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Old 11th September 2006, 18:35
kitcarman kitcarman is offline
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Default Where Are We Going? – The Resurrection!

That last thread got well and truly hijacked.

I’m hoping to put together this opening post such that none of the essential progress made gets lost. I think it fair to say that it was agreed that the industry needs a fresh approach. I’ve ‘pulled’ the following quotes which reflected the sentiments being expressed:-

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ex-Biker
I reckon if a few smaller companies got together and did a kit car display at some major petrolhead events like Goodwood, it would seriously improve the profile of the industry.
I know this has been said in the other thread, but kits need to be more modular and easier to assemble.
Also the idea of taking a Saxo (etc) stripping it of the dash, engine, wiring loom etc and assembling the lot into a new body / kit would take the modular step one stage further and let the owner feel as if he has the same quality as he would from a production car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fuoriserie
I get the feeling we are both talking to the converted , but you are right on this one, someone needs to take the first step, and in my opinion it should be the manufacturers and after that the Kit Media. The media support would be essential for a switch in perception.
Getting manufacturers to think and band together with others will be the difficult part.....
Quote:
Originally Posted by andy
I find it amazing that you are still banned…. I'll not comment on your second part of that sentence..... HOWEVER I have to say, I did reject your advice and I lost a lot of money and will be happy if I get £1 for the kit on ebay.
I'd have to agree with Mark, the industry does need new blood.....
My thoughts are that there are plenty of max power boys who spend more on modding their cars than our kits cost.... they also tend to lose all their cash on resale!
maybe this is a market we should be trying to tap?
How about some joint shows or something similar?
As an ex boy racer (honest) I once took my Ultima to the largest UK show and ran the quarter mile, I had loads of interest in the car and it even had pics published..... if some of these boys realised they could have a car like that or others for similar money to their 'modded' car and it be worth what they spent I'm sure there would be many converts.
I do remember PH doing a joint show with a custom car organisation.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EddyP
I am new to the kit car scene, but from my own observations i can see the industry having issues in coming years, suitable donor cars are getting harder to find, how many sierra diffs/ford type 9 gearboxes are left etc... hell the scrappy near me hasnt got any RWD fords, iirc the only RWD cars he has are bmws.
With the lack of donor parts i can see it really limiting some builds, engines should be ok, even if manufactures get silly with ECUs you can also go to a megasquirt/emerald for example, but it was drivetrain parts that i could see vanishing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kitcarman
Hi Eddy,
Nobody here disagrees with your evaluation of the problem. The debate centres on how best the industry can ‘take its next step’.
My observation is that those next steps are being taken. For example, there are now at least 4 Mazda MX5 based kits. There are more BMW based kits in the pipeline. A few kits are available for modern FWD mechanical parts; like Marlin’s 5exi and the new Mongoose - more shall follow. As time goes on, these designs shall improve and others shall appear until some landmark is reached.
I’ve got, probably, more interest in this industry’s success than anybody else on this forum. For my part, I’m confident that things are on the mend.
Den
Quote:
Originally Posted by andy
Hiya Mark,
As mentioned I have scrapped the kit I had and have started my own from scratch, I'm using new Porsche 996 hubs and hearings within new upights and have had suspension made to my own spec.
It's definitely a challenge designing a car from scratch, but I can see the end car well surpassing my previous Ultima with a bonus of it costing me less, so its definitely worth it......
I've recently updated my site, I'd certainly welcome your comments on the body. Probably not here though as its a bit of a thread hijak.
At this point, M entered with comments about BMW/Factory Five/Which, etc. Perfectly valid points in their own right in their own thread…. Which I’d encourage M to start. As to this thread: I’d like to continue the debate herein.

Have I accurately reproduced the above quotes and/or left any thing/body out?

Den
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