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Couple from yesterday’s track day taken by my brother….

First time out of the garage since before Christmas. On it's new tyres too.

First little run out this year due to all the rain. MOT booked in a couple of weeks, so nice to make sure it all ran fine before then. Lovely R5GTT filling up at the same time too. Feels like spring is finally on the way with today's nice weather.

Winter is long here in Montana so it’s the perfect time to design and make stuff. I complete in autocross with my car and one place that needed improvement was when braking from high speed (70 mph-ish - 90 mph-ish). If I simply stomp on the brake at that speed I tend to have one of both of the front wheels lock up. This never happens at lower speeds and the brake bias seems great. I think that there’s plenty of front end lift at speed and this could be the cause of the issue. So I came up with a plan and using CAD (cardboard aided design) I made two different things - - the first is what I suppose are called fender spats. The backside of the front fenders acts like a parachute and air being parted by the nose of the car gets pushed into the backside of the wheel and fender. This certainly causes a lot of drag and I suspect it causes some lift also. So I made a cover for the backside of the fender to keep air from going into the wheel and up under the fender. The material is 1/32” carbon fiber sheet. It was fussy to make cardboard template to fit but once that was done make the real ones out of carbon sheet was pretty simple. - the second and much bigger part of the system is the splitter/canard/diffuser mounted on each side of the nose. They mount to the splitter at the bottom and at the top they bolt to a bracket that is held by the front sway bar brackets. They are made from the same 1/32” carbon sheet and epoxied together to form a hollow box. What you can’t see in the photos is that the underside of these boxes is curved upward like a diffuser. These were not easy to make but it was a fun challenge. I wanted the boxes to reduce lift at speed and to divert the air up and around all the exposed front suspension stuff to reduce drag and wind noise. And the air that spills over the sides can no longer go up and under the fender creating drag and lift. I just drove the car for the first time with everything in place and I’m very pleased and there are a few unexpected benefits. The first is that there is noticeably less wind noise coming from the front of the car. I imagine this is from so much less air passing through all the suspension bits. It’s hard to say for sure but there’s less noise any way you cut it. The second thing that I noticed once moving is that I have less air hitting me in the face. I was shocked. It feels like air flow is now higher and further off to the side which makes it miss my head. It’s a pleasant feeling really and one I never expected. It’s much more calm now just cruising. I’m very sensitive about adding weight to car and make every effort to keep the weight at the minimum for my race class (1400 lbs or 636 kg with me in the car) so making these new things as light as possible was important and worth the effort. In the end the fender back spats weigh 1.1 lbs for the pair and the two nose boxes weigh 2 pounds in total. So the whole mess added just 3.1 lbs. Not is bad. Will it help with high speed braking? I think it will but will need to wait a few months until race season starts. Fingers crossed. Thanks for looking. Dave

Out to play at our monthly meet tonight. Eight of us there which is a great turnout. I recently discovered a Caterham owner living very near me, and he came down with me in his car. Had a great run back over the Blackdown hills, very dark, but dry, no fog and no traffic so was good fun.

managed to get the parcel unwrapped using my parcel opening dawg

Another quick job that I’ve been meaning to get round to for longer trips and euro blats, was using the empty underhood space to fit a tool roll including a jack and wheel brace. Just popped some M5 rivnuts in and used a couple of cycling toe straps, held down with stress relieving plates to hold this natty canvas bag from Amazon. Easily removed if out locally, but I’ll probably just leave it in there.

I’ve been swinging around most of this evening. Now ready to remove the engine. Rear main seal I’m coming to get you! Single garage fun!

A dry day at last and a touch of sun, so my first proper run out this year...in fact my first run out 'full stop' not having had the opportunity since I bought it late last year...whoop whoop Even though it was just for a fresh tank of 'five star'

@aeg you won't find any cake under there will you? so hurry yourselves up, it's March next weekend and time to pay the nice tax man. We, however, met at The Whitworth where they sell lots of lovely food, this is us in the car park and this is us in the cafe Dave had to scoot off but it was lovely to see him and thank you for the advice on the steering wheel, 15mm spacer purchased , thank you Ian for the link don't they look after you xx Off we went on a sunny run round the Peak District finally feeling like Spring is coming. We arrived at The Yondermann Cafe and found a nice parking spot next to a friendly Mustang owner, of course he was friendly, he was from Barnsley, a true Yorkshireman. At 4.6 litre and V6, he let me get in and start it up, ooooooooo, that put a smile on my face. Parked at The Yondermann Some had already moved over to summer shorts Chris joined us for lunch and popped along to the next stop for cake too, he's well trained After discovering it was someone's birthday, we had a good excuse to nip down to The Pavillion, Baslow for cakes Parked in Baslow with Ian's black cloud Monkey's Tea Party So that was it, we managed to have a great day out and we didn't get wet, nothing short of a miracle. I was just missing one of my Winter Warriors, Gnasher, I hope he is ok and look forward to seeing him again soon x Thanks for a lovely day out, it's been superb. We are on holiday next weekend but will be back out the weekend after, weather permitting, see you then x

Our new silencer arrived today… So now Topcat can have his house back…

Well I hope you had a great day , I had a productive one in the garage and even had some help she smiling so I’m still in the good books for now !!!

Finally had a great run out today.. Didn't even need gloves on.. Cars a bit crusty tho...

New toys installed - ready for DIY painting…

I have altered the terms and colours of the ranks and icons. Pray I do not alter them further. Note that the top three ranks are gold, silver and of course, red. Why? Isn't it obvious? No doubt one or two of you will be dissatisfied with these. For those one or two seeking redress from this perceived injustice, I invite you to click on my disclaimer. I reserve the right to alter them further for my own personal amusement. A few of you will remember one summer when my nickname was the Prince of Darkness, when certain members wound me up and found their user names and profile photos and even mailing addresses mysteriously changed to something slightly unflattering but highly amusing to the membership. The Prince rarely appears but when he does, it's memorable - just sayin'...

A few snaps from a video of my trip up through Cheddar Gorge today. Weather was pretty good, so was out in the car for about four hours.

Great to be back out in the Peaks! Nearly two whole months with out a fix! The roads were damp but gloriously quiet on my way in. It's rare for me to be behind @AndrewBClarke lovely V8 as I'm normally at the back of the convoy and he's nearer the front of the Peaky Cake hunt. As there were only 3 cars out, we made good progress and no one took the wrong turning. We found a 'stang at the Yonderman! We had a few drops of cloud sweat, but nothing to worry about! Clear skies and sunshine at Baslow Thanks to all who came along and wonderful quiet roads @Julie Hall - WSCC AO Representative you never fail to delight with your routes.

There isn’t one. It’s just part of the software as a bit of fun. If someone tells you that it’s needed, please tell me so I can get them scheduled for a brain scan. What term would you recommend instead? Keep in mind that the “labels” are only visible if you go into an individual account. They’re not broadcast under every post someone makes. In its own way, they encourage people to post more to reach the next level. It’s red. Don’t make me go backstage and change the icon colour to red because you and everyone in the club knows I will.

Westfield Xl 2012 kit first registered 10/2016 Metallic green paint ,1330cc engine weber carburettor, alternator . MOT until august 2026 . MOT records confirm 1600 miles driven Comes with options . headrest with white piping to match seats, wood steering wheel , tonneau cover (needs fitting) front ARB, 13" minilite wheels in yellow/grey with Yokohama tyres File of documentation from build with build manual , old MOT and build diary. Car is in Cardiff Any questions feel free to ask £15300 or offers

Quite right. Keep me locked indoors so you know where to find me when something I’ve done goes wrong.

That's the ferry tickets booked along with our hotels for our trip to France in June 2026. Hopefully we get away from all this rain we've had in Scotland over the last month or so. There will be just the 2 westfield's going and you never know might meet a few during the trip...will get back nearer the time .

Treated the tin top to a full valet Thursday at my favourite hand car wash. When it was done, I climbed back inside and found this air freshener hanging from the mirror: Getting a bit paranoid that I’ll be done for double copyright infringement.

A little teaser of something in the pipeline.... The XI was a pig to start, but once running it performed admirably .

As simple as this. Four M5 rivnuts, two nylon straps, with plates on top to spread the load and prevent them trying to pull through. All nice and secure.

I’ve got a few hundred photos but thought I’d start with one from the day a brought it with a coupe in between and finally one at its current stage

Couple of simple jobs today, swapped the oh so time consuming to adjust belts to some nice Sabelt ones purchased second hand from a forum member… And swapped the ‘fried egg’ indicator bulbs for some silvered ones…

I've received information from Silverstone events team that they will be opening Car club entries for this years BRDC classic by the end of February..

I was hoping to get on with some of the many jobs to do on my westie today but my little grandson wanted me to build his mclaren 287 pieces later complete perfect colour for a fast car and just like any car rebuild a pile of bits that go nowhere but did have some time left to get started on my toy.

Sounds great, would be amazing to do. I’m in Andy Did similar a few years back with ‘Just Jane’ with ….@Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) and @Ian Kinder (Bagpuss) - Joint Peak District AO East Kirkby, Lincs.

Hi Nice to hear that you have good experience with Christoph. I called him and he answered. We had a nice chat. Problem solved I think Delivery in a few weeks. Best regards Nils Jakob

I’m now highly tempted to change the first two level icons to “L” and “P” plates…

Hedley Bennett -Yes to all weekend. 40th Anniversary. We'd like to try something special

Nonsense captain your a highly regarded well respected valued member of the club.( hope i get some points for that)

We hope you’re not being ‘experimented on’ by too much at your special interest exhibition in Barcelona @Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) ?

As Scott said, I have found and removed all of the (encrypted) card details that were on file, so that from now on no auto-renewals should be possible. If anyone does get billed, please shout up.

Just managed to pick myself up off the floor in time for delivery of this crimp tool for the Ampseal connectors. Nice bit of kit but £250!! Time to start connecting things up and testing on the workbench (dining table).

We've done about 7 continental trips in Westies, typically ~2000 miles each, mainly around France but also to Austria. Apart from the attractions of weather, scenery and food the roads and traffic are so often more amenable to Westie driving than in the UK. Now I've retired (5 days in) I'm looking forward to getting more miles under my belt! We're thinking of tunnel or cross-channel ferry for the outbound to Spain and return via Santander and Bay of Biscay.

my torque wrenches arrived today good job i don't need them urgently it's going to take a while to unwrap them they come with a free roll of duck tape

Lovely stuff @Murraymint and @Craigieboy and @Tim (Sideways) Johnson - Club Treasurer This year we'll be heading for a week in the Dordogne, including 2-night stays each way in the Loire. Using the tunnel on the way down and Caen-Portsmouth ferry on return. Already planning Almeria in southern Spain for '27!

Oh fantastic, can't beat a Euro trip Just remembering that I saw you returning last year travelling up the A1. I'm booked on the Newcastle ferry in June too, though not decided on a route yet. Done the Alps the past 4 years and although we enjoy it, I was thinking of possibly doing more of the Netherlands this year and along to Denmark. Should really get my finger out and do some research. Hope you have a great trip.

Getting an old thread back up, but it came up while i was searching something, and i have just put a sticker on............so lets see what else we have! Also,does anyone know if i can get small round colour matched stickers in chrome yellow to pop over the holes? Or any other solutions to tidy them up

Well done to @Paul Wren this morning. And wearing shorts!

At least 6 of us from Essex group will be there from Friday late afternoon to Sunday midday.

Please go to the Show and Events page on the forum. I have pinned a topic that details the main shows that the events team will be organising this year along with dates. The Replica and self build festival is on the list. Simon has significant participation commitments from suppliers . More so at this time than Grosvenor have for Malvern I'm led to believe.

Hi Malcolm LONG VERSION: You can ignore it, everything is fine. It’s related to me working backstage on straightening out the recent small issue with unwanted and unexpected auto renewals. I could explain it to you in depth but by the time I finished typing it and you lost the will to live reading it, it’s entirely possible that the Sun might go supernova and bring me sweet relief from forum histrionics. SHORT VERSION: You can ignore it, everything is fine. Sorry for any inconvenience, good sir.

Don't get me started on Grosvenor...!

The Webmaster (all hail the Webmaster and name your first born after him) was also stumped, but on digging deep into the quagmire of info discovered an encrypted file containing stored encrypted card details. I agreed with him that was probably where the issue was, which did not occur until the club changed payment portals from PayPal to Stripe just over a year ago. He asked if those card details (which were encrypted, just to be clear again) should be deleted, to which I said yes, do it please. So if anything goes wrong, it’s on my head. The only tiny inconvenience is that no one will be able to store their card details backstage any longer, so you will need to input your full card details every time you purchase or renew your membership, but better that than the system taking it without your or our knowledge. Will keep an eye on this…. Pass the vodka, please.

Just for the record myself and Andy still went for a pie last month. Weather forecast was wrong. Will be attending tonight

going on with making my track westfield road (almost ) legal ... got headlights and hosings (aliexpress). Unfortunately, due to my own oversight, I ordered two pairs of lamps instead of one pair A few small modifications were needed right away — the screws securing the lamp housing bracket were sticking into the inside of the housing, which made it impossible to fit the insert (the actual lamp). They had to be mounted the other way around, with the rounded heads facing inside the housing and the nuts on the outside. And yeah… they’re kind of big and heavy compared to my previous “lamps,” which I made myself from LED strip, an aluminum tube, and duct tape Ideally, lightweight, smaller Dominator-type LED headlights with built-in sidelights would be best. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any. I did find Dominator-style lights with an LED DRL ring, but without sidelights. Maybe on the next attempt. I spent so much time drilling different elements to reduce weight, and now these bricks sit high and far out front — the worst possible position for ballast… But hey, it will be the same in that area as a brand-new Westfield SE.NA! (just faster )

We take the ferry over to Rotterdam, then down to Lille, Evreux, Chambord, Saumur, we have a few days in each place and just do some smaller roads with the villages. We then travel back via Portsmouth.