads of Tigers have been built so there should be bargains to be had.
You will have a lot of choice of cars at around the 6K mark. If you are looking into future engine swaps do your homework first as they can add up to more than you realise.
Mac#1 have their 2.0 Zetec factory built demo car for sale. Its had plenty of mag reviews and was featured at a lot of shows when in Police livery. It is a fantastic car that will not need any mods for what i consider to be a bargain (its more than 6K but has full throttle body conversion, refreshed engine and OMEX ECU, Wilwood brakes etc etc.) Worth calling Mark hinchcliffe for the low down (0114 2619633) or visit m1moc.com for pic.

Macspeedy is also selling his car - well worth a look.


Whatever you choose just satisfy yourself that it is well built. Its not always easy modding someone elses work as it could be hard getting into their mindset when grafting in your bits. That said most people take a lot of pride in their work and SVA has made things a lot better.

everybodys a proff in this world.....some are out to screw you up the arse without vasaline...some will even bring their own....some will rip you off and spit in your grave for a laugh.....and some will even take your money knowing full well they are about to go bang!so......
you get the bike engined lunatics....and car engined engineers.....in my personal experince as a bike mechanic 25 years in the industry.... having built my own gp bike from nothing...pretty much like your kit cars in this country... (which was stolen from me in south africa....need i say more)...bike engines give low power to weight but lack torque and bottem end punch....and most of the track days ive been to well actually all of the track days ive been to 90% of the bike engined cars bonetts are off ...open... or up..and two or three guys fiddling to get it back out there.....very fragile clutches as its used to pulling 150....200 kgs along at 5 million revs a min...sounds great..the average kit weighs in at 450....to 700 kgs....not much maths to to do as to why you will be putting new clutch plates and gaskets and time into the thing.... and you cant take any fat birds for a spin....(and everybody knows that fat birds are better in bed as they do it like its gonna be their last time.....)...now loads of choice with car engines too...much more expensive than bike setups...hmmm i wonder why...eg: bike engine no mods bout 1500...dodgy reverse systems..car engine...about 5 grand fairly souped up..like my dunnell this and that....400 bucks for engine...500 for carbs...ect ect...lightened flywheel bla bla bla..and ya got 165 bhp with enough torque to take two fat birds to the woods on a long uphill and not have the cars tung draging out on the deck!....well my fisrt 7stylie was a e1...loved the freedom it gave me to overtake as i would on a bike....just tail heavy in corners in the wet...spins out like a chinese whore..if ya dont pay her...but loved it anyway....so go out there drive the car if ya bond with it get it you wont be unhappy....sweet ahve fun and take care...bunch of wanker truck drivers out there....

bit biased, i run the tiger owners club website and have built an avon and am building a Cat E1. But out of interest there is a Cat racing in the Tiger Racing Series that is doing very well againt R6's and B6's so it cant be that badder handling!! Agreed that all tigers products have their .......challenges? but they dont purport to be be a simple bolt together ala westfield and for some of us that is a plus point as it means that whilst fabricating solutions customisation is possible. If you havent checked out the owners club try www.tigerownersclub.co.uk I have seen a lot of very nicely put together Cat E1's, check out the gallery, there is always a chance the one you are looking at is there. At the end of the day it will be down to individual build quality and spec, drive it and go through it with a fine toothed comb, generally speaking, as with most kits in my opinion, if it looks well put together it probably is.
Mac

I dont know much about the different kits mate but I have built my own MK and its cost me a lot

you will not be able to beat the buzz from a bike engine

In all honesty if I was to do this again

I would buy a MK indy with a sierra engine already done passed the SVA etc get them to make new cradle

get a new body ie probably a different colour with bonnet bulge etc

new wheels and R1 baby

I will deff be doing that next time

ta
chris

so my idea is to buy a tidy one but cheaper then modify because its already passed SVA and all that

Thanks guys, I should say that at this stage my max budget is £5k to buy a ready built and run it for the first year.

you should be able to get any of the kits for about 5 grand with a engine like a pinto in

ta chris

MK + Pinto would be perfect but can't find one for £5k anywhere - perhaps wrong time of year?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MK-Indy-Built-By-Which-Kit-Car_W0QQitemZ4643456857QQcategoryZ29750QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Locost-Kit-Car-Not-Westfield-Caterham-Robin-Hood_W0QQitemZ4642001711QQcategoryZ29750QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ROBIN-HOOD-2B-KIT-CAR-LOTUS-7-STYLE_W0QQitemZ4640416750QQcategoryZ29750QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


It would appear that your budget should get an alright car but if you stretch it you might get a better one.

found a nice looking car here for u mate
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/64416.htm

Thanks Darren, that MK looks like it came on today - will try and find out more on it. Have seen the locost listed before and don't want a RH. VanHaydn - thanks seen that car somewhere before but not at that price - ta!

TBH i didnt think youd like them. It was just a tongue in cheek reply. I proved it to myself that there isnt that many out there on first glance. Wrong time of year i guess.


I had a chuckle this morning when i read this thread again. It a bit like walking into B&Q and asking the Kitchen salesman if he would fit one of these in his Kitchen!!!! Surprisingly you have had some nice unbiassed views. Just goes to show we arent all one track minds.





Buy a mac#1 kit and build it - you know it makes sense

If i was you id have a serious think about this.

http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=44970

Yeah I guess so, but then a salesman knows the product better than anyone (bad and good)

Anywho, the MK is actually £6500 but the Zetec Striker could still be a go'er - just trying to find out if it's SVA'd.

The Gemini looks nice but with no SVA it could be a pup and I don't have time to get one ready for SVA before the end of the summer.

thats a clean car mate.....strange concept but awsome paint job and ya cant go wrong with that engine.....drive it and if ya smile hurts ya face......thats the one!!!!!!
and remember dont hold youself back....nobodys lookin!!!!!!!!

a bought a locost for £2k, stuck a bike engine in for less than a grand. Thats a cheap way to have a lot of fun!

Comments on this Tiger for £4800 would be welcome;

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4640621117&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1

Also this Westfield at £4k;

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/77985.htm

Could well be seeing this weekend and as both are in budget a purchase of either is possible.

I Like the Westie can't go wrong at that money (if the car is straight)

Well, I went and bought the Tiger in the end. It was a great example, low mileage, well built and SVA'd no probs. Got it for £4600 in the end and drove the 90 miles home no problems.

However once I got home it proceeded to dump all of it's water over the garage floor - looks like I have joined the kit-car club well and truly

your tiga needs some mods to the roll bar and lotsa loving ....dont let anyone drive it unless they give you all the money for a new one in your hand before they put their pretty little bum in the drivers seat...trust me it could cost you a good friendship plus the expence of a new car!
Rescued attachment tiger.JPG

When you say it dumped its water do you mean just a bit or all?
Ive had both happen to me. When it dumped all it was a core plug failure. It was the one behind bell housing which can only be changed with engine out - mine fixed with JB Weld for now and has help together for over 1,000 miles with no probs at all.
Im not running a header tank and it pushes some water out when its finding its own level - nothing to worry about as long as level doesnt get too low.

Looks like a great car, well done. Ive no experience of the 1800 but can confirm the 2000 runs well with kent cam. (Mine has FR32).

The header tank was pretty much empty this morning. When I took the cap off to check the level a little more dripped onto the garage floor from underneath - I think it is coming from around the rad area, but will know more once the nose is off.

Just as a polite warning, if you have animals at home be very careful that they dont drink the antifreeze. A very small amount can kill them (and a young child). i found this out to my horror just after xmas. Its nasty stuff and no cure.

hope you find the leak OK. Fingers crossed its something simple like a hose.

so are ya still grinning like a mad thing thing high on adrenaline?
eh !
or has the tiger got ya by the balls? he he he

The leak was in the garage so all contained. It didn't dump the water in a hurry. I have just filled the header again with a bit and it is dripping quite rapidly but not pouring from an area just in front of the engine block and behind the rad.

I didn't get time tonight to take the nose off to see exactly but I am guessing it is somewhere around the water pump - hopefully a loose hose but tomorrow night I will take the nose off and find out.