Kit car with virtually no mechanical knowledge?
Discussion
Hi
I have a hankering for a kit car as my daily (330ci) is not giving me' the thrills I need although it is relatively quick you don't really feel it.
I don't want another normal car as I have two beemers and a landy.
I have been looking at something like an MK Indy (second hand) for a bit of a toy as they appear to be good value and look like a lot of fun. However, my mechanical skill doesn't extend much past checking the fluid levels / changing a wheel. I would love to learn but have very little free time. Would buying a car like this be as stupid as I think it might be?
I have a hankering for a kit car as my daily (330ci) is not giving me' the thrills I need although it is relatively quick you don't really feel it.
I don't want another normal car as I have two beemers and a landy.
I have been looking at something like an MK Indy (second hand) for a bit of a toy as they appear to be good value and look like a lot of fun. However, my mechanical skill doesn't extend much past checking the fluid levels / changing a wheel. I would love to learn but have very little free time. Would buying a car like this be as stupid as I think it might be?
PaulB81 said:
Hi
I have a hankering for a kit car as my daily (330ci) is not giving me' the thrills I need although it is relatively quick you don't really feel it.
I don't want another normal car as I have two beemers and a landy.
I have been looking at something like an MK Indy (second hand) for a bit of a toy as they appear to be good value and look like a lot of fun. However, my mechanical skill doesn't extend much past checking the fluid levels / changing a wheel. I would love to learn but have very little free time. Would buying a car like this be as stupid as I think it might be?
Like all your other cars, just keep it serviced. As long as you're buying a proven car it should be a case of turn the key and have fun. Get someones who knows a little to put whiteout marks on all the major bolts so you can see if they have turned and thats it. Have fun. I have a hankering for a kit car as my daily (330ci) is not giving me' the thrills I need although it is relatively quick you don't really feel it.
I don't want another normal car as I have two beemers and a landy.
I have been looking at something like an MK Indy (second hand) for a bit of a toy as they appear to be good value and look like a lot of fun. However, my mechanical skill doesn't extend much past checking the fluid levels / changing a wheel. I would love to learn but have very little free time. Would buying a car like this be as stupid as I think it might be?
I had very little knowledge of cars (and bikes) before I built my Fisher Fury R1. Relied on the Internet, online forums and local builders to provide advice and help. There are some jobs I wouldn't even try to do (engine rebuild, etc.) but most of it is fairly easy servicing stuff. Haynes manuals and service manuals can help a lot.
It's not rocket science. Helps if you know someone else local with knowledge though. This is where clubs, forums, etc. are extremely valuable. Also helps if you can fall back on local professionals that are experienced with the type of car you are planning to buy.
Rob
It's not rocket science. Helps if you know someone else local with knowledge though. This is where clubs, forums, etc. are extremely valuable. Also helps if you can fall back on local professionals that are experienced with the type of car you are planning to buy.
Rob
'Seven' type cars are about as simple and straightforward as it's possible to make a car, so;
a) Your local garage will be able to maintain it and fix anything that goes wrong if you can't and;
b) It's the ideal vehicle to learn on if you do feel inclined to gain a deeper understanding of maintenance and how things work yourself.
The only caveat is that the safety and reliability of all kit cars is particularly dependent on how well they were put together, so buying a good second-hand one relies on being able to differentiate a competently built example from a cobbled-together old dog (and a shiny paint job and a tidy interior and engine bay don't necessarily prove the former). If you're not confident about doing this, try to take someone who knows kit cars with you when you go to view vehicles for sale.
a) Your local garage will be able to maintain it and fix anything that goes wrong if you can't and;
b) It's the ideal vehicle to learn on if you do feel inclined to gain a deeper understanding of maintenance and how things work yourself.
The only caveat is that the safety and reliability of all kit cars is particularly dependent on how well they were put together, so buying a good second-hand one relies on being able to differentiate a competently built example from a cobbled-together old dog (and a shiny paint job and a tidy interior and engine bay don't necessarily prove the former). If you're not confident about doing this, try to take someone who knows kit cars with you when you go to view vehicles for sale.
i also know naff all about things mechanical, but i bought a Tiger a few years ago and have managed to learn a bit from others from our club who have kindly helped out here and there with the smaller jobs. In addition depending where you are you may find a classic/kit car specialist garage for bigger jobs - and as already said above aside from that its a question of simple maintenance that should be able to be carried out by any local garage.
The biggest stumbing block is i think ( for a non mechanical person )....not knowing what parts were sourced from where ( when something needs replacing ), or not knowing how certain things are wired / where key bits n pieces are located in the event of a problem. BUT - a decent owners club or decent manufacturer can help with teh first point, the second is a bit more tricky ( hence becoming part of a club where there are always folks that know whats what).
I bought mine for similar reasons. As said above, don't be lured by the shiny example, ideal if you can buy off the builder not 3rd hand, ideal if there's some build history so that you can get a feel of whether the builder had his head screwed on ( and therefore whether the car is likely to be equally well put together)......and finally....treat every claim made in an advert as just that a 'cliam' unless there's sound proof. Power figures being one of them, if i were buying again and paying a preium for something that supposedly has x bhp then i'd want to see that recently documented.
Go for it or better, check yoru budget and then see what clubs exist in your area, pop along to a meeting and get a taste of what its all about. Frankly i cant imagine being without mine now, it gets used just about every weekend throughout the whole year and early blats + brekkie runs with newly found pals has opened up a new scoial scene as well as providing the rewarding driving experience that i wanted.
Good luck.
The biggest stumbing block is i think ( for a non mechanical person )....not knowing what parts were sourced from where ( when something needs replacing ), or not knowing how certain things are wired / where key bits n pieces are located in the event of a problem. BUT - a decent owners club or decent manufacturer can help with teh first point, the second is a bit more tricky ( hence becoming part of a club where there are always folks that know whats what).
I bought mine for similar reasons. As said above, don't be lured by the shiny example, ideal if you can buy off the builder not 3rd hand, ideal if there's some build history so that you can get a feel of whether the builder had his head screwed on ( and therefore whether the car is likely to be equally well put together)......and finally....treat every claim made in an advert as just that a 'cliam' unless there's sound proof. Power figures being one of them, if i were buying again and paying a preium for something that supposedly has x bhp then i'd want to see that recently documented.
Go for it or better, check yoru budget and then see what clubs exist in your area, pop along to a meeting and get a taste of what its all about. Frankly i cant imagine being without mine now, it gets used just about every weekend throughout the whole year and early blats + brekkie runs with newly found pals has opened up a new scoial scene as well as providing the rewarding driving experience that i wanted.
Good luck.
Just be aware that your local garage may not be able to deal with unusual machinery, e.g. a bike-engined car or one with an unusual fuel injection system such as Megasquirt. However, if you get one with something like a zetec engine with standard fuel and ignition, and a type 9 or MT75 gearbox, then most independent garages would have no trouble in keeping it running.
And, as said above, a seven-style car is probably the easiest to maintain as everything is easy to get at, and any mechanic with a brain can work out which bit does what.
And, as said above, a seven-style car is probably the easiest to maintain as everything is easy to get at, and any mechanic with a brain can work out which bit does what.
I had next to no automechanical knowledge before I bought mine, though I had fitted a few bolt on mods to my tin top before and helped my mechanic mate do the servicing for that car to try and learn a bit before getting the sevenalike.
If I hadn't upgraded a few bits on the kit (and ahem crashed it twice
) then I would have needed no knowledge at all for the last 3 years of ownership 
go for it!
If I hadn't upgraded a few bits on the kit (and ahem crashed it twice
) then I would have needed no knowledge at all for the last 3 years of ownership go for it!Check the South Coast or South West regional PH forums and start asking questions.
Are there any kitcar owners local to (insert your town here)?
Does anyone know a specialist car garage locally who could service your kitcar?
We are in Fareham but I'm sure you could find someone more local who could work on your car. If not come and see all the toys we get to play with. More like a hobby than a day job.
Steve
Are there any kitcar owners local to (insert your town here)?
Does anyone know a specialist car garage locally who could service your kitcar?
We are in Fareham but I'm sure you could find someone more local who could work on your car. If not come and see all the toys we get to play with. More like a hobby than a day job.
Steve
Please note:
Kit car owners talk s
t. They never shut up. If you rock up saying that your steering feels weird, by the time you take a leak and come back it will be on corner weights (bathroom scales) with some nerd punching something into a laptop and eight pairs of legs sticking out from underneath.
Probably one of the best parts of owning a kit car and being in a club.
Kit car owners talk s
t. They never shut up. If you rock up saying that your steering feels weird, by the time you take a leak and come back it will be on corner weights (bathroom scales) with some nerd punching something into a laptop and eight pairs of legs sticking out from underneath. Probably one of the best parts of owning a kit car and being in a club.
Yep - one of the traditions of turning up at a kit car gathering is to take your bonnet off... your car will then be surrounded by a dozen fellow car owners rubber-necking at the oily bits!
Just remember that a kit car is unlike most ordinary cars: they can often be harsh, draughty, noisy, basic in design and usually lack any form of useful weather-proofing. And that's just their good points! However, most will offer a level of excitement that you will never find in a tin-top, even with a relatively low-powered engine, as the sensation of speed is so much greater (especially in a seven-style car). Of course, a high-power car is even more fun!
To be brutally honest - they're not practical cars - it's best to treat them as big boys' toys to enjoy whenever the mood takes you. When treated that way they can offer more fun driving than you'll ever experience in a production car, unless you go for something exotic (and expensive).
Just remember that a kit car is unlike most ordinary cars: they can often be harsh, draughty, noisy, basic in design and usually lack any form of useful weather-proofing. And that's just their good points! However, most will offer a level of excitement that you will never find in a tin-top, even with a relatively low-powered engine, as the sensation of speed is so much greater (especially in a seven-style car). Of course, a high-power car is even more fun!
To be brutally honest - they're not practical cars - it's best to treat them as big boys' toys to enjoy whenever the mood takes you. When treated that way they can offer more fun driving than you'll ever experience in a production car, unless you go for something exotic (and expensive).
Shameless plug 
Unless you're lucky it's gonna be a money pit. bit like owning a boat infact.
You really need some mecahnical knowledge, even if you don't intend working on the car yourself. Your local garage will quickly realise your lack of mechanical knowledge and treat you [rip you off] accordingly :sad:
Best advice would be to join a local KCC and become an active member B4 deciding which if any Kit car to buy, you'll get plenty of advice most of it will be good, some will be complete BS. however this free advice is just that - free. After awhile you may still be keen to buy, and at that stage you'll at least have some idea about Kit car bisics.
Oh almost forgot your 330 ci is Krap for excitement in comparison to a well built Kit.
One other problem with kitcars is their vunerabilty to the young vandals, whatever you do don't park it or leave it unattended for long periods - A GARAGE IS A MUST FOR OVERNIGHT PARKING
Good Luck
let us know how you get on
You really need some mecahnical knowledge, even if you don't intend working on the car yourself. Your local garage will quickly realise your lack of mechanical knowledge and treat you [rip you off] accordingly :sad:
Best advice would be to join a local KCC and become an active member B4 deciding which if any Kit car to buy, you'll get plenty of advice most of it will be good, some will be complete BS. however this free advice is just that - free. After awhile you may still be keen to buy, and at that stage you'll at least have some idea about Kit car bisics.
Oh almost forgot your 330 ci is Krap for excitement in comparison to a well built Kit.
One other problem with kitcars is their vunerabilty to the young vandals, whatever you do don't park it or leave it unattended for long periods - A GARAGE IS A MUST FOR OVERNIGHT PARKING
Good Luck
let us know how you get on
S47 said:
Unless you're lucky it's gonna be a money pit. bit like owning a boat infact.
You really need some mecahnical knowledge, even if you don't intend working on the car yourself. Your local garage will quickly realise your lack of mechanical knowledge and treat you [rip you off] accordingly :sad:
Seems a bit pessimistic to me. 'Sevens' are so simple that even if your local garage was inclined to rip you off, there's a limit to how much can actually go wrong for them to fix and there's no real reason for well-built 'Seven' to be unreliable in the first place.You really need some mecahnical knowledge, even if you don't intend working on the car yourself. Your local garage will quickly realise your lack of mechanical knowledge and treat you [rip you off] accordingly :sad:
S47 said:
One other problem with kitcars is their vunerabilty to the young vandals, whatever you do don't park it or leave it unattended for long periods - A GARAGE IS A MUST FOR OVERNIGHT PARKING
My first three kit cars (Westfield, Caterham, Raffo Tipo 12) lived outside on a shared parking courtyard on a housing association development in a not-especially-genteel Yorkshire ex-pit village with high unemployment. The Westfield and the Caterham were my only transport, so got left unattended wherever I needed to go, be that shopping/evening out in Leeds, or fishing/shooting in the middle of nowhere.I never had the slightest problem.
I never figured out whether this was purely and simply because I was bigger and scarier than most of the local yobs, whether it was because I got on with the cock of the local gang of kids and occasionally took him for a spin to the garage and back when I was filling up with petrol (thus effectively buying myself both kudos and protection), or whether people (wrongly) assumed that such obviously vulnerable cars must be really well protected to be left in such a location.
Whatever... nobody ever touched them.
My Sylva still lives under nothing more than a carport, but then these days I probably don't need to worry too much unless the badgers learn how to hotwire the ignition.
I'd say go for it - especially if you're not relying on it as a daily driver. Kit cars are fundamentally very simple to work on, and while garages won't have intimate knowledge, any half enthusiastic mechanic will be able to do the majority of what is needed. Aside from that the kit community is fantastic, so if something breaks stick a picture of it on the internet and you'll have it diagnosed in minutes...and probably with 20 offers to help you sort it out.
Great fun, great thing to learn a bit of spannering on and owning a kit car is something all a true petrolhead will thrive on.
Great fun, great thing to learn a bit of spannering on and owning a kit car is something all a true petrolhead will thrive on.
I've been watching on the sidelines here a while thinking shall I give my two penneth worth or not...
Well as it seems that the main doubt has been the serviceability of a kit car there's some folks knocking this I thought yep I'll give you my real life experiences with my kit cars.
Well other than the MOTs all I've had to sort out have been suspension bushes and a water pump and err um tyres errr that's it! That's all that's come up on trips to the garage. Oh and I fixed them myself too dead simple.
I would say though that the older the car the more easy it is to fix things yourself. no computers see....
Oh and by the way the car that gave me the most problems and cost, I drove every day for 11 years as my main means of transport. Average commute to work was 25 miles there 25 miles back so yeah pretty comparable to your average motoring I'd say. Except the servicing bill. A LOT LOT LESS.
Yep do it go for it they are easy and if you want to try something that will blow your mind then give me a call and I can arrange you to try something that last Monday made a Lotus Elise seem like a town car and someone who's just bought Koenigseggs and Gumperts wants to place an order for... (it's not a Seven)
Well as it seems that the main doubt has been the serviceability of a kit car there's some folks knocking this I thought yep I'll give you my real life experiences with my kit cars.
Well other than the MOTs all I've had to sort out have been suspension bushes and a water pump and err um tyres errr that's it! That's all that's come up on trips to the garage. Oh and I fixed them myself too dead simple.
I would say though that the older the car the more easy it is to fix things yourself. no computers see....
Oh and by the way the car that gave me the most problems and cost, I drove every day for 11 years as my main means of transport. Average commute to work was 25 miles there 25 miles back so yeah pretty comparable to your average motoring I'd say. Except the servicing bill. A LOT LOT LESS.
Yep do it go for it they are easy and if you want to try something that will blow your mind then give me a call and I can arrange you to try something that last Monday made a Lotus Elise seem like a town car and someone who's just bought Koenigseggs and Gumperts wants to place an order for... (it's not a Seven)
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