Kitcat

Well, if you screw it up Karl, just throw in another used Ford Focus engine, like I did on my Birkin:).

James: Why not use the 6sp Caterham tranny in lieu of 5sp, regardless of rear diff? It adds 2 more (usable) gears, ie.6th is the 1:1 ratio, on the T9 4th is that, and 5th is overdrive.

Mechanical, electrical and civil engineer arguing about which category of engineer God is: Electrical: He has to be an electrical engineer, look at the elegant neural wiring system he designed for the human body. Mechanical: Nope he has to be a mechanical engineer, look at the ingenious system of moving levers, beams and flexible joints that comprises the human skeletal system. Civil engineer: Sorry guys, he was obviously a civlil engineer, who else would put a major playground right next to a sewage dispsal system!

I have added a new starter: that should be worth a coupla seconds a lap! And, I replaced the batterry in my GoPro mic, again, another coupla seconds. Karl: 9500 RPM's, wow, I really cant wait to hear that sound! Croc: Dont forget your new on-track Garaj Mahal, and restored vintage racing Mustang, when tallying your racing oriented toys. I think Karl has a ways to go to be up there with you,and that's before counting your Aussie racing toys. Taxi story: LMFAO. Tom to the rescue!

Hard to establish a value when so few are ever sold. I suspect $8-14K range, but just a wild guess. I agree w/Martin tho, $3-4K seems low. As I recall, an offbrand Miata engined se7en sold for abt $8K here abt a year ago. BTW, the Craig's list link has no info on the car.

There is something menacing-looking abt those BDA engines. Glad to see all of the progress, hope it makes its annual appearance at the se7ens track day at NJMP in June. I know another X-flow owner (or 2) here are drooling!

The Honda does 0-60 in 5.6 secs, the Vette in 5.8. Then add similar weight, the Vette's semi functonal drum brakes that wld fade almost 100% after 2 hard breaking areas, the 'Vettes skinier tires, much cruder suspensension, slower/slopier steering, the Honda's traction control, vastly superior suspension, ABS, stability management, etc., etc. I dont doubt that an old 'vette w/many, many track oriented and updated mods cld hang with the Honda, I am talking bone stock.

Thx Skip! Your post confirms what I suspected: compared to cars of its era, the 'Vette was awesome. Compared to, say, a new 6 cyl Honda Accord, it wld be no contest-even at the track I wld expect the Accord to dominate. Of course, if it was just a beauty contest, the 'Vette wins.

As I have posted here before, back in the really old days, in Sept, in my small town, they' d have a new car parade. So, in the early 60's we'd line the streets to see the parade of first time models orchestrated by the local dealers. And, when the '63 Vette turned the corner and eased down the street, amidst various luxo-barges and not so luxo barges, the '63 vette Sting Ray was like a feking spaceship, too wild, too different, too cool to comprehend. So, I gotta report, I am a bit underwhelmed by the '14 Vette. Tho, I hasten to add, I am sure it's a pretty nice car.

I saw a Dink Brink post elsewhere that one or more were on their way from S Africa to USA.

Ya shudda just put in a draw bridge over the pool Steve, the ultimate security system:). I am actually profoundly jealous, it looks wonderful.

Texas Motor Works says a new model is in production and is on its way to these shores: bigger cockpit, more footwell space, bigger engine bay, better suspension, etc., for just a few hundred more $$$'s. Original model will remain available. Shd be intersting (I wonder if they will fix the atrocious seats:))? Apparently some have been produced and shipped elsewhere, including Holland where they are being raced. All of this, per a Dick Brink post on the Yahoo Birkin group site. I dont see any pix yet

Yes Tom, I mite be a bit speedier than you, tho dont recall ever lapping more that 1x, often none- but what you are forgetting is whatever time I may gain on you I lose sliding backwards into the dirt, returning to the pits, pleading my sad excuse to the track manager, etc:). It really cuts down my total mileage!. I consider it a good day if I can log 100 miles on track (and that's w/o any off track adventures). Young guys, like you and MikeD, can just blast around til your tires melt.

Michael D: Any chance you meant 300-400 Miles? Otherwise, those are some brutal track days!

I mite be jealous if I had any idea what GOA was! And 30 degrees sounds cold (it's 59 in Cincy) and my beer costs a buck so I can handle all of this:).

I like that it has a curb weight "of less than pounds." That's what I call lightness!

Wonderful! Did you know that if you right click on any photo, you can e-mail it-to your self or others? (as I just did, several times).

No one is worried about salt/snow removal chemicals?

That's what I call using ALL of the track (and I thought I was aggressive on climbing curbs, not any more:)). Your engine makes a much higher, more metallic pitch than mine. What is the white smoke on accelerating out of hard right hand turns? Excellent way to end the year! And, nice to see so many se7ens on track, for a moment I thought I was watching our annual se7es event at NJMP.

I have walked your path, with your model se7en. Doubt clam removal will do much, but just a guess. My X-flow topped out at 105-07 mph and wasn't fast enuf to have lift. Brooklands in place of full screen helps a little, ditto turning headlights sideways. Some have reported a bit more speed w/top up, sidescreens on. Engine upgrades to X-flow-are expensive and add modest power. For $10-16K you can buy a BDA that drops right in (and makes same hp as a $1K Duratec). FIA bar is huge safety improvement, same for seats with anchor strap for 5-6 pt belt. My odessey included upgrading to a much higher hp Birkin and finally a full toot, track only Caterham, w/cage, fuel cell, Zetec, etc. And both later cars were/are much faster than the X-Flow. Are they funner-actually, that's a pretty close call.

I think we have seen this but no such thing as too much of a good thing. For a lot less $, Birkin will sell a supercharged version of its IRS, widetrack car-abt $50K. That buys a turnkey Birkin. As I have discovered though, that means the key turns, but other things may not work so well. So some expensive sorting may be required.

Oooooohhh!

Perhaps pay a visit to focusfanatics.com, a forum, as the name implies, for Ford Focuses. TONS of tuning info abt Zetecs (and Duratecs) there. And TurboTom hangs out there, aka:1turbofocus, and he is a font of real-world based knowledge abt Zetecs of every stripe. He mite have some helpful info.

Definitely a fun read. It will be an interesting moment when they pry Castro's cold, dead hands off the country he has strangled for the last 70 years. If capitalism is re-introduced to the island its effect could be profound and transformative. Hope I live long enough to see it.

I like the Glen better too, at least it's within a day's drive of some of us mid-westerners. Another catch for track day folks is that you have to have a PCA instructor ride with you and sign you off as safe. If, like me, you have no passenger seat, then the ride-along ain't happening. Is this the excuse I have been looking for to buy a Porsche?