Richard Marsden's Locost Kit Car Web Page

This  page gives some info on the Locost kit car I build over the past few years, finally getting it on the road in the spring of 2003. I've includes a few build pictures but mostly this website is just about the end result.

The Kit

Most of the important bits came from Stuart Taylor Motorsports. This is a fairly standard 'Locost' version of the Lotus 7 style kit car. The main parts were the chassis, suspension, engine mounts and body work.

The Engine

I'd already built a Westfield with a 1700cc Ford Cross Flow engine, so this time I wanted something a bit different so I decided to go with a Honda Fireblade engine. The main reasons were the lightness, power and (most importantly) noise.

Being a bike engine also meant it had a 6 speed sequential gearbox, which would be fun.

Currently standard apart from a Stuart Taylor billet sump to improve ground clearance and prevent oil surge.

The Build

No great problems, here are some pictures:

SVA

First SVA was summer 2002 and was a fail. I was expecting this and but there was nothing major so I was able to re-test and passed the second time, I didn't even have to take the car off the trailer. Here are a few of the mods I had to do:

The Finished Car

Generally, very pleased with the car, performance is amazing. Just a few things to put right (hopefully winter 2003/4), such as the marginal cooling when not moving and a start button.