Keith

Sounds as if you've already made up your mind then http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif I've never had any instability concerns, nor has the lack of brakes on my trailer been a problem. The plus to the single axle is that the trailer is lighter, and since there aren't any brakes I don't have to worry about having a controller on the tow vehicle.

According to the documentation, the VBox can use either 20 Hz or 100 Hz.

I think my trailer is 6x12'. It was originally built for a sand rail and loads a Seven amazingly quickly and easily. We've used it for Miatas as well although I'd call that a full load. It cost me about $600 used. Takes a bit of maintenance though - I've put on tires, reinforced the base, welded up and reinforced some problem areas, replaced a hub and rewired it. Still, I have under $1000 in the thing and it did 5000 miles in March. http://www.cheapsportscar.net/images/Img_5762.jpg

The car magazines use GPS systems exclusively. GRM uses the Traqmate, although when my car was at the track with the Atom we didn't get a single good datalog out of the bloody thing. Car and Driver seems to get much better results out of theirs - I think it's a V-Box.

I can't take full credit for that, the idea and graphics came from >Westfield World and were used by permission. I just did a little recoding to make it work better http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif It actually does have the ability to email color settings, I just haven't made that accessible to the public yet. Maybe later... Sorry, "dull scratched and pitted Aluminum" is a Caterham color scheme that is not offered on Westfields http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif

"Flat" is a fairly simple concept http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif Ask any construction worker how to do it. For proper cornerweighting, all the scales have to be level. The floor doesn't have to be, you can spend some time shimming the scales themselves. For simply getting the weight of a car, it's not critical. The cornerweights will be off. I don't remember the lodge parking lot well enough to offer suggestions on where you could set up a set of scales, but it's quite possible that a handy concrete slab would be good enough to get general numbers.

Exactly. Fully drained and topped up are the only two easily repeatable conditions, and fully draining a car is a royal pain in the butt and not terribly useful information anyhow. Scales are a pretty expensive piece of kit, Al. I'll ask Bill and I know he's still hoping to make it down there so maybe he can bring them, but I don't know if he'd want to ship them out if we're not going to be around to run them.

Yeah, I just weighed it yesterday night. It's a 7 gallon tank, so don't credit it for more than 42 lbs http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif Since it's hard to drive the car with an empty tank, I always weigh them full. The remaining parts are probably 10-15 lbs.

I haven't weighed it yet. It's not fair to do that until we have all the bits and pieces on. Hopefully tomorrow though.

Thanks for the kind words, Skip. I was having a bit of fun on that session http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif There are a bunch of shots from the track and the build on our website: >http://www.fmwestfield.com. We're really happy with how well the car worked at the track, given that it hadn't even run a week ago. Here's the engine. http://www.flyinmiata.com/westfield/images/IMG_6509.jpg

Mine are a licence plate light from Del City (http://www.delcity.net). Inexpensive and they work nicely. http://www.cheapsportscar.net/images/IMG_2426.jpg

Torque and the width of the powerband come in to play for an automotive application. My understanding is that since airplanes tend to run at a constant RPM, mid-range flexibility isn't a big factor. Not to say the rotary doesn't work well in a Seven, but if you're dealing with a kit like the Westfield that has been engineered for the Miata engine, it may not be worth adapting it to the rotary.

The rotary would be a great airplane motor due to the power/weight of the engine. We have some turbo fanatics here too, including one who was trying to put a turbo rotary in his Miata but the project was aborted. Flyin' Miata has off-the-shelf turbo kits for the Miata that will push out 250 hp at the rear wheels. That power level starts at $4595. The price for a Westfield configuration might be a little different due to the change in intercooler design and placement. We already have one customer asking us to build a turbo Westfield. I think it's going to be traction-challenged http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/biggrin5.gif

Why settle for a rotary when you can get 250 hp and 250 ft-lbs with the Miata motor and stock internals? http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/wink5.gif

I'll be publishing a number of other photos of the rear on the >FM Westfield site. Westfield managed to stick the Miata differential into the Sierra mounting points without any alteration to the frame - it's a slick piece of work. Keith EDIT (slngsht): Corrected link URLslngsht2006-12-16 15:20:32

Here's what my fender stays look like. They're 1/2 rod - flexible to bend cold, but stiff enough that they don't move. I took the idea from a Stalker builder and they've worked very well for me. http://cheapsportscar.net/images/IMG_9428.jpg http://cheapsportscar.net/images/IMG_9439.jpg Keith

slngsht, do you mind giving your impression of the Coveland aluminum bits? If you've already done so elsewhere, please let me know. I always wear eye protection when driving my car due to the gravel. It's just a fact of life for those of us with cycle fenders, but they're just so entertaining to watch http://www.usa7s.com/aspnetforum/images/emoticons/smile5.gif

I love the artwork. Nicely done! Keith

Fully fueled up and ready for a blat down the back roads, mine tips the scales at 1300 lbs. I take the windshield off for track use but otherwise there's no change. That's a Miata-powered Locost weighed on a set of cornerweight scales.

Thanks for the kind words, Kitcat. Westfield hasn't been making the Miata kit for very long, actually. We're assembling one of the first LHD kits in our shop now. We haven't had a lot of input into the design of the kit other than a few tweaks for the LHD setup. Overall it's pretty impressive and I'm tempted to cut the back half of my car off to install the Westfield rear suspension. So pretty. For those who want to see the specification of the car we quoted for Kitcat (we quoted it at $32,000), you can check it out >here. It's not quite what I'd call customary, it has a strong track bias with a full cage, some very expensive sway bars and an unusual combination of weather gear. No harnesses though, I hadn't spotted that before. It also includes a low-boost turbo (about $3400) and a limited slip rear end. For approximately $2000 more, it could be a 250 rear wheel horsepower monster. Heh heh. Our own car (>specification) is being built with a normal 1.6 to start off. It'll have a turn-key price around $25,000 and 90 rear wheel horsepower. For another $600 or so, it could be built out of a 1.8 donor with a limited slip rear and about 100 hp. I'm trying to convince the boss that we need to bring it (and my car, of course) to the Gap meet. We'll be at the LOG as it's being held in our backyard. I think I'm running the autox there, actually. Of course, we'll be selling the basic kits. We'll also have "pallet donors" available for those who don't want to tear apart a donor. Sorry about the overtly commercial aspects of this post, I just wanted to respond to the price quote that had been posted. I'm hoping to be a useful member of the community here. KeithKeith2006-12-15 15:43:17