LocostUSA.com

I'm still making plans to do one, but life turned into a series of emergencies over the last year or so, and I'm still digging out from under. I need to find the notebook I was making most of the sketches in.

I also have 90% of a friend's Locost build, except for the frame and rear end, which are behind a defunct Lotus Eclat in a storage building in Bald Knob. Unfortunately the Lotus has three disintegrated tires, and is basically immovable, and I haven't managed to arrange three reasonably able-bodied helpers (at the same time!) to pass the frame over the Lotus. Finishing that car would be the most sensible thing, except my wife has decreed there shall be a Geo-powered middy, and it shall be hers. Well, things could be worse...

Midlana #1 used a Honda drivetrain just because that's what I wanted to use. The Geo drivetrain will certainly fit and has the advantage of being cheaper and a lot lighter, so a Geo Midlana is perfectly doable.

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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/

Thanks Kurt. That is encouraging since I have garage full of Geo components, plus a three cylinder Subaru Justy engine with carburetor, supposedly low mileage (35,000). However, since I am 75 years old, and no telling how long it will take me to build this thing, I may have to make a few mods. Right now I am thinking about adding racks to the roll cage to hold a walker and oxygen bottle. And maybe increase the cabin width to accommodate a couple of those electric lift chairs.

Nonsense! Got to Vegas and talk to these dudes:



Check it out ==> http://www.cenegenics.com/

The Devil made me do that

Cheers,

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Damn! That front slip angle is way too large and the Ackerman is just a muddle.

Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=5886

I'm 20 years younger than you, but given the way things are going, that comment isn't as funny as it might be...

Before building a chassis for a friend's car back in 2000, I made a cockpit mockup from scrap plywood and 2x2 lumber, an old car seat, etc., and made sure I could actually get in and out of the car before I started. (I was going to build a similar car for myself) I'd had knee and ankle surgery, among other things, and it limits my practical range of movement.

At the time, I could get in and out... fourteen years later, arthritis has become a daily grind, and before starting the new build, I'm going to have to make another mockup.

Back when I joined the board a few years ago I talked about using a roll cage instead of a roll bar. One reason was the "road rats" (deer), the other was the idea that I could use the forward and roof tubes as "handicap assist bars" to get in and out. I'd probably wind up looking like a fat gerbil hanging from a trapeze bar, but it would probably help, unless I wound up banging my head on the bars...

I had a thought a few days ago; most of you guys are probably going to think it's hilarious. But I think it's the answer to the entry/exit problem, at least for me. Basically, a power seat... except mount the tracks on the rear bulkhead, so the seat slides up and down instead of forward and back. I'm pretty sure ordinary power seat motors won't handle the weight, but there are light-duty 12v winches that would work.

If that pans out, I could just step into the car, sit down on a seat the same height as my ordinary car, push the button, and slide down to driving height. And, of course, vice versa.

I would just install a higher seat. You are old enough; you deserve it.

My seats are not particularly low, or high either, but they are about like the level in my 321i. Lower than a pickup truck but not dragging the ground either.

I'm 67, going on 68 years old and it won't be too many years til I am out of the locost league.

I've been waiting a while for this body--I bought it from Curtis Unlimited, it's a suitable-for-vintage-racing Lotus 19 body. It's a bit too small to fit a Metro drive unit (engine, trans, axles, spindles, wheels) but...

For those of you unfamiliar with the Lotus 19, here are some images glommed off of Ultimate car Page http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/spec/487 ... limax.html There are a variety of ways to deal with the it's-a-bit-too-small issues. The problem, in a nutshell, is the 19's rear body--which does indeed look like nutshell--doesn't have sufficient room inside to fit the Metro's 54.5" track.

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Locost builder and adventurer, and founder (but no longer owner) of Kinetic Vehicles

I'm probably not in the loop on this. Is the 19 body a new offering from them, or a kind of one-off sitting in their shop that you've gotten hold of, Jack?

I seem to remember a rough set of 19 plans being posted somewhere. Perhaps it was on this site?

Cheers,

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Damn! That front slip angle is way too large and the Ackerman is just a muddle.

Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=5886

Curtis has been making 19 bodies for a good long while--they even have two sets of molds. It's odd (to me) that the 19 hasn't been replicated/kitted commercially; to quote that ultimatecarpage entry, "This leaves the remarkably little known Type 19 as the last of the great Lotus sports racers." which I think is a fair observation. The 23 is more modern looking and has been replicated extensively, but it didn't dominate sports racing the way the 19 did...and then there was the Lotus 30 (which remains a joke half a century after its debut) followed by the Lotus 40 (Richie Ginther described it as a Lotus 30 with ten more problems) followed by Lotus retiring from sports racing.

But the Lotus 19 was the top sports racer of its day, winning against cars with twice as many cylinders and twice the displacement...and then the Can-Am style came along and they got forgot. To further quote Wouter Melissen from ultimatecarpage, "Due to their long racing careers, only very few survive today in relatively original condition, although more do exist than were ever built by Lotus."

So, back to fitting the body to a Metro/Swift/SwiftGTI powerplant with185/65-13 tires. One way to deal with it is to widen the body--it will just fit with an extra 2" spliced down the middle (much as I widened the Lola Mk1 body viewtopic.php?f=23&t=8984). Through the magic of Photoshop (I widened the bottom photo), here's what it would look like, sorta.Even with the widening, wheel clearance calls for moving the wheels a bit forward of their original position (relative to the bodywork--I plan on extending the doors and moving the stern back a tad to make the cockpit more comfortable) but few purists will say "Hey...wait a minute, that's not right" when they pull up to me at the stoplight.And then there's the Lotus 19B solution, the one they built with a small block Ford for Dan Gurney.I think I'll do both--start with the body widening for the little guys, and then a set of add-on 19B flares for Midlanas etc.

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Locost builder and adventurer, and founder (but no longer owner) of Kinetic Vehicles

I'm surprised it didn't twist itself into a "Corkscrew" long before they got to Laguna Seca...
On the other hand, a feather weight Lotus-built chassis with a V8 had to be an absolute HOOT to drive!
(In a juggling-chainsaws-and-rattlesnakes kind of way... )

Thanks for posting the pics, Jack!

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

Yeah, that was one of many things wrong with the Lotus 30--the backbone frame was good enough for the Lotus Elan but...actually, I'll bet if you put a mid-60s full race V8 in a Lotus Elan, it would have frame flex issues too.As was the fourbanger. To quote Melisson again, "Like the Formula 1 specification of the Type 18, the new Lotus sports racer was powered by the Coventry-Climax FPF four cylinder engine. It was fitted in full F1 trim with the exception of the added starter motor required for endurance racing. Displacing just under 2.5 litre, it produced around 240 bhp." And fifty years later, there are street Honda bangers that can equal F1 of yesteryear. I'm daydreaming, but I'm tempted to cast Coventry-Climax FPF style cam covers for a suitable modern engine, and with other minor tweaks offer a semi-replica engine. We'll call it the Oregon-Orgasm PFF.

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Locost builder and adventurer, and founder (but no longer owner) of Kinetic Vehicles

I'll take one! (I'd take two, but I ain't as young as I use to was.)
According to Marcus, over here at Team Slotus we're building an HFV ("Hillbilly Four-Valve"). Given the typical language used around the shop, I guess it would have to be a "Cuss-Worth HFV."

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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

Gurney won in his 19B at Daytona when it was 1000km, not 24 hours. The ultimate 'good enough' race car. He built a good lead but crossed the finish line on the starter motor (I forget whether it was a dead engine or a dry gas tank).

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Warren
Isuzu Pickup/SR20DE, +401 COLD frame
Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=11601

Wow Jack! So stoked to see another 19 being built on the site! I hadn't been on the site in a long time and was playing catch-up on everyone's projects, when I saw your 19 body. Life (mostly kids) has a funny way of stalling projects: This photo was taken with my daughter the day I unpacked my 19 body from Curtis. She turned 6 this past Saturday, and I still dont have a car!!

I'm hoping to really get back on track with the build soon. I'm really looking forward to seeing your progress and your front suspension set-up. I will definitely be picking your brain! Congrats!

Joe

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http://www.pbase.com/ninerjoe/lotus_19_build

Well, it has come to that point. Life got in the way of the project, and now the project is in the way of life changes. So I am looking to sell off all the parts I accumulated. Lots of Geo Metro parts, basically everything but the body, three engines, one complete Geo, Geo long block, and a Subaru Justy engine with carburetor. Kenetic fiberglass Catefish nose, super scuddle, and fenders with flanges and Dzus fasteners. Drag wheels (15 inch), same as the ones Jack has but red, with Yokohama tires. Fiberglass components and wheels are still in original packing. Sure would be nice if someone local (Little Rock, AR) would like this project so I would not have bother with shipping. However, I am going to be making a trip to Roanoke, VA and Durham, NC the second week of November so could deliver on the way.

Also have a Lincoln Ideal Arc 250/250 TIG welder that I never used. This is an industrial welder (weighs 330 lbs.).