What car shall i buy....... ??
Discussion
Afternoon chaps, I have a slight dilema.
I had to sell my Ultima to buy a new house, but now i've found i've got say £8k burning a hole in my pocket and i'd like another car. I only use the car once in a blue moon, but also love going for long drives at the weekends. - so does not matter if i have a roof or not. I'm also looking for something thats slightly "different".
I've been looking at Westfields/Tigers etc, but i'd like something that gives a punch and handles relativly nice - Not sure of the performance on these? - i'm sure someone will be able to let me know?
I'm just over 6"2 so height could possibly be an issue..
Would the above be ok, or do you have any other suggestions of what i should look at?
Many thanks
craig
I had to sell my Ultima to buy a new house, but now i've found i've got say £8k burning a hole in my pocket and i'd like another car. I only use the car once in a blue moon, but also love going for long drives at the weekends. - so does not matter if i have a roof or not. I'm also looking for something thats slightly "different".
I've been looking at Westfields/Tigers etc, but i'd like something that gives a punch and handles relativly nice - Not sure of the performance on these? - i'm sure someone will be able to let me know?
I'm just over 6"2 so height could possibly be an issue..
Would the above be ok, or do you have any other suggestions of what i should look at?
Many thanks
craig
I've seen and been involved with a fair few different makes now, and my findings are that you can find more variation in build quality between different examples of the same make than you do between different makes of 7, with at least one notable exception but I can't say because of the N&S policy.
You've not said whether you intend to build or to buy ready built second hand. Not that it makes a lot of difference except building your own will be more expensive.
Of what's out there, and with you being tall, I think you should include the MK Indy in your list. £8K should get you something nicely built with a decent engine, zetec or one ofthe better bike ones. If you can find one the type R version would be better still.
You've not said whether you intend to build or to buy ready built second hand. Not that it makes a lot of difference except building your own will be more expensive.
Of what's out there, and with you being tall, I think you should include the MK Indy in your list. £8K should get you something nicely built with a decent engine, zetec or one ofthe better bike ones. If you can find one the type R version would be better still.
Revs, revs, and more revs 
Sequential gearbox, lot of power in a small lightweight package, potentially massive power if you ever want to go turbo route. Would only go for bike power in something as light as a 7 or fury type car to compensate for the lack of torque, although if geared right the lack of torque won't be an issue.
A friend of my dads has just put a fireblade motor in a reliant robin, so funny! It tries to wheelie in 1st!
Sequential gearbox, lot of power in a small lightweight package, potentially massive power if you ever want to go turbo route. Would only go for bike power in something as light as a 7 or fury type car to compensate for the lack of torque, although if geared right the lack of torque won't be an issue.A friend of my dads has just put a fireblade motor in a reliant robin, so funny! It tries to wheelie in 1st!
Edited by yazza54 on Monday 8th March 20:41
Lol - a robin with a Bike engine... thats most certainly different, but i wouldn't fancy going too fast in that!
what do you think of these ones?
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1477253.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1500193.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1496622.htm
what do you think of these ones?
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1477253.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1500193.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1496622.htm
For an £8k budget I'd forget Pintos, CVH, Crossflows etc., you can do better... I'd be looking at these:
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1547540.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1505375.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1517109.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1494965.htm
If it's just a car to thrash about in then BEC is ideal, if you might want to take it on a leisurely jaunt for a spot of Sunday lunch in the country, a car engined one is probably the more sensible option. I had a fireblade in a Fury, which was superb on the track and early morning blats, but was just to raw to really enjoy pottering into work when the sun was out.
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1547540.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1505375.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1517109.htm
http://pistonheads.com/sales/1494965.htm
If it's just a car to thrash about in then BEC is ideal, if you might want to take it on a leisurely jaunt for a spot of Sunday lunch in the country, a car engined one is probably the more sensible option. I had a fireblade in a Fury, which was superb on the track and early morning blats, but was just to raw to really enjoy pottering into work when the sun was out.
scooby_doo_do said:
for example on the westfields/tigers would there be much difference in the 0-60 on a 130bhp car, compared to a 160bhp?
Still concentrating on the Westfields and Tigers then? No, not a lot of difference. For a road car it really isn't going to matter at all. Track days it might annoy you to see someone with a bit more power pulling away from you, but on the road it absolutely isn't going to matter.A 130hp BEC (eg. 893 fireblade) in a ~500kg car is fairly rapid, partly because of near instant clutchless up shifts once you're moving. Put a fairly standard 2l pinto (~130bhp) in a Tiger Cat (which has a larger section chassis and more-a-less complete Sierra rear beam) and personally, I reckon 130hp would leave me wanting more.
When I had the Fury (which had a fireblade), I went out in a colleagues Tiger Super Six with Dunnel 165 Zetec. I normally hate being a passenger because it feels quicker than being in the hot seat (and I'm not in control...), but on this occasion I thought it felt fairly pedestrian when compared to the Fury. By contrast a passenger ride in a 225hp Zetec Tiger Cat felt bonkers fast.
I'm aware I've mentioned pinto's a few times in my posts, both casting them in a slightly negative light. They are an old/heavy engine and with Zetecs so cheap now (a new crate 2l engine for ~£750 which with 45s will make 160hp) the later is the more sensible choice if building from scratch. That said, I've got a pinto (2.1, BV head, GP2 cam, 45s, megajolt) in the Locost Im rebuild at present, but it was a cheap car which came with the engine; however it should make 170ish in a car weighing ~580kg. If you'd rather not explore the upper limits of your budget it might be worth considering a car with a fettled pinto or similar, but (especially coming from the massive torque of the Ultima), I'd be inclined to steer clear of the slightly heavier cars with lower power figures.
When I had the Fury (which had a fireblade), I went out in a colleagues Tiger Super Six with Dunnel 165 Zetec. I normally hate being a passenger because it feels quicker than being in the hot seat (and I'm not in control...), but on this occasion I thought it felt fairly pedestrian when compared to the Fury. By contrast a passenger ride in a 225hp Zetec Tiger Cat felt bonkers fast.
I'm aware I've mentioned pinto's a few times in my posts, both casting them in a slightly negative light. They are an old/heavy engine and with Zetecs so cheap now (a new crate 2l engine for ~£750 which with 45s will make 160hp) the later is the more sensible choice if building from scratch. That said, I've got a pinto (2.1, BV head, GP2 cam, 45s, megajolt) in the Locost Im rebuild at present, but it was a cheap car which came with the engine; however it should make 170ish in a car weighing ~580kg. If you'd rather not explore the upper limits of your budget it might be worth considering a car with a fettled pinto or similar, but (especially coming from the massive torque of the Ultima), I'd be inclined to steer clear of the slightly heavier cars with lower power figures.
I'd agree with much of the sentiment above. Ultimately it really depends on the use that you want from the car, and also you're perception of 'quick'or 'fast'. The difference between many of the cars on the road is often minimal, i've no idea what driving an Ultima would be like and what the sensation of speed is - but in a '7' with an open roof, an aeroscreen and the sound of induction there's a real buzz, whether you're in a car with 150bhp or 200bhp. Can't comment on bike engined cars, aside from the understanding that driving them is all about being in the right gear due to the lack of torque ( unless the guy that was out with us last weekend was just making excuses for missing a few overtaking opportunities ! ).
If you're spending say £7k then you should firmly be in zetec country ( or similar ) there are plenty of pintos that are tuned to 170bhp, and realistically without spending fortunes thats about the limit - whereas Zetec is cost effective to tune to about 200bhp. I've bought 2 kitcars: a Tiger and a robin hood. In both cases i went to the max of my budget, and in both cases i found after a few weeks that there were things that i wanted to change. So one thing i'd do next time around ( if there is a next time ) is to allow for a bit of further expenditure. Both were mechanically sound and well presented, it was things like changing the seats to something that i prefered or adding in a couple of bits that i hadnt deemed important at the time of purchase.
Deepending where you are located best thing would be to pop on an owners website, make contact with someone near you and blag a ride/drive. Then you'll get an idea of the sensation, driving experience....
oh Hugh - thx for the thumbs up on the speed front - i'll be sure to tell Nigel that he's too slow :-)
If you're spending say £7k then you should firmly be in zetec country ( or similar ) there are plenty of pintos that are tuned to 170bhp, and realistically without spending fortunes thats about the limit - whereas Zetec is cost effective to tune to about 200bhp. I've bought 2 kitcars: a Tiger and a robin hood. In both cases i went to the max of my budget, and in both cases i found after a few weeks that there were things that i wanted to change. So one thing i'd do next time around ( if there is a next time ) is to allow for a bit of further expenditure. Both were mechanically sound and well presented, it was things like changing the seats to something that i prefered or adding in a couple of bits that i hadnt deemed important at the time of purchase.
Deepending where you are located best thing would be to pop on an owners website, make contact with someone near you and blag a ride/drive. Then you'll get an idea of the sensation, driving experience....
oh Hugh - thx for the thumbs up on the speed front - i'll be sure to tell Nigel that he's too slow :-)
No contest - for what you outline it's got to be a BEC. Smile on your face every drive and they can do the Sunday afternoon thing. Clutch can be a bit harsh but that's easily sorted by using a longer actuation lever on the bellhousing (cable operated) or redrilling the clevis pin holes on the pedal (hydraulic or cable operated). I had a Westfield Megablade which did over 3k miles a year, loads of trackdays and never missed a beat. Superquick too - 1 min 16s round Combe. £8k should get you a decent 03-04ish plate 919 carb engined Megablade or newer look a like such as MK Indy or MAC Workx. Your height shouldn't be a problem although 6ft 2 is probably about the limit.
Take one for a test drive - you'll be hooked.
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