4MARIO Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 All in a recent visit to the new Brunton Stalker location in Clearwater Florida I had a chance to see Scott Minehart's newest project the concept is a US made Stalker lightweight similar to the previous stalkers but using smaller gage frame tubes, lighter suspension & donor Miata running gear Scott believes there is a market for an inexpensive lightweight seven type car his concept of a price point kit and a donor Miata makes good sense to me how do the other forum members opine? thx Mario LS1 powered Brunton Stalker #142 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anaximander Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 All in a recent visit to the new Brunton Stalker location in Clearwater Florida I had a chance to see Scott Minehart's newest project the concept is a US made Stalker lightweight similar to the previous stalkers but using smaller gage frame tubes, lighter suspension & donor Miata running gear Scott believes there is a market for an inexpensive lightweight seven type car his concept of a price point kit and a donor Miata makes good sense to me how do the other forum members opine? thx Mario LS1 powered Brunton Stalker #142 Mario, When I heard the concept from Glen and then Scott, I mentioned to them at the SCCA Tour that I thought they had a winner concept. Owing to the fact that Miata donor cars are much less expensive than the supercharged six or eight cylinder Stalkers, this should be quite appealing to many builders. Scott has a knack for designing suspensions that work well and if you couple a lightweight frame with common Miata parts, it should be both fast and handle well for a relatively low investment cost. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Flyin Miata uses a Miata drive train in the Westfield 7 kits they sell, no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scannon Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Flyin Miata uses a Miata drive train in the Westfield 7 kits they sell, no? Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4MARIO Posted June 25, 2015 Author Share Posted June 25, 2015 GUYS still interested in market forecast question below Scott Minehart clearly intends a US made lightweight kit that is: A) lower cost than Westfield and others B) FOB clearwater Florida what are your opinions of market size for low cost US made lightweight kit that is set up for miata donor parts? 5 per year? 50 per year? more or less? Mario Brunton Stalker #142 LS1 V8 Brunton Classic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonjo2 Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I think a true single donor that could sell 50-100+ a year. It is also a great idea for a USA clubman series car for low displacement cheap locosts. I think there's also a market for an off road clubman. Look at what RCR and the Aerial guys are doing. Makes more sense than paying 12-18K for a side-by-side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 I think there's also a market for an off road clubman. Kevin, Took mine off road.......not a good idea. :jester: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Flyin Miata also sells something called an "Exocet" kit for about $10K. It's kind of a cross between a 7 and an Ariel Atom (Aesthetically, the worst of both to my eye). It also uses a Miata as a donor vehicle. I am not sure how your friend gets noticed in this small but already crowded market. So I'd guesstimate 2-4 cars annually? If one of his products (the VII, the IIIX?) did something big (wins the One-lap, is national Solo champ, etc.) sales wld climb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 A lot depends on styling and catching people's attention to get them to think they want it. The Exocet needs the paper bag treatment its so ugly. Maybe the analogy of the business potential is something like Thunder Roadsters. They got reasonable volume through a one make race series and making it easy for the owners. Make it so you can also run the cars on road then you potentially have extended the market reach. Problem with road registrations is that some states will be closed off - TX with its new regs for example. Then you have to consider some states with tough emissions restrictions - CA, MA, NJ, etc. Volume depends on price - so what target price is Scott looking at? At $5k for a kit he gets mega sales. At $30k for a kit it is small sales. Target price is based on what it takes him to make it and in sufficient numbers. At the cheap end of the market, a used Locost is low teens and a cross flow Westfield is high teens and a mediocre spec Birkin is high teens to mid 20s. Used Storkers (6cyl) bring anywhere from low 20s to high 20s. Can he bring in a kit to compete with this price tiering in the market? Mid range pricing so someone can be up and running for all in $15-25k - then maybe 10-15 a year? More volume if you get a race series going and could sell out 10-20 cars for that alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toedrag Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Need more info to venture a guess for the demand. Cheaper than current offers is something, sure, but....what else? Better handling? Better fit & finish? Better support? What's the compelling point, other than price? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twerd68 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 I agree with the note as to price point and the comparison to the Exocet. If he can keep the price comparable, get it even a little lighter and offer something a little more attractive, he might be on to something. I have long delayed buying a Stalker kit in part due to cost -- and long considered an Exocet even when it was UK only. As far as volume, look at Exocet's US numbers. They are very impressive. I would be a potential customer. . . Flyin Miata also sells something called an "Exocet" kit for about $10K. It's kind of a cross between a 7 and an Ariel Atom (Aesthetically, the worst of both to my eye). It also uses a Miata as a donor vehicle. I am not sure how your friend gets noticed in this small but already crowded market. So I'd guesstimate 2-4 cars annually? If one of his products (the VII, the IIIX?) did something big (wins the One-lap, is national Solo champ, etc.) sales wld climb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chynatoto Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Well, I have been trying to buy an unfinished Miata kit that was imported to the US and never finished. Some further price reduction needed for me to write the check. After reading this thread, I picked the phone and called them. Talked to Scott's father, who was extremely generous with his time. These are my conclusions from the conversation. Kit price would not be vastly different from base Stalker pricing. Cost savings of smaller tubing is nill and base parts and labor would be the same. Overall cost savings would be from a somewhat single source donor. My impression was that they would have something more tangible in a month or two. So, I will wait and see. Price point will be huge to thrifty guys like me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toedrag Posted October 6, 2015 Share Posted October 6, 2015 A new Stalker model, They added lightness!! http://stalkercars.com/models/stalker-mx5/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now