Vacuman

Just wondering if anyone has invested blood, sweat, tears and money into creating the car of their dreams only to find once it's road legal that you hated it?

Mark Shead

You didn't have the correct plan or way to go about it. It's easy to cock it up its hard to get it right.

Mark

Paul_RS

iTrader: (4)

My Sapphire

Well I don't hate it I just wish I'd done it differently. If the technology that is about today had been around when I was doing my car I'd have used that instead of the old school stuff that's in the car. That way the car would be much nicer to drive normally and not be the lag monster it is now

smudger068

I have.

I bought my Mini back when I was 18 with coilovers, bucket seats, roll cage etc. I tidied it up painted the engine made it look smart got it tuned and running right.

Took it to a track day well what a pile of shit I thought it was! It maxed out at about 60mph. Brake balance was out so it was locking the rears, spring rates were all over the place.

When back in the garage and rebuilt it!

Now has nissan micra engine with 5 gears...tops at about 90-100mph very quick off the line. i adjusted spring rates, fully rose jointed and made a load of changes and now is a top car...

Fudgey

iTrader: (4)

I spent 5.5 years building my old 3DR, it was track focused so rose jointed, hard suspension, stripped out etc etc.

im sure on a track it would have been fine, but on the road it was harsh, noisy, smelly and not very nice to drive as it tried to kill you at every opportunity.

i wouldnt say i hated it, but on the road it was quite horrible to drive.

Scott_Rst

My s2 turbo, took a clean car, threw money at it, now its fast, but at the cost of being near undriveable and a rolling nightmare,

Totally fell out of love with it because of a few bad choices and also listening to the wrong person! Its a about to be broken to fund more bits for my old mans escos that were rebuilding/tidying up,

STeve

iTrader: (11)

I think most have done this in the past, I did it with a saph back in the 90s was a great car to start with as it was only 8 yrs old but with a turbosystems franchise on my doorstep spent way too much in there and once finished hated it so sold it on asap

Ebonycossie4x4

iTrader: (4)

yes definitely.... Black saff, nothing but trouble.

fuzzy

my cosworth celica... I spent that long and that much cash on it that I had to finish it. and when I did it was a millstone around my neck costing loads to keep it on the road and totally impractical to use daily with only 2 seats with harnesses and fuel cell , swirl pots pumps , fire system etc in the back so no space for even any shopping . it was fun though.

RichieST

iTrader: (2)

My mondeo, 20" wheels, rubber bands for tyres and rock hard suspension made it horrible to drive on our roads. It would tramline everywhere and I spent all my time dodging even the tiniest hole in the road.

I also spend 3k on a sound system, stripped it all out for sound deadening. The interior never went back in right and it rattled like mad. The sound system was so heavy it slowed it right down and I could get fook all in the boot lol.

Fil

Nope

Caddyshack

It is probably easier to get it wrong than get it right. My Mk1 Caddy pickup with a 20v Turbo in it annoyed me finally as I could not get it perfect (or at least as good as I wanted it to be) too many compromises. My 205 Pug is special enough to me that I can forgive it some things if I have to but I am happier spending time, money and sweat trying to get it right. If I dont get there...who knows? Atleast I could put it all in an Escort Cossie at not a lot of cost if I find a trimmed shell....I hope I dont need to though.

gjh

Sounds quite interesting this micra, any pics of it?

xr2john

+1 I'd be interested in seeing some pics aswell.

As we say pics or it ain't true

costina

iTrader: (1)

Ah another divorce caused by Tony

Rod-Tarry

Not yet !!!!

escoskmv

I'll buy the sunroof mate

Psycho Warren

iTrader: (5)

Having been on here a good few years you see all the time projects that get built then broke or sold soon after. Many of them claim they like building but not driving the cars so do it again, but i dont believe that, too much sweat and tears goes into most projects to just bin it and start afresh all the time unless you made a big mistake.

cossynut2

I think maybe you have had some bad advice on how to go about the modifications on your Saff. There are plenty of big power Saffs still out there using "old school" stuff that drive ok without massive turbo lag. Off boost you should be able to drive your Saff like any other car but when you drop down a gear and floor it it should leap forward straight away without loads of turbo lag.
For me that is why I love my Saff, it can be poodling along one minute and become an animal the next.
Every Ford I have ever owned has been modified and I have enjoyed them all in their own different ways. Never been unhappy with any of them.

Gazzonator

iTrader: (9)

I don't hate my sapphire yet but it's getting pretty damn close.

Adam-M

I haven't but I know people who have, it's mainly because they don't actually know what they like and end up chasing power ect.

Cos500

For me personally I prefer the old skool approach, its the lag and 80's power delivery that I love.

Cos500

I've never built a car I hated but I have changed parts like suspension, brakes etc for parts recommended by others, 2 miles down the road and I know it's getting ripped off as soon as I'm home

Rod-Tarry

You need to drive the latest Spec car from a Top Tuner like M.A.Developments then you would realise that old school is just that 'OLD SCHOOL'. Car Performance is relative & ive had both old & new it really is Black & White difference. Im not talking Power here but response all 500bhp cars will wind up to a similar Topspeed but a latest Spec car will simply be gone on the road as it responds 800/1000rpm sooner.

Adam-M

The oldskool driving experience is why we buy cosworths, I've said it before if I wanted a car that spooled up rapidly, I'd of bought a Spec C Impreza or Evo MR. Least that way you have a car that can go round corners as well as spooling up quick.

Each to their own but that's why I love them, nothing worse that a modern smooth turbo that you didn't even feel.

massivewangers

iTrader: (1)

That's purely personal preference though isn't it?

For many people, a huge part of the appeal of a Cosworth (and other turbo cars of the era) is that "old school" power delivery. It's part of the character of the car and the period. To them, if you take that away with a modern turbo and modern engine management, you've kind of taken away the car's soul.

I have a modern turbocharged car and it is devastatingly effective, there is little that will get near it on the road. It's 4WD, has a dual clutch gearbox and 300bhp with barely even a hint of lag. For an every day car, it's perfect. You can overtake easily and it can cover ground like a car from 20 years ago couldn't even dream of. I'm sure it would make several Cosworths off here with more power look a bit stupid in the real world but, it has about as much character as an Ikea shelving unit. There is no drama, no theatre, it just fucks off down the road. As I say, a great daily, but I certainly wouldn't have something like that for a "fun" car.

For some people it's about making something the best it can be, taking something flawed and making it efficient and technically "perfect", for others it's about enjoying the character of the car and how it makes them feel. A car's flaws can often be the reason why people love it so much.

cossynut2

It really is not that crucial for me to have the latest technology or that important to get the response that little bit quicker. If you have a race car or you are drag racing then yes every little bit extra is going to be what you are after but I accept my car for what it is and it still puts a big smile on my face when I am outperforming much newer, much more expensive "performance" cars.

smiley

Building the dream realising your vision it's a hobby gives drive and something to look forward to takes dedication patience and good organisation can become a burden if you go to deep to quick and end up cutting corners settling on parts you really didn't want don't rush no pressure much more enjoyable way of doing it

Paul_RS

iTrader: (4)

Exactly, I had to drive the green Mondeo while Mark mapped it. I couldn't believe how well a 500bhp Cossie can be made drive off boost these days. I want a Borg Warner

Caddyshack

My 205 was hard work with 300bhp until Mark swapped to nearly 200bhp more (side effect of the Borg warner was more power) now it is like a modern car...I am sure he could map it to feel more old school laggy though

Adam-M

There must of been something wrong Toby if it was hard work with 300bhp as they drive lovely with that power. No lag atall.

JasonPD

Not really, done the odd mod that I've regretted. Blunders that come to mind include putting 17in TSWs on my R5 GTT whoch rubbed like a bugger and a single piece rear door on my MK4 escort van which was just a bit tacky... Most easily sorted and the wheels only lasted a couple of weeks on the R5 before they were changed. Now I don't mod cars and just keep em stock

Mark Shead

Nobody can until they drive one. A modern ecu and turbo kit make a enormous diff.

Mark

StephTell

Exactly that.

My only turbo'd vehicle right now is my bike which runs a draw through carb setup, 330 BHP through a single carb so it misbehaves really badly on low revs but when it clears it's throat it fuck's off down the road in a cloud of smoke and I like it exactly for that reason!

I wouldn't want it running smoothly, the bucking bronco ride is part of the fun!

costina

iTrader: (1)

This is turning into a MAD advert.....

Thanks Rod...

Build plenty of cars i don't like but that is my job

gcfcos

I only bought a Cossie because when I was younger I got taken out in one and its was nothing,
Nothing
And then bang put you in your seat. That's what I wanna keep. Driven a couple of Escos with a lot more bhp but the power seemed so linear,
It was like the fun had been mapped out of them lol

smudger068

RWD_cossie_wil

iTrader: (9)

Built my Escos up spending a stupid amount of £££ on it. Had untold amount of problems, none of them easy to solve, I started getting pissed off with it as you would fix one thing & something else would fail.

The thing that really pissed me off was the amount of times I was let down by companies & suppliers, lots very well known, that took weeks/months to deliver parts, or didn't bother at all, made promises they couldn't keep, then when bits did turn up they didn't fit & needed modification or other parts to make them fit..

I lost interest in the end as it was the time that was killing me, I was spending every spare minute I had trying to sort it out, or chasing people for parts...lost my temper in the end as I was constantly getting stick off my mates, who were doing ring trips twice a year, track days, drive outs etc... So I sold both my Escort & Sapphire, and bought something usable.

I bought a 911 turbo, have had a serious amount of work done to it, and it's incredible. 650+Bhp, 200+Mph , all you have to do is put fuel in it & service it once a year, the parts are no more expensive than Cosworth parts for uprated gear, the only ballache is the engine being in the wrong place means you have to use a ramp for any major works.

Love Cosworths & always will, but there are far easier ways to go fast these days, far cheaper!

costina

iTrader: (1)

The above sounds like my typical work day.
As for suppliers in gereral they don't care that what they are selling is utter crap. Had a issue this week with brand new door glass which was 2.5mm wider and the curve was inccorrect so did'nt fit at all........

cossynut2

That is one thing that pisses me off as well, you buy parts which are supposed to be a straight forward fit and no they need modifying and loads more time spent fitting them than you thought! I am certain the people who make them have never actually fitted them, but I guess they are not bothered.