bgdel Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Hello everyone, Long time lurker and dreamer of building a kit car here. But perhaps this year I'll finally take the plunge and order my kit car. I have to say that lurking on this forum is one of my favourite past times. But let's get down to business! Because I live in Holland, my options for registering kit car are limited. It's really expensive and in the end not really worth it. Not only are most of the roads flat and boring, but the weather also sucks. So I've decided to build a track dedicated car. Luckily there are plenty of circuits within reasonable distance where I can have my fun. Not as many as in the UK, but still. Next month I have booked a trip to the UK to have a go around Oulton Park in a kit car. I haven't yet driven one, so before I spend most of my savings on a building a kit car I figured that it's best to actually know beforehand if it's something I would enjoy doing on a regular basis. And while I'm there, I'll take a few days to visit some kit car manufacturers. One of these will be Westfield. I really have my heart set on building a car. I realize that buying a ready made one is actually much cheaper, but that doesn't attract me one bit - I want to experience building it. And right now I'm mostly looking at the MX5 based kit cars. Firstly, because it would give me the chance of disassembling the donor (which for some possibly sadistic reason I also think it would be an enjoyable experience). Secondly because of cost. And thirdly because with a few exceptions, the donor and the kit is everything I need to actually build the car. Living outside of the UK, some of the suppliers of parts and even the kit car manufacturers themselves are not as accessible to me. I was thinking of getting the following package from Westfield: - Mazda SDV stater kit (powdered coated, with detachable rear arches upgrade) - full rollcage (may also do races, all of the series here require it) - sport suspension upgrade - steering rack & fixings - upgraded exhaust manifold, down pipe, silencer & fixings - race radiator upgrade & fixings - fuel tank Because I'm building a race car, I'm not really interested in a wind screen, wipers, carpets etc. And I figured that the smaller things (lights, hoses, switches & the like) I can either source locally, on ebay or sites like CBS. Even though I live outside of the UK, my current plan is to still build a RHD car, especially because of the way the Mazda engine is configured. I've followed a build of an LHD Mazda SDV (I think it was on Flyin' Miata) and the builder had some annoying issues with the pedal & steering column placing because of the exhaust manifold. Not only that, but if I decide to build an LHD car, I won't be able to benefit from the pool of knowledge that a club like this one has. Not many people here would have run into the same issues I would run into. I think it's worth mentioning that I do realize that this is not a good "investment". I realize that building a one-of-a-kind race car outside of the UK is basically a life time commitment. If I ever get bored, nobody will want to buy my car once it's built - it will be too specific to my wants & needs. This is a fact that I will either have to accept or choose not to build a kit car at all. Having said all that, is there any advice the more experienced Mazda SDV builders have for me? Something obvious that I should be getting with my main purchase and is not mentioned in my above list? Actually any comments on my list are more than welcome. As is any advice on what to ask the Westfield guys while I'm there Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinten Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Ik heb niet zoveel te zeggen over je bouwplannen (ik heb twee linkerhanden ), maar het is goed om eens een Nederlander op de forums te zien (at least, I am assuming you're Dutch?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgdel Posted March 19, 2015 Author Share Posted March 19, 2015 Sorry to disappoint, but I'm actually not Dutch. I do speak the language, so I guess I'm halfway there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonk179 Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 You picked a good circuit in Oulton Park, Clay hill into Druids is a scary section but makes you feel like a GP star if you pin it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6carjon Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Hi - depends when you are visiting but a few of the Cheshire members live close to Oulton Park (including me) and may be available to show you their cars or take you out in one? The local meeting is the first Thursday of the month. If you want suggestion of somewhere to stay then pm me for ideas. cheers Jon 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matta Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 bgdel - Have you seen the part-built Mazda SDV package advertised on here by Dave 1888? Might be a cheaper option for you at the moment if you go down the track-only route. The only other option you may have that would get you a road-legal, as well as track, car would be to buy something already built from the UK but needing work, then rebuild it to your spec? I always think a car is far easier to sell in the future if it's road legal too. Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgdel Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Thanks for the replies! @6carjon I'll be travelling a lot around the whole of England between the 19th of April and the 23rd. I already booked all my hotels and such, but thank you for the offer! @Matta I've seen the SDV package currently advertised. Another member already called "dibs" on it. Also, I don't want to make any rash decisions. I'm very impulsive by nature and I really want to wait until next month until I make my decision. Also, importing a car from the UK, although easier than registering a newly build kit car, is still expensive. Dutch law subjects any newly registered car to tax. Won't go into the details - but something like 2500 GBP for a regular kit car is not uncommon. Anyway, restoring an existing car is still a possibility. Still looking into my options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinten Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I'll forgive you for not being Dutch I take it you've also dismissed http://www.kitcarcollection.com/ ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgdel Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Yes, I've had a lengthy chat to the owner at one point. There is one model in his current "collection" that interests me (link) but is currently a non-runner. I don't know the specifics (at the time I wasn't that interested in the model), I just know it doesn't run. The owner briefly told me that he doesn't know either what exactly is wrong with it. Asking price + the general state of the car + the fact that it actually does not run puts me off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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