Croc

Steve - was the for sale sign on the car before or after its "stylistic improvements"?

So let me get this right....Ferrari badges all over a Formula Mazda? No comment....I must resist! You look like you are having fun in there? Nice and comfy? Go on take it for a spin....you know you want to! :cooldude:

Just to reinforce BigDog's comment above, All Ways International was also highly recommended to me although I ultimately ended up not using them. I am currently using Cosdel who are proving to be very good for my car importing as they cover most of the big car collections on the West Coast and Monterey. I have a list of other import broker names who I would not recommend but I don't think I need to mention those!

Yes they need all the help they can get, along with the drivers :jester: Was it this guy? https://www.facebook.com/jalopnik/posts/480220068692811

Its Texas. Everything can be smoothed out with this State Government bureaucracy if you have a respectful attitude. They are some of the most business-friendly government people I have had the genuine pleasure of dealing with. This "cock up" probably happened because someone at Polaris got a little 'cute' and the bureaucrats discovered it and did not like being played for fools. When that happens its amazing how strict constructionist the bureaucrats can become. The seat excuse sounds like complete rubbish - both the Morgan and the T Rex have seats and are bikes in TX? And then Polaris doubled down and publicly blamed TX? They will not be easily forgiven for that one. A lesson to everyone on how not to manage your product regulatory approval process.

That looks fun despite the less than stellar weather. What is the red open wheeler that was next to you in the garage? Looks like a Ferrari F1 car but not convinced I am right!

Now I heard via a little Birdiegram that despite having a track 60 feet wide, a certain Storker found itself running off track. The level of feedback from the Mario Brothers is suspiciously quiet and that usually means your two year old is up to some form of mischief.... :hat:

I did not list it as Wirewheel has that yellow Birkin as being sold. Was that the same car you were looking at?

Well since Paul will be bored this morning I rustled up some other tasty goodies to help him to dribble coffee on his keyboard this morning! :conehead: First up is from F40 Motorsports. Yes you have the chance to go head to head with Wayne Carini with this Lotus Seven SB1844 in CT. You too can be featured on 'Chasing Classic Cars' and demonstrate to us all that you have the wallet, if not the stones, to negotiate a good price with a man who I think is a superb dealmaker and will strip you out of your shorts before you even turn the key! Go for it - we are ALL watching! :dupe: http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/lotus/super_seven/1571604.html or http://www.f40.com/inventorymanager.php?action=view&Id=391277 Asking $49500. Its been for sale for at least 8 months. The previous red wheels are now charcoal painted which improves the looks no end. Strong money for a car that has no details in any advertisement. That said the F40 website has some tasty stuff to check out. Over in Steamboat Springs Lotus Seven S2 SB1107. This is the type of ad I like - nice photos, lots of technical specifications, a loving owner. Great stuff. And she looks to be in lovely condition. http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/lotus/super_seven/1649151.html Asking $38500 A 2000 Caterham for sale at a San Francisco dealer asking $32995. Has been featured in this thread before. Fairly basic spec of 2L zetec and 5 speed, cloth seats in an attractive color. http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/lotus/caterham/1678738.html Lots of photos here: http://sanfranciscosportscars.com/2000-caterham-super-7/ Lotus Seven SB1527 for sale in Oregon asking $38500. Restored example that presents well. http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/lotus/super_seven/1684889.html A Westfield 11 for sale in LA for $29750. http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/lotus/xi/1658012.html and http://www.sportscarla.com/1963_Lotus_XI_Lawndale_CA_228761551.veh

Sorry - I just re-read my post above and I can see I have had a bit of a rant. My apologies. At least you can see the emotional scars inflicted by US Government bureaucracy on me! :banghead:

Getting a straight answer on importation matters is really difficult. You talk to import agents/customs brokers and they all say "not a problem" and then you discover that the US Government bureaucracy is ALWAYS a problem and you end up paying for the import delays/exams/etc that dog a problematic import. So whoever you are using for shipping, make sure that you have carefully selected them based on references, track record, etc. Each time I have imported parts on pallets/crates (wheels, tires, brakes, shocks, etc) it has been incredibly painful. For example, when importing 4 shock absorbers this year, US Customs wanted an inventory of parts. It took 4 weeks for me to explain by phone, in writing, through an attorney, through the seller, that a shock absorber is a complete unit and not a collection of parts for import duty calculations. The other time US Customs decided to examine my wheel/tire/cabron import - chalk up hundreds of dollars in exam fees plus more for storage fees and delays. Make sure you have the right import agent/broker up front. Mine were like a souffle - they never rose to the occasion more than once. I won't even go into the pain I am having importing 2 over 25 year old cars which supposedly according to all the experts and my specialist attorney should be straightforward imports. Each time the Government has changed the rules by applying their own bizarre interpretation of what is right. And you are helpless at the mercy of some fat chick from the US government earning $30k a year who plays God depending on whether her friend has texted her in the last 5 minutes, she got screwed last night, she has a period, she has her chocolate latte at 11am or whether she is resentful of her lot in life to be ranked just above the shit that lies in the base of a toilet bowl. Despite her being supremely qualified to flip burgers she thinks she has the skills to give me an import colonoscopy with both hands and no vaseline and so she will - guaranteed every time.:cuss: For importing a kit car I think you would do well to start looking at what others do. Superformance with their South African Cobras/GT 40s, CAV with their GT40s, Birkin with their sevens, Caterham now with their cars, etc all employ a "roller" strategy. No drive train (engine/gearbox) is installed. You source that yourself separately and install it yourself. If I was doing this I would make sure I have an inventory of everything in that crate. However, I am not sure you can just buy yourself a kit overseas and ship it here. Each of the kit manufacturers has exclusive licenses with USA distributors. How are you going to get a US kit that has the correct US VIN sequence for a new car and a Manufacturers Statement of Origin? The MSO is vitally important to get a new built kit car registered - even Florida legally needs them and that well known as the easiest state to do anything dodgy with registering vehicles in. To get that MSO I doubt an overseas kit manufacturer would just overlook their exclusive distribution agreement to supply you a kit? If I was you I would consider buying the kit through a USA distributor. It may be more expensive but it is far less stressful and you know what you are going to get at the end of the day. Now if you want to buy a Caterham then I would be going down the road you are exploring as the prices are now so outrageously high that the big savings make sense for the effort you put in.

So true..so true! :iamwithstupid:

Whats wrong with being crazy? This is coming from a person who calls himself "the Enema" on track! :spam:

I think officially the driving season is over! Very few cars for sale on the usual locations given they now offer the bracing experience of cold air botoxing the face solid and a little pecker that will have retracted somewhere up near the tonsils. At least thats the case in my part of the civilized world where snow was sighted this week. :ack: Well...today we have a CMC Locost 7 project car on Fleabay. Clearly needs some work. Starting bid at $3200 with 6 days to go: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Locost-7-Lotus-Seven-7-Caterham-Seven-7-/201216403033?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2ed96ea659&vxp=mtr Then here is a McSorley seven project at rolling stage. I know nothing about Toyota Supra drivetrains although I do have memories of it being a particularly nasty understeering bitch of a car when I drove one in the 1980s in Australia. Were these 6 cylinder? http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/4755690668.html Asking $4500 Now in upper Michigan we have something very interesting. A 2012 Lotus 7 ground up build with a V8. Putting aside he used a 351 Windsor instead of my strong preferences for 351 Clevelands, this looks a really really interesting build. I just wish there were more photos. . http://up.craigslist.org/cto/4761400844.html Given none the photos show a bonnet/hood I assume that this is something needed? For those who missed it last week the Stalker XL ad is back. This is a generic ad on what the Mineharts could do to your bowels, face, emotions, composure, underwear, etc (and wallets) if they strap you into this bad boy. http://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/4749957098.html It would take a while to wipe the smile off my face from having a drive of this! And a shout out for TwoBone's car for sale in Canada - a pristine looking crossflow with the snowflake wheels. My ideal classic Caterham. http://usa7s.com/vb/showthread.php?t=10111 Given he is buying a turbo Miata then I have the following bumper sticker for your new purchase: http://www.ebay.com/itm/The-worlds-greatest-Hairdresser-sticker-7-year-water-fade-proof-vinyl-/271540268270?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item3f390facee&vxp=mtr Good luck with your sale! :seeya: And for those looking for coffee club ads for the next 2 weeks I will be spending 40,000 miles in the air working in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Male, and for the Thanksgiving holidays, a nice quiet coral atoll called Laamu in the Maldives. :cheers:

Elfin and Dolphin were different cars. Stylistically they look very similar but they had separate origins, designers and builders. The resemblance may have sparked the association.

Kevin - Definitely let me know if you do this. I think a few of us locals would stop by for this one. My cars are kept in Millville and quite a few of us on this forum know the right places to go in town. :cheers:

http://photo.netcarshow.com/Elfin-Clubman_MS8_2004_photo_18.jpg There are 3 pages of pictures here: http://www.netcarshow.com/elfin/2004-clubman_ms8/

Sorry Kevin but until Monday I am in New York, then Austin TX for 2 days then New York for 2 days then Hong Kong for 1 day then Singapore for 2 days then Male for 2 days then Laamu for 2 days then Singapore for 3 days then Hong Kong for 2 days then.....you get the idea! My primary home is NYC or on a plane somewhere and my car mostly lives in southern NJ. If you are ever up in NYC I am good for quite a few bottles of something very drinkable and lots of car talk! The possibly apocryphal story with Elfin was the two owners Hemming and Kovatch were approached to sell Elfin by Tom Walkinshaw of Jaguar Racing fame. Tom Walkinshaw had in 1989 set up the Holden Special Vehicles HSV operation (Holden is part of GM and HSV was a Shelby type of official enhanced vehicle shop). He had supposedly come across an Elfin Clubman somewhere but was supposedly unable to fit into it. So he bought one and had his HSV techies redesign it to make it bigger for him, enhanced the performance with a V8 instead of the 4 cylinder and generally cleaned up the quality. Using the results of that he bought Elfin and his estate still owns it today (Tom passed away in 2010). The reason I am not completely convinced by this story is that Tom Walkinshaw was not a big guy - I met him in person in October 1985. He was slightly shorter than me 5'9" and far less chunky. The Elfin is fractionally larger than a WCM Ultralite so he should have easily fit into one.

Skip - here are the details from the website for the Elfin MS8: Dimensions Length: 3200mm Width: 1700mm Wheelbase: 2290mm Front Track 1460mm Rear Track: 1430mm Kerb Weight 900kg The sidepods are exhaust sidepipes.

LOL - I recognize where you are. You are just off City Road in South Melbourne, near the markets, less than a mile from my apartment at Victoria Harbour. The car is an Elfin - a very storied name in Australian racing. I used to race one of their Formula Fords. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elfin_Sports_Cars Their current website is here: http://www.elfin.com.au/elfin/2008/ I have never driven one but by all accounts owners love them and they are very accomplished in their capabilities.

I believe women think so! Certainly it is better than having a flat 6 like most Porsche drivers suffer from! :jester: :leaving:

NVP - you raise an interesting point. I know a lot of Westfields have been sold in the US but they do not come up frequently which begs the question where are they. When they do come up for sale I am often amazed that they have been living a short distance away from me, yet myself and none of the local seven community have ever come across them, even from word of mouth which is usually pretty good around the club/cars&coffee scene.

I could have used many other "p" words.... all would have 'fit' the purpose! :jester:

Not much around today that is new: Gunshipdriver's WCM Ultralite has a bit over a day to go on Fleabay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lotus-Super-Seven-WCM-Ultralite-S2K-WCM-Ultralite-S2K-Lotus-Super-Seven-7-Caterham-CSR-Clone-0-60-in-/171524580542?forcerrptr=true&hash=item27efa964be&item=171524580542&pt=US_Cars_Trucks and http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/4730685345.html 2002 Birkin with a 2L Zetec and the scaffolding for a roll cage is still available with 15 hours to go http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lotus-Super-Seven-2002-birkin-factory-built-version-of-1967-lotus-super-seven-ford-zetec-engine-/251698953900?forcerrptr=true&hash=item3a9a6d3eac&item=251698953900&pt=US_Cars_Trucks Now that Busa's car has moved on to its new owner (congratulations if he, she or it are on here), I did not find any Westfields for sale. So that either means they are not popular or they have very happy owners. 1962 Lotus Seven S2 featured here before. Asking $38500. Nice detailed description but no pictures so that means the owner is IT challenged! http://rockies.craigslist.org/cto/4685355300.html Its not quite a seven but its close enough and unlike Paul it looks gorgeous. 1959 Lotus 17 asking $140,000 http://www.race-cars.com/carsales/lotus/1415202683/1415202683ss.htm 1962 Brunton Stalker - a repeat visitor to this thread. Asking $39500. http://www.race-cars.com/carsales/lotus/1414030674/1414030674ss.htm Now here is one for those with fat friends. A brand spanking new Brunton Stalker XL asking $49,000. Look at this bad boy! http://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/4749957098.html It has the biggest wings I have ever seen on a seven! Shane's stalker is more like a little peeper compared to this baby!

:rofl: It was the combination of a big Friday night with a Saturday club track day and another vaguely messy Saturday night. It took me until 5pm to be functioning yesterday. It took me four sessions to get my times down to what I consider respectable! :no pity: I am normally up and about and awake at 4am no matter where I am in the world - its my cure for insomnia! :seeya: