LocostUSA.com

"I could not find the sports car of my dreams, so I built it myself" –Ferdinand Porsche

These are the guiding words for the journey I am attempting to take, and I invite you to follow along as I encounter both the successes and the inevitable failures along the way…Ideally there will be more of the former than the latter. There is no "kit" from which I will be able to build this car. Instead I am beginning with a set of loosely defined plans in a book*, also simply known as "The Book" in certain circles of like-minded social misfits. Then I am proceeding to take those plans and throw them straight out the window, as I redesign almost everything to be the way I want it to be. This will alleviate the all too common issue of working around somebody else's compromises and mistakes, which if nothing else are two things I am certainly more than capable of making for myself.

The hallmark of the type of car I am building is that they are extremely lightweight by today's standards. As a frame of reference, this car will be less than 1/2 the weight of most mid-size family sedans and less than 1/4 the weight of many full size trucks/SUV's. This is great for producing efficient performance and go-kart like handling but does have some drawbacks, not the least of which includes the lug nut rule**. That being said, this should still be appreciably safer than riding my motorcycle. In most other ways, the numbers I'm targeting will seem rather modest. This is because my primary goals include neither bragging rights nor Acute Deceleration Syndrome (ADS)***. This car is first and foremost intended to create an amazing all-around driving experience at a reasonable price. It is entirely impossible for any of the major automotive manufacturers to build the car of my dreams in this day and age of soulless transportation appliances. So the only way for such a car to exist is for me to design it and build it myself. Now while this all might sound a bit narcissistic, I can assure you it is.

I realize that I have been a bit of a tease by not really providing any detailed information about my specific plans for the car itself, but that will have to wait until next time. But now that you have read through this brief introduction, you probably find yourself thinking one of two things:

1.)What kind of irrational moron would possibly choose to to subject himself to such pointless torture?****

2.)This is bloody brilliant!*****


Either way, it's going to be a long and interesting odyssey. Speaking of which, this will also be a bit of a 'social media' experiment for this particular technological troglodyte. As such, you will be able to follow my build via any of the below linked sources:

http://GarageOdyssey.blogspot.com
http://GarageOdyssey.tumblr.com
@GarageOdyssey (Twitter)


Thanks for following!




*Build Your Own Sports Car.
**In a physical altercation, the vehicle requiring the most lug nuts wins.
***Speed does not kill, but a sudden lack of it does.
****You are obviously wise beyond measure, but please feel free to continue watching this slow motion train wreck.
*****Welcome to my little slice of heaven…At least I hope that's where I am!

_________________
-Justin

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

Justin,
I'm looking forward to your build. good luck with it. I hope I can come see it as it comes togeather.

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Larry from Burien

Justin,
Congrats on the start and welcome to the insanity
I'm looking forward to following your odyssey and sharing ideas and moral upport. Keep the updates coming.

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Cheers, Tom

My Car9 build: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=14613
"It's the construction of the car-the sheer lunacy and joy of making diverse parts come together and work as one-that counts."
Ultima Spyder, Northstar 4.0, Porsche G50/52

Good to see your project and log get rolling. Will watch your progress with much anticipation!

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Larry in Seattle

Thanks! I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities for anybody wanting to have a beer while supervising my latest calamity. And sorry for the rudimentary start, but my goal will be to post all of my major updates at the same time for everybody...So that means my first few posts will be a bit redundant for most people here.

_________________
-Justin

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

“Simplify, then add lightness” –Colin Chapman.

This was the mantra responsible for some of the most interesting cars ever built, and is the antithesis of modern automotive design. The Build Your Own Sports Car books detail the construction of a Locost, pronounced ‘low-cost’, which is a play on words regarding an affordable home-built Lotus 7 replica. A large part of the reason for using the Lotus 7 as the basis for the design is the extreme simplicity of shapes and materials used for the vast majority of the chassis and body work. If you’re not familiar with a Lotus 7, it’s a really just a slightly phallic looking pair of pants with an engine. You don’t get into it, you put it on. It has no top, no windows, and no doors. The Lotus 7 was among the numerous sports and racing cars designed by Colin Chapman, and was a tiny car with a tiny engine that achieved surprising performance in spite of its lack of power or sophistication. While a Locost will generally be a noticeably larger and heavier than an actual Lotus 7, to accommodate ‘modern’ sized drivers, most also have substantially more power from their relatively modern engines as well. Pretty much any engine that you can think of has at least been considered for use in a Locost. There are currently running cars with everything from motorcycle engines, to Wankel rotary engines, to good old fashioned American V8’s, and even a small industrial diesel engine. The most commonly used engines though seem to be relatively small 4 cylinder economy car engines that came stock with 100-150 horsepower range.

Many people who build these cars use a complete donor vehicle, with the Mazda Miata being the most popular in America, harvesting as many parts as possible to reuse. This includes all manner of parts from the engine and drivetrain, to the suspension and brakes, to the instrument cluster, to the seats, and even to the steering and pedals. The end result is basically a Miata with more than 750 pounds removed. This is a very smart way to help a build go more easily, quickly, and affordably.

Apparently following that path requires having more common sense than I was given. I will be using mostly Ford based components, but it will be ‘a la carte’. As the starting point I have a 2.0L Duratec engine out of a Ford Focus, which will mate to the 5-speed transmission from a Ford Ranger. The differential and rear upright/brake components comes from a Lincoln Mk VIII, but will be narrowed to a Miata-like width by using Factory Five Cobra rear axle shafts. Front spindles/brakes come from a ‘New Edge’ SN95 Mustang, which are actually being reused from my past failed project car attempt. Also reused from said previous attempt will be the 15” front and 16” rear wheel/tire package. Even once tuned up a bit, the engine will probably still have less than 200 horsepower. Nonetheless this should still provide for more than adequate performance from of a ~1500 pound (hopefully less) car, while also still getting moderately impressive fuel economy.

Speaking of fuel economy, the Lotus 7 also holds the unofficial distinction as the highest coefficient of drag production car ever made. Take THAT Hummer! Basically what this ‘honor’ means, is that while its lightweight allows it to perform admirably at low speeds it has poor high speed performance due to aerodynamics. This also translates into only mediocre highway fuel economy compared to what one should otherwise be capable of with any given engine with so little mass and frontal area to push through the air. Luckily, the CFO* on this project knows exactly how to make a man happy. She told me that she preferred to have a more attractive body even if we had to spend a bit of money to get it. You know the type: classic good looks, curves in all the right places, large prominent headlights, and a shapely backside…Well maybe not in those exact words, but I’m pretty sure it was something along those lines. Thankfully Jack McCornack at Kinetic Vehicles, one of the pillars of the American Locost community, has been working on just such a set of body panels. He is currently using the prototype body to help get over 100mpg (yes, you read that right) out of MAX, his 32hp turbo-diesel powered Locost pictured below.

Now, it’s out to the garage to get some work done!



*Also known as SWEETA: She Who Enables Every Thing Automotive

_________________
-Justin

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

What a simple change of a few words does to the connotations

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"There are times when a broken tool is better than a sound one, or a twisted personality more useful than a whole one.
For instance, a whole beer bottle isn't half the weapon that half a beer bottle is ..." Randall Garrett

I can't wait for this to start taking shape!

(and A++ on the engine choice )

_________________
-Andrew
Build Log
Youtube

Ok im not up to speed i suppose. Is this "Lalo" a play on words so there arent any copyrights breeched? Jack kept refering to Max as a "Lalo" and i felt dumb for calling them Lola's all these years. Then i wiki'd it to be sure, (as i have continued to call them that) and i was saying it right..ugh.

Reminds me of the first time i got laughed outta a gun store after asking for some ammo for my "Mah-sin Nay-gant"
edit: just read Jack's thread about the Lalo, and now its double funny. "Lay Low" hahah. wow, i'm only 3yrs behind

Yeah the title will probably have to change eventually, as I don't think Jack is planning to keep using the Lalo name. I should also probably add a picture so people not following Jack's work can see what the heck I'm babbling about.

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-Justin

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

Hot Damn! Driven is building a car! I go away for a weekend to play with the Slotus and all kind of stuff goes on whilst I'm not lookin... I'm catching up on Monday morning instead of working...

I'm really happy to see you building, Sir! I'm sure there will be some kajankety (1) moments here and there, but we've all been there and know what it's like. I'm a big advocate of "possum perserverance" (2) where you just keep on moving, no matter what, or stop and play dead for a while and figger it out.

That Lalo body looks decidedly sleek. I think from a performance point of view, or gas mileage, it's the way to go, as opposed to the traditional Lotus 7 look. I love the look of the 7, understand, but it's about as aerodynamic as a Russian apartment building.

And last but certainly not least, please give my regards to SWEETA! I hope she'll be pleased with your creation. Perhaps we can get her and TWWTFM together some day. Or perhaps we shouldn't? (3)
Good Luck!

JD Kemp

(1)- I SAID IT FIRST IN YOUR BUILD LOG! HA!
(2)- Opossum fossils have been found dating to the Jurassic period, 165 million years ago. They're not smart, fast, or fierce but they've survived since then, mostly out of pig-headedness. I find that a good role model.
(3)- They could enjoy an afternoon of chit-chat whilst we work on our cars. Or they could band together and force us to go shopping or look at paint colors for the den or go see the latest "romantic comedy"...

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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

Didn't think it would ever happen, eh?...I was starting to wonder myself.



You may be the first, but I doubt you'll be the only. I have all sorts of ideas that are likely to come out looking rather kajankety.

_________________
-Justin

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

Glad to see you're at it. Have fun!

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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.

a nice romantic comody, you know, like building a locost

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this story shall the good man teach his son,
and chrispin chrispian shall ne'er go by,
from this day to the end of the world.
but we in it shall be remembered.

Come over to the Dark Side, Justin... At Team Slotus, the entire CAR is kajankety, and I didn't even know that word until after I'd built it!

OK, enough of this foolishness, get ta buildin sumthin!!!

JDK

_________________
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