jevs

Two weeks after placing my order I now have the car home! The guys at Brunton expedited it for me so I could bring the car back at the end of my vacation to Panama City. Talk about last minute impulse buying.. I did not know these cars existed 3 weeks ago These are the first cars I saw in a long time that actually made me want to build another car. I was planning to take a break from car building for awhile. So much for that idea. Car addiction is a tough thing to conquer. Just when you think your sick of them, you see one you gotta have. There were a few parts they could not get in time, but nothing to keep me from getting started. So far I have been too busy after vacation to even unload it from the trailer or start unboxing and looking at stuff, but I am hoping tomorrow.... I towed it home with my 2013 VW Passat Diesel with manual trans. It pulled effortlessly. I normally get about 46-47 MPG commuting at a fast pace . I managed 39 MPG to Florida with the empty trailer. The plastic around the roll cage was like a parachute on the way home, but I still managed 26-27 MPG. Even at that I was pretty pleased. No truck could have done better. Oh, and this was done with our trunk filled with vacation luggage, the wife along, and two kids in the back seat!

Was the tank they made better than a plastic fuel cell? How does it fill? A Jaz fuel cell with sending unit already installed, foam and remote neck would cheaper, but I am guessing there is not one that would fit right. I am still waiting for a picture. It's nice if you can fill from the outside, but not sure if it will matter on this car.

This makes me wonder if I should have ordered their fuel cell (which I did)? I did notice there is a sump section hanging down in that picture I saw. Might have to just come up with something different to make it look better.... That reminds me, I need to make sure to ask them if they have a fuel level sensor in there.

I notice those RCB Sevens have the rear up higher. They bring it up higher than the windshield body area. This is something Brunton did with the M-spec rear (bring it higher). This RCB looks so much better than the typical low rear end. I have heard the term bobble-head when describing what the people look like from the rear in a Seven

Correct, you can get an XL Classic now. I believe they made new molds for the fenders (they go around far enough now and are wider I guess), but are using the same rear mold and just grafting in a 4" strip in the center. So it should be the same height as the Classic R and just wider. That picture is from what I thought was the first one that they are working on now. I believe they think most people want the M-spec style rear end, but I don't know about that?? It's not for me. I polled several people I know and the majority liked the classic better. The classic is still not pretty to most, but it will be easier to work with I think. One thing they say about the classic rear is that it is too low and makes it look like your sticking out of the car too far. The M spec rear end is taller and comes farther up your back. Unfortunately, the frame is made different back there depending on which you get, so you can't decide later. I had to pick one or the other right away. So, hope the classic was the right choice I can only go by pictures on the net, since I never saw either in real life.

I was kind of looking at the back of an Elise and wondering what could be done if you could find a busted up one of those clam shells to play with.... I guess I should be thinking about how to get my kit home from Florida. I only have an open 12' aluminum trailer at the moment that I pull with my diesel Passat. The load should be ok, but I will have to protect it from the weather if it rains.

Sorry I meant that for HOTTTCAR, he said he got a Classic XL. That picture is an XL. That's why it has the strip in the middle. They use the same mold and just strip in 4" to make it wider. I was surprised when they told me the XL is wider than a Corvette in the rear. It would be interesting to see one side by side with the regular Classic R.

I have not researched motor choices yet. Not sure what I will do there.

Is this one yours or did another person order one? This one they have now and are working on. I asked for pics to see what it looks like.

I swore off component cars after building a Factory Five GTM, but I hope this will be different. I could go on way to long about how bad the GTM body is, but I will just say it is ridiculously bad. I could take a ruler to any of the cars on the road, no matter how many workarounds the builder tried to correct and you would never buy one. (unless you can live with it). Nothing is symmetrical. The doors are ridiculously different from each other. I hope the simplicity of these cars bodywork takes that out of the equation. I did so much fiberglass work and fabrication on that GTM body that it made me not want to build another car for a couple years. I might want to do some slight changes on this one, but hopefully I can keep it to a minimum and not get burned out. Body work is the worst part of building a car So, what better than picking a car with no doors, roof, or much body at all!

Yeah, it was do it, or not take advantage of the fact that I would be in Florida anyway. This helped me pull the trigger. I hope I enjoy this car.....I know I am spending more money than I should by building my own , but there are none for sale the way I would want it anyway. Heck. I think I might be only the second guy that wanted a classic rear on an XL. Not sure why the new rear end would be more popular? It's not for me, and I do like old cars with modern looks. Here is a car I built that made the cover of two magazines. You will see what I mean. Take a cool British car and make it suitable for modern freeway driving... http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3864482/1970-austin-mini/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umdEnGDhwTM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbzRUjF4kH0 So far no buyers remorse, but I still have to buy a drivetrain. Pay 10k+ for a new setup or deal with old stuff to save some money...it would be so much nicer to just pop in a brand new clean motor and transmission, but that is a lot of money. I don't think I could live with myself if it is not at least the 480HP though

Those definitely look better than most. Who makes those? I notice your just down I-44 from me I am in MO also. About 50 miles SW of St Louis. I ordered a Stalker XL with the classic rear end. Sent the check off today. I figure it will be easier to do something with that to improve it rather than starting with the other rear end. I am getting the level 3 kit the with the following options: XL Classic R Style Bodywork Smooth hood, no headlights T bar roll cage Aluminum shock upgrade Electric power steering Fuel line kit Custom aluminum Fuel Tank w/sump That should get me started I did not opt for the big windshield either. I know it is more practical, but I just don't think it looks as good for various reasons. So my roll cage will not be swept back like that. It will more match the angle of the "traditional" windshield.

Yes, they can do the classic look on the XL They are doing one now. I can only guesstimate what it looks like because it will be wider than the one on the website, classic R... So far most of the people I work with like the classic....but think they are all ugly LOL. I think the classic gives more option to customize and try to hide or enhance the ugly?? For example the attached one looks nice to me, but it may have better lines? It seems to be shaped different than the bruntons. Like not as much flare coming down and even more square, if that makes sense. Either way, I like the way this one looks. It matches the rest of the car to me. Think the Classic XL could look this nice? I would be happy with that look.

The ultimate decision, and I really need to make it by today is: Classic rear end or the new looking one? The frame is different, and if I want to pull this off by my vacation, it has to be started asap. This is a tough decision. What do you guys think??

Any advice? I am taking a family vacation to Florida soon and they said they might be able to get the parts together for a kit in time to take it home with me if I make a decision quickly. I am just on the fence if I want to invest that much money in one of these. Initially I was looking around at used stuff that I could buy and let someone else lose the initial hit, play with it for awhile, and then resell for about the same price. Of course that led to finding the newer models, and now a supercharged V6 with an S10 axle just isn't as attractive as a 480HP LS motor and independent rear suspension and the other updates I know I will lose money and I may lose interest quickly after it is done (which I tend to do once I finish a car and drive it a couple thousand miles). This is weighing on me. I hate losing money on stuff. Maybe this one is different because it is so quick that it might keep my interest? I have car A.D.D. I always want something else, and sometimes even get tired of working them and take a break. I have not had a cool car for about a year and now I am getting an itch again. I live in the Midwest, so it will just be sitting in the winter time collecting dust I assume? If I were to get something with a full cabin, I can drive all year. I was looking at muscle cars, but most of those have issues, are junk buckets for a fortune, or a nice one is ridiculously priced. I am also having a hard time getting past how ugly any of the seven style cars are in the back. They look awesome everywhere else. So if I did build one, I cant decide on the classic back or the M-spec looking back, or make my own rear pieces. I can do custom fiberglass work, but I hate it (built a GTM, what a nightmare body). I don't care if it stays true to representing a Lotus 7, I am only interested in these strictly because I love the way they look (except the back), and how quick they are. Any thoughts on the M spec back vs classic? I have to start with one of the other, even if I do remake my own. I can decide that later. I am not going to be a dedicated racer or anything. I might do a couple auto crosses, or who knows I might even go back and get my road race license again (expired) and do a couple events. Mostly I will just cruise the streets here and there or drive to work and home (50 miles away). This will make me kick one of our newer cars out of the garage also Another thing to consider is whether or not to get the Larger XL, or one of the smaller ones?? I didn't even realize until talking to Glen last night that the XL is much wider than a corvette even. There has not been much feedback if any of this affects autocross, but I would think it is better on the street and road courses. He did say it rides a lot nicer on the streets. Also, I don't know how much they actually weigh. I do want to keep whatever I build as light as I can. Anyway, I just thought I would kick off a little discussion and see if anyone has any advice/thought/opinions. I am even open to other cars I may have not seen yet. It is a little hard to research these cars because you don't have access to the builders forums without buying one. Normally when I start looking into a car to build or buy, I spend days reading about them in the forums to make more educated decisions etc. Even that doesn't work sometimes. I did buy a 355 Spider as my last toy..... talk about a money pit. Thank god I got it cheep and I can do all my own work. Those things could bankrupt a person. However, cruising around in a convertible Ferrari is pretty cool, even if a new corvette could take you down performance wise