Shite kit cars

[PiperCub]

All I know is there's a fine line between a nice looking sportscar that happens to have elements of a donor vehicle in it; and a shonky homemade bodge with sheet aluminium folded at right angles to make panels.

 

Even some beach buggies look wrong, where some are really nicely proportioned. 

 

Another problem I guess you'll have now is that anything based on a Mk2 Escort, Cortina, Sierra etc is now going to present problems finding spares - where the original idea was you could build something exciting out of the dross filling scrap yards. 

 

^^ This pretty much sums up my thinking too. Alot of the ones I've seen suffer from either over-optimistic owners (ie: over-estimating their abilities) or seem to have been built well up to a point and then rushed to completion which means they will always look unfinished/bodeged.

 

To my eyes, most kit-cars look awful but that's just my opinion, some are OK and always liked the Lotus 7 reps, a mate has an old Caterham he built himself 20-odd years ago and it's been well used (hammered!) in that time and still looks good so it depends on the builder as I said.

The Locost book is a good read, I have an old edition which focuses on old Ford parts (Ez, 'Tina etc) which are now rare-ish and pricey thanks to OSF brigade. You aien't gonna do it for £250 I'm afraid!

 

To be honest, unless utterly dedicated to owning something unique(-ish) and unconventional, I would give kit-cars a miss personally. If you want to, I wish you well and hope it works out for you. To me, these days, they miss the point, why trash, say an MX5 for its engine/drivetrain-chassis to clothe it some GRP panelling? It'll cost a lot of money and be pretty worthless in the end unless you can find one of the half-dozen other folk who share your taste.

[CHRIS1980]

Apparently, yes. I saw a kit car magazine in a shop the other day, which reminded me how much I want a Midas.

The Haynes book is the way to go though; it'll definitely* only cost £250.

I have this book,infact both versions. My Dad goes shooting with the author too. We have a locost that someone 'built'. To be fair it's ok it just like most kit cars in that the wiring is a bloody mess. Midas are a good choice as they were reasonably practical and fun. I would love one,one day. After driving the locost it's very much an occasional car,I've read stories of people using them all year round but came to the conclusion these are the sort of people who also like to get tied up and have things put up their bottom.

[sierraman]

/\ now, I don't wish to come across as derogatory about someone's pride & joy, but how the holy cunting fuck can anyone have sat back with a cold one and thought "she's a beauty"?

I'd give myself a real pat on the back if I'd put that together. No doubt the wife would be over the moon that you've spent every waking hour putting it together for 3 years and consumed the holiday budget, when she sees it in the flesh.

[sierraman]

I have this book,infact both versions. My Dad goes shooting with the author too. We have a locost that someone 'built'. To be fair it's ok it just like most kit cars in that the wiring is a bloody mess. Midas are a good choice as they were reasonably practical and fun. I would love one,one day. After driving the locost it's very much an occasional car,I've read stories of people using them all year round but came to the conclusion these are the sort of people who also like to get tied up and have things put up their bottom.

The £250 these days wouldn't even get you the ironmongery to hold it together.

[Pillock]

/\ now, I don't wish to come across as derogatory about someone's pride & joy, but how the holy cunting fuck can anyone have sat back with a cold one and thought "she's a beauty"?

 

Hey, say what you see - this is not the blue forum, we call a spade a spade. And an ugly, fucked up spade is an ugly, fucked up spade.

 

There are nice kit cars - the Quantums are nicely designed, they look as sharp as you can get when you start with some off the shelf lights and doors and join the dots. Also, a decent Lotus 7 replica is a thing of beauty. 

 

But just like I wouldn't save the price of an architect and design myself a house, and I wouldn't slap in my own central heating system or remove my own appendix, I'm also no good at designing a beautiful car. 

[spike60]

I bought a Dutton Phaeton with modified Lotus twin cam in some years ago not because I though it was well built or stylish but because I thought it would be fun, - it was. It had stunning acceleration and comedy weather gear so in most respects it was a lot like a 4 wheeled motorbike, perhaps this is the kit cars best role.

I'm pleased to say it still survives in highly evolved form and I recently posted it in the Ebay Tat thread, - with a highly evolved price!

[chodweaver]

I very nearly bought a quarter share in a Dutton Phaeton as a road legal track day car after some rash bidding on ebay. It was however a brilliant example of 'not looking so good in reality'. There weren't really any seats, and there was no passenger seat belt at all. Or lights. And, in common with what many others have found, the lack of a metal bodyshell for an earth or a loom that fits the fibreglass tub, seems to completely befuddle most kit car builders, leading to some very poor wiring practices indeed. The dealer wanted 2 grand for this POS. Instead a very sound N reg 328i that had already lost its interior (and unfortunately its V5 too) was secured for less than half that. The Dutton was a lucky escape.

 

But I still have a soft spot for something that's not weighed down by a mass produced steel body that can't wait to turn brown. So one of these days, a GTM might get brought home...

[Skoze]

No real help to OP, but Ido understand the kit car yearning.

 

A friend of mine has just finished a home-brew 7-a-like and it's brilliant. It's worth noting here he's a very knowledgable bloke and great engineer, which probably stood him in good stead. Properly set up, real suspension, bodywork is all from sheet ally he rolled in his living room, it's ace.

 

The real kicker was engine choice. We were down the pub discussing it and he said he wanted a 1000cc+ bike engine in it. We were several pints in and called him a gayer, and reminded him there's no replacement for displacement.

 

He now owns a 7 with a 4.0 Rover V8, churning out somewhere near 500bhp per tonne, and it is every bit as insane an idea as that sounds.

 

In short, buy a shite equivalent and follow his lead in the engine department.

 

 

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[Pillock]

A Rickman Ranger with a 2.9 Cosworth out of a Scopio? Sounds fairly budget.

[CHRIS1980]

The £250 these days wouldn't even get you the ironmongery to hold it together.

And it certainly wouldn't buy you the donor mk2 escort.

[CHRIS1980]

A Rickman Ranger with a 2.9 Cosworth out of a Scopio? Sounds fairly budget.

Sounds like the cause of death on a death certificate.

[brownnova]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RARE-Quantum-Kit-Car-No-203-215-1-6-Ford-XR2-Running-Gear-Road-Track-Rally-MOT-/321799534586?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item4aecbf37fa

Quantun at the shiter end of the price range

I remember going to the Stonleigh show and trying to convince my parents that a Quantum 2+2 was exactly what our next family car should be. And now this one comes up for sale, cheap enough and only a couple of miles from where I work...

 

Must resist bidding!!!