Would you trust a kit car?

[dd74]

As all of us are fairly familiar with mechanical/engineering aptitude, whether or not you or someone very well trusted built you a kit car, say like this one:



would you trust it as a reliable, safe, performance-oriented fun/semi daily driver more so than a comparable car; i.e. a Miata, Mini Cooper S, or Lotus Elise, or even a used Porsche 911?

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I'd trust a kit built by me more than a "production" car built in China.

[dd74]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

I'd trust a kit built by me more than a "production" car built in China.

That is exactly my point. If you - or someone close - or even the manufacturer who sells turnkey versions of kit cars - were involved in the assembly process, as opposed to someone who didn't care - it's just a job - would that bring you greater peace of mind?

Additionally, kit cars seem so much simpler and straightforward. There seems to be less electronic gadgetry and mechanical over engineering to go wrong when the car is finally finished.

[the]

Depends.

[Neilk]

Mechanically sure, crash testing, I am not so sure.

[dd74]

Originally Posted by Neilk

Mechanically sure, crash testing, I am not so sure.

True. But then again, how safe are our old 911s these days? I think all of us are at the precipice where we have to drive with extreme awareness, only because, by virtue of our cars, we are the puny kids on the school yard.

[Mule]

Depends on what it is. Some are Pintos.

[dd74]

Originally Posted by Mule

Depends on what it is. Some are Pintos.

The one pictured is a Ginetta G20. It has an aluminum tube chassis and fiberglass body. The suggested drivetrain and suspension, at least here in The States, comes from a Miata. Miatas are rock solid from all I've heard.

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by dd74

True. But then again, how safe are our old 911s these days? I think all of us are at the precipice where we have to drive with extreme awareness, only because, by virtue of our cars, we are the puny kids on the school yard.

Safer than you think.

I have seen stupid people saved by german engineers many times, for example that hill jack Lenny Dykstra taking out a hundred year old oak tree in his 500 SL and out there, hung over, playing right away. Porsche does not do bank vault like MB, but they are pretty solid, especially the coupes.

I almost got a 550 Spyder replica when I got my 914, but was concerned about California registration rules. I would drive a kit car I put together, without question, does a sand rail count as a car?

[oldE]

When it comes to kits which have been put together by someone else, I wouldn't touch it without a PPI. With some, it wouldn't hurt to have someone who knows welding take a good look too. Think of all the things which can go wrong.

A friend in Western Nova Scotia got the itch for a kit car (a VW based 'MGTC', go figure)which he saw in Prince Edward Island. He purchased it and drove home (about 7 hours) and ran it over to a local garage the next day for an alignment, as it had been wandering at highway speeds. It probably needed the alignment, but what it needed more was the torsion bar front suspension re-welded to the floor pan!

Buyer beware!

Les

[legion]

I've always wanted to build a kit.

I'm learning how to weld, but a good TIG/MIG machine might be out of my budget. (Not to mention I don't have a place to weld safely.)

The debate in my head keeps going back and forth between paying for the kit to be shipped welded and welding myself.

Oh well, it's probably a few years off anyway.

[DARISC]

Check out Buttonwillow and the Ginetta

[island911]

The "build" quality is one thing, engineering quality is another. Most kitcars are 'engineered' with ease of assembly in mind as primary. (so is a Kia...whatever)

The level of safety engineering in a Porsche or MBz is MUCH higher than for a kitcar.

[Joeaksa]

Totally depends on who built it and the quality of their work.

[kach22i]

I guy I kind of run into this guy from time to time. He recently sold his 550 replica (B-heck), asked him why (beautiful car). He said a bunch of little things kept cropping up, mostly electrical. Once he got it resolved he sold it before the next item popped up.

Far from a daily driver, mostly tired of getting wet.

[The Gaijin]

Buddy had a Beck. Man, you would not want to get in a fender bender with a Nissan Sentra in that thing. Super low and the shell is all fiberglass. Scary driving around looking up at pick-ups..

[JeremyD]

make mine a GTM

http://www.factoryfive.com/gtmhome.html

[wrecktech]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

Totally depends on who built it and the quality of their work.

Spot on. I work in the bodyshop industry, mainly rebuilding totals or severe wrecks. Some of the previous repairs on cars we get in are pretty scarey. There are a lot of people in the industry who have no business making repairs especially those that concern safety.

[gt350mike]

I never have owned a kit car but I know several people who built/own a Cobra replica. These cars are a blast to drive and can be reliable, but that really depends on who is the manufacturer of the kit car. You can spend days surfing the net trying to determine who builds a quality kit/replica. If you are looking for a Cobra, check out this site (http://www.clubcobra.com/). I have been tempted several different times to build a Cobra, but I have the same excuse as most guys (spending quality time with the family and sending most of my play money to my son at Auburn). I do know one guy that built a Factory Five car and he drives it several times a month. He didn’t go with a wild motor because he uses it as a semi-daily driver AND he wanted a motor that didn’t require a lot of maintenance. If I was going to buy a kit car, I would stay with the FE style motors because (statistically/historically speaking) they will hold their value much better than the small block Fords. The only exceptions to that “rule-of-thumb” are the FIA cars; the FIA cars ran small block Fords. Don’t even think about using a Chevy motor….....it’s just not right to stick a Chevy motor in a car that Carroll Shelby built around the Ford engines.



DISCLAIMER - I am not forgetting the fact that the Cobras were originally AC Bristol cars with 4 or 6 cylinders motors before Shelby put his magic in them. The Bristol were nice, but I'd like mine with a V-8!

[speedracing944]

After the 948 project is built and I am done with school I am going for the FFR GTM or Daytona. The Daytona looks more hardcore and is lighter than the GTM.

Both cars are amazingly fast.

The reason I am looking at a kit car is there really isn't a manufacture which makes a new car I want to drive. Not even Porsche.


Speedy