Discussion
Hi everyone. I'm the new kid on the block and I hope you will bear with me on my first few tentative steps on this forum.
Since my schoolboy days (many moons ago!), I have been intrigued by the "small but perfectly formed" Unipower GT; but alas, know precious little about it except that was powered by the BLMC Mini 998 - or 1275 cc units mounted transversely behind the driver and that the gearshift was on the right of the driver meaning that one has to climb over it to get behind the wheel! (A tad uncomfortable especially that the car has such a low roof...!) Then add to that, I didn't know that it was also available in kit form (like the incredibly curvaceous Marcos GT) or that only a very small number of these [Unipowers] were ever produced despite having a full order book!
Am I interested in one? Most certainly! But reading through the discussion in the forum, it seems that only a handful is left in the UK! So the chance of me even owning one is practically non-existent!
Anyway, to begin with, how many series of the car were there? For example, the Jaguar E-Type had 3 (4 if one took into account the 1.1/2 which is essentially an "in-between" before the Series 2...)
And did the Unipower also come with flared arches? Or is that a later add-on by owners who, for competition purposes, did it so as to accommodate wider boots?
Since my schoolboy days (many moons ago!), I have been intrigued by the "small but perfectly formed" Unipower GT; but alas, know precious little about it except that was powered by the BLMC Mini 998 - or 1275 cc units mounted transversely behind the driver and that the gearshift was on the right of the driver meaning that one has to climb over it to get behind the wheel! (A tad uncomfortable especially that the car has such a low roof...!) Then add to that, I didn't know that it was also available in kit form (like the incredibly curvaceous Marcos GT) or that only a very small number of these [Unipowers] were ever produced despite having a full order book!
Am I interested in one? Most certainly! But reading through the discussion in the forum, it seems that only a handful is left in the UK! So the chance of me even owning one is practically non-existent!
Anyway, to begin with, how many series of the car were there? For example, the Jaguar E-Type had 3 (4 if one took into account the 1.1/2 which is essentially an "in-between" before the Series 2...)
And did the Unipower also come with flared arches? Or is that a later add-on by owners who, for competition purposes, did it so as to accommodate wider boots?
Had a look on the eBay site and was a little disappointed to see that it's just a body shell without a chassis or anything else! Guess I'll have to bide my time a little longer and see what happens ....
Is there anyone else out there in cyberspace I can contact (e.g. owners' club etc.) to lend me a helping hand (fill in the blanks) in responding to my queries about the Unipower GT? As I first mentioned, my general knowledge about this car is very sketchy ...
Is there anyone else out there in cyberspace I can contact (e.g. owners' club etc.) to lend me a helping hand (fill in the blanks) in responding to my queries about the Unipower GT? As I first mentioned, my general knowledge about this car is very sketchy ...
Edited by Chris da Silva on Sunday 3rd January 08:02
Edited by Chris da Silva on Sunday 3rd January 08:12
Have a look at this thread: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Hi there, Q! I went through the link you gave me and I've learnt a few more things I never knew about the Unipower.
I wonder whether all the original tooling, moulds, body panels etc. are still available to re-commence production of this car - no, not as a kit car as of old; but a low-volume, specialist production vehicle like Morgan (about 12 vehicles per week for the whole world.) That could exempt the car from many of the obstacles/legislations already in place for larger production manufacturers in (for example) the USA and Australia.
The Mini engine options available back then were the only power plants fitted; but thankfully, there is a greater choice of units available today! For instance, a currently-available Caterham model uses a turbocharged Suzuki engine as in the Suzuki Cara/Autozam AZ-1 Kei cars. In both of these Kei cars, the engine is rear transverse and midship like the original Unipower layout; but the biggest plus with them is that the gear lever is in the middle between the driver and passenger rather than between the driver's seat and the door! Why can't the same engine and layout be used with the Unipower? Alternatively, a larger power plant (like the tweaked 1.6 litre unit as used in the Swift Sport) may be considered for better performance figures.
The addition of electrically assisted [power] steering, Brembo brakes and the option of automatic transmission would be a nice touch too!
Second, the interior of the original batch of 75 Unipowers is a little spartan and could do with a few more creature comforts (e.g. seats with better posture support, better instruments + control layout, electric windows and so on).
And how about fitting larger road wheels (12-inch to replace the original 10-inch) and lower profile tyres? (It means that the overall diameter will still remain the same.)
With the addition of front and rear bumpers (the original batch of Unipowers did not have any!) like the Marcos kit cars of the period may be an idea too!
Size-wise (as well as engine displacement), the original Unipower exceeds the criteria of a Kei car; but hey! If these [Kei cars] are licensed for use on our roads, it shouldn't be too difficult to get the new/remanufactured batch [of Unipowers] to do the same! And if these remanufactured cars are priced sensibly like the Mazda MX-5 (which is the best-selling small sports car available today), the Unipower will garner a faithful following [like the MX-5].
That'll be another "lost" marque making a comeback.
A few ideas here! Pie in the sky?? Or am I being too optimistic?
I wonder whether all the original tooling, moulds, body panels etc. are still available to re-commence production of this car - no, not as a kit car as of old; but a low-volume, specialist production vehicle like Morgan (about 12 vehicles per week for the whole world.) That could exempt the car from many of the obstacles/legislations already in place for larger production manufacturers in (for example) the USA and Australia.
The Mini engine options available back then were the only power plants fitted; but thankfully, there is a greater choice of units available today! For instance, a currently-available Caterham model uses a turbocharged Suzuki engine as in the Suzuki Cara/Autozam AZ-1 Kei cars. In both of these Kei cars, the engine is rear transverse and midship like the original Unipower layout; but the biggest plus with them is that the gear lever is in the middle between the driver and passenger rather than between the driver's seat and the door! Why can't the same engine and layout be used with the Unipower? Alternatively, a larger power plant (like the tweaked 1.6 litre unit as used in the Swift Sport) may be considered for better performance figures.
The addition of electrically assisted [power] steering, Brembo brakes and the option of automatic transmission would be a nice touch too!
Second, the interior of the original batch of 75 Unipowers is a little spartan and could do with a few more creature comforts (e.g. seats with better posture support, better instruments + control layout, electric windows and so on).
And how about fitting larger road wheels (12-inch to replace the original 10-inch) and lower profile tyres? (It means that the overall diameter will still remain the same.)
With the addition of front and rear bumpers (the original batch of Unipowers did not have any!) like the Marcos kit cars of the period may be an idea too!
Size-wise (as well as engine displacement), the original Unipower exceeds the criteria of a Kei car; but hey! If these [Kei cars] are licensed for use on our roads, it shouldn't be too difficult to get the new/remanufactured batch [of Unipowers] to do the same! And if these remanufactured cars are priced sensibly like the Mazda MX-5 (which is the best-selling small sports car available today), the Unipower will garner a faithful following [like the MX-5].
That'll be another "lost" marque making a comeback.
A few ideas here! Pie in the sky?? Or am I being too optimistic?
Edited by Chris da Silva on Sunday 3rd January 12:53
Edited by Chris da Silva on Sunday 3rd January 15:05
Edited by Chris da Silva on Sunday 3rd January 16:45
Edited by Chris da Silva on Monday 4th January 00:32
Chris da Silva said:
.... Size-wise (as well as engine displacement), the original Unipower exceeds the criteria of a Kei car; but hey! If these [Kei cars] are licensed for use on our roads, it shouldn't be too difficult to get the new/remanufactured batch [of Unipowers] to do the same! And if these remanufactured cars are priced sensibly like the Mazda MX-5 (which is the best-selling small sports car available today), the Unipower will garner a faithful following [like the MX-5].
That'll be another "lost" marque making a comeback.
A few ideas here! Pie in the sky?? Or am I being too optimistic?
Not wishing to rain on your parade but if sold as a complete car it would have to go through IVA which would probably make it as expensive, if not more expensive than an MX5.That'll be another "lost" marque making a comeback.
A few ideas here! Pie in the sky?? Or am I being too optimistic?
Edited by Chris da Silva on Sunday 3rd January 12:53
If sold as a kit then it would need to go through BIVA which would make a more economical and sensible proposition.
If someone does bring back the Unipower, can they do the Rochdale Olympic too please!
Rich G said:
Not wishing to rain on your parade but if sold as a complete car it would have to go through IVA which would probably make it as expensive, if not more expensive than an MX5.
If sold as a kit then it would need to go through BIVA which would make a more economical and sensible proposition.
If someone does bring back the Unipower, can they do the Rochdale Olympic too please!
Hi RichIf sold as a kit then it would need to go through BIVA which would make a more economical and sensible proposition.
If someone does bring back the Unipower, can they do the Rochdale Olympic too please!
It's a fair comment; but that would also mean that the Unipower (or the Rochdale too for that matter) may not satisfy some countries' import conditions if buyers from those countries want to buy one because it's only available in kit form. An MX5 does not have an [arguably] exorbitant price tag; and for the money, it's a lot of sports car with a proven track record. (Think how long the MX5 has been in production...). What I'm getting at is that the price difference between the two (MX5 and Unipower) would be comparable; and for that price [of a mass-produced MX5], there is the alternative choice of a high quality, hand-built, small production British car.
And as long as the production figures are kept reasonably low (about 7-10 units a week?) there will probably be a steady demand for it (judging from the information/interest shown in another thread I've been reading on this site) - first in the UK; then eventually, worldwide - much like the Morgan Car Company in Malvern, Worcs., has done since 1909! The remaining piece of the puzzle is simply marketing the product properly to ensure that it won't go down the same disastrous path like with the first batch of vehicles back in the mid-60's, of which just 75 examples were produced despite full order books! (Where are all the right marketing people when you need them?)
Edited by Chris da Silva on Monday 4th January 11:40
Edited by Chris da Silva on Monday 4th January 14:20
Edited by Chris da Silva on Monday 4th January 14:26
Hi, The Unipower Owners Club has been running since I started it back 1972. It was very active back in the 70's & 80's when there were lots of cars on the road then and we took part in most of the early National Classic Car Shows. In the late 80's many cars found there way to Japan where there are now 16 examples out there of the 72 produced by the factory. All cars were factory built with minor parts fitted by the Customers for obvious reasons.
The Owners Club & Register has maintained a presence actively providing information and expertise to Owners around the World and just recently has launched a Website dedicated to the marque. This can be found at www.unipowergt.uk and contains a wealth of information about these cars. More content is being added all the time, so keep looking at the site. Cars do come up for sale every so often, as indeed one changed hands recently, however there are two for sale in Japan currently. Please contact the Owners Club via the Contact page on the website if interested.
Gerry
The Owners Club & Register has maintained a presence actively providing information and expertise to Owners around the World and just recently has launched a Website dedicated to the marque. This can be found at www.unipowergt.uk and contains a wealth of information about these cars. More content is being added all the time, so keep looking at the site. Cars do come up for sale every so often, as indeed one changed hands recently, however there are two for sale in Japan currently. Please contact the Owners Club via the Contact page on the website if interested.
Gerry
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