LocostUSA.com

Well I'm not making it up; it says right there on Lulu's home page. Click on that, and it says:

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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/

Case sensitive perhaps?

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Peace, Ron

I believe so, based on my own experience.

Lulu is running an on-again/off-again 30%-off sale this month.

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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/

Update... it's been a while! If you haven't read the entire thread, keep in mind that my car is mid-engine, which helps to know when reading some of the comments below.

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Been putting miles on it and am learning that Midlana's a very different mistress than Kimini. Kimini was like the okay-looking girl who's always there and always reliable. Midlana is the red-haired supermodel with tatoos and piercings, a sportbike owner with a lot of "baggage." When she's good she's amazing, but when she's not, she can be fussy and expensive.

All of this was due to me deciding to build a beast of an engine, and a beast I got. The most notable event was the engine breaking not one but two engine mounts and trying to jump out of the car. I didn't even hear it happen but puzzled over the sudden multiple failures (broken wires and hoses) before figuring it out, and sure enough, the engine had jumped up several inches and put a dent in the engine cover.

Switching to aftermarket urathane mounts fixed that and while they work, they unfortunately cause the paneling to buzz like crazy at certain rpms. It was a little annoying early on but has gotten more so lately. I drive with earplugs so it doesn't really bother me directly, but when I had them out with the car idling, the buzzing was, well, embarrassing. OEM mounts will be (re)installed on the left and right side of the drivetrain to support the weight, while the front and back mounts will be kept stiff to handle the additional torque.

Unrelated to the above, the aftermarket alternator relocating kit I used has an engineering flaw. Apparently the mount isn't stiff enough so over the last six months or so, one mount bolt keeps breaking off in the block. The mount was modified to stiffen the outboard end of the bolt and so far so good...

What else... did a trackday event at Fontana (Los Angeles) and reached 148 mph with the windscreen in (should go faster without).

A larger oil-to-coolant heat exchanger was installed to keep oil temp down. Lately I've found that running without the engine cover typically drops coolant temperature by about 5 deg C. That's probably due to heat leaving by convection rather than funneling its way out of the system via the radiator. Louvers will be added to the engine cover.

While the car did well on-track, I felt like the GT3071R turbocharger was dropping off a bit at the top end. A GTX3573R was swapped in and now power is 400-500 hp depending upon the dyno. On the street the car's almost telepathic, where if I think "I'd like to be over in that lane" and it's that simple. I can just spin the tires in second gear, which a pretty nice feeling given that second is good to nearly 70 mph. Still haven't done any timed runs since there aren't any dragstrips around here (any more). As it stands, it's so fast and quick there just aren't any safe areas to push it on the street. Accelerating in the lower gears gives no time to be looking at gauges.

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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/

Apart from teething problems, it sounds like a blast. But, it also sounds like for a cruiser, one might want to de-tune the engine or maybe just skip the turbocharger all together. How many are under construction now?

Cheers,

Lonnie

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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

There are 11 build entries but only 3-4 are currently active.

I forgot to mention the car's dual nature. Because boost doesn't build until 3000 rpm, it's completely docile below that. Cruising on the freeway happens at 2500-2700 rpm, so mileage is surprisingly good, around 30-32 mpg.

About 3000 is where things get interesting, but since that only happens on freeway on ramps and during track events, the two different personalities coexist pretty well.

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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/

Great update! That's got to be pretty incredible on the track. It's always good to hear what teething problems people run into after their cars are on the road, as well as what is being done to resolve them. She sounds a bit bipolar, but I'm glad that overall everything is going so well with Midlana.

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-Justin

"Orville Wright did not have a pilots license." - Gordon MacKenzie

Update:

- Louvers were added to the engine compartment cover (hmm, needs a picture).

- The big development was water/methanol injection, added for the insurance and because it increases pump gas octane from 91 to about 110. As of yesterday the car is running 19 psi boost which results in iffy traction in third gear . If the water/meth system detects any flaw (too much or too little flow) it signals the ECU which instantly switches to a safe low boost configuration. Still working on the details but it's nearly done.

- Found a small amount of oil in the intake tract, which can come from only one place, the turbocharger. After the vendor gave it a clean bill of health, thought turned to crankcase pressure, which in turn led to thoughts of upgrading to a dry sump. Other than the HIGH cost, a dry sump is the best thing you can do for an engine.

- The various Midlana builds are pretty quiet, no different than Locost builders when life gets in the way, but we all know how that goes.

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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/

A drive with buddies in the local mountains this last weekend. You can crank up the resolution to 1080P.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nylxGbH6rKA&feature=youtu.be

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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/

Dude, you've got an empty passenger seat! Did you lose my phone number?

Cheers,

Lonnie

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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

Year end update:

A dry sump system was added; there are many reasons to run one other than the very high cost. Installing the system took a surprisingly long time, not helped by seemingly indifferent vendors and parts that almost fit together. For the price I half expected a team of topless maidens to install them while peeling grapes for me, but I digress.

At the same time, the alternator was swapped out and relocated. This is in preparation of eventually updating the ECU (which controlled the alternator) with a unit which can run flex-fuel and traction control. Ethanol has so many advantages in turbocharged engines that it's being accommodated even though it's not widely available here. The AEM Infinity ECU is able to run closed-loop boost control, and between that and its ability to detect ethanol content, allows boost to always be correct for the current fuel, but that isn't happening for a while. (As an aside, if you expect to do any electrical work concerning your alternator, a very helpful link is this one: http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/Wiring/Part2/.

After the dry sump was installed, a new air filter box was fabricated, one that fit filters of varying thickness, which can vary widely between brands. Check out the difference between the K&N and Amsoil part, below.

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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/

I know. I think it's these little disappointments taking a daily toll that makes us get older. Honestly, I've never evan had a chance to see how a day would go with that kind of help, but I am digressing too - must spend time in reality.

That's some great whizz bang stuff you have going there. I'm going old school for the moment. Didn't expect to, but that may be where I land up. And when it comes time for my dry sump I am going to use a piston pump with pump handles and topless maide - oh wait - that's not going to happen is it! Sigh, back out to the cold garage...

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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.

Kurt, love that air box, how did you form the bell-mouth?

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The B-3 build log: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=13941 unfortunately, all the pictures were lost in the massive server crash

The beginnings of the Jag Special,
https://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19012
Again, all pictures were lost.

Yes and do you have any shots straight down the barrel to see how much if any the welding penetrated. I've often wondered if more turbulence was added due to the welding than was gained by using all the many pieces, but you can't see down inside those headers to check.

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mobilito ergo sum
I drive therefore I am

I can explain it to you,
but I can't understand it for you.