gixermark Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Hi Guys, I'm hoping to join the Westfield clan early this year providing I sell another toy (race m/cycle) in the coming weeks.. Ive been on this site a few times over the past few months, and think I'd be after a wide body, prefer zetec or VX 16v.. is there really much difference between the narrow and wide though ? and will the older pinto's cross flows etc. just be heavier and not as 'sharp' as the lighter new stuff ? whats a pre-lit ?? saw some of them advertised and wondered.. Ideally I would lik eto be able to head off to europe with the Mrs - part of the attraction of getting away from bikes !! I was at Nurburgring last year on a GSXR1000 and genuinely thought I'd have more fun in a westfield or similar.. so that woudl be a big part of my plan.. are there many members on here from Ireland ?? I know there is a web site for northern Ireland - but there is very little info. Has there been much in the way of design changes to the kits over the years ?? I look at some pics and straight away like the style, whereas others albeit similar are not quite the same.. any information or advise greatfully accepted Mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adhawkins Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Has there been much in the way of design changes to the kits over the years ?? I look at some pics and straight away like the style, whereas others albeit similar are not quite the same.. The basic design has remained similar. However, there are various changes under the skin that make some cars different. Also there are the obvious differences in terms of seats, windscreen / aeroscreen etc. Welcome aboard. If you have a local meet or someone on here is local to you, I'm sure they'd be happy to let you try a car for size and give you any advice you might need. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Hello and welcome, I will try to answer your questions for you but it is a little difficult to give an absolute in situations such as this Zetec verses VX the main diffrence here is personell opinion some preffer one and some preffer the other, I wouldent say however that either of these two would be better than a Xflow or Pinto, it really does depend on your driving stlye and what you want from the car that said I preffer a 16V engine evrey day of the week. Yes there has been a lot of changes over the years but you are looking at one of the best products on the market so you should be safe from a quality point of view, just dont rush in and buy the first one you see, Pre lit is an abreveiation for Pre Litigation Westfield were taken to court a few years back by Caterham for breach of copy right and won any car produced before this period is comonolly called a "Pre lit". Wide v Standard ide go Wide any day but I am getting wider myself! they are a lot more comfortable esspecially if you are going to be driving any distance, but what ever you buy enjoy and goodluck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adhawkins Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Just realised I didn't cover the cost question. Unfortunately, that's one of the hardest ones to answer. As a guide, you should be able to pick up an older, perhaps narrow-bodied car with an 8V engine for something like 4-5K. Stepping up to a wide-bodied car with 16V engine moves you up to more like 7-8K as a starting as a starting point. These figures are very approximate though, because condition will be very important. Also, no two Westfields are the same, so it's impossible to do a 'Parker's Guide' for them. Extra 'trick' bits (uprated suspension, brakes, more powerful engines etc.) will obviously add to the cost you should expect to pay. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Stanton Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Just as an aside the Pre-lit situation was settled out of court by Westfield & Caterham and didn't actually feature in a litigation court case only losers were the legals Was more beneficial for everyone else Caterham had their product to themselves and Westfields design was improved with continued development and progression ever since Have a good nose around at as many cars as possible - the variety of spec and finish is huge - try a few for size and see if you can blag a ride or two - Happy Huntin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixermark Posted February 27, 2006 Author Share Posted February 27, 2006 thanks for the speedy responses guys.. ok - so the older Ford engines aren't necessarily to be avoided, but there is probably more potential from the newer breed... I would ideally be after something sharp and set up from the offset, I imagine 130 rear wheel horsepower will be minimum, I'd after something that will really get the blood pumping - hence reckon a 16V unit towards the 200HP figure will be the target, I plan to do the odd track day, and it will need to be quick as its a 'replacement' for some of my 2 wheel activities. when did the wide body become available ? and do the majority of cars come with a heater ? I imagine this would encourage you to go out on the colder days I you can have heat on the feet etc.. I find it surprising that the bike engined kits go for so much (10k plus) I guess the running gear etc. may be costly for these kits ? the engines aren't particularly. I imagine they would be great for track focussed events.. but could become annoying on distance work.. can't see her indoors happy listening to a fireblade engine humming at 5-8K all the time (at least !! will have to find out a bit more on the local scene and get to one of the meets... Mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adhawkins Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 will have to find out a bit more on the local scene and get to one of the meets That's by far the best bit of advice for any prospective new owner. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadrego Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 To add some more info, the basic body shape of the wide body (which is outwardly fairly similar in appearence to a narrow body) hasn't changed much. Differences that you might notice from model to model are, ducted or standard nosecone (ducted has horizontal moulded slats, standard has a mesh grill), vented bonnets which I think are known as V8 bonnets or standard bonnet, a boot box makes the car look quite different at the rear and I think there is a lower rear diffuser available as well which will give the rear end a different look. On the narrow body vs. Wide body front, I'm a short skinny b******* and find that the widebody just feels a little too big for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonlewis Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 To answer the BEC question One of the issues for Bike Engines is that they need to be light.... lightness costs money. Most people who build BEC's have a bit of a paranoia about weight, so brakes, uprights, seats, dashboards, wheels, tyres etc tend to be exotic in some way. Fireblades are good value with throw away engines, and on track are great. (£600) Blackbirds do not have the best reputation, although it seems a bit hit and miss... some are great (£800-£1000) Busa's are fantastic, but need dry sumping and have a high engine cost because of it £4.5k including the sump. Probably best BEC/CEC compromise. Heaters are pretty useless, but some people seem to have a predicliction for them.... except BEC's because they add weight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixermark Posted February 27, 2006 Author Share Posted February 27, 2006 assuming there is an advantage of having the narrow body.. what is it ?? better handling on track ? is there really much difference ? whats the diference between each and the options available from locost, robin hood & c%^^$&*m ?? I don't want to be rubing shoulders with guys sitting next to me.. but again - until i get to one of my local meets and hop in/out of a few I won't know for sure.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adhawkins Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Because the narrow body is smaller in all dimensions, chances are it might be a bit lighter. Beyond that, I doubt there's much in it. Can't help with Locosts etc., except that everyone seems to say that avoiding Robin Hoods is a good idea. Caterhams seem to me to be expensive considering the spec you buy (particularly 2nd hand), but that's likely to be opening up a whole new can of worms... Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixermark Posted February 27, 2006 Author Share Posted February 27, 2006 yea - thats cool, really don't want to get into a p******** match about the benefits of one vs. another for sure !! just interested if the dimensions of the wide mody for example was more similar to the std of other manufacturers.. assuming they do not have the option of wide vs. narrow. I prefer the westfield for re sale as well as confidence in the brand myself.. I'm quite sure the others would do a similar job - especially for a newbe... but Its a Westy I'm after. Mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadrego Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Pretty sure that the narrow body is dimensionally similar to a standard Caterham, a wide is pretty similar to an SV or CSR. IIRC a narrow body saves approx 20kg over a wide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bultacobarry Posted February 27, 2006 Share Posted February 27, 2006 Welcome mark, I live in Coleraine, there are a few others kocking around this site from Northern Ireland. There are 3 types of Westfield/Cateringvan/locost clans in N.Ireland, all with corresponding clubs. 1) people who are into kitcars of all types, checkout Ulster kitcar club website. 2) people who are into very high spec caterhams & westfields for posing and road runs. Checkout NISevens.net. They meet once a month at templepatrick Hilton. 3) The Hillclimb & Sprint mob. checkout ANNIC.org.uk . Or give me a shout if you want to compete. We have 8 hillclimbs and 9 sprints in our championship. All 3 groups are very friendly and will offer you plenty of advice. Be warned though group 2 will try to convince you that a cateringvan is the only way to go Has already been well covered, but figure out what you want to do with the car before you purchase. If you want to compete then pretty soon you will rip out the carpets and heater and be more concerned with wheels & tyres/suspension/engine/diff/gearbox. Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisG Posted February 28, 2006 Share Posted February 28, 2006 Regarding other brands, don't go there with the Cateringvan comparison as its been done to death As to other makes, one thing to always think about is to look at the build quality. In some respects Westies have an advantage over some other marques in this department because Westfield supply a good quality comprehensive kit so there's less room for horrible bodges by incompetent builders. Compare the build of a Westie against something like a Locost (which I have) which is not really a kit at all as you have to buy parts from various sources and make various bits up yourself, meaning there's lots more areas where people can cut corners or build them very badly. Having said that though, many are just as well built and certainly as capable as a Westie on track, so its worth having a look at Strikers, Locosts, MKs, Tigers etc as well. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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