Advice please

[schueyace]

First of all i would like to say hello as a new member to the forum,im also looking for a bit of advice please.

im going to have a look at a westy thats for sale local to me,im after buying one to use on the road and to do a few track days 

the car im going to look at is a sew with an rs2000 axle,my question is, what are the advantages or disadvantages of an axle compared to independant rear suspension,which would i be better going for please

[AdamR]

Welcome! Hope you have popcorn

It's an age-old question and I feel reasonably qualified to add my 2p's worth having had a couple of each type. Caveat: I seem to think about these things differently to most people! Here's the benefits I can see though:

Live: Lighter (around 50kg), simpler, more jiggly on the road, no alignment to worry about (as long as trailing arms are ok / not damaged), posh diffs are cheaper.

Independent: More compliance on the road, potentially more even tyre wear on track due to the ability to add camber.

That's about what I can make of it... And overall I prefer live axles in these cars.

[maurici]

6 minutes ago, AdamR said:

 

no alignment to worry about ......................And overall I prefer live axles in these cars.

Lazy...

[B.RAD]

Nowt wrong with a live axle, if the rest of the car is what you want and the spec you are looking for then whether it's live or independent should be the least of your concerns. 

[schueyace]

Thanks for your replys,i hope i dont need popcorn im not trying to open a can of worms,

ive decided on buying a westy over other makes of kit car out there but with so many different models available its a nightmare knowing which one,its got to be wide bodied due to me eating too many pies and i dont think i will fit in a narrow bodied,

i would like something suitable for the road and a few track days,fairly reliable,and something around 170 bhp, am i being optimistic in thinking 7,5k will buy be something decent or am i only going to get a shed for that, the cars ive seen for sale vary so much in price

[AdamR]

The power level you are looking at is 'just right' IMO, given my past experience. Having a look at as many cars as you can will give you a feel for what's good and what's not. Remember that things like seats and wheels can be changed easily, engines / gearboxes / diffs / carbs to injection etc. are more involved!

Where are you based? You should be able to pop down to a local meet to see a few cars and get some passenger rides!

£7500 will get you a very good car with a live axle if you are prepared to wait for a good one to come up. This is the car I have now:

And this is what it is capable of

http://www.youtubemultiplier.com/58e80c736f5e0-westfield-1-8-zetec-vs-caterham-r5000.php

 

[maurici]

I will put a bit of my experience here... from the other side of the line.

Now I own ex-adam's car. Is an independent wide body with a 260 hp redtop engine. Car is worth roughly about twice as current adam's one.

I have to admit, that after driving current Adam's  car, ive been tempted a couple of times to sell my car and buy a cheap lightweight live axle car. If the car is well done, with the propper tuning and good gearing ratios, is the way to go.

Having an expensive beast, from my point of view, it only have sense for competition use. Adam's  car, is about 2 seconds slower than mine in a single lap in blyton... but is very capable in twisty tracks like 3 sisters.

In the other hand... drive the cheap live axle of adam is much more enjoyable than driving mine. If I was buying now, and i knew what i know now, i would definitely be buying a live axle zetec.

[B.RAD]

Didn't expect that Maurici, but have to say I completely agree!

At £7.5k, your challenge is picking out a well cared for, appropriately upgraded car that has seen track/competition use and been developed accordingly. As Adam says, cosmetic stuff is cheap/fun/easy to change, but the mechanical stuff - shocks, springs, anti roll bars, diffs, gearbox, engine, brakes are all expensive and less easy! It's also a case of getting the right bits for the car, which takes a lot of testing & development, so it'll be so much for fun for you (in terms of smiles per mile/getting straight out & on it!) if you can get a car where someone has done that for you already!

By all means post the cars that interest you on here and those with experience can give you an opinion. This forum tends to be great for unbiased advice, but it's always best to go with your own opinion at the end of the day.

Good luck with the hunt!

[maurici]

Yeah... I wasn't expecting writing down my feelings about Adam's new toy either... But after having had a go on the road, and Having driven it in Blyton, I can't justify the trouble of  mantaining a Super tuned engine.

39 minutes ago, BCF said:

long text

[Matta]

2 hours ago, BCF said:

Didn't expect that Maurici, but have to say I completely agree!

At £7.5k, your challenge is picking out a well cared for, appropriately upgraded car that has seen track/competition use and been developed accordingly. As Adam says, cosmetic stuff is cheap/fun/easy to change, but the mechanical stuff - shocks, springs, anti roll bars, diffs, gearbox, engine, brakes are all expensive and less easy! It's also a case of getting the right bits for the car, which takes a lot of testing & development, so it'll be so much for fun for you (in terms of smiles per mile/getting straight out & on it!) if you can get a car where someone has done that for you already!

By all means post the cars that interest you on here and those with experience can give you an opinion. This forum tends to be great for unbiased advice, but it's always best to go with your own opinion at the end of the day.

Good luck with the hunt!

Completely agree with this and I did exactly that with my current Westie. My SEIW was ex-hillclimb with all the right bits mechanically but needing a fair amount of TLC and was in this ballpark price-wise. Definitely buy on mechanical spec for what you want to do with it, then 'upgrade-itis' will set in....

Matt

[schueyace]

Gutted, went and had a look at a car last night had most of what i wanted but couldnt get in it grrrrr,my fat A*** wouldnt fit no way no how and couldnt get my legs down the cockpit my knees where resting on the dash,dont know what to do,do i have any options or do i resign my self to the fact im not going to get in a kit car,grrrr no pies for me today (:

[CraigHew]

I was 18 stone when I bought mine plus a decent beer belly. Got in and out no problem.

You either tried a narrow car or must have an  the size of a small country...

Keep looking...

[schueyace]

 big but didnt think it was that big lol, was supposedly a wide bodied,but i measured between the tunnel and outside and it was 400mm,but it had carpets so not sure if thats where you would be loosing 25mm or if it was just a narrow body the seat was also on runners if that makes any difference

Edited August 18, 2017 by schueyace

[B.RAD]

Just keep trying them out, you'll be amazed at the number of different seating arrangements there are! If you're struggling to get your legs into the footwell, it might be the steering wheel set up as well as the seat, and some different dash arrangements can reduce space too.  You'll find the one that's right for you soon enough!

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

That sounds odd.

Just measured mine - Mega S2000 chassis, which has among the wider transmission tunnels on a Westfield.

At the side to side chassis cross member on the floor near the driver knees, it measures roughly 42 cm wide, by the time you get to wear the back of the seat is, (the side facing you that you're sat on, not the actual back) it's a little over 44 cm wide, at the front edge of the seat, around 43 cm.

Thats in a car with not only full carpets, and cockpit side trim panels. But also, a nearly 5mm thick layer of heat/sound insulation covering the transmission tunnel.

Are you positive it was a wide, could the owner be confused? (It's not a V8 or anything is it? They have very wide tunnels too.)