Discussion
hi all,
im currently looking into going the kit car route and been reading the mags etc. I'm looking for something more fun the out in out performance, that I'll be able to go for a hoon on a snunday and a few track days airfield days etc.
i'd like to get away from the 7 type car, and keep coming back to the Westfield Xi.
I've been searching around the net for build diarys to try nad get an idea of how complicated this would be, and if i would be able to do it justice.
does anyone here have any experience of the build ? or suggestions of similar types of kit (if there are any)
cheers
Paul
im currently looking into going the kit car route and been reading the mags etc. I'm looking for something more fun the out in out performance, that I'll be able to go for a hoon on a snunday and a few track days airfield days etc.
i'd like to get away from the 7 type car, and keep coming back to the Westfield Xi.
I've been searching around the net for build diarys to try nad get an idea of how complicated this would be, and if i would be able to do it justice.
does anyone here have any experience of the build ? or suggestions of similar types of kit (if there are any)
cheers
Paul
Your best bet is to go see Westfield, drive the car, and get hold of a copy of their build manual.
It's a very straightforward car to build mechanically, but last time I looked at it the quality of the fibreglass mouldings was pretty awful (since they were taking them from the original moulds) and it took a lot of body preparation work, and a lot of SVA testing dodges, to get a smart example in road legal form.
Having said which, I've heard that they are now using new moulds and the quality of bodywork straight from the moulds is supposedly much better.
You need to drive the car as well, though... I found it a really lovely thing to drive, with incredibly light and sensitive controls, but the brakes and power were non-existent so it might be a bit of a shock to the system after coming from relatively fast modern cars.
There's quite an active Yahoo! forum for the car and a website with some useful links here.
It's a very straightforward car to build mechanically, but last time I looked at it the quality of the fibreglass mouldings was pretty awful (since they were taking them from the original moulds) and it took a lot of body preparation work, and a lot of SVA testing dodges, to get a smart example in road legal form.
Having said which, I've heard that they are now using new moulds and the quality of bodywork straight from the moulds is supposedly much better.
You need to drive the car as well, though... I found it a really lovely thing to drive, with incredibly light and sensitive controls, but the brakes and power were non-existent so it might be a bit of a shock to the system after coming from relatively fast modern cars.
There's quite an active Yahoo! forum for the car and a website with some useful links here.
Pop over to the Westfield boardroom.
There aren't many XI owners on there, but there are a few, plus other members that have assisted with XI builds. I don't believe it is any harder to build than any other Westfield. But, there will be more refurbishment work of the donor parts before building.
boardroom.wscc.co.uk
There aren't many XI owners on there, but there are a few, plus other members that have assisted with XI builds. I don't believe it is any harder to build than any other Westfield. But, there will be more refurbishment work of the donor parts before building.
boardroom.wscc.co.uk
Hey Paul,
We're going to pick ours up in November. The body is made from new bucks so the quality is much better than many other GRP cars.
Mechs from the spridget with some mods to the rear axel and steering column.
Mike Arthurs will get you all parts needed without stripping (if needed) and will get you the parts as recon too.
Kit is pretty comprehensive and the people at Westfield are good - all communication we've had have been very quick. 1sr test drive was rained off, 2nd was good - very standard car, yellow, plenty quick enough to be fun. Easy to get the BMC A-series tuned up for more torque and power.
I have seen one with a Lotus Twin-Cam engine and heard of one with a Climax.
Check my profile to get to my blog - We will start updating it as soon as we start building. Hoping to get most of it done before the IVA kicks in, but doubt we'll be ready for Goodwood Revival 09, have to be ready for Le Mans Classic 2010.
PM me if you want more info.
Cheers,
Dave
We're going to pick ours up in November. The body is made from new bucks so the quality is much better than many other GRP cars.
Mechs from the spridget with some mods to the rear axel and steering column.
Mike Arthurs will get you all parts needed without stripping (if needed) and will get you the parts as recon too.
Kit is pretty comprehensive and the people at Westfield are good - all communication we've had have been very quick. 1sr test drive was rained off, 2nd was good - very standard car, yellow, plenty quick enough to be fun. Easy to get the BMC A-series tuned up for more torque and power.
I have seen one with a Lotus Twin-Cam engine and heard of one with a Climax.
Check my profile to get to my blog - We will start updating it as soon as we start building. Hoping to get most of it done before the IVA kicks in, but doubt we'll be ready for Goodwood Revival 09, have to be ready for Le Mans Classic 2010.
PM me if you want more info.
Cheers,
Dave
Edited by Simian Dave on Saturday 10th January 22:29
Oh - and they are a lot easier than most kit cars - the body (GRP and alu), carpet and seats are already on the chassis, so all that part is done (though will have to go in and out a lot) - Westfield can also supply new wiring looms, so one less thing to worry about.
Edited by Foolish Dave on Friday 10th October 08:41
Be warned though, I too was very much after one, then I had a sit in one, and realised I would need a bench seat to fit. That makes it no longer an option for me, as I hate bench seats in sports cars. Oh, and being 6'3" the top of the aero screen is about mid chest height! Apparently I looked like I as sat in a big shoe, which is a shame, as I was really looking forward to getting one.
I'm only 6'0", so I fit just fine, but I must admit that the seats in the demonstrator didn't help - they were buckets with fore-aft adjustment, so you were sat higher off the floor than was necessary and, as Snake says, you were pretty exposed in the airstream.
Dave: are they still suggesting the 'cheats' to get it through SVA (temporary mirrors and steering wheel, temporary headligh pods and testing without doors and screen fitted)? And have they done anything about the 'Le Mans' single-seater rigid tonneau - they were working on this when I drove the car a couple of years ago?
Dave: are they still suggesting the 'cheats' to get it through SVA (temporary mirrors and steering wheel, temporary headligh pods and testing without doors and screen fitted)? And have they done anything about the 'Le Mans' single-seater rigid tonneau - they were working on this when I drove the car a couple of years ago?
:cough: cheats? :cough:
Speaking to a friend on the train in today - sounds like the new IVA regs require head restraints on seats now - driver will be ok for ours, not sure about passenger, and I want to check that for myself - the draft IVA doc is pretty easy to get through so I should take a proper look.
The other problem I fear is restricted steering (M1, section 5 requirement 3) and it being limited by the body - though I'm sure there's something to limit the steering before they get to the arches, I need to make sure that's ok.
No sign of the hard cover al-la Le Mans Lotus XI/Jag D-type. We're going to get the farbic tonneau, but have yet to see how it actually fits on a car with the hump.
In the demo, the fit was fine for me at 6' (all legs, no torso) and I didn't have any trouble with air stream driving (with Le Mans hump) though being a passenger was a bit bracing (and had no runners) - but then I don't sit all that far above the seat. The seat travel was just a little too short for Mel to reach peddles so will need to sort that on ours - will probably go for 2 fixed positions and a quick release seat (if such a thing exists for the MSA). Oh, and I would expect wide hips find it a little tight too.
p.s. Sam:
Thanks for those links, I've only just seen them.
Brakes - I was happy with the feel but agree they can come as a shock after driving a modern car, they do make it easier to heel and toe though. We're going to run EBC green stuff pads to tighten them up, may switch to reds or yellow for the track but I don't fancy having reds on there for road use.
The body finish is good in terms of crazing and ripples, but it's not shiny, it needs mopping to shine it up after you've finished building it, but I'm not too fussed about that bit as it will get pretty dusty and dirty during the build so a few hours of cleaning post (S)IVA until the plates arrive will be ok.
We're getting a dark green one, we still think it looks really good, but we're starting to worry about being seen - everybody notices the yellow demo car, green cars in general blend into the background, and one so small, on country roads with high grass? Hmmm.
Speaking to a friend on the train in today - sounds like the new IVA regs require head restraints on seats now - driver will be ok for ours, not sure about passenger, and I want to check that for myself - the draft IVA doc is pretty easy to get through so I should take a proper look.
The other problem I fear is restricted steering (M1, section 5 requirement 3) and it being limited by the body - though I'm sure there's something to limit the steering before they get to the arches, I need to make sure that's ok.
No sign of the hard cover al-la Le Mans Lotus XI/Jag D-type. We're going to get the farbic tonneau, but have yet to see how it actually fits on a car with the hump.
In the demo, the fit was fine for me at 6' (all legs, no torso) and I didn't have any trouble with air stream driving (with Le Mans hump) though being a passenger was a bit bracing (and had no runners) - but then I don't sit all that far above the seat. The seat travel was just a little too short for Mel to reach peddles so will need to sort that on ours - will probably go for 2 fixed positions and a quick release seat (if such a thing exists for the MSA). Oh, and I would expect wide hips find it a little tight too.
p.s. Sam:
Thanks for those links, I've only just seen them.
Brakes - I was happy with the feel but agree they can come as a shock after driving a modern car, they do make it easier to heel and toe though. We're going to run EBC green stuff pads to tighten them up, may switch to reds or yellow for the track but I don't fancy having reds on there for road use.
The body finish is good in terms of crazing and ripples, but it's not shiny, it needs mopping to shine it up after you've finished building it, but I'm not too fussed about that bit as it will get pretty dusty and dirty during the build so a few hours of cleaning post (S)IVA until the plates arrive will be ok.
We're getting a dark green one, we still think it looks really good, but we're starting to worry about being seen - everybody notices the yellow demo car, green cars in general blend into the background, and one so small, on country roads with high grass? Hmmm.
Edited by Foolish Dave on Friday 10th October 08:52
Edited by Foolish Dave on Friday 10th October 09:00
Having fun with switching hosting so my blog may go up and down a bit.
Just found out the transport we were going to use to get the chassis & body to the garage from Westfield is 6" too short so need to sort out a van/lorry for pickup.
Paul - go and have a look at the demo car - this time of year it will be tricky to pick a day in advanced that will be good for a test drive, but if you call them and enquire they will generally be happy to accomodate you on short notice if it's possible for them.
Just found out the transport we were going to use to get the chassis & body to the garage from Westfield is 6" too short so need to sort out a van/lorry for pickup.
Paul - go and have a look at the demo car - this time of year it will be tricky to pick a day in advanced that will be good for a test drive, but if you call them and enquire they will generally be happy to accomodate you on short notice if it's possible for them.
I built one and it was pretty straight forward, most of the problems I had were either in stripping and refurbishing the Midget donor parts or where I was upgrading parts (like fitting Megajolt rather than the dizzy). Since completing the car I have pulled the gearbox out and gone for a BGH fettled 5 speed Type 9 gearbox. This again was more difficult as my chassis was made before Westfield changed the standard chassis to make the gearbox a simple fit.
As for driving the car, it is great fun and with a slightly modified A series definately not as slow as people might think. My advice is to go to the factory for a test drive, I did and fell in love.
As for driving the car, it is great fun and with a slightly modified A series definately not as slow as people might think. My advice is to go to the factory for a test drive, I did and fell in love.
Gassing Station | Kit Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff