Westfield Sports cars acquistion

[brianm]

Ooh I can see the future Boghouse motor coming out of this

Visit back down to the Factory in order for the new year I think

audi Turbo/ type r powered Libra  

Decision, decisions eh Scott, ?

In terms of  what would make an ideal stablemate/companion to the Westy we all know, the Libra is ideal. It really is halfway between the seat of your pants LSIC and a family sports hatch.

If wifey won't allow a westy then this is probably the only currently available kitcar that she may find acceptable.

I tried this car car a few years ago and was amazed to find that at 6ft 3 I fitted with loads of spare. It also felt like a "conventional" car to sit in.

There's a guy near me with one of these, only an 1800 I believe. For a year or 3 I would come accross him on a sunday morning blat, in the VX westy and the cyclone I could only just hold on to him. Eventually I actually drove his car, can't remember what hp it was, 113 or thereabouts. It really did go. But it was the confidence thing that did it. I could drive that car faster than my cars, roof probably had something to do with it, but I was well impressed.

A 2nd hand V6 would I think be very interesting.

PS, this is in no way intended to detract from the currently available WF cars, but is does offer an interesting diversion, but still under the WF flag.    

[oioi]

so are we now "westfield and gtm sportscar club"

[oioi]

i thought gtm's were a composite monocque?  brings quite a new skill range into westfield?  fw2008 anyone

[scott beeland]

Still plenty of things to fix at Westfield though starting with a decent manual which has been in preparation for 8 months at least.      

Rory's Dad

You newbies want it all on a plate

My 1st westfield build in 1988 was done with a 12 page or so (very basic) build manual and the car turned out just fine.

Not much wrong with other build manuals I've had since either

[Mark Stanton]

QUOTE

westfield and gtm sportscar club

Nope           It is perhaps correct that each club retains it's own unique identity and development     suitable for it's marque    

Surely in future years to come perhaps each club may combine efforts from time to time for events for everyone's mutual benefit and promotion, sharing costs etc etc

In just the same manner that Westfield and GTM are separate Ltd companies.

[Rory's Dad]

Scott - building a Westfield with a 12 page manual might earn you some bragging rights but Westfields are also bought by people with little spannering experience, just a vague idea what the ecu does and a determination to succeed.

We've just about managed it     and pages from the new manual (and advice from the factory have been great.  Our kit came with a manual that included some pages for a live rear axle      

rant over  

Rory's Dad

[scott beeland]

Not much in the way of spannering skills here either. Wasn't bragging either ; merely pointing out that most things on a build need a good dose of common sense aswell as a build manual

[Paul Drawmer]

Strangely enough....

The GTM build manual is not quite(!) up to date either.

The only kit car manual I was impressed with was the on-line snippets from the Blackjack Zero.

I think the problem is that due to the nature of kit car development, changes to the product are implemented a long time before anyone considers updating the manual.

It's no consolation, but I doubt if there are many build manuals which are up to date.

When I built the Libra - it was Team GTM that helped me out (often).

[Rory's Dad]

Welcome Paul    

Nice build site BTW

Rory's Dad

[Barry Ashcroft]

Nice car Paul  

I seriously looked at building one of these before I built the first Westfield

[Barry Ashcroft]

Just been looking at GTM'a website some very nice stuff on there and I can see why Frank & Co decided to buy them.

This looks alot of fun

And a Libra with a V6 in the back must be balistic

[perksy]

Just been looking at GTM'a website some very nice stuff on there and I can see why Frank & Co decided to buy them.

This looks alot of fun

*IF* that's the car they had at the Autosport show last year, it looked b****y awful to be honest        

Like some of their other cars though    

and have been impressed by the Quality of the Gel coat on their bodywork

[Paul Drawmer]

Thanks for the comments on the Libra - I do get a lot of fun out of it.

Re the V6; it isn't that fast; think Gulf GTi/VR6 - the extra weight of the V6 changes the nature of the car. The V6 becomes more of a GT. Highly desirable fast road car, but less nimble than the Libra.

The 40TR shown above is the result of ambition over product development. According to GTM's web site, first drives will be in mid May 2007. When it was launched, the guys on the stand were not letting anyone near it. It was a non-runner with fake bits on it. RDM hadn't learnt from the debacle of the Ballista the year before.

The Ballista, also on GTM's web site, was launched at the Autosport show in 2006. It was an example of the how to get carried away by your own hype. GTM bought the defunct Larini, which was an Elise look alike, possibly from eBay. They then gave it smart paint job, and some nice interior trim, and launched it with claims like: "weighing in at a miniscule 600kg" and "expected to achieve 0 - 60mph in 3.8 ". On the stand, the engine was covered with a rug, and the under pinnings were the rusty components the car had been bought with. The guys manning the stand were not letting anyone near it. According to the GTM web site the first cars will be available for delivery in June 2006.

For the past few years, GTM have not often appeared at shows. At Stonleigh the two owners' clubs combined and did a very good job for the factory in displaying and talking about the cars to a fair number of prospective buyers who were expecting a factory presence.

When GTM were at Sutton Bonnington they did their own composite production. The gel-coat finished bodywork gained a very good reputation for high quality. The sale of GTM to RDM split that production away from the factory, and after a short time GTM went elsewhere for composite work. This has led to some difficulties in supplying product at the required quality, and I suspect that there is still a problem in getting the stuff bought in at the right price and on time.

I sincerely hope that GTM under the new ownership will develop. The Libra and Spyder are a great product line. However, they won't sell for ever because they are not 'timeless' like the L7. So to keep alive, GTM as a marque needs to owned by someone who can make and sell the existing products at a profit, and develop the cars to keep their place in the market.

[Stuart]

When I built a Mini Marcos in 1976 the manual was a side and a half of A4. But then again I suppose it was really only bolting Mini bits to a GRP shell (and making the wiring up by yourself).  The factory was owned at that time by one Harold Dermott, who went on to become deeply involved in the McClaren F1 I believe.

Funnily enough my mate decided to have a go at building a GTM at the time (the rear mini-engined one) but the silly sod had never taken a test drive.  It was a swine to build and took him over 2 years.  Then he found out he was far too tall to fit in it so had to sell it at a big loss.  GTM have come on a bit since that model.

In those days it was great.  No SVA and you could register it as a new car even if built of old bits as long as you were prepared to pay 15% car tax on the kit price.  So no MoT for 3 years.  My Mini Marcos didn't have a handbrake for the first 3 years of its life

[brianm]

It's good News all round

See Here    

Its also good news from another important viewpoint.

Its critical that established kitcar manufacturers are kept as high profile and proffessionally organised as possible to ensure the integrety and safety and public acceptability of the product. New players seem to come and go  and the cars are largely forgetable. However to avoid the kitcar movement becoming more diminished and isolated to the point where it disappears under a government aimed gumboot I feel that quality outfits such as GTM need to be keep in the eyes of the puplic. Westfield support should ensure that.

Can only do good all round for existing and future kitcar owners of any persuation,