Feedback Please .....new Body Available Soon / 50's Sports
 

Hi,
I am new to this forum. I am more well known on various Hot Rod and Volksrod forums as I run a small workshop involved in building Hot Rods , Volksrods and importing Classic American cars.... www.bayarearods.co.uk

My reason for posting this thread is that I have undertaken building a 50's style Sports car , similar to a 550 Spyder but borrowing various style tips from many of the cars of that era...it is going to be offered as a single skin style body with seperate front section , no opening doors etc..a basic format ideal for budget and ease of build.
It is based around a Herald Chassis for registration purposes but could easily be put onto a Custom Chassis. Width is similar to a 550 Porsche , wheelbase is 4'' longer at 90'' , height from lower sill to doortop is 24'' , seat bases will be recessed into the floor slightly.
The headlights are VW / Porsche , screen is 550 Spyder , tail lights are Hillman Imp style round units ...all available quite cheaply.

The idea is to offer a car with the look and feel of the 50's Racing cars but without the complicated or expensive build issues......The Ferrari and Porsche examples are traditionally expensive.

Prices are to be finalized but this is intended to be a budget offering.

Heres some pictures of the plug body so far ....units are expected to be available mid-Summer , price to follow....

I would appreciate any comments , good or bad...Thank you

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18.../nickr1005.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18.../nickr1004.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18.../nickr1006.jpg

I would imagine there are not many Triumph Herald donors around anymore?

Peter...you'd be surprised actually , when I started this car , I was offered quite a few and I actually bought my base on Ebay , where again there is always a dozen or so available .....I paid £170 for mine , I don't think it would be unreasonable to pay up to about £4-500 for a donor as you use pretty much everything ...buying a Herald in that price range doesn't seem to be an issue .....Thank you for your interest.

Welcome to the forum :madgrin:

Always admire people willing to give things like this a go.

The front on that last picture looks very much like it's from a Fairthorpe (but then other angles not so sure)

Not sure about the headlight treatment as they seem to dominate the front end but like the overall concept. Sylva are doing something similar with their new car, the Sceptre I think its called.

Cheers, John

THANKS JOHN , The car actually started out as the remains of a 1958 NICKRI , only a handful ever built and designed for a Pop chassis , I have changed it a lot , mostly the front to accomadate the Beetle headlights , I wanted it to get the look and feel of the Porsche Spyders and Borgwards etc of the early 50's and both cars use Beetle headlights , small bonnet scoop , screen area to accept Porsche Spyder screen , rear deck has been lengthened and a headrest fairing added , wheel arches made smaller and the body has been given more depth by putting deeper sills on as well as moulding the doors shut and changing the cockpit shape quite dramatically as well......The car will also have skirted rear wheels

I am going to make a mould of it over the next few months and put a few together to sell.....if anyone else wants a body , thats cool , if not , I'll just knock a few out.....

I like the shape and I don't think I would be put off by the headlights. As it has the feel of a classic/special, rather than a kit-replica, then it may well be received by the public as the real deal. (I must add, nothing wrong with replicas!)
The car doesn't lend itself to extensive modernisation, so the Herald base is an ideal option, in my opinion This is so long as the cheap Heralds come with a solid chassis. I think it would need a non-Q plate to pull it off though. It looks like it will be a fun budget drive.

The questions I would naturally ask are..

Will this need the IVA treatment?
What safety features are there - side impact for example?
Will any age Herald be OK to use?

All the best with the project.

MB

Thank you Iadda , you have 'got it' .....it is meant to have the feel of a special rather than a component or replica...

IVA isn't needed , the non-radically altered Herald base qualifies it for the re-register as a rebody , not IVA route ....a whole lot simpler.

Side impact bars would be very easy to install along either side. By tying the front and rear bulkhead hoops together along either side with 1'' box or tube , this also makes fitting trim panels a whole lot easier too...

Any year Herald will work and due to being a rebody , it won't be a Q , retaining its original reg. mark.

I am tackling this build with my Hot Rod / Special head on rather than a true Kit style car with all the IVA issues that brings with it...

looks very interesting, so does pick up is it a pop cab? more info and pics of this also please,
MADMAN

The Pick up is home made using parts from a '71 Beetle and '57 Beetle to create the front , I made an earlier style bulkhead and opening screen frame to add to the illusion too ....cab back is a chopped , sectioned , narrowed Ford F1 Pickup , about 1949 vintage , a Morris Minor Pickup rear window and Beetle lower , F1 upper doors !!

Heres a link to the build so far.....

http://z13.invisionfree.com/VolksRod...showtopic=2723

UPDATE.......


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...STRK:MESELX:IT

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND COMMENTS SO FAR.....

From a "looking to build my next project soon" perspective, I would not buy this from ebay. If you are going to do it, do it properly, update your website to include details of it, clean up the workshop and ring round the various kit-car magazines (and ppc) and get them round to do an article - a nice write up will sell many more than an ebay listing (and will probably cost less too!)

Chris

Chris.....thank you for your comments.
My experience of magazines , is they wouldn't do an article but they would suggest I send pics and details to be included on their new products/latest news pages....I'm already on the case with that !
Magazines may take an interest when my car is finished but they don't feature everything......I have had several kits featured in the past in magazines , it doesn't tend to sell many ...the internet has always been a better tool for me.
The website isn't being updated , but I am starting a new website for this and the classic American cars I import as well..it will have a link to/from the old site.

It's important to remember as well , cheapness is a key factor here ...anything that generates expense , generates price increase !

Tidy the workshop? .........I build Hot Rods and kit cars ........that won't happen !!!

still going to offer it ?
 

hi there,

Im new to this forum - but spotted your post on the car you are developing - I saw you sold the running one you had (Sammio Spyder) recently on which I nearly bid - I really like the 50's 550 spyder feel to the car ... is it your intention to keep the project going by offering more ?

Mike

Hi,
I did sell the car I was developing , yes....I have all the moulds sorted now and my development for construction was done....I am now actively offering bodies , rolling shells , running rollers , turnkeys ...whatever really...
THANK YOU

Just looked at your site and #^*%ing hell, £750 for the tub, dash and bonnet?! I know you're trying to keep it in the spirit of the 50's but I didn't realise you meant the pricing as well :shock: That's impressive.

I love the look of that era and the ethos surrounding the specials. Only one thing puts me off and that's that I have nowhere to build and lack the skills. Ok, that's two things. Nowhere to build and I have sexy fingers (everything I touch is f................ you get the idea) plus I don't think the performance will keep my interest. Three things then, three things. No workshop, no skills and dated performance. Those are my faults though, not yours, and I wish you well with it.



I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition.


Edit: Hmmmmmm, what about a 2-litre Vitesse as a donor? Brand new they had a whopping 104bhp which is ummmm, less than a quarter of my current car. Bugger.

Hi,
Time for an update......

I have sold 4 of these bodies now ...not breath taking but I'm happy with that....They were never going to be big or fast sellers in my opinion. Most kit builders are looking for a slightly easier path , I suspect. The bare shell , 50's Special approach isn't for everyone.

I'm currently working on number 4 ....I have shortened the body approx 9'' to fit a Spitfire chassis. I have cut doors and a bootlid into the shell and constructed the framework and fab'd the woodwork for the customer also.....I'm nearly done , just need to fit the front section and finish the screen and stuff.... The customer picks up the reins after that ...starting with a drastic lowering job , hopefully !!

Heres some pics.....

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18.../DSCF00012.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18.../DSCF00022.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18.../DSCF00032.jpg

The Scimitar in the background is my next donor..its a 99'' wheelbased earlier SE5 Model ...I am going to widen the body slightly , moulding one with a single head fairing this time , possibly cut one door into the body and fit a custom fabricated front end that will be stretched 7'' ....The car will take on larger proportions and give it more of a Ferrari 750 Monza meets Aston DB3S meets Lancia D24 meets C-type Jag sort of feel , IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN !!

An example that just sold on ebay.....

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18...nk/sammio2.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18...nk/sammio4.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18...nk/sammio5.jpg

I have two confirmed builds and some ''thinking about its'' at present , so hopefully a few of these will make it out there in the next 12 months or so.....It would be great if they were all slightly different , but the same if you know what I mean......I have had an enquiry about converting the front to upright 7'' headlights , I am going to explore this avenue when time permits , as thats an alternative.......cheaper too !!

Yes!!!
 

The single reason I got to this forum is Googling my idea to build a true '50s sportscar, based on the chassis of my '72 Se5a Scimitar... This is exactly what I had in mind! Congratulations on a more than fine job! Is the green one in the picture already based on the Scim's chassis or is it still Herald based?

Do you have more details on the Scim based kit yet? I'm getting quite exited... :high5:

Gr.,
Scimmy

Hi,
Firstly THANK YOU
That is a Herald 91.5'' example...I am hoping to get the SCIM version under way end of Summer....I need to do it alongside my normal stuff , so progress wont be fast but the body work will be first and then I'll decide whether to mould her or not.......watch this space !!

Just a quick note to say that the Sammio page on my website www.bayarearods.co.uk has been updated to show a bit more about putting one together....

I appreciate this style of build isn't for everyone nowadays , but you can genuinely put an example of this car on the road for less than £2000 with some careful shopping for the right bits and pieces...In our current economic climate and add to that the fact they are SVA/IVA exempt , that cannot be ignored !!!

THANK YOU