Impossibe to build a 150lb to 200lb chassis out of aluminum for a big block car? Tell that to Herb Adam's who builds one in one of his books.

Okay, the wheelbase could be lengthened to say 102", with an increase in length to 180".

Now, add say 600lbs to the cars weight, a LS6 with a Getrag G50 transaxle.

Bump up the price to $40,000.

Would you be interested then? A little more easier for you guys to digest, just wondering what us "performance" enthusiast would go for... we after all, are on an F-body board.

 

And yes, I realize the 1400lb weight is a bit wishful thinking on my part, and to meet that weight would be a futile attempt.

As said before, a 2000lb vehicle is very realistic, and with the above said drivetrain, would appeal more, as well as have a better chance at running in the GT class with respectable marks, which is where it would begin before being adopted to a road car.

You can't snap your fingers and a dealer network suddenly appear...
I'am aware of what is needed to establish a dealer network, I'm also familiar with the way Mosler Engineering does business with their vehicle that uses a GM drivetrain.

They keep a warehouse full of stock on typical replacement parts, when a customer needs it, it is available overnight. Now for a small niche manufacturer this is pretty good.

Some people they say would buy only from a company with an established reputation, while this is very understandable and almost encouraged from an economical standpoint, I however am not catering to the appliance crowd, moreso the enthusiast.

Saleen, for example, was not a manufacterer until a few years ago, in fact only about a dozen cars have been produced since then, that of the S7R.

Ferrari, half of the members on the board, if they had the means, would buy a Ferrari. Where do you go to get Ferrari parts... the local dealer? If ya can find one, yet everyday at work I see maybe 3 or 4 Ferrari's within a 3 mile radius everyday. Sometimes the same ones everyday, yet the closest dealer is around 50 miles away if your lucky, and they aren't a parts dealer.

This is about niche manufacturing which I'm sure you understand, and with a company I used to work for, whom has a network of parts stores throughout the US, is willing and able if the time ever comes, to stock such parts if this car was developed. The company is the typical Carquest style parts center that sells only to mechanics, it also does sell to private by request, and having parts nationwide in most city's is where this "network" comes in. It's no GM parts counter, but for a small niche manufacturer, its better than most can claim after being in the market for 20+ years.


Now, I would really loooove to see a 6'6" 250 pound guy manuver to get into a car 42" tall.
6' 6", 250lb guy is no problem their are cutouts in the roof of the car that allow the driver/passenger to step in, instead of curling over in the fetal position and pouring themselves into the seats. And you'd be surprised how much you can cram into one spot I've sat in the Panoz LMP01 Le Mans prototype, was actually pretty comfortable, and I'm 6' 2', 215lbs, wasn't as tight as a glove, actually quite comfortable, and that was with a carbon fiber crossmember rubbing up against my damn shoulder.

Oh, and I had to climb into the car, no doors.


You mean ignore those that actually do this every day for a living??
Who here works for a small volume car company? Anybody from Mosler, Lotus, Saleen, TVR, Lamborghini? Anybody?


If it was easy, someone would have done it already.
Heard that before, and its been overcome. Thanks though, I believe Henry Ford was told the same thing as well.

 

if i were rich would i buy this car for my collection? probably so. would i risk driving it every day on the highway at speeds of 60 miles an hour with tractor trailors driving by? no.

give me a five ton car, and put in a 1000ci engine in it, and i might prefer that. basically what im saying is id rather have the bigger engine. heavy isnt such an issue with a bigger engine. i commend the engineering behind such a car, but in my personal preference and i think in many americans eyes its about size and noise rather than practicality. in my lifetime i dont think i will ever buy a 4 cylinder car. give me open headers or give me death.

 

Welp, let's dance with this one for a second...

First, you don't want a frame at all. You'll want stressed-skin construction or a monocoque. Obviously, the motor and transaxle need to be part of the structure, which presents significant torque issues.

Second, side impact standards are either going to require exceptionally thick doors, or you're going to have to have ultra high strength steel reinforcement beams.

Third, bumpers are a big issue.

Fourth, anchoring seat belts and seats will be a problem.

What do I want?

LSx motor, ~500hp (a Stage 2 LS6 can do this easily)
T-56
IRS
2 seats
275/17's all the way around
2400 lbs.

 

http://www.siknor.com/GT.jpg

You'll want something like that with an MTI powerplant.

Stressed skin? No, how bout a very lightweight frame with a "hung" body. The frame for the car in picture is already in its 3rd development by a manufacturer back east. They can crank out dozens per week and are used in a spec series. Very safe, very stiff, very durable.

The drivetrain can speak for itself, and the 8.8 IRS suspension can take most of whats dished out.

The car in picture is put up against a sketched outline of a 4th gen, you can see just how large of a presence this "small" car actually is, wider than a 4th gen as well.

 

Mosler MT900 Photon is $210,000
There are no authorized Mosler dealers. You have to order them straight from the factory after making a deposit.

Lotus Esprit is $90,00
There's only a couple dozen distributors in just 19 states after over 40 years of existence.

Saleen S7 is $375,000
Saleen built his reputation over the past 15 years or so upgrading Mustangs and other Ford vehicles. As a result, just about 60 dealers in 34 states... most all Ford... are certified Saleen distributors.

TVR
Doesn't sell cars in the US anymore. You have to buy one overseas, then spend your own money making it meed US standards.

The cheapest Lambo (the Murcielago) is $165,000
19 dealers nationwide after being around since 1945

I don't believe this is the group you want to use as examples.

You live in Concord. There's a Ferrari dealer right across the bay in nearby San Francisco. Hardly 50 miles away. There's another in Los Gatos, by San Jose. Yet another is in Mill Valley, less than 10 miles north of the Golden Gate bridge.

It's no mystery seeing a few Ferraris around the bay area. Let's be honest, rich and moneyed people aren't exactly an endangered species in the San Francisco bay area. That's why out of 6 statewide California Ferrari dealers, three are around San Francisco... right by where you live.

BTW: for comparison, here in Los Angeles (a area massively more populated than the Bay Area) there's exactly TWO authorized Ferrari dealers! (The 6th one is in Santa Cruz)

All are fully authorized to do repairs. Some parts are available, but let's be honest. If you are going to spend from nearly a hundred grand to over a quarter mil for a car, the company isn't going to make alot of extra parts for the car until someone needs it.

Henry Ford dealt with zero regulations 100 years ago.

I wish you the best & hope you succeed, but in all honesty it doesn't seem that you have carefully reviewed what you'll have toactually work with engineering-wise, capita-wise, or in the areas of marketing & distribution. You'll need investors to get started, and I'd say you're at about zero chance of gaining any based on what you've said so far.

Tucker, Bricklin, & Delorean all had plenty of experience that should have guaranteed them success, and they were successful in raising enough money to get their cars started.

You got to inject alot of realism here to attract the cash to get started, otherwise you are just spinning your wheels and going nowhere.

 

Gallardo*

 

Oh!

My son also just corrected me.

 

Your car sounds pretty much exactly like a Lotus Elise, except yours is made by some guy and not Lotus.

You sound pretty unrealistic with your expectations of your car, comparing it to kit cars and some car you saw in a book and saying you're going to do that with ful warranty and whatnot.

I guess you could put this out as a kit car and sell some if it looked nice enough. Your concept looks fairly generic and reminds me of the Lotus Elise Exige.

It sounds like you're just trying to make your own version of something that exists already.

What does your car offer me that I can't get from the Lotus Elise? It seems like an Elise, for a few thousand less but built from the GM parts bin so not as exclusive or unique.

For reference, here's the Exige:
Supercars Exige Page

The Elise gained 400 pounds when it came to the US to meet crash standards, and add stuff like AC and power windows and leather seats and whatnot. You're saying you, with no experience in the industry, can make a better Elise than Lotus? I doubt it.

If I was in the market for this sort of car, I'd buy the Lotus.

 

I don't see anything there but a sketch, and only side views at that.

 

this is a cool subject. i have an 04 corolla and it weighs about 1500 pounds. but thats not a race car. i think a 1500 pound car can be done, but it would cost alot more than 33k, too bad. reminds me of this car
http://www.coviniengineering.com/images/c36_3.jpg
are you planning on building one or something? the only thing is that it takes tons of money to start something like this. as far as safety standards, is there a way the govt can look at it and say its safe, or do they still wrech them into walls? cause that would suck to buildsomething so nice just to wreck it

 

The frame is in the top right corner, there are no concepts, I'm not a concept drawer. I've been doing schematics and plans and thats what I am able to do, front, side, rear, top, bottom, etc. etc.

You see just a sketch and only a sketch, I don't put up my plans online, neither does any other manufacturer.

Guys, your taking this much too seriously, the first car was more of a quick concept I've been playing around with, a what if situation. My main focus has been on the GM V8 powered RWD, M/F Engine 2 seater. That is where the focus is, and eventually to produce a road going version of an LMP. All in due time, but as I said, more of an exercise in design and concept. Sure there is a market overseas, but that's not where I really care to see my products, more so in the domestic market.

 

K, lemme let ya in on something that'll save ya some embarrassment...

In the automobile industry, there is no such thing as a "top" view. It's called a "plan" view.

That being said...

I'll say I'm interested. I've got a Monza project in the background to shoehorn 500hp into a 2400 lbs. car. Ground up, a better car might be in the offing this way.

I'd go after a C4 IRS though. The single composite leaf spring is a bigtime weight saver and the center section can take the heat.