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[omegaV6CD]

Yes,
i'm thinking to build a single or 2 seater road legal racing car from scratch. I have worked in the formula student project as a student and i thing that it would be fun and a good learning experience building a car. I read on the practical performance magazine that there is a haynes manual out on how to build your kit car for under a grand so i might consider it. If i do it i'm thinking to use a motorbike engine and transmission for a lightweight mid engined setup or if i go heavier i would use an omega as a donor car which is much better than sierra's etc.

[STMO123]

Haynes! Wow, I am surprised.

[Marks DTM Calib]

Ow yes, the old under a grand car.....it can be done, it aint pretty though.

As for the bike engines, there great for the track and bloody awful on the road.....they lack torque so are great once your moving but, you dread traffic lights, junctions and roundabouts!

[theolodian]

Bike engines aren't oiled correctly for being run in a car, especially with sticky tires.

Check out this link for stuff on the locost car;

www.mcsorley.net/locost/

[STMO123]

Omegas are usually under a grand. And you dont even have to build them yourself





You quite often have to re-build the engine though

[Kevin Wood]

I built a Westfield 7 years ago and can vouch for the fact that it's a great experience. I didn't bite off as much as you have, of course. I started with a bare chassis but getting that far from scratch would have been 3 times the work of the rest of the build - for me at least.

I would echo Mark's comments about the "under a grand". At the end of the day if you built the whole lot out of scrap you could maybe do it (then again, if you want it road legal the best part of 300 quid's gone on the SVA test) but it's a balance between time and money at the end of the day. If you try and restrict the budget too much you will get fed up with it before you're starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. There will be a lot of work turning scrap parts into something you can feel proud of. You could make something roadworthy but not pretty with considerably less work but it'll still be  a real struggle. Then again, it's a balance you can adjust along the build as time and finances allow.

I agree with Mark regarding the engine choice too. A single seater would be a no-brainer. Bike power all the way IMO. If it ends up as a 2 seater bike engines are a love-hate thing. Many people swear by them but you need to keep the car as light as possible and can't afford to include any creature comforts. They are a pig to drive on the road in stop-start traffic, especially if you don't have a reverse gear, but once you get them rolling you have a 6 speed sequential box and 12,000 RPM red line to play with

It also depends on the proportion of road / track mileage it will be doing, of course.

I went for a 2.0 Ford Zetec which was probably the right choice at the time although sometimes I wish I'd gone for a C20XE instead. (These days the Ford Duratec or Audi 1.8T would be high on my list.) It's well mannered on the road, has plenty of power and doesn't add too much weight to the car. Mine's tuned and is probably making 180-200 BHP, although it's never been on the rollers (it was mapped on the road using a wideband O2 sensor and lots of datalogging).

There are also those who insist you need a V8 which is far too much engine for a small car IMO. Weight that will make the car much less nimble, gobs of torque where you least need it in a light car and an engine that doesn't like revs. The sound, though...

I wouldn't be too hasty to knock Ford underpinnings. Whatever your opinion of the cars, the RWD mechanical parts (engines, gearboxes, diffs) are bullet proof and used throughout the kit car industry. There's much more support for doing unconventional things with Ford bits than anything else, IMO. Having said that an Omega would make a fine donor if you want to be different.

Feel free to drop me a PM if you want to bounce any ideas off me. It's very easy to set off on one track and end up with not quite the car you wanted in the end so get as many ideas from others who have trodden the path as you can, blag as many rides in as many cars as you can, and think about whether you'll get your greatest fun from doing track days or commuting in something a bit "different".

Kevin

[omegaV6CD]

Thanks for the replies,
i mainly think of using it in the track so a motorbike engine sounds good to me but i'm also considering other options as even in the track i woudl still need some torque as i'm not the lightest person(110kg) and my mates are much lighter. I will keep you updated!

[bestseany]

Stick a redtop with throttle bodies in it  8-)

I know a lad that used to have a Nova with a throttle bodied redtop in it, and it was rolling roaded at 230bhp. That was quite nippy. Shame he kept blowing the engine up.

I used to work with another lad that had a Robin Hood Kitkat, was based on Cortina suspension and a 2.0 Pinto engine. Handled well considering.

[Kevin Wood]

Stick a redtop with throttle bodies in it

That's another thing. The fuel system. It seems the simplest solution to bung a pair of Webers on it but these days I wouldn't bother playing about with carbs. DIY fuel injection is easy and relatively cheap. Use a pair of Jenvey TBs or, if money is tight, a set of bike TBs (plenty on EBAY). A megasquirt http://www.megasquirt.info to run it all and you're laughing.

IME, carbs gave me any two of the following: Power, flexilibity, fuel economy. With injection you get all 3.

There aren't that many people around who can do a good job of tuning carbs these days and it's just so much easier with injection.

Also remember that if you're using an engine that was manufactured post August 1995 (bike or car) you'll need a catalytic converter.

Kevin

[Paul M]

Also remember that if you're using an engine that was manufactured post August 1995 (bike or car) you'll need a catalytic converter.

Kevin

It's post 1992 for cars I believe, and I still don't think there's a mandatory requirement for cats on a bike.

[Kevin Wood]

It's post 1992 for cars I believe, and I still don't think there's a mandatory requirement for cats on a bike.

For production cars that's true. However, if you build a car from parts and put it on the road through Single Vehicle Approval it's based on the age of the engine (which you need to be able to prove) with 1995 being the date after which you need to pass a cat emissions test. If the engine originally came from a bike, and you put it in a car, the car ruels apply.

Kevin