Which UK 7 Replica is best?
Discussion
Hi Folks,
I am interested in building a Lotus 7 style kit car mainly for track say use but also a bit of weekend fast road driving. Of course, I want to drive the car but equally important to me is the fun of using my own hands and brain to put something together that I can have fun with.
With so many manufacturers in the UK, it is quite difficult to know the strengths and weaknesses of each one. Westfield and Caterham have decades of pedigree and manufacturing but they are also quite expensive. MK Sportscars have a pretty good name and have cars in various racing series. There are way more out there like GBS, Raptor Sportscars, ERA Sportscars (Tiger), Road Runner Racing, Aries Motorsport, DMO Sports Cars, GKD Sportscars and JK Sportscars.
There is also the full-on scratch-build Locost (Haynes Roadster) weld-it-yourself project but that is a bridge to far for me. I want to leave the strength, structure and proven weld quality of a professionally built chassis and I can take it from there.
I plan to buy an MX5 donor (and eventually add forced induction) so I will use the parts from that for the kit car build so the "which is better" question is more about chassis design, strength, material and welding quality, cost and customer service.
So, which one would you choose and why?
Cheers,
Chazz.
I am interested in building a Lotus 7 style kit car mainly for track say use but also a bit of weekend fast road driving. Of course, I want to drive the car but equally important to me is the fun of using my own hands and brain to put something together that I can have fun with.
With so many manufacturers in the UK, it is quite difficult to know the strengths and weaknesses of each one. Westfield and Caterham have decades of pedigree and manufacturing but they are also quite expensive. MK Sportscars have a pretty good name and have cars in various racing series. There are way more out there like GBS, Raptor Sportscars, ERA Sportscars (Tiger), Road Runner Racing, Aries Motorsport, DMO Sports Cars, GKD Sportscars and JK Sportscars.
There is also the full-on scratch-build Locost (Haynes Roadster) weld-it-yourself project but that is a bridge to far for me. I want to leave the strength, structure and proven weld quality of a professionally built chassis and I can take it from there.
I plan to buy an MX5 donor (and eventually add forced induction) so I will use the parts from that for the kit car build so the "which is better" question is more about chassis design, strength, material and welding quality, cost and customer service.
So, which one would you choose and why?
Cheers,
Chazz.
Cheers for that Gary C.
Caterham is a good shout however, I went a little left-field with my choice after a visit to Raptor Sportscars in East Lothian, Scotland. Given that I live in Scotland and they are not too far from me, this is a major plus. They have been around for over 10 years now and I was impressed with the quality of their work. The chassis is well engineered, using slightly thicker walled steel than other 7s but given it's a bigger car, I am quite happy with this. I am 6 feet tall and 19/20 stone yet I managed to get into his demonstrator no problem.
This will be a self-build project but the chassis and bolt-on full-cage is built for me by Andy and his team. I intend to use a 2L MX-5 NC donor for my project but Raptor are happy to accommodate other engine choices too.
I am looking forward to getting stuck in.
Chazz.
Caterham is a good shout however, I went a little left-field with my choice after a visit to Raptor Sportscars in East Lothian, Scotland. Given that I live in Scotland and they are not too far from me, this is a major plus. They have been around for over 10 years now and I was impressed with the quality of their work. The chassis is well engineered, using slightly thicker walled steel than other 7s but given it's a bigger car, I am quite happy with this. I am 6 feet tall and 19/20 stone yet I managed to get into his demonstrator no problem.
This will be a self-build project but the chassis and bolt-on full-cage is built for me by Andy and his team. I intend to use a 2L MX-5 NC donor for my project but Raptor are happy to accommodate other engine choices too.
I am looking forward to getting stuck in.
Chazz.
The only example I have experience of is RoadRunner Racing. I had one of their cars for a few years, but mine had the 6.0 LS2 engine and Tremec gearbox rather than MX5.
I bought mine complete, but had to fully strip it to rebuild the engine. I was impressed with the quality of the engineering, particularly the inboard front suspension and reinforced MX5 diff.
RRR build their kits around the MX5 running gear, so I would recommend them as you are considering a boosted MX5.
Mine had aero screens rather than a windscreen, and that was a poor decision in hindsight. You do get peppered by insects and the odd stone - windscreen recommended by me!
Martin.
I bought mine complete, but had to fully strip it to rebuild the engine. I was impressed with the quality of the engineering, particularly the inboard front suspension and reinforced MX5 diff.
RRR build their kits around the MX5 running gear, so I would recommend them as you are considering a boosted MX5.
Mine had aero screens rather than a windscreen, and that was a poor decision in hindsight. You do get peppered by insects and the odd stone - windscreen recommended by me!
Martin.
Chazzmanbm said:
Cheers for that Gary C.
Caterham is a good shout however, I went a little left-field with my choice after a visit to Raptor Sportscars in East Lothian, Scotland. Given that I live in Scotland and they are not too far from me, this is a major plus. They have been around for over 10 years now and I was impressed with the quality of their work. The chassis is well engineered, using slightly thicker walled steel than other 7s but given it's a bigger car, I am quite happy with this. I am 6 feet tall and 19/20 stone yet I managed to get into his demonstrator no problem.
This will be a self-build project but the chassis and bolt-on full-cage is built for me by Andy and his team. I intend to use a 2L MX-5 NC donor for my project but Raptor are happy to accommodate other engine choices too.
I am looking forward to getting stuck in.
Chazz.
Have fun Caterham is a good shout however, I went a little left-field with my choice after a visit to Raptor Sportscars in East Lothian, Scotland. Given that I live in Scotland and they are not too far from me, this is a major plus. They have been around for over 10 years now and I was impressed with the quality of their work. The chassis is well engineered, using slightly thicker walled steel than other 7s but given it's a bigger car, I am quite happy with this. I am 6 feet tall and 19/20 stone yet I managed to get into his demonstrator no problem.
This will be a self-build project but the chassis and bolt-on full-cage is built for me by Andy and his team. I intend to use a 2L MX-5 NC donor for my project but Raptor are happy to accommodate other engine choices too.
I am looking forward to getting stuck in.
Chazz.
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