LocostUSA.com

Hey Guys,

Been lurking a while but I thought I would just get my build log started. I am using my current car for the donor. It is a 1993 Ford Festiva with a Mazda Protege 1.8 (simliar to the miata) engine, and trans swap.

I plan on using the engine with a miata transmission and miata rearend for my build. My car is currently running Megasquirt 2.0 PCB 3, and when I get it tune in the spring it should put down 300+ horsepower on 110. I will probably detune it down to run on pump gas for about 250 horsepower.

I won't be parting out the car till Fall 2009, but I plan on getting the frame and suspension done this winter.

here is a couple pictures of the donor:

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

What a sweet ride!

-dave

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...nowadays people are so intellectually lazy and lethargic that they can't build ANYTHING with their hands. They'll spend hours watching whiny people marooned on an island, but won't spend a second adding anything to the world. -weconway
Visit my [Locost 7 build log]

My wife doesn't want me to tear it apart to build my locost, but I want it to be Low Cost afterall, and I don't have time for two different summer rides, and a motorcycle. It would just sit and rot. I figure if part it out it solves too issues:

1. I don't have to worry about someone buying the car and trashing it, and ruining all my time and work I put into it.
2. I will make enough in all the custom parts to pay for my locost

I am hoping to get my Locost as far along as possible by fall 2009, so I won't be without a toy in the summer of 2010.

Festiva weight in about 1800 lbs with the roll cage. I am debating what size frame to build at the moment though, probably go with a book frame for weight.

We will see.

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

You can almost consider the locost to be the same car without all the things you don't need. Doors, windows, roof etc. When your done, you'll still have the important part, the motor, but it will be facing a different way for aero reasons! Seems reasonable to me. I'm sure you wife will understand. Slap a picnic basket on the back and off you go! She'll be happy.

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Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

Just a small update, can't believe its been that long already since I posted this on here, oh how time flys.

My festiva took priorty, and I have a van frame up build to do after that. I still really want my locost but I don't see it happening for a couple more years at this point, especially if my festiva is as much fun to drive this summer as I am hoping.

Its now gunmetal, and should be putting out around 300 horsepower on race gas this summer, hoping to DYNO it in April.



I also spent my summer with the wife driving 6600 miles across country in my festiva. The blog is 6000milesinafordfestiva.blogspot.com if anyone is interest. The summer of 2011 we are driving 4400 miles back and forth to Newfoundland

Logan

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

Targa Newfoundland in a Fastiva? Sounds like fun.

Okay I finished the Grey Festiva, aquired a 86 Mazda B2000 for other parts, and officially plan to start this project sometime late winter. I know why these builds take so long, life gets in the way.

Logan

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

Good lord, 300 bhp in a Festiva? I got a little over 120 in a Fiesta, it would go fast enough to suck the metal door frames open at the top enough to stick your arm out up to the elbow...

Glad your still around,..

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Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

Yo, Marcus- Even if the doors do pop open that wide, please don't stick your arm out. It would hurt like hell when you slowed down for the next corner...

And Logan, hang in there... Looking forward to your build, whenever it starts!


JDK

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JD, father of Quinn, Son of a... Build Log
Quinn the Slotus:Ford 302 Powered, Mallock-Inspired, Tube Frame, Hillclimb Special
"Gonzo and friends: Last night must have been quite a night. Camelot moments, mechanical marvels, Rustoleum launches, flying squirrels, fru-fru tea cuppers, V8 envy, Ensure catch cans -- and it wasn't even a full moon." -- SeattleTom

I was wondering about that, but just had to try it. Must have been open a good 3-4 inches. I don't think the top closed quite as tightly after that.. The funny thing is I drove it that fast a couple of times before I noticed these huge gaping holes at the top of the doors. Too bad we've lost the ROTFLMAO smiley...

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Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

The car never reached 300 horsepower. I only got it running on megasquirt on a base tune of 9.9 psi before I finally got tired of messing with it. The car sits in my garage gathering dust now. I keep working on it, when I would rather have my locost. I bought a house to this summer and am trying to finish up the walls and wiring before I can start. Hopefully one day soon.


Now the question is I have been searching the forum but can't find anyone who has used a 86 Mazda B2200 has a donor. I am basically wanting to use the front hubs, transmission, drive-shaft, and rear end. I believe I can swap in the Rx7 differential, and I have a Miata bell house to mate my turbo BP to. The car is already running on Megasquirt, but I will probably build it N/A and add the turbo stuff later.

Any links on a B2200 build? I need to go measure the rear track width to see if it will even work. I want a lightweight quick AutoX racer, but I also want something I could take on a punishing cross country road trip.

Logan

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

Good choice! There is only so much to be said about having the worlds fastest Festiva! I raced my Fiesta for several years and had a whole lot of fun. Then I moved to a car like the one in my avatar and was *so happy* to have something that actually worked and was designed to do what it was doing. A huge world of difference, I think you will see the same thing. I never looked back.



Any of our Locosts will do that, the punishment is of the driver, not the car on a long trip with these!

The B2200 is like a Ranger? The rear axle should be useful. The front spindles maybe not if they are the twin I-beam type... Maybe you could use parts from the Festiva, then it would live on...

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Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

86 B2200 is not like the ranger, it doesn't have that annoying Ibeam design thank god. I got the truck because it was a heck of a deal. Then I found out I could mat the B2200 trans to my BP engine with the miata bell house, I just happen to have a miata transmission laying around (no good internals) so that worked out.

Going to have to dive back into this research since I have forgotten most of it in the past year.

Logan

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

Finally looks like the gray festiva is being sold if all goes well. I have at least the turbo kit sold, but waiting on a deposit for the car before I start counting my chickens.... This means one step in the right direction. I have a new problem though. I saw the MGB with the space frame design over in the non traditional builders log, and I got to thinking how cool it would be to do something similar (for me) with another festiva shell I have....am I crazy? I have always wanted a v8 festiva, but it would need a lot of supporting framework to make it work right.

If you notice it takes me forever to actually do any projects as I can never decide. It probably would be best to build a traditional locost first with all my Mazda parts, then look at doing a festiva down the road once I have gained the experience and knowledge from the locost build. Just a small update I guess.

Logan

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Small, petite, light weight.....and 300 horsepower what more could you want.

Logan, you have a PM.

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Midlana book: Build this mid-engine Locost!, http://midlana.com/stuff/book/
Kimini book: Designing mid-engine cars using FWD drivetrains
Both available from https://www.lulu.com/