Davemk1 Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 I received my Westfield kit late this past spring and spent the summer putting it together and while the process had its ups and downs I couldn't be more pleased with the end result. The car drives and handles very well, is very quick, and the Omex ECU and tune feel factory smooth with even power delivery and a perfectly smooth idle. I still have a few things to do (fit the side curtains, hood, and tonneau cover) it is for the most part done. One of the things I'm most pleased with is the fact that I fit so well in the car. I'd owned a Birkin S3 years ago and at 6'4" tall it was a real challenge to get myself to fit into it well and eking out 1/4" here and 1/2 " there was the thing to do to make it work for me.........and even then it was never quite what I needed. This car just fits bigger........I suppose because it is bigger. I have enough leg room that I don't even need to run the seat all the way back and with the standard lowered floors and optional taller RAC roll bar the bar is still just a bit higher than my head while wearing a helmet. I even fit in it with the hood in place with a helmet on. I think in the long term I'll take the seat runners out and fix the seat directly to the floor and lower it another inch but it's not really needed. So if you are tall and want a Seven this could be a good choice for you. Here are a few photos of the car taken on a day much nicer than today......I want the rain to quit so I can take it out. dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 Dave, Congradulations!! Great looking car and awesome color choice! :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowss7 Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 Great Looking car Dave, good to have you back in the se7en fold. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subtlez28 Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 I 2nd the great choice on the color! Nice looking 7! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NVP66S Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 Congratulations! I'm glad there's another new Westie out there, and it didn't take you very long to build. :party: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMike Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 Looks super cool - Westfield does a great job with styling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scannon Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 (edited) Dave, Add my congrats to the rest of them above, great color and great looking Seven. How does it drive and I'll bet it goes like a bat outa hell with that S2K motor. Edited August 25, 2014 by scannon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 . . . . I'll be it goes like a bat outa hell with that S2K motor. I'm really liking that S2K motor as well . . . . . . :iagree: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 I love the way amazing looking se7ens keep popping up here! The S3 Birkin was a tight fit for me (5'9"), dont know how you got in (or back out). Apart from fit, how do the cars compare? When it was running, my Birkin was a lovely, light dancer and a wonderful track car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemk1 Posted August 25, 2014 Author Share Posted August 25, 2014 Thanks for the kind comments and questions. It does get down the road pretty well. The engine doesn't have that much grunt down low but the throttle response is very crisp and that gives it a wonderful feel. Once the tach hits 5500ish and the cam change happens (super smooth compared to the Lotus Elise I owned before this) things really ramp up very nicely. If you rev it to 8500 and then hit the next gear you stay above the cam change and it puts you back in the seat pretty darn well. Its hard for me to compare the Westfield to the Birkin directly. I sold the Birkin about 5 years ago and got an Elise that I supercharged. I ran it for 4 years and then sold it and bought the Westfield kit. My point is that it has been 4-5 years since I drove the Birkin. With that caveat - the Westfield is bigger by a few inches in most directions and as discussed above that allows me to better fit in the car and look through the windshield and not over it. This alone shapes much of the experience and makes it just feel more 'right' for me personally. Compared to the Birkin the West feels much stiffer. One could feel the Birkin chassis twist when cornered hard - especially when on slicks - but the West feels more of one piece. My guess is this is due to the tunnel design of the West with all the tubes and riveted alloy panels. My Birkin had a simple driveshaft plastic cover that was in no way structural and all the loads where carried by the sides of the car. I think the Birkin felt lighter than the West....I think - it's hard to remember. The Birkin felt more flickable (the downside being it also felt less stable at speed) but this could also be geometry or wheelbase. My Birkin had a 87" wheelbase were the West is 92". The Birkin weighed just under 1300 lbs and the West weighs in at right on 1400 as set up. It's hard to tell if I can feel that 100 lbs or if it's all the other differences i'm feeling. My Birkin had a live rear axle and it was fine on a smooth surface but once things got bumpy one could feel the weight of all that axle and diff moving up and down back there and the ride and traction got choppy. The West of course has IRS and it tracks very well even on very bumpy turns and just feels stuck to the floor. Of course the big difference between the two is the character of the engine. My Birkin had a Zetec running on Weber side drafts. It was torquey and pulled nicely but not overly powerful. It rev'd to about 6500 as I recall. The Honda feels bombproof and seems to be as happy at 8000 rpms as it does at idle. The limiter seems to cut in just under 9000 rpms and the power is still rising. The throttle response on the Honda is crazy quick - quicker than anything else I've ever driven. A flick of the toe brings instant shove and that gives the car a feeling of being even quicker than it really is. So there it is. I look forward to getting the final sorting of the West done and to putting it on slicks in the spring. Should be fun. dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusaNostra Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 So how's the s2000 performing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1Steve Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Dave, First off , you picked a great color. I'm glad your back with this great looking 7. Enjoy, Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NVP66S Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 The car drives and handles very well, is very quick, and the Omex ECU and tune feel factory smooth with even power delivery and a perfectly smooth idle. I still have a few things to do (fit the side curtains, hood, and tonneau cover) it is for the most part done. dave Yeah, mine is down at the moment, as I have it back on the build stands to fix a few squawks including replacing the Mazda factory O2 sensor with a wideband. As for the side curtains, I'm very interested in if you bought them from Westfield or made them, and how big are they? Thanks, Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemk1 Posted October 12, 2014 Author Share Posted October 12, 2014 Yeah, mine is down at the moment, as I have it back on the build stands to fix a few squawks including replacing the Mazda factory O2 sensor with a wideband. As for the side curtains, I'm very interested in if you bought them from Westfield or made them, and how big are they? Thanks, Dan Hey - I'm sorry that I missed your question so long ago. I bought the Westfield side curtains and full top and they work well and it was a bit time consuming to get a good fit but the end result was worth the effort. I think you can see the size in these photos. Let me know if you have other questions and I'll try to respond in less than a month! Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemk1 Posted October 12, 2014 Author Share Posted October 12, 2014 A photo shot by the one and only Bob Allen at our last local autocross event of the season........I'm really pleased with how well the car preformed on street tires and really look forward to putting it on slicks next spring and really dropping some time. dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westy turbo Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Great engine there Give it a try on 13ns and see how u like it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemk1 Posted October 14, 2014 Author Share Posted October 14, 2014 Great engine there Give it a try on 13ns and see how u like it That's the plan.......13's are defiantly the way to go. Are you running on 13's? If so what wheel width and backspace are you running? It looks like going from the 15's to 13's would require a bit less backspace in the rear to keep the inner edge of the rim from hitting the hardware holding the upright to the A arm. What have you found? dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westy turbo Posted October 15, 2014 Share Posted October 15, 2014 Am on 13'ns 10 inch rear and 9'ns...have to double check on offsets etc,but you're right...the rears having like 2 mm clearance from the A upright arm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemk1 Posted October 15, 2014 Author Share Posted October 15, 2014 Am on 13'ns 10 inch rear and 9'ns...have to double check on offsets etc,but you're right...the rears having like 2 mm clearance from the A upright arm. I'd love to know what brand/model of wheels you have and what the backspace is of your wheels. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westy turbo Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 (edited) They are Compomotive crx 1310, the rears are 10 inch wide at ET-24 and 100mm back space, and 9 inch fronts are ET 0 as i had them originally ordered for rears,their backspace is 125mm.Hope it helps. Edited October 17, 2014 by westy turbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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