robin hood's...what are they like?

[Scho]

lucky me...I'm in the market for a weekend toy!

not got a huge amount of money, up to 6K ish but ideally i want to spend about 4K

Looking at used kit cars, what are the robin hood 2a's like?

I don't have a garage as such but i do have a covered dry area for cars at the back of my house, would i be able to get away with storing a lotus 7 type kit car under with a car cover for a bit of extra protection?

any other recommendations/advice?

thanks,

rick.

[Scho]

ok, done a search and it seems people don't think the robins too hot :-(

questions about storage still stand tho!

[AdamW]

A covered area, plus a car cover, is fine for storing a kit car.

Hamilton Classic do very good car covers for about £100. I'd also recommend getting a fitted tonneau rather than a hood, as it avoids the leaks you get around side screens if you stored it using the full weather gear.

[CanAm]

A decent outdoor cover should be OK.

For £6k you should be able to get a reasonable Westfield, maybe even a Caterham. I was offered a X-flow Caterham which had had a complete factory re-skin (ex-racer so it had taken a few minor bumps)for £6500 and could have got it for £6k. One even went for £5500 on e-bay a few weeks ago, and didn't look too bad at all. So stretch your budget to £6k before the good weather comes and you'll get something far better than a Robin Hood.

[Wacky Racer]

In a word crap! Resale value/image is very poor....

With apologies to any RH owners on here......

For that kind of money you would get a decent Westfield or Tiger Supersix or Supercat, although I would go for a Supercat as the Supersix is starting to get a little long in the tooth now.......

Give Graham/Duncan a ring at Chester sports cars for unbiased advice...

HTH.

[TonyHetherington]

Hello

Ok few points to note;

1) me and my dad are building a Robin hood.
2) we threw away most of the kit, and are merely keeping the chassis.
3) the chassis was stress tested and is the equivalent of a Caterham.
4) 80% of Robin Hood's are poorly built.

If you were building one yourself, and wanted to take time over it, and wanted to face ridiculous engineering challenges on a daily basis, then I think they're a good option. To buy one second hand I'd say no. They are exceptionally difficult to build, because they are so cheap, and as a result many are not made with any attention to detail, and that's before we question the appropriateness of their build.

£6k will get you a Westfield or perhaps even an old Caterham. A FAR better proposition

As for storage; an out door car cover under a sheltered area is perfect.

Hope that all helps

[Mr2Mike]

TonyHetherington said:

3) the chassis was stress tested and is the equivalent of a Caterham.

Which chassis would that be?

said:

4) 80% of Robin Hood's are poorly built.

And 100% of them are badly designed/engineered, with the possible exception of the new Zero which looks to be light years ahead of previous efforts.

Edited by Mr2Mike on Tuesday 15th January 13:46

[TonyHetherington]

It's a 2B from 2yrs ago. A guy at Cardiff uni bought it to do a uni project with and so hooked up the chassis to the stress analysis equipment. They compared it to a previously tested Caterham chassis and it came up equal in torsional stiffness (we have the deflection/stress data at home somewhere).

We then bought it from him as an unbuilt kit and sold everything bar the chassis and the stainless steel side panels.

Mr2Mike said:

And 100% of them are badly designed/engineered, with the possible exception of the new Zero which looks to be light years ahead of previous efforts.

That, strictly speaking, is misleading. So much of the Robin Hood the builder has to engineer himself that they are too varied to be able to say that. Some builders have a "bodge it" mentality - and that can be seen from some of the cars on the second hand market, but some (particularly ex tradesmen) have completely "re-engineered" the car.

But, it's that very reason that the builder has to engineer it himself that makes it so very cheap; because none of the (very evident) engineering that is in a Caterham or Westfield has been done.

[Chris71]

CanAm said:

A decent outdoor cover should be OK.

For £6k you should be able to get a reasonable Westfield, maybe even a Caterham. I was offered a X-flow Caterham which had had a complete factory re-skin (ex-racer so it had taken a few minor bumps)for £6500 and could have got it for £6k. One even went for £5500 on e-bay a few weeks ago, and didn't look too bad at all. So stretch your budget to £6k before the good weather comes and you'll get something far better than a Robin Hood.

A Caterham for £6k? The ones I've seen seem to start at about 9...

Could get a nice (if basic-ish spec) Westfield for that though.

As for the Robin Hood. Where's that popcorn smilie we need?

[Scho]

what about this one people?

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/309995.htm

bit older than the rest but seems well maintained.

[Ferg]

Wacky Racer said:

For that kind of money you would get a decent Westfield.....

...or maybe even something nice.

[Furyblade_Lee]

Hate to admit it, but the Zero 7 Robin Hood at least LOOKS the part, far better than 80% of the other LSIS out there. Have no idea what its like under the skin though.....

[LocoBlade]

A lot of the Zero was developed by someone other than Robin Hood, done on their behalf with the original intention of going racing with it, which explains why it stands out from the other cars they supply.

The chassis a quite big and looks very strong with large diameter tubing used, but its heavy compared to other Locaterfields from what Ive seen (albeit about a year ago).

Edited by LocoBlade on Tuesday 15th January 20:07

[Wacky Racer]

Ferg said:

Wacky Racer said:

For that kind of money you would get a decent Westfield.....

...or maybe even something nice.

[spyder dryver]

Chris71 said:

A Caterham for £6k? The ones I've seen seem to start at about 9...

How about this one.
OK so it's 7K, but it looks OK to me. Quaife straight cut box as well. Far preferable to riding through the glen, even at twice the price.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Caterham-Super-7-Sprint_W0QQ...

[Hobzy]

I'm on the same budget and really struggling to see the wood from the trees at the mo. Whatever I get will be added to later, so I'm guessing a Westfield with the most up to date Chassis is the best bet. How easy is it to put a different engine in at a later date? Does propshaft, gearbox and everything have to change or does it depend? I'm in no rush (in theory ) so do should I hold out for something with IRS?

Or do I go for a BEC Indy or something similar?

Currently driving a trackday fiddled JCW MINI so whatever I get it will be a completely new experience...

Apologies for the hijack.

[Chris71]

spyder dryver said:

Chris71 said:

A Caterham for £6k? The ones I've seen seem to start at about 9...

How about this one.
OK so it's 7K, but it looks OK to me. Quaife straight cut box as well. Far preferable to riding through the glen, even at twice the price.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Caterham-Super-7-Sprint_W0QQ...

Starting bid

I'm sure some do go for that, but £7k would be a very well specced Striker or a good Westfield, but it's entry level money for Caterhams. I don't really understand why, but it seems that way.

[spyder dryver]

Chris71 said:

spyder dryver said:

Chris71 said:

A Caterham for £6k? The ones I've seen seem to start at about 9...

How about this one.
OK so it's 7K, but it looks OK to me. Quaife straight cut box as well. Far preferable to riding through the glen, even at twice the price.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Caterham-Super-7-Sprint_W0QQ...

Starting bid

I'm sure some do go for that, but £7k would be a very well specced Striker or a good Westfield, but it's entry level money for Caterhams. I don't really understand why, but it seems that way.

Look again Chris, it's 7K BUY IT NOW.

As regards entry level Caterhams they wouldn't be my choice either. Your "well specced Striker" observation is spot on. It's got one of the best kit car chassis ever IMHO, particularly in IRS form.
I am currently building a Stuart Taylor Phoenix, which is, as most of you already know, a development of the Striker chassis, along with Furys, Cyana etc.
I would, however, still prefer a crossflow engined 7k Caterham to a Robin Hood at any price with any engine in it.

Geoff.

[custardtart]

Scho said:

lucky me...I'm in the market for a weekend toy!

not got a huge amount of money, up to 6K ish but ideally i want to spend about 4K

Looking at used kit cars, what are the robin hood 2a's like?

I don't have a garage as such but i do have a covered dry area for cars at the back of my house, would i be able to get away with storing a lotus 7 type kit car under with a car cover for a bit of extra protection?

any other recommendations/advice?

thanks,

rick.

get yourself onto the Westfield Club site www.wscc.co.uk - the following is just one from the many in their classifieds and if you were looking for a car to use as a toy on track days etg this would be perfect. Pictures and sellers details on the site.

For Sale
Red Factory built Westfield SEW. Built by Westfield for their stand at the 2000 Racing Car Show to Westfield Sportscar Championship Spec. and owned and raced by me since new.
Details :
1. 1800 ford Zetec engine running on twin Webber 40 carbs with Webber Alpha Gold engine management. Uses no oil between changes. Rev limiter set to 7600rpm, 126mph, which could be reached at Snetterton.
2. Live axle car with 3.9 CWP and open differential.
3. Race chassis with MSA roll bar
4. Avo shocks new in 2004 ( one and a half seasons use )
5. Terry Nightingale front ARB
6. Rear disc brake conversion using Fiesta sliding callipers
7. Cockpit adjustable brake bias and twin master cylinders.
8. 3D engine mapping by Northampton Motorsport ( Torque & Power curves available)
9. ARP rod bolts.
10. Shift lights
11. Choice of wheels and tyres:
• 6Jx13 KN Minilite pattern front wheels with 6.0/21x13 ACB10’s in A33 compound
• 7Jx13 KN Minilite pattern rear wheels with 7.0/22x13 ACB10’s in A33 compound
• OR 185/60x13 Avon CR28 on 6” Minilite pattern rims
12. Straight cut close ratio 4 speed Rocket box with alloy top cover and breather. Rebuilt by TranX in 2004
13. Bespoke aluminium cased repackable silencer by Nick Paravani (99DbA at 4750 rpm when tested by Scruitineers))
14. Never bent
15. Excellent body, with aeroscreen
16. Utterly reliable. Only 3 non finishes in 6 years racing due to 2 jammed throttles (now cured) and a broken throttle cable.
17. Car won its class in 2005 Kirkistown Sportscar championship.
18. Not raced for last 2 years, and garaged throughout it’s life.
19. Possible conversion to road car.


£6,500 ono

[kylemrushall]

Sylva Striker..... would be my choice i would not touch a RH with anyone barge pole