Mx5 Doner for a Aries Locost
raguri - 29/9/11 at 05:14 PM
Caution, i am 100% new to the whole "Locost scene" so this may be ONE incredibly dumb question.
Background information: Currently, i am only 16 and i am currently looking a building an aries locost as my first car to save on insurance (only
£851!), and also have something i can use on a track. I also believe that if i build something to use myself, i won't rag it like a saxo for
example.
Anyways, onto the question itself, how much of the drivetrain could i use from the mx5 on an aries locost, as i'm not 100% sure on what chassis
design it is as i've heard the haynes is different from the locost, and some locosts are different from other locosts. If i have to use a
sierra/capri rear axle, then i'll use a 1.6 pinto instead of the mazda engine, but if i can use nearly everything from the mx5 it would save
time, money and also give a very VERY good basis to upgrade on (just looked on an mx5 forum, and realised the engines potential even though it would
only be a 1.6 mk1)
Sam
(Sorry if that's long winded).
liam.mccaffrey - 29/9/11 at 07:20 PM
Not long winded at all, seems like quite a sensible first post!
Welcome to the mad house!
Where abouts are you based? There may be people really close who can help.
[Edited on 29/9/11 by liam.mccaffrey]
Bladerunner - 29/9/11 at 07:24 PM
Hi, if you are going to go with the Aires you could not go far wrong if you speak to Steve at Aries. He is very much in the driving seat and will
give you any amount of help.
JAG - 29/9/11 at 07:35 PM
Hi Sam,
I have a Stuart Taylor Locost (Aries bought the Locost project from Stuart Taylor so it's the same chassis etc...) with a Mazda MX5 1.6 engine
and 5 speed gearbox. The engine runs the original ECU and engine management kit - at least for now
The car has an MX5 propshaft with an Escort UJ to connect to the Escort back axle and Ford Cortina front uprights.
Check out my photo archive for some pictures of the car during the build.
It's great fun to drive and plenty quick enough in standard form: 116bhp in 560kg!
A hell of a first car 
raguri - 30/9/11 at 05:45 PM
Thanks a lot for your input already , and i sent Steve an email around 4/5 days ago and have so far had nothing back, but i do understand he must
be incredibly busy this time of year.
I live in Southampton currently, but can travel within a decent radius for free thanks to a bus pass giving unlimited travel in Hampshire.
The engine itself, i'm rather confident with as I have just helped a friend get his 1.6 Mazda to around 150 brake which is fast enough for him
(In the original mx5, low boost turbo). I've heard a bit about the Aries having low quality control due to a bag chassis jig, so does anyone
know if this is still the case, or is it just rumors sent out by another company?
Sam.
EDIT: Also, where do you get escort axles, without forking out 10's of thousands of pounds buying an escort?
[Edited on 30/9/11 by raguri]
raguri - 3/10/11 at 05:24 PM
Sorry for double post, but still no reply from Steve!!!
All i want to know is if i could use the rear axle from the mx5 as well, without having to do major chassis mods.
If i can't, then i will HAVE to use a cross flow engine, which i don't really want to do (Unless someone else has a cheap idea for a poweful
1.6 engine)?
rdodger - 5/10/11 at 08:16 PM
Ypou could also have a look here http://www.vodouautokits.co.uk/
Have a look at the Haynes forum. There are a few people building mx5 haynes cars.
raguri - 5/10/11 at 08:50 PM
Given up on the mx5 for now...
Going sierra with a crossflow.
HappyFather - 5/10/11 at 10:48 PM
Hello,
Just to warn that your email to Steve might have got on his spam folder.
I mailed Steve on Monday around 11h and had a reply before 18h. He usually replies to my emails within 24h. The only time that didn't happen was
because my email got into his spam folder.
Please suggest you try again to steve.sharon.1970 at hotmail.co.uk
Anyway, Aries has 2 different chassis, one with the escort axle (don't know what other axles can get in there) and one with IRS suspension. That
uses Sierra running gear on the back. It's the one I'm building. Might be cheaper for you to get the parts for it.
I don't know about using MX5, but check with Steve.
About the chassis quality, it's known to be one of the best, although being one of the best priced too. There was recently a thread where was
asked what was the best IRS chassis around and many stated Aries (the chassis
thread)
Steve is a wonderful guy, always available to help out. In my opinion, when starting an adventure like building a car, it's great to know that
there will be someone there to help out.
Have fun,
HappyFather
Norfolkluegojnr - 6/10/11 at 08:02 AM
quote:
Originally posted by raguri
Sorry for double post, but still no reply from Steve!!!
All i want to know is if i could use the rear axle from the mx5 as well, without having to do major chassis mods.
If i can't, then i will HAVE to use a cross flow engine, which i don't really want to do (Unless someone else has a cheap idea for a poweful
1.6 engine)?
AFAIK the MX-5 is IRS at the back which you could reuse, but would make more sense to use the diff and drive shafts, and use wishbones from the kit
manufacturer.
A few kits have used the rear subframe from different cars, but its a much heavier way to go (Tiger Cat E1 used rear sierra sub frame i think).
Think about IVA as well - if you start with a crossflow and type 9 its much easier to pass emissions. You can always upgrade to zetec/duratec at a
later date for more power. Anyway, if its your first car, 100bhp from a crossflow is plenty. You might soil yourself on the first trip out....
raguri - 6/10/11 at 04:39 PM
I have sent steve an email thanks to happy giving me a seperate email about using an mx5 as a irs donor.
If it's not possible, i'll just get a sierra and strip that down, but would rather it being a Jap donor (can get a lsd for around £100 off
mx5 nutz!).
As for emissions, that's a very good point i had overlooked... if i use an mx5 1.6 i would need to keep emissions down...