Toniq-R proves itself a runner
Kit car turns its wheels for the first time
Toniq's new bike-engined car, the 420 Kg Toniq-R, is a runner. After a few days testing the running car in the workshop, where we had it spitting flames and sending out an almighty roar, the time had come for its first test run.
A couple of weeks ago, partner Ian Gray tested the car briefly doing a couple of laps around the car park and all went well. After this, we checked the oil, water pipes, radiator, brakes pipes, brake callipers, all cables and all moving parts -- no drips, no cracks. Of course we shouldn't be that surprised, as 
over 300 Stuart Taylor Motorsport bike engine Phoenix and Locoblade cars have been completed in the last five years.
On Wednesday 6 October it was the turn of co-designers Colin Williams and Will Baxter. Baxter tells the story of his first drive:
"This is the moment we had been waiting two years for. You could say three years, but it was only after the first year that we really believed it was ever going to make it into production.
"In the first year at the University of Huddersfield our focus was purely on getting a good degree. Soon after university I set my mind to getting the car to the International Motorshow, and production even then still seemed a very long way off for me. However, Colin had different ideas from an earlier stage, knowing he wanted to get it into production half way through our final year at university.
"At 10.31am on Wednesday 6th October 2004 it all happened. Colin was first to drive the Toniq-R, purely because he was standing by the driver's seat and I was positioned by the passenger seat after we'd pushed the car out of the workshop.
"I don't know who was more nervous, him or me, but I can't say I liked him 
driving it off around the car park. You see, Colin is fantastic at building things, but put him in a car and he seems to race everyone, all the time -- so I was a little scared to see him in our Toniq-R! I've been a scared passenger in a car with him many times over the years -- and that's in cars which have about 100bhp/tonne, this Toniq-R has 320bhp/tonne.
"Starting off gently he built up confidence and speed doing more and more laps of the car park. Eventually Colin stopped and with his ear to ear grin he just started swearing about how happy he was.
"Hopping in the car shortly afterwards, with my hands shaking, I was a little worried, I had never driven a car with this much performance, 0-60 in an estimated 4.2 seconds, a bike engine and clutch, a car weighing just 450 Kg, no seat belts -- what was I doing? I had sat in the workshop with the engine running before, feeling tremendous vibrations through the seat, this was going to be even better.
"Flick the red safety switch to the left of the steering wheel, click the silver knob to the left, wait for the fuel pump to do its thing, push the black starter button located at the far right of the dash and vaaarrrooommmm! A massive grin erupts on my face, left foot down on the clutch, a quick pull on the toggle to engage first gear, feed out the clutch, a little acceleration needed, feel it bite and we're moving.
"I always thought it would be complicated or tricky to drive being a bike-engine car, but it wasn't -- its exactly the same. When I say this I mean the actions required to move are the same -- the performance is not. After crawling around my first corner on the clutch I had my first 100m blast, I backed off almost immediately, I must have been doing 30 mph almost instantaneously.
"Check the brakes -- good, they work, the travel's a bit long, but that disappears as the brakes are bedded in. I continue with a few more laps of the workshop car park, my emotions flipping between the feeling you get when you bungee jump (scared) and that which you have when you've just realised you got change for a twenty when you only gave them a tenner (smug).
"The car is surprisingly easy to drive; the engine note blasting out of the side-exit exhaust is gorgeous but very quiet at tickover."
Over the next month, Toniq plans to get the headlights working on the car, fitting the indicators in their new low down position and moving towards SVA testing at the end of the year. If you wish to come and have a look/sit in the car with a view to ordering a kit or complete car, contact Ian Gray on 01159447644.
Toniq on telly
Over the last few months Toniq has been in talks with a production company, Evans Woolfe, which is running a series of educational TV shows promoting engineering to GCSE and A level school kids on Channel 4. The idea is to show five 30-minute programmes that enthuse students to consider engineering in an exciting, productive manner.
Each show is split with two stories: Toniq being twinned with a new Hybrid Diesel electric Transit van developed by Ford, heading into production next year. Evans Woolfe focused on the engineering challenges of the modified aluminium air inlet and the steep learning curve Colin and Will faced when producing their concept.
Baxter says, "Ford and Toniq, different ends of the scale when it comes to finance and development costs, but fundamentally similar as we're both just trying to get something to work."
The show will be on Channel 4 at 11am in the middle of November -- exact time not yet announced. Also look out for Toniq in the Daily Telegraph motoring section (Saturdays).
More details here about the car are on www.stuart-taylor.co.uk and www.toniqr.co.uk
Previous stories on PH charting the progress of this remarkable machine are here, here, and here
and well done with the car. Hope this all goes well for you, though the picture you showed us did not do it justice, it is a nice looking beast! 
Speaking of money the Toniq-R is £16,995 for the fully built fireblade production car and £3995 for the kit which includes Chassis, Arm Set IRS, 11 Piece Body, Light Set, Roll Bar, Paddle Shift Kit, Engine Cradle, Aluminium Set, Aluminium Wing Stays, Seats & Runners, Shocks & Springs Set, Pedal Box and Master Cylinders, Copper Brake Pipe Set, Aeroquip Hoses.
Next steps are to get the car SVA'd and ready for the first lucky test drives before Christmas. As time has garn on the support for the car has grown tremendously and interest in both kits and production has been very strong.
Personally I can't wait to drive it legally on the roads, pick up some young women (1 at a time) and scare them silly!
Seems like I have some uncanny knack of starring too much at TVRs, so much to the point that I leave my card or talk to them/owners. I remember doing this once when I was 14, a fella had broken down in a Maserati 222 (Gibili I think) near a petrol station where my mum was filling up, so off I wandered to see the car (had the bonnet up) - so being a knowledgeable car person at 14 I thought I could help, cos someone who drove such a good looking 5 yr old Maserati surely wouldn't have the 1st clue about mechanics. Turned out I couldn't fix it anyway. So I ended up hanging about the car, marvelling at the clock and he even let me drive it up the ramp on the back of the AA truck when that finally arrived. I could hear police cars in the background at this time too, did Mazerati's need police support too I thought, its not like its a broken down Ferrari I thought.
So then the car was towed away and I went back to my mum, who it turned out had been waiting an hour and a half, (I reckon it was 45mins) phoned the Police and spoken to everyone in sight, suspecting I'd been abducted! She was in tears (cos I was lost) and so was I (cos I'd driven my 1st Maserati).
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