garethj Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Kit cars are always interesting, even if it’s to wonder what the actual fuck they were thinking of. Peter Filby has had his fingers in many fibreglass pies but the writer is Chris Rees who seems to know all the stuff. I got this book from Amazon, second hand for a fiver. I’ll put some of the pages up here, I’m sure you’ll recognise a few of the cars. I put the first one up mainly to show what a complete two and eight some of this stuff is, what a complete waste of self tappers. Sudsprint, Alan_Green, egg and 13 others 16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted September 7, 2019 Author Share Posted September 7, 2019 Six-cylinder, Alanism, JeeExEll and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted September 7, 2019 Author Share Posted September 7, 2019 JeeExEll, Shirley Knott, Alan_Green and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted September 7, 2019 Author Share Posted September 7, 2019 Six-cylinder, Bamboocarman, inconsistant and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunglebus Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Cool book. I'd like a Covin with a totally inappropriate engine to piss the Porsche purists off, and now I want a Bloata purely for the comedy name. egg, warren t claim and Alanism 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christine Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 I built a Burlington SS in my yoof. ! egg 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted September 7, 2019 Author Share Posted September 7, 2019 I love the Burlington, I’ve got a half arsed plan to design my own. The Covin looks convincing, better than the Pulsar ? inconsistant and Alan_Green 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted September 7, 2019 Author Share Posted September 7, 2019 I put the Stevens Cipher in here because @Bfg was involved in the development Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan_Green Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Great stuff. The Bonito was my favourite when I was a kid. Sudsprint, Banger Kenny and JeeExEll 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunglebus Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Always fancied a Nova - the VW based one, not a Vauxhall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sierraman Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 I’d forgot how terrible some of those kit cars were. Bamboocarman 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inconsistant Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Crikey. That's some challenging reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonathan_dyane Posted September 7, 2019 Share Posted September 7, 2019 Butterfield Musketeer for me please Sudsprint and Semi-C 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Snipes Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 Beaujangle Can Am! What a name! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve79 Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 Quite fancy a beaver - snigger! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quicksilver Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 I've never heard of most of those so I need to get myself a copy of that. Makes me wonder if any were actually built or the buyers got fed up of how crappy the kit was and just chucked the whole lot in the skip. Those names though! I'll have a Butterfield Musketeer, or maybe a Grantura Yak or a Beaujangle Can Am. Or perhaps a Sheen Imperator GTS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusty Sills Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 I'd happily roll in a Cavallo Estivo. Looks a bit TVRish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted September 8, 2019 Author Share Posted September 8, 2019 There’s a fair chance lots were part-built and then scrapped, some were never started and they occasionally come up for sale even 3 or 4 decades later. It’s great to see what people come up with, some are really very good indeed compared to contemporary production cars (not very well made either) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusty Sills Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 Look at the state of the Magenta TXR. Fuck me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quicksilver Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 Just now, Crusty Sills said: Look at the state of the Magenta TXR. Fuck me! It looks like an Allegro estate with a droop snoot! I've actually seen a Magenta Sprint, based on an MG 1100 and it's no looker either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anonymous user Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 I have a box with some of the original Kit Car magazines, occasionally dig them out for a reminisce Alanism 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bfg Posted September 9, 2019 Share Posted September 9, 2019 On 9/7/2019 at 9:49 PM, garethj said: I put the Stevens Cipher in here because @Bfg was involved in the development yep (hands up) I did it ! Interestingly there's a later one on Ebay at the moment < here >. This one Tony re-engineered it and built in conjunction with "the Russians" using Lada 1300 Samara mechanicals. There's only one, so if you're in the market for a unique small sports car, with readily available parts, then all you've got to do is to win the bid. There are however eight (I think) Ciphers built, using four different power trains. And at the time of the (above) magazine listing I was partner to and running Lomax. The prototype used the Citroen flat-twin engine but was on its own chassis. I developed and marketed it as a kit-car package on the Citroen chassis. In terms of sales and as a business it was "too successful, too quickly" for my level of experience. On 9/8/2019 at 12:36 PM, quicksilver said: Makes me wonder if any were actually built or the buyers got fed up of how crappy the kit was and just chucked the whole lot in the skip. I don't recall how many were sold but hundreds were built and many owners became great enthusiasts. After being ripped off by Nigel Whall, who created the Lomax's concept, I moved across to building the (also A-series Citroen based) Falcon S and its 3-wheeler version the LX which were styled along the lines of a Lotus Super-7. It's noteworthy to remember that Colin Chapman started off in the kit-car business. His prototype was for built for hill climbs, and the Lotus seven he sold as a kit was originally based on the Austin-7. Only later did he progress to Ford. Nevertheless, he sorta did OK for himself. Bfg Craig the Princess, Banger Kenny, garethj and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mally Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 My poor mans impression of a Lomax/Falcon. Mallinson 002 Banger Kenny, Squirrel2, garethj and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asimo Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 Do tell us more, I have always been interested in these "Morganesque" tricycles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vulgalour Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 The ABC Tricar isn't as horrendous as it could be, keeping the best part of the Mini's design means it's actually fairly smart. The Boler T-Bone, on the other hand, is probably best left not discussed. chodweaver, garethj, AnthonyG and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mally Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 56 minutes ago, Asimo said: Do tell us more, I have always been interested in these "Morganesque" tricycles. There is some mention and photos here. I built two at a cost of around £350 each. Sold the first for a grand, Couldn't get shut of the other, it went for £400 eventually. Alanism and Asimo 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tayne Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 The Diva Valkyr looks like it was influenced by the Porsche 904 GTS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bfg Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 . Here's a couple I built . . ^ Yes that's me. My first 'kit' was called a Stevens Sienna. I had been working for Tony Stevens for a year (1979 - 80), helping him create the Cipher - which was intended for low volume production, and we'd just got it through limited-production Type Approved when Hesketh motorcycles and then Delorian crashed. The latter was especially big publicity at the time because he had government backing ..to create jobs in Ireland. As a result our financial backers took fright - The car business was too high risk. We were just a two man anyway + a part-time fibreglasser business so our overheads were minuscule. To bide time, while Tony was looking for a new source of venture capital, I proposed using the moulds from his prototype Sienna (the red car seen above) to create and market a kit-car. The original Sienna had originated from his building 1920's style light-commercials as working advertising platforms (..United Biscuits : Taxi chocolate bar, etc). Anyway he simply said "get on with it then", so I bought a scruffy Triumph Herald, took a mould off the floor pan and extended a set of Sienna mouldings (sized for a Reliant Kitten) to sit over this four seater chassis. It was comfortable and very easy to drive, reliable, and pretty quick with such a lightweight body, and things like the Triumph's wooden dashboard looked a treat. Alas money ran out before I had a chance to get it to any kit-car shows, so only the one was made and it was sold through the local (Warwick, Leamington Spa) newspaper's classified ads ..to pay the bills. No more money so I was laid off. These are the first two Ciphers we built. The one in the background was the first, which was our development hack and the car used for the first press articles in Autocar and then Motor. Because of the publicity from those magazines, Tony managed to talk our way into exhibiting at the 1980 National Motor Show (first time held at the NEC if I recall) - Normally the organisers wouldn't allow any car that is not already in production or from an established manufacturer. The second car (in the foreground) Tony had painted the same colour so there would be continuity between the magazine articles and the car actually on the stand in the show. Subsequently it was repainted metallic blue and sold to a garage owner in the village of Deddington. Literally selling one to pay for the next two sets of mechanicals from Reliant. But as I say.. venture capital never materialised. Only a few years later when the venture was laying financially stillborn, and I had my own fibreglassing business and was partner to Lomax, did I try to re-introduce the Cipher as a kit car. The kits were offered with all new mechanicals and mostly assembled. The hope was that with the MG Midget and Triumph Spitfire by then out of production, there would have been takers, and those sales might in turn might attract venture capital. Unfortunately, a new car was too expensive for 'kit car' punters. I was building one car on Reliant running gear ..as per the original, and then a second car using Mk1 Ford Escort mechanicals, but we were inundated with orders for the Lomax, so they sat unfinished in a corner of my workshop. Then I met a chap whose business was building kit-cars for clients. He offered to finish the two Ciphers according to my spec. and we agreed a price. He collected the two cars and then disappeared. I got ripped off. There ended my attempt to introduce the Cipher as a home completed new car. Anyway it's time for my supper now, but ..if its of interest, I'll come back tomorrow (or whenever) and share a little background to the demonstrators I developed and built for Lomax and Falcon kit-cars (during the 1980's). Bfg vulgalour, garethj, holbeck and 22 others 24 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alusilber Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 I've seen a Cipher in the flesh once, at the end of a row of Scimitars at CarFest North 2013. As I'd never seen one before, I took a photo... garethj, Alanism, Banger Kenny and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnthonyG Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 Re the ABC Tricar, I struggle to see how a Mini with only one rear wheel, even if mounted like an early Morgan, would ‘handle better than a Mini’. I had a Matchox model of a Siva S160, never even knew it was an actual car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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