Ultima as my next car?

[brakedust]

Afternoon all,

I'm moving back to the UK in a few months and will need to scratch the car itch rather quickly. I had a 4.5 Cerbera for about 6 years and replaced that with a Maserati Graturismo before moving abroad about 2 years ago.

It will purely be a weekend toy, with the occasional trip into Europe and some track days - so I think the Ultima will tick most my boxes (providing I can find one with Air Con).

I guess my initial questions are around UK road usability (I'll be in Aberdeen), the front end ground clearance looks worse than my Cerbera, so I'm worried I wont be able to get out of town or will ground out on some of the less forgiving Scottish roads. Is this a valid worry or will it be fine? Outside of that, is there anything I should look for when buying other than the normal checks?

I was looking at this one as I quite like the front end upgrade,
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/u... although I think the back end isn't as nice as the original. I have had a look online and I can't seem to find anywhere that sells modified front ends, I like the original but also like the idea of being able to totally change the look if I want to, the Jon Olsson modified Ultima looked amazing! Is there somewhere I can look? Or do people customise there own so there isn't anything off the shelf?

[MKnight702]

I believe that this car has been for sale for some time.

The market for Ultimas is small and the current trend is towards the newer LS engine series so that counts against the car. The fact that the car has been modified also eats into the potential market for the car. Ppersonally, I find the looks of this car a bit challenging, so if you do buy the car then when you come to sell it you may have trouble finding a buyer at a price you find acceptable.

Depending upon your budget, I would look for a standard bodied car with A/C, budget will decide if you can go for a more modern LS or older SBC. For me, this car has been modified to the taste of one person, the original owner. Finding another person with the same taste or changing the car to suit a wider audience would put me off.

This one for slightly more would probably work out a better bet longer term. And no, it's not mine, nor do I know the owner!

LINKY

[confusionhunter]

Hi, welcome. Yes I think an ultima can tick those boxes and more
That particular car has been discussed previously here is a link:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[Mr Pid]

In general I would say an Ultima will meet your needs. I have no splitter on mine and have never touched a speed bump in 6 years driving. I also have a slope into my garage and have never grounded. I think the low front overhang helps a lot.

.....I would also say don't be put off by an sbc engine...... There is no reason these cant be set up to work very well..... As they were in millions of production cars. I have a blown sbc in mine and with a bit of fettling to set it up, I love it !

have fun

Stu

[barriejames]

Go for it, there is nothing in the price range when you view in the flesh that comes close.

[F.C.]

As said above the SBC has been used in thousands of cars but that one is a "race tuned" engine so I would make sure it drives on road as well as you are expecting it to, slower manoeuvres and traffic could be the bane of your Ultima enjoyment I know it was for me and I have an LS with good road manners; I just fitted power steering for slow manoeuvring.

[V8Dom]

i have a sbc in mine and splitter

sbc is great old school engine and so cheap and easy to maintain.

Charles Dunn is fantastic and alot on here send there cars there for servicing and tuning

my splitter touches speed hump but being wood i just replace it once a year

Dom

[brakedust]

Thanks for all the feedback guys - I emailed Jon Olsson and got some feedback off him with regards to his R2K project.

He apparently sold the moulds with the car, but the moulds weren't complete as some of it was built as required. The car also ended up being 20cm wider so would need the suspension and wishbones redesigning.

Once I'm back in the UK i'll have to test drive one and see how it feels. The only slight sticking point may be my misses, as she liked going out in the Cerbera and Granturismo, so if she doesn't like it the Europe tours may not be as much fun!

[Ultimike]

I run a SBC presently with a Holley carb and I think it sounds epic and like nothing else!

Everyone would agree an Ultima likes the open road and doesn't like the town but it's really at home on the track.

If you want a GT car to tour Europe with the good lady then suggest an additional purchase a cheap classic and you can do some historic rallies together

[e21Mark]

MKnight702 said:

LINKY

That's lovely.

An Ultima is about the only car I would consider selling my M3 for and that's just about my ideal car.

Can't say I'm a fan of that modified example. I don't think the colour helps either.

[mookle234]

Thanks Mark,

That's my GTR. It's actually my second. The first had a highly modded SBC and was a bit grumpy on occasion. The LS engine (IMO) makes a big difference. Very happy to potter. But can turn from pussycat to snarling beast with just a small squeeze of the throttle. Not that I get time to drive it anymore ;(

Cheers,

Mike

[e21Mark]

Can I ask what it's like for size inside? I'm 6' 2'' and a bit of a lump so wondered if that might present a problem?

Do they take much in the way of specialist maintenance, or should any competent workshop be able to look after them?

What do decent cars start at, with regard to price?

Please excuse the questions OP, but am finding myself considering an Ultima more and more.

[BogBeast]

e21Mark said:

Can I ask what it's like for size inside? I'm 6' 2'' and a bit of a lump so wondered if that might present a problem?

Do they take much in the way of specialist maintenance, or should any competent workshop be able to look after them?

What do decent cars start at, with regard to price?

Please excuse the questions OP, but am finding myself considering an Ultima more and more.

I am short so I will leave others for a more informed comment on the sizing. But I think it depends much on if you are long in the leg or the body, but there are dropped floorplan options out there that will probably accommodate your height. Girth might be more of a problem, its pretty narrow and I guess it depends on how much of a lump you are.

Any competent home mechanic should be able to maintain (and build) a Small block Chevy or factory LS engined car, so any good independent garage it should be a walk in the park. Biggest problem will probably be the repeated 'test drives' your car will need whilst in there

Stoneleigh kit cars show or the Silverstone Classic look like good options to see gaggles of Ultimas in one place. We are a pretty accommodating lot in my experience, so you might be able to try some for size and come and listen to some of the war stories (providing it doenst p1ss it down like it did last year...)

Edited by BogBeast on Saturday 5th March 11:47

[Steve_D]

I expect Guy (Bluesatin) would be about the largest Ultima owner I have met.
I'm guessing he is about 6'5 and is a big lad.
I expect he still watches this forum so may be along to advise.

Steve

[e21Mark]

Thanks gents. I'll make the effort to get along and check some out this year. Much as I love my M3, I would love an Ultima.

[Ultimike]

Here is one for sale not cheap though

http://www.le-autos.co.uk/product/ultima-gtr720-72...

[barriejames]

If funds allow id keep them both. An M3 is not an expensive car when compared to an ULT, so id try and hang on to it also.

e21Mark said:

Thanks gents. I'll make the effort to get along and check some out this year. Much as I love my M3, I would love an Ultima.

[Ultimike]

barriejames said:

If funds allow id keep them both. An M3 is not an expensive car when compared to an ULT, so id try and hang on to it also.

e21Mark said:

Thanks gents. I'll make the effort to get along and check some out this year. Much as I love my M3, I would love an Ultima.

Agreed wish I held on to my RS. No need for a preflight before going on a quick blast.