Think of building a Mazda SDV - for £6kish possible?

[Mark (smokey mow)]

Welcome

I would confidently say that I would be able to build an SDV for £6k but to do so would require seriously compromising the spec to keep the costs down. most if not all the parts would need to be sourced second hand to archive that target which will take time as you don't see many/ any Mazda SDV's being broken for parts. Going aero screen would save on the budget too. Knowing where to buy all the parts at the best prices helps massively but that generally comes with wxperience feom building likewise a good proportion of money from my first build was wasted on postage costs.

In reality I fear you will overspend the budget but IMO it is achievable if you know what you're doing

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

Playing Devils Advocate for the moment,the other question isn't so much can you, but should you?

 

The biggest problem, if it's an absolute hard budget limit, is that you're going to have to use a lot of second hand parts, and you're really going to have to be strict on price. This can leave precious little in the pot to recondition items.

 

Try not to put yourself in a position where you're so loaded with old/worn bits that your first years of ownership are spent trying to fix the car; it's so disheartening, and can really spoil your enjoyment of the kit.

 

If budget is the problem and ownership the goal, building isn't the cheapest way to get into Westfield ownership, the opposite in fact, it can be at the dearer end without care. Build because you love the challenge, have always wanted too, want a unique take on car ownership etc. Because it can be fantastically rewarding to build.

[Mooch]

To give some idea of the baseline cost, I built my 1.6 SDV absolutely stock from the factory, using the Westfield starter and completion kit.  Obviously, you pay extra for the finishing stuff in the completion kit, but it's all IVA compliant and you know it fits.  With a donor that cost £600, the actual cost to get mine on the road (including IVA, Registration, Tax, tools etc) was just over £11k.  Therefore, you will need to save £5k from a bog standard build to meet your budget.

 

I'm with Gary, £6k is just too optimistic for the average builder and I guess £6k is theoretically possible for those on a higher plane, like Smokey Mow but even he would struggle.  You might get away with £7.5/£8K with some serious scrabbling and compromise.  Personally, I'd wait until the budget was healthier or buy one already built and tweak it. 

[Kingster]

Playing Devils Advocate for the moment,the other question isn't so much can you, but should you?

 

The biggest problem, if it's an absolute hard budget limit, is that you're going to have to use a lot of second hand parts, and you're really going to have to be strict on price. 

 

I must admit, I started out thinking I would use a lot of older/recon parts on my SDV build, but soon changed direction. Once I looked at the state of the brakes, I decided that such a safety critical item had to be right - so I bought some new ones.

 

This then led me down the route of "should I" as Dave says - and I decided to only use either really good quality used items, or new - hence my original budget has just been steamrollered - but I really don't mind as I will just wait until funds allow me to do it right. After all, why go to all of this trouble only to end up with something that is seriously compromised?

 

I will take my time and refurbish any donor items I am still using (uprights, driveshafts, hubs, diff and gearbox) and try to compromise as little as possible on the rest - including buying a new crate engine instead of taking a chance on a scrapyard find (unless a proven quality unit comes my way that is!)

 

I have managed to source some decent used goodies like aeroscreen, harnesses and instruments and will keep an eye out for any bargains, but any savings I make will just mean I then have more to spend on something nice and shiny!

 

 I'm sure with the right donor and a keen eye for a bargain, it can be done on a tight budget, but be prepared for that budget to loosen up a little once you get into it

[Prawnabie]

I forgot to say that I work in the motor trade, so my build cost includes new wheel bearings all round, new pads/discs/calipers TRE's/balljoints/steering rack etc.