GTM Ballista project for sale again
Discussion
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&am...
doesn't include the name, though, if that is going to out anyone off.
I've read the wiki page linked to it, but I nust admit to knowing very little about it, it looks like a scaled up Libra to me
doesn't include the name, though, if that is going to out anyone off.
I've read the wiki page linked to it, but I nust admit to knowing very little about it, it looks like a scaled up Libra to me
This was always the car that got away. It started as the Larini and was pretty but it was a sideline of a succesful boat building company. It then went to GTM who did a bit with it and then Westfield disposed of it. It had some really good points but was too expensive for all those who touched it to make it work. IIRC GTM were trying to sell it for a huge price taking the company upmarket. It would make a practical car, roof, doors etc.
Personally I think a DIY Ark would sell well at the moment.
Personally I think a DIY Ark would sell well at the moment.
The genius thing about the Ballista was, the fact that they thought they could sell a dodgy Elise S1 clone (for that is what it most certainly is visually) for £50k when you could buy an S1 for £8k second hand, and a pukka supercharged Exige for £35k.
All the old GTM factory ever did was take the original VW Golf powered dog they bought and paint it blue before ram-raiding Ripspeed at Halfords. The 300bhp Duratec powered car never existed, it had a Tartan blanket covering the engine at Autosport which does not fool intelligent people. I doubt it ever even drove under its own power.
Anyone with an ounce of sense would be better off spending their £15k on an £6k S1 Elise and putting a Honda / Audi turbo / Duratec in the back of it.
That car needs an angle -grinder put through it.
All the old GTM factory ever did was take the original VW Golf powered dog they bought and paint it blue before ram-raiding Ripspeed at Halfords. The 300bhp Duratec powered car never existed, it had a Tartan blanket covering the engine at Autosport which does not fool intelligent people. I doubt it ever even drove under its own power.
Anyone with an ounce of sense would be better off spending their £15k on an £6k S1 Elise and putting a Honda / Audi turbo / Duratec in the back of it.
That car needs an angle -grinder put through it.
GTRCLIVE said:
God forbid some one copied a successful Lotus Design and made a Kit Car from it...
So how many Lotus 7 Clones are there now I've lost count....
Looks quite a Nice car if you ask me, not a bad price either....
Don't be fooled by it's shiny paint..So how many Lotus 7 Clones are there now I've lost count....
Looks quite a Nice car if you ask me, not a bad price either....
Edited by GTRCLIVE on Wednesday 2nd December 19:44
I'd imagine Clive that if you had read all the info about it like some of us GTM lot have on TGTM, you would hold the same view. The car has been around for a long time. The original design was not GTM so I don't think GTM should be at all slated for copying an Elise (I don't mean by you, but just in general). See this link for it's origins.. http://www.premierkitcars.com/larini/
Seems that project was bought by GTM when under new ownership, a few mods made and new paint. but as you can see from the above pics, it' just a ratty old project that never took off underneath and as Lee said it is doubted it ever moved under it's own steam. The general view is that it was bought, magnetised and pushed through halfords for styling, then painted.. It is also powered by a tartan blanket.
As Rog said, it gets a slating because it has been around for so long and so many bogus claims have been made about it, plus the outrageous price tag GTM were initially supposed to be offering it for...
'The Ballista gets to 60mph from rest in just 3,.8 seconds and weighs just 600Kg -- and it could be lighter since there's a full carbon fibre body kit option, for only £5,000 more than the standard car. The first 15 cars roll off the production line in June 2006, at a cost of £34,995.'
Today, in Dec 09 the same car that was on the stand is on ebay, 15 cars were never made. 600kg is a joke, just look at the frame. Lastly the fastest that car has ever travelled is being pushed around the workshop.
I think GTM therefore can't be blamed for the styling being elise like, besides, how can that be a bad thing.... but, the claims they made for the car are nothing short of insulting, I think that is where a lot of the slating comes from. For a fraction of that price (considering the actual state of the car underneath and that it's a can of worms) it may be worthwhile as a one off project for someone doing it for themselves, but I can't see anyone making money from it.
If it was a elise clone or something remotely rivalling to an elise then I'd agree with you Clive, but as it stands it is not at all what it seems and I hope if anyone does buy it that they know what they're getting into and aren't just drawn in by its latest guise.
I personally, and I know a lot of others, wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.
Anyway, why would GTM need to make an Elise clone/rival when they've already made the Libra
Edited by yazza54 on Thursday 3rd December 00:22
Edited by yazza54 on Thursday 3rd December 00:25
GTRCLIVE said:
God forbid some one copied a successful Lotus Design and made a Kit Car from it...
So how many Lotus 7 Clones are there now I've lost count....
If we are comparing it to '7' clones then if the Ballista had been made by the old Robin Hood, and had a Robin Hood price tag then peoples expectations would be much more in-line with reality.So how many Lotus 7 Clones are there now I've lost count....
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