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No sooner had the dust settled from the completion of my last Tribute I was thinking of what to do next ! I've followed the progress of some of the Formosa builds, I've always had a thing for the late 50's, early 60's style LeMans cars and sports cars from that era. The Scimitar based Formosa has the best proportions in my eyes, the extra wheelbase over the Triumph based cars looks just right.
I've found a Scimitar SE5a, bought sight unseen from Scotland. That was delivered last week and is now stripped to the bare bones. The 3ltr V6 appears to be in good shape with evidence of a rebuild in the not too distant past. The chassis is 95% rust free which is a real bonus, not bad for a 45 year old car !
Had the gearbox off to check the clutch. Nothing unexpected except a core plug in the back of the block that looks a bit corroded. Whilst lifting the hulking overdrive box out I've had thoughts of fitting a modern alternative. The old box is the external push rod selector style, not exactly slick. I've decided on a Mazda RX8 6 speed, lots lighter being aluminium and there is a readily available conversion plate to fit to the Essex lump. I'm not a huge fan of the Essex but it is has been rebuilt and does respond well to some simple and basic tuning.
You might want to consider the RX8 5 speed box for your application as it has longer legs than the 6 speed. First is often cited as too low geared on the 6 speed to be of any use anywhere but climbing the North face of the Eiger, while fifth in the five speed is a significantly taller ratio than sixth in the 6 speeder meaning less revs at high speed.
I've been looking at RX8 boxes today. There are plenty of 5 speeds about and hardly any 6 speed. You might be right about the ratios and the 3ltr engine combination. Also found a used adaptor that should suit my plans.
Six speed box is scarcer and more expensive because everyone wants the bragging rights to having a six gear box.
That's fine if you have no torque and an engine output shaft spinning at 9,000rpm like in the RX8. Bolt it up to a torquey motor with a 5 to 6 thousand rpm red line and you'll be setting off in third and wishing you had another cog in the box on the motorway.
Looks like the 5 speed will be the better option with the taller final drive. Main reasons for going with the Mazda box is the really slick gear change. The old iron 4 speed OD with the 3 rod selector has the worst change of them all !
Reinstated my blast cabinet today, one of the best tools in the garage. My compressor that I purchased recently can just about keep up with it !
Just thought I'd mention if anyone is thinking of building one of these cars is the offer currently available from Formosa that extends until the 24th December. Check out the website and get £300 off the normal price for a body !
The chassis is stripped of all the running gear ready to go off to powder coaters. Whilst waiting for the body it was the right thing to do, it all comes apart very easily so I'll refurb all the bushes etc whilst I'm at it !
A word of caution when building from older donor cars that haven't been on the road for a while. Check every nut and bolt is done up ! My Scimitar had been partly restored a number of years ago and is stripped right down to the bare chassis now. At least half of the bolts holding the suspension on were just finger tight ! The brake pads didn't have and pins holding them in place on the front ! The body came off a bit too easily as well because several bolts weren't there at all ! Check everything !
When I built my Spyder I had a brand new brake pipe that had been fitted by a previous owner come flying out of the union feeding the rear brakes while I was bleeding them. It hadn't been flared properly and blew out of its union when I stamped on the middle pedal to check if there was any air left in the system.
If that had happened on the road it would have had catastrophic and possibly fatal consequences as, being a single-circuit system, it would have caused total brake failure
My Speedster and all subsequent builds are getting dual-circuit brakes...
I've had a chassis supplied by another trader who offers a restoration service that had several bolts loose , washers missing , loose engine mounts , brake flexi's with no lock nuts etc etc ...
If you are getting bored of red ones ... How about Aston Martin Chiltern Green ?
The gunmetal one is going on a Super 7 style chassis of unknown origin ...
I have a ruby red one going on a Burlington Arrow as well and a 236 CM body being moulded in Ruby Red to go to Arizona ...
Oh and 2 yellow cars being built too !!
The powder coaters are taking the chassis next week and it should be back before new year. I've welded in steel floor pans with a 3" drop. Even being 18swg steel they seem to have added a fair bit of weight to the chassis. I used the equivalent of a 2m x 1m sheet to make the floors which is around 20KG. Probably a drop in the ocean compared to the Scimitar body. Each part of that was heavy, the bulkhead section alone being a two man lift !
I'm half way through cleaning up the suspension components which is all simple stuff and they will be ready to go back on the chassis when it comes back.
Sounds a great project will follow it with interest. Colour great. Be interested to know if the engine gearbox combination alters the 4 inch set back for the engine position.
Wasn't planning to move the engine back. I know you can but it sits well behind the front axle centre line so not much to be gained. It will depend on the gear stick position with the RX8 box fitted. I won't make a decision until I've mocked up the body, seats etc with the engine in place.
Going through the suspension components and I've found that most of the rubber bushes have already been replaced by the previous owner. A thorough wire brushing followed by a coat of primer and they are nearly done. Final finish will be a couple of coats of gloss black and they'll be ready to go back on. I'm getting the chassis powder coated in grey so it should all look quite smart !
I missed out on a set of 15" wires yesterday complete with new tyres and adaptors, someone out bid me at the very last second ! I've found another set so might get lucky with those !!
Little tip with ebay auctions: decide what the maximum you'd be prepared to pay would be, then, if the item hasn't been bid above that when it's about to end, submit your highest bid with five seconds remaining.
If you get outbid then it's gone for more than you would have wanted to pay, but if you are the high bidder at that point it doesn't allow anyone else to think 'hmm, I think I could go higher to win that'.
Apparently you can get software that automatically enters your high bid as the auction ends, but I think it's far more exciting doing it manually at the last second.
Little tip with ebay auctions: decide what the maximum you'd be prepared to pay would be, then, if the item hasn't been bid above that when it's about to end, submit your highest bid with five seconds remaining.
If you get outbid then it's gone for more than you would have wanted to pay, but if you are the high bidder at that point it doesn't allow anyone else to think 'hmm, I think I could go higher to win that'.
Apparently you can get software that automatically enters your high bid as the auction ends, but I think it's far more exciting doing it manually at the last second.
I did exactly that at 7 seconds remaining. The price went from £375 to £501, my high bid but it changed right away to £510 with 1 second left !
