Talk me out of this monstrosity.

So I have been striking out on Miata's and S2000's and salvage lotus to build my death kart. Seriously what is so hard about showing up on time and describing your car correctly. I have looked at ~10 cars so far and all have had undisclosed issues that would prevent them being used as a solid base for a Kart.

So SWMBO sent me this on Craigslist.

https://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/cto/6000835921.html

Drove out to look at it. Its hideous in person, doors are not aligned, cracks in the fiberglass but the mechanical are perfect in person. It looks like a 550 spyder from most of the angles except the rear where it looks really off. I have seen this actual car with a 2.7 type 4 destroy GT3 RS's times at autocross. Its kind of a legend around here. Its sitting on what must be the stickiest 195 rubber even made by man and has custom swaybars and brakes that would stop a car 5x the weight.

I can get the car for about 11K though and its going to cost another 2K to really get it caged up correctly. Motor is pointed the wrong way, but at 1250lb's so weight over the rear may be a good thing. Its pretty and I can get my money out of it at any time, pull the trigger?

you are expecting us to say no?

mad_machine wrote: you are expecting us to say no?

He's expecting us to say we'd buy it if they knock a zero off the price.

I will not.

11K for a souped up and shortened beetle with a damaged fiberglass body?

Oooh AND sticky 195 tires? Woooooooow.

No. cut the price in half and you might be close since so much of it will need to be replaced or modified.

Flipping the engine to be mid engined isn't too bad, but you'll still only have a type4 aircooled motor in a car that essentially has to be suspended like a Kart to handle decently thanks to the suspension that originates from before WWII. All of which can be fixed, but after spending 11k how much more money is worth being pissed away because you started with the wrong car?

Me thinks you need to search further north and take a vacation with the wife and drive back along the 101. If you need help looking at cars in LA, SF/Sac, Oregon or Washington, drop a line here and maybe one of the GRM-faithful can be your eyes.

Or just stop screwing around and buy an Exocet kit or build yourself (or pay someone to build one) a Midlana, if you really want a mid-engined car) and be done with it. Yes you'll have to do the registration lottery nonsense, but for a track car you may not care if it takes a little while to get there and the cash outlay will be similar with ultimately better and safer results.

After what I just bought I'm not really in a position to talk you out of it, but this photo is a much better angle:

If you can get your money back out of it at any time, why not. It looks pretty scary, and given your proclivities, it may scratch the right itch, until something else does it better.

Why not just build an Autox Manx style buggy instead?

I honestly can't think of a single reason why you shouldn't get it.

That is really ugly...

Don't buy that monstrosity!

(Did that work?)

Is a hot rodded beetle kit car really worth $11k?

Not sure I'm on board with this, but now I'm wondering if a convincing 365 speedster replica on a Super Beetle chassis with a Subaru engine is possible.

Chadeux wrote: Not sure I'm on board with this, but now I'm wondering if a convincing 365 speedster replica on a Super Beetle chassis with a Subaru engine is possible.

Probably. There are lots of conversions to put the Subaru motor in busses and the transmission is the same. I was just looking into that a few days ago when I found a fairly rust free 914 with no motor for $600. That or a 3.0 liter Type IV VW motor.

-Rob

In reply to Stefan:

I was all with the "Do it!!" crowd, but it's hard to argue against that logic.

I like a bad idea as much as anyone but $11,000 is far more than I'd pay for that one.

The ad clearly states that THIS is the car that James Dean built. That has to be raising the price a bit.

I dig the rear clam shell.

so...uhm.....STI transplant?

Go look at the top of the Hotlinks thread right now. There's an autocross dune buggy that might inspire you.

pinchvalve wrote: The ad clearly states that THIS is the car that James Dean built. That has to be raising the price a bit.

How'd things work out for Mr Dean?

rob_lewis wrote:

Chadeux wrote: Not sure I'm on board with this, but now I'm wondering if a convincing 365 speedster replica on a Super Beetle chassis with a Subaru engine is possible.

Probably. There are lots of conversions to put the Subaru motor in busses and the transmission is the same. I was just looking into that a few days ago when I found a fairly rust free 914 with no motor for $600. That or a 3.0 liter Type IV VW motor. -Rob

The Super Beetle has a strut front end which isn't conducive to a 356 style body. So you'd really need a Beetle or build a tube frame to solve that problem.

Couple questions; what are those wheels? I can't tell if I love or hate them. It's got to be one or the other. Also, what are early Boxsters going for these days? If you have to build no matter what you buy, I think I'd rather start with a more capable chassis.

I want to like this thing but I can't.

In reply to Stefan:

the strut front end is pretty much why I'd want the super, but I also see why it'd be a problem.

I think you can do better....much better. Keep looking.

Chadeux wrote: In reply to Stefan: the strut front end is pretty much why I'd want the super, but I also see why it'd be a problem.

Its really not that much better than the older style front suspension, its just what worked from a packaging standpoint. Both work much better once you restrict their movement within a narrow range where the geometry isn't terrible. Which leads you back to an oversized Kart in a classic body.

Realistically you'd want to convert it to a dual a-arm solution which would require a good amount of frame work and cage work, which essentially could lead you a MidLana as a better overall solution since it uses Miata geometry and a modern FWD drivetrain of your choice.