Classic Kit Cars - The Filby Files. Now with Stevens cars on P4

[timolloyd]

Great spot, but these look awful IMO.

I reckon most owners must be kicking themselves for not saving the OMGFORDTAX Capri underneath, which would undoubtedly be worth more.

[quicksilver]

I've seen pictures of those but didn't know their name. One of the worst 'replicas', second only to the TR40 that made a poor innocent TR7 look really not much like a Ferrari F40.

[Back_For_More]

Yes.... They did a Vantage copy. I looked at them when given a rotten Capri. 

Ended up with a rear engined Lotus 7 style using a Ford fiesta Supersport setup - had it years and eventually sold it with an MR2 turbo in it, by which point it was quite lethal 😁

I fell in love with kit cars when our home ec teacher squeezed herself out of a Nova Kit while wearing a mini skirt and a thong...... Best car ever. 

[silvercar]

5 hours ago, timolloyd said:

Great spot, but these look awful IMO.

I reckon most owners must be kicking themselves for not saving the OMGFORDTAX Capri underneath, which would undoubtedly be worth more.

Oh I don’t know, in the dark, on a trailer, looked much better to me than most things I see these days. I do agree about ford tax but knowing how little of a capri was actually used it could be a worthwhile use of a bulkhead from an extinct car

[Bfg]

 

What were you doing in 1985 ? 

This gives a clue into my my own working life forty years ago .. Thanks to Hubnut .. Ian

 

Although a motorcyclist by habit - by 1985, I had five years experience in the motor industry, help design and build the Stephens Cipher and a Triumph Herald based special, called the Sienna ..that never quite made it to being a kit car..  40 years ago I was very much into Citroen 2cv's and the like.  One of the prototype kit cars, I did put into production, has very recently been uncovered . . .

For me - this video is a wonderfully nostalgic blast from my Citroen motoring past ! ..  I thoroughly enjoyed Ian's video and youthful enthusiasm.  Also well impressed with his brut force 'skills' in getting her going after some 23 years (since she was abandoned).  I suspect a day of simply dismantling components & cleaning things up.., the car would both look a lot better and she would run.  The chassis though looks as if would not be safe to use on the road.  By the way the wiring was not mine. I loathe and so would never used blue crimped connectors. The original wiring diagram is in the build manual, still with the car.   

This car was was the prototype ..and so it was in fact my company's (Falcon Design's) original Falcon 'S' demonstrator.  There should be photographs and road test in the kit car magazines of the period.  The car was sold to Colin Maclaren ..a lovely chap and son of the inventor and business entrepreneur of Maclaren pushchair buggies. The photos on the brochure's cover was our subsequent demonstrator, also in signal red for marketing consistency, but refined in detail and finish and with 650cc Visa pistons. 

Yes this car, on a Citroen 2cv platform, and its engine fitted with an Ami-8 twin-choke Solex carb - was just 602cc.  Putting that in context to the Lotus 7 style - Colin Chapman's original Lotus 7 hill climber was itself only 700cc !

My friend John, who lives on the Shotley Peninsula, Suffolk still has the original Falcon LX3 demonstrator, sadly likewise sitting for years unused and painted blue (..because the red gelcoat finish was so very faded). It would be wonderfully quirky to see them both restored as each are great fun cars to drive.  Anyone here  looking for such projects ??

Anyway, that's what I was doing as I approached 30 years old.  It was a bumpy roller coaster ride thereafter.  I never did make my fortune.   

What legacy do you leave ?

Pete.

[MiniMinorMk3]

On 07/09/2019 at 21:38, bunglebus said:

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.

I have a mate with a Biota. He uses it for track days and a bit of hill climbing.

 

[MiniMinorMk3]

 

[garethj]

It’s a bit dusty in this corner but it’s probably the most appropriate place to drop it.

The Ginetta G26 is the most Autoshite way to get into a sporty-ish plastic wedge, but there’s another that I hadn’t heard of.

Lolita Sports were small racing cars created by designer-fabricator Henry Nehrybecki in mid 60’s Australia, built based upon a space-frame chassis with fiberglass bodywork and powered by a mid/rear-mounted Mini Cooper 4-cyl 1098/1330cc (125hp) engine with a 4-speed manual transmission.

The open wheel MKI version was later (1968) replaced with the enclosed body MKII (monocoque) powered by a 1380cc (130hp) engine with a 4-speed manual transmission.
There were also tentative plans for a MkIII powered by a Subaru flat-four engine, but this did not materialise.

The Chimera was a two-door 2+2 coupe concept created in the 70’s to be powered by a Buick 3.8litre V6 with 6-speed auto. But did not proceed beyond the mock-up prototype.

Pinched from Classic and Recreation Sportscars group on Facebook