Splitting the FW kit into modules

[Deadonkey]

Hi,

Im planning on building a westfield next year, once ive had my garage rewired.

Im looking at a blacktop Zetec FW build but due to a couple of factors im not keen on ordering the entire £20K kit from westfield.

The reasons:

I have only a large single garage so storage of the bodywork would be arkward

The insurance issues, its not a car so I cant insure it as a motorcar, I doubt my home insurance will be keen on insuring £20k worth of car parts.

and finally

The fact that it will take me at least a year to build doesnt really make sense laying out for the full kit if im not going to need half of it for 6 months.

So for this reason im interested in how people have split the kit down?

are westfield used to requests like this?

Is it easy to split the car into 2 or 3 parts of equal cost whilst leaving you plenty to be building in each part?

 

My other option would be to put the parts im not working on in storage, Ive used storage before during a rather awkward period inbetween house moves and that was insured to whatever value I wanted but the added cost and the getting the parts from storage might be an issue.

The other thing im thinking is what would happen if westfield went bankrupt before ive got the second half of the car, so that way im left with £10k ish of car parts and am unable to finish.

 

Im interested in any views, 

I know I should just order the damn thing but having claimed on house insurance on a previous house that flooded and seeing my neighbours suddenly finding a £3k limit on their garage contents is kind of making me a little nervous.

 

[Thrustyjust]

1/You can insure a part built car with A Plan insurance and it changes to your insurance policy when it becomes a car.

2/You can also get a bigger discount for buying a complete car, which is good 'if' you can rent a storage for bodywork

3/You also dont need to go back to Dudley, which is always good 

As to splitting to modules, most buy it in the modules set by the factory. You can ask for whatever you want as well, so maybe chassis, suspension, running gear and leave the body until you do need it, which means it will be a bit 'green' so slightly flexible for fitting.  Always remember though, if you want another module, like bodywork, then what the factory tell you, add a month, so you have it covered of parts being available when you need them, rather than hoping.

[CraigHew]

Two quick points;

Can you use the "higher" space in the garage to store the bodywork with an appropriate harness / strap arrangement (difficult if the headheight isn't too good)

If funds permit, I'd consider purchasing the entire kit, but have Westfield Store it for you and you collect it in 3 or 4 chunks (although it's a fair drive from Carlisle).

Other than that, do you have any family members who could provide temporary storage space?

 

[Deadonkey]

Thats interesting about insuring a part built car,

Id read somewhere on this site that a car insurance company could only insure the car using a chassis number for 30 days.

As for storage, I have dont have a huge attic space in my garage, I have a little its not a flat roof,

The pitch is shared with next door.

So it looks like a double garage with a shallow pitch but I only have half of it if you see what i mean.

Depending on the height of the largest bodywork piece I might be able to put it on some kind of supports above my head. I will have a measure tomorrow ive maybe got 2ft at the left hand side and 4ft at the right hand side as the roof lifts.

Im not too bad for storage of boxes as I can simply store these in the house. 

Thinking of it, could you get the bodywork up stairs in a house? and through a normal house door? I could keep it in a bedroom?

[Thrustyjust]

Give A Plan a call in the morning at Thatcham branch. Always helpful people , even if I only have to walk across the road to see them . 

[Alan Cutler (Adge) - Dorset AO]

As TJ said, A Plan will insure your "bits" during build. Also will include cover for driving your car for IVA.

The body panels do fit through a 2'6"" door. However wherever you store, it's advisable to ensure they are adequately braced, to minimise the risk of them becoming deformed. There is a benefit in terms of flexibility, in getting your grp panels to suit your build timetable. Just be wary of delivery timescales as TJ highlighted.

Best of luck, which ever build route you decide to take. Highly recommend joining the club, and starting a build thread, found it was invaluable for my build.

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

There’s three sorts of insurance being mentioned here, with confusion cropping up between them. What Justin is talking about is specialist build insurance, courtesy of a kit specialist broker. This isn’t car insurance as such. Then there’s car insurance for an unregistered vehicle, for taking to IVA etc, and finally, there’s full normal RTA insurance.

What tends to cause the blurring of the lines, is that if you go with a d3cent company like A Plan*, you more or less just give them a call, or pop in! Whenever you’re ready to move the insurance from one stage to another. That doesn’t mean they’re the same policy as such, but is very convenient.

Not every one bothers with build insurance, and do note, many have some quite strict clauses in them as regards accidental damage! (To avoid people claiming for parts they’ve really just done wrong, I guess)

*note with A Plan, it’s specifically the Thatcham Branch for kits, also, I should remember, they’re not actually calling themselves A Plan any more, it’s Cherished Vehicle Insurance.

if there’s going to be a slow build, I’d always suggest ordering bodywork only when you’re a couple of months away from needing it. New bodywork is quite “green”, ie relative soft and flexible. The longer it’s stored, (as in months or longer), particularly if exposed to lots of hot and cold weather etc the more it cures through and becomes much hard to bend and flex into place, without risk of cracks and chipping.

Westfield sell several different ways to build a car. You have the complete kit in one hit, (I know, I know, expect a few parts to be delayed)' this kit will include pretty much all the main parts needed to build a new, running car including engine and gearbox etc. a modular kit, which is the same thing, but broken down into half a dozen or so pre defined modular packages; intended to be built stage by stage, though many will buy more than just a module at a time. Again, this results in a brand new car, throughout. (Or brand new, but with one or two completely re-manufactured parts, depending on kit chosen).

Or, you can buy a starter kit, this is essentially a chassis and body package, it’s various additional parts. (You can still tell them you want to order the bodywork when you’re ready). You are then free to buy as much or as little from the factory as you want, in any sequence you want. In some ways this is the most co placated way of doing things, as you become the one making all the choices And while it’s certainly potentially cheaper, you can also find yourself opting for higher value components, and have to be careful how the postage and packaging costs stack up of ordering parts from here there, and everywhere!

Note it’s usually possible to negotiate a ten percent discount on a complete kit, or even starter kit, even if you just miss one of their regular offers.

[Peter (Monty)]

I went down the starter kit route Dave mentioned, any questions about that, just let me know. It means I am free to spread the cost as I see fit and also make a lot of my own choices, and I've saved some money, but it takes longer and requires more planning!

[Insuranceman]

I am in the process of building a FW in module form. I did it due to the cost. I also have a single car garage which had to be cleared of tat that was deemed redundant by the better half. One problem I have found is that not all the parts in module one can not be fitted until module 2 is purchased and same with parts in module 2 until module 3 is purchased. I am picking up module 3 in Feb 2018 and have been given permission to store the body work in the house. 

[Deadonkey]

4 hours ago, Insuranceman said:

I am in the process of building a FW in module form. I did it due to the cost. I also have a single car garage which had to be cleared of tat that was deemed redundant by the better half. One problem I have found is that not all the parts in module one can not be fitted until module 2 is purchased and same with parts in module 2 until module 3 is purchased. I am picking up module 3 in Feb 2018 and have been given permission to store the body work in the house. 

Do you find that its a big problem.

Ie how much of each module cannot be fitted without the next part? Is it a significant amount?

[Insuranceman]

2 hours ago, Deadonkey said:

Do you find that its a big problem.

Ie how much of each module cannot be fitted without the next part? Is it a significant amount?

It's not that a bigger problem. The header tank is supplied in the 2nd module but can not be fitted as the scuttle isn't supplied until the 3rd module. The oil pressure switch, the water temp sender and the washer bottle don't come until the 3rd module which which means the wiring loom is left hanging in places. I did use this as an excuse to purchase the third module, any expenditure has to be put to the house accountant, Mrs A, before I can buy. This time it worked.. I did buy some wheels, as they are supplied in the 3rd module, so that I could wheel the car out of the garage.