26 replies to this topic

[z cars chris]

weve been looking at doing a cheaper version of the civic type R kit basically because the civic engines are expensive to buy and getting harder to source
we looked at the B16 and B18
the kits would be exactly the same just with different engine mountings but big savings would come from
a the cost of the engines is around £1000
a good ECU and loom with exhaust will see 200 bhp and cost £1400 so theres a saving on the civic motor version of a couple of grand
you could run the std ecu and loom from the donor car and std exhaust which would save a further £1400 so in effect a honda v tec mini could come in around
£6500
have any of you any thoughts on this
would it be worth us doing the ground work to produce a car
i imagine it would be a nice daily driver with enough poke to put a smile on your face and honda reliability to boot
tell us what you think
chris

[Jammy]

Lol, where are you sourcing these engines from? Are they rebuilt? The last two b16s I got were both under £300. They were the earlier cable clutch B16a1s though.

[Renessy]

Do it!

This way a Zcars mini becomes cheaper and more attractive to us! Still enough power and fun to drive!

When will the kit be avalable????

Cheers to you!

René

[Bounce]

Lol, where are you sourcing these engines from? Are they rebuilt? The last two b16s I got were both under £300. They were the earlier cable clutch B16a1s though.

I was thinking the same thing. My hydro B16A2 was £500. But if they are rebuilt then its getting somewhere near decent.

[adyzr1]

Hi chris,
I think its a great idea, as you know ive built a couple of kit cars , And i have had to work my way up to building a z cars, the first car i built was an m.k indy which i sold for £6500. Making a bit on it i decide to push the budget out a little further and build the cobra, that cost me £11,000 to build (2 years to build) , i sold this for £ 15,000. I was now lucky enough to buy your kit.

As you know their are various kits in the kit car market, most of them offer starter pakages, this is why i was able to "get on the ladder"

I think Westfield sports cars is a good example , they sell/sold good quality kits , but not everyone could afford the name, so they produced the "Westfield SDV" (single donor vehicle/sierra based) not only did they fill a hole in there market people were able to afford a westfield. (like yourselves people want a z cars, they dont want C**p)

people have got 3 choices at the minute

1- save up for a while ( in this day an age alot of people want things stright away, so its not an option)
2- Get a loan
3- You make starter pakages/ stage building


The point im trying to make is everyone needs a start point ,there must be alot of people that would love to have the quality of a z cars kit, that simply cant afford the start point, looking at the hits on this website their must be alot of potential customers out there (I certainly couldnt afford a z cars kit three years ago and im still in the same proffession now, i have had to work my way up)

cheers chris

Adrian Hatton

Edited by adyzr1, 21 February 2007 - 12:55 PM.

[cardboard]

i agree with the above i would be all over that kit it sounds like a great idea. for all of us that cant yet afford the more expensive kits we have as stepping stone to get us started and help us fall in love with the kit and ultimately want the next one up later!

[d4v1dtyler]

i definately agree, would absolutely love a z-cars mini but sadly cant afford one. so a starter package would b an awesome idea!!!

[z cars chris]

OK THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO ME WE WILL BUILD THE KITS FOR b16 AND b18 ENGINES
ID BEEN LOOKING AT VERY LATE MODEL ONES CAN ANYONE TELL ME ARE THERE ANY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE EARLY AND LATE ENGINES ETC
MY MAN WHO DOES THE HYDRA IGNITIONS USED TO BUILD THE ENGINES FOR HONDA TOURING CAR TEAM A FEW YEARS AGO AND TELLS ME BIG POWER IS NO PROBLEM
IF B16 ENGINES ARE £300 THEN A NICE MINI IS GOING TO BE RELATIVELY CHEAP
WE WOULD STILL DO THEM WITH THE FRONT SUBFRAME AS PART OF THE KIT SO THE ROLLING CHASSIS WOULD BE TOP SPEC STUFF WHICH WOULD LEAVE ROOM TO UPGRADE THE BRAKES AND POWER LATER IF YOU WANTED TO
ITS ALSO EASILY POSSIABLE TO SUPERCHARGE THESE MOTORS TO GET REAL NICE TORQUEY POWER FROM THEM WHICH WOULD EXCEED THE TYPE R POWER
IF ANYONES GOT A MOTOR OUT THERE AND WANTS TO BE THE FIRST WE WILL DO THE KIT AT THE NORMAL COST BUT THROW IN A FEW GOODIES TO SWEETEN THE DEAL
I COULD DO WITH A B16 REALLY AS I HAVE A B18 ALREADY
CHRIS

[Bounce]

The main differences between the B16A1 and A2 is cable clutch and slightly smaller throttle body on the A1.

You'll be able to get alot more info from 16v mini and a CRX forum.

[Bounce]

Theres also differences in the ECU's and Looms for the A1 and A2. The A1 uses an OBD 0 loom and the A2 uses an OBD 1 loom.

[Jammy]

Chris, you have PM regarding the engine!

[samwell]

I was just about to get in touch with you chris about building a b16 kit car because being 18, the 2.0l is not really realistic for me. Plus I'm not sure i could handle that much power int he back of a mini goin from a 998. Doing the kit in modular for would be awesome aswell say maybe 5 payments of £1100 because its kinda hard to get £5k staright off and as I'm building in my gap year I'd like to make th eporject fill the best part of a year. Im really glad u're gonna try a b16 kit, keep us updated on how its goin and i will be one of the first people to buy in.
Is it OK to visit you sometime as my mum lies in derby so i can mission it to yours and check out the kits?

samwell

[z cars chris]

we will always try to help if you need to buy the kit in stages
i know how hard it is to get everything you want in life if you havent the immediate funds to do it
if you want to visit then by all means come up and see me just e mail or ring first to make sure im in
we start racing soon so i will be open a little less on a weekend
we will be doing the first B18 kit in the next couple of weeks
chris

[samwell]

hows the b18 kit goin? be nice to see what the performance comparison is and whether you came across any dificulties or are they very similar engines.

samwell

[Bigtuna]

Any update on these kits chris?