BMW Z3 with Ferrari 250 SWB kit

[GTRene]

[smash]

ukcerb said:

First trip out to Goodwood Revival. Lucky there was a friendly female mechanic to help out!

Looks like it sold quick - well done! Not surprised as it was well priced. Looks stunning - I think the only Grassbank option you didn’t do was narrow rear track?

[ukcerb]

Yes had quite a few offers but it’s going to a good home. Will definitely build another as they go together really well and there’s great support from suppliers. Grassbank rear screen is a must and perhaps rear track reduction next time.

[ukcerb]

Next Tribute project started. Donor Z3 underside completely stripped down and just waiting for parts to come back from powder/nylon coater before reassembly with all new suspension and bushes and rear arms with narrower Z4 hub conversion, new brake lines all done. Body arriving next week courtesy of Ian at Classic Coachworks.

[pingu393]

ukcerb said:

Next Tribute project started. Donor Z3 underside completely stripped down and just waiting for parts to come back from powder/nylon coater before reassembly with all new suspension and bushes and rear arms with narrower Z4 hub conversion, new brake lines all done. Body arriving next week courtesy of Ian at Classic Coachworks.

I'm planning on doing a 275 hard top next year. Hopefully, I'll have the donor car in January.

I'm planning to buy direct from Tribute. It's the same price as buying from CC. Is there a reason that I should buy from CC instead?

I'm concerned about the best places to source the extra parts. Where are you sourcing your parts? Chris at Tribute sent me a list of potential parts for a 250, but some of them are no longer available.

I can PM you the list if you want.

[V8RX7]

ukcerb said:

Next Tribute project started.

Can I ask why you sold so quickly / are building another ?

It's very rare to make money out of building them although I'm shocked what they seem to fetch.

[ukcerb]

Hi Pingu

The 275 is a lovely looking car, quite tempted to do one after this 250.
My first 250 came direct from Tribute but CC are now their agent and Ian is always really helpful.
What parts are you finding unavailable?

[ukcerb]

V8RX7 said:

Can I ask why you sold so quickly / are building another ?

It's very rare to make money out of building them although I'm shocked what they seem to fetch.

Yes building another as I enjoy the build process and as I’m semi retired I have quite a bit of spare time.
I always try to build the best I can but obviously it can get quite expensive in comparison to a quick budget build.
There are plenty of Cobras for instance but with a vast range of finishes and that reflects in the price. The Tribute 250 is a relatively ‘new’ model but I don’t see any reason that a really good example should not fetch a good price and would certainly realise the build cost depending on how you value your time.

[pingu393]

ukcerb said:

Hi Pingu

The 275 is a lovely looking car, quite tempted to do one after this 250.
My first 250 came direct from Tribute but CC are now their agent and Ian is always really helpful.
What parts are you finding unavailable?

From the list that I was given, it's only the reflectors, but there will be lots of unlisted items (such as headlining). Here's my list...

List of Parts

[ukcerb]

Classic Coachworks do the square reflectors. Have a look on their website. If you want the correct front and rear lights they are quite expensive but depends on what your budget is.

[pingu393]

ukcerb said:

... but depends on what your budget is.

It's this, exactly.

I explained this to Grassbank when we were talking about some of his stuff.

I'd rather pay £20k up front than pay £15k and then find that I needed another £5k to make it right. It's a psychological thing .

[ukcerb]

I’ve done a few kits over the years (Duttons, Beauford, Cobra) and always went over budget. It’s not because of underpricing components, it’s just wanting to do things better rather than ‘that’ll do’. £20k would build a very nice example but I guarantee you’ll find something you could improve along the way! I budgeted £200 for a steering wheel and boss and that’s doubled already with the wheel and bespoke engineered boss I’ve ended up with!

[Slow]

ukcerb said:

Classic Coachworks do the square reflectors. Have a look on their website. If you want the correct front and rear lights they are quite expensive but depends on what your budget is.

Without knowing sizes they look alot like the defender ones for a 1/10th of the price.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bearmach-Land-Rover-Def...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Clear-Indicator-Flasher...d4AAOxyrP9RaRt6

[ukcerb]

I know they look quite similar but the genuine 250 ones have a metal body with polished base ring. You pays your money...

[pingu393]

ukcerb said:

I’ve done a few kits over the years (Duttons, Beauford, Cobra) and always went over budget. It’s not because of underpricing components, it’s just wanting to do things better rather than ‘that’ll do’. £20k would build a very nice example but I guarantee you’ll find something you could improve along the way! I budgeted £200 for a steering wheel and boss and that’s doubled already with the wheel and bespoke engineered boss I’ve ended up with!

I agree with you 100%. Once you say "that'll do", you might as well have skimped from the start.

Excellence is normally the enemy of the good. All my working life, I have been told that good is good enough and that excellence is too costly, but these projects should be excellent.

It's going to be a whole change of mindset for me.

99.999% excellence is significantly harder to achieve than 99.99% excellence. I'm used to 4-9s. To put it into context, 5-9s is 5 minutes of downtime per year, 4-9s is nearly 9 hours of downtime per year. The effort to achieve 5-9s is significantly higher than 5-9s.

By the end of 2020 I'll know if I can do the car justice. It certainly looks like you have.

[saaby93]

Classic Coachworks website
https://www.classiccoachworks.org/new-page-1
What font is that

[ukcerb]

Good day today and finally finished trial fit of different seats. Look a bit more period I think and especially with the 16” steering wheel and bespoke centre to fit Z3 boss.

[jeff666]

ukcerb said:

Good day today and finally finished trial fit of different seats. Look a bit more period I think and especially with the 16” steering wheel and bespoke centre to fit Z3 boss.

Looks like the door will be very close to seat when closed,

What seats are those ?

[emicen]

jeff666 said:

ukcerb said:

Good day today and finally finished trial fit of different seats. Look a bit more period I think and especially with the 16” steering wheel and bespoke centre to fit Z3 boss.

Looks like the door will be very close to seat when closed,

What seats are those ?

R56 (and run out special edition R50/53) MINI seats in lounge leather spec.

[edit cause I mucked up the quoting]

Edited by emicen on Monday 2nd December 20:47

[ukcerb]

Yes that’s right R56 Mini.
The doors will fit now. The seats had to be moved 25mm nearer to the gearbox tunnel and a small section cut away inside the top of the B pillar to allow the seat to slide all the way back.