Looking at a Fury some advice needed.

[Andy-G]

Hi,

I have been looking at a fury for a while now and I have found this one that I am interested in and I wanted your thoughts,

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/1278936.htm

This is my ideal but its a little out of my price range:

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/1209137.htm

How much difference is there between the two.

Also I have never really seen to many of these up close and I wanted to know if there are any members on here that would be able to give me advice of what to look out for when going to view these. I would take a mechanic with me but what else should you look for to tell a good one from a bad one.

Thanks

[Sam_68]

They're pretty simple, to be honest, so apart from making sure that everything works and that it drives nicely, the main thing is to check the condition of the chassis and bodywork (they're fairly lightweight glassfibre, so expect the odd stress crack in the gelcoat if they've been used as intended), and to try to form a judgement on how well they've been put together and looked after from the general appearance and quality of the car.

The second car obviously has a few more nice bits on it and is virtually new at that mileage (which could be a mixed blessing in that it might have a few bugs still to iron out), but you might have better uses for the extra £2.5K. RT Racing is (or was, at least, last time I had anything to do with him) a TVR specialist run by a chap called Richard Thorpe in central Sheffield, so whilst he knows his stuff (and TVR's in particular), he's not really a specialist in lightweight 'Seven' type cars, exactly.

The one in South Gloucestershire looks like a pretty good price for an IRS Zetec engined car. It can't be far from me, so if you do decide to make the trip down to view it, give me a shout and I'll go along with you if you like.

[antnicuk]

one of the factors for me would be the windscreen or lack of it. Its a lot of work to put one back although not quite as much to remove one, but it totally transforms the driving experience IMHO.

[hugh_]

As Tony says the screen makes a massive difference, cars with screens usually (but not always) have doors as well. I test drove both with and without screen and decided I wasnt too fused on it, but that I definitely didnt want doors which are mickey mouse at best, and come open dangerously at worst.

It's also not worth getting too hung up on rear axle type, alot of successful racers use live axle cars alhtough the general consensus is that IRS is more compliant on the road; as it happens I spoke to Chris at BGH about axle types earlier in the week and he reckons in standard non-fancy spec live axle cars are 10-15kg lighter. Bear in mind that if you go the BEC route the back of the car is heavier than the front so that improves balance further.

Edited by hugh_ on Thursday 8th October 12:10

[singlecoil]

hugh_ said:

the general consensus is that live is more compliant on the road;

Not what I understand about kit cars in general, where IRS is usually seen as a better way of coping with bumpy or uneven roads than a live axle.

[Furyblade_Lee]

I have had both types, but only in BECs which may accentuate with their 450kgs. But my live axle Fury Fireblade was definately not much fun down a seriously bumpy country lane. Normal roads fine, but it did seem to get upset and sometimes very skittish when the road got choppy. My IRS car is much better, but runs stiffer springs so I would imagine that masks a bit just how much better IRS is on the road. On very smooth roads or trac though, live axle is just as good

[hugh_]

singlecoil said:

hugh_ said:

the general consensus is that live is more compliant on the road;

Not what I understand about kit cars in general, where IRS is usually seen as a better way of coping with bumpy or uneven roads than a live axle.

Ooops, I meant IRS there, must check more carefully before posting...

[Sam_68]

I agree that, all other things being equal, IRS is definitely better (more compliant) for road use than live axle, but getting the springs and damping right on either is even more important.

People tend to to set use springs and dampers that are way too stiff on these cars, possibly as a result of following the trends set by track cars whose owners have discovered the truth in Colin Chapman's dictum that it doesn't matter how incompetent your suspension design is if it isn't allowed to move in the first place... but that only works on smooth tarmac.

The live axle Sylvas/Fishers are perfectly acceptable for road use, provided you don't have them set too stiff.

Personally, I prefer aeroscreens on these types of cars, but I think that's very much a matter of individual choice. The one thing you do need to bear in mind, thogh, is that even a curved windscreen acts like a bloody great airbrake and will knock 5mph or so off your top speed and a commensurate amount off your top-end acceleration, compared to an aeroscreen car.