Is this the coolest Miata-based kit ever?

That's awesome. Are four of the exhaust pipes dummies or are there two per cylinder? 

It's so easy to look at these cars and think that they're cool but slow. Here's a video clip of the real thing. 425 hp, 9200 rpm, 1.5l straight 8 running 40 psi of boost. And Miata owners are looking at this kit and saying "the tires aren't wide enough..."

jimbob_racing said:

That's awesome. Are four of the exhaust pipes dummies or are there two per cylinder? 

Dummies, it's cosplaying as a straight 8.

FYI, I don't think it would take much to turn this into the style of an old Indy car. Don't tell Ant.

When I saw the tagged items, I pictures a modern Alfa body looking thing on a Miata.  This is not that.  Very, very cool.

However, what about a very narrow two seater?  

Very nice.  I liked the looks of Ant's original car, but the tube frame on this version makes a lot more sense than the old MG frame he used.

Is there a little catalytic converter on the exhaust in the first photo?

Or more likely this-

Which is actually on an Alfa 105 chassis.  Much closer overall to the single seater configuration.

stuart in mn said:

Very nice.  I liked the looks of Ant's original car, but the tube frame on this version makes a lot more sense than the old MG frame he used.

Is there a little catalytic converter on the exhaust in the first photo?

It is. I have concerns about the longevity of the fiberglass underneath it. 

I have more pictures of the frame, it's seriously sexy. I'll see if I can get permission to share.

In reply to Keith Tanner :

At one of the conventions I went to, an 8C2300 fired up- sounded like a Cup car.  Freaking loud, and very much 8 cylinders.  Going to be tough to mask the lack of extra cylinders.

Finally my dreams of a kit car less practical than a motorcycle have come true!

So cool though

So is the driving position raised, or does the transmission go between your feet?  Pedals on either side?

It is pretty cool. 

I wonder if there's enough room under the hood for a supercharger ?     And why use the Miata subframes? Seems like a bit of tubing and some water jet cut tabs and the Miata suspension bits could be bolted directly to the chassis. This kit and the Exocet both retain them. I watched Ant build the car last summer and love the idea of it.

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:

So is the driving position raised, or does the transmission go between your feet?  Pedals on either side?

 

You get to straddle the trans. The brackets for the brake booster and the clutch master are on opposite sides of the steering column.

Needs some Aero covers over the front A-arms   and something to cover the back axle area , 

But overall it looks great !

My dream car is a pre war with modern reliability.

Just the fact that this exists is one step closer for me. 

I've looked at those Bugatti type 35 (?) VW based kits and wondered how well they would work with a Miata drive train. Ant is building me a proof of concept.

Keith Tanner said:

jimbob_racing said:

That's awesome. Are four of the exhaust pipes dummies or are there two per cylinder? 

Dummies, it's cosplaying as a straight 8.

Someone needs to go full Allan Millyard and built a straight 8 out of two Miata engines then.

In reply to BoxheadTim (Forum Supporter) :

Ditch all the cylinders and 13B swap 

In reply to captdownshift (Forum Supporter) :

There should be enough space for a 20B...

In reply to BoxheadTim (Forum Supporter) :

I just love the phrase "full Allen Millyard."

But back to the topic at hand: Yow! This is incredibly cool.

Does anyone know anything about registering a kit car in Ontario because this kit is seriously something I want to do.  I bought Ed Barr's "Sheet Metal Fabrication" book with the ridiculous idea I could make my own, this kit would make things much easier.

So, thank you GRM. This was the world reveal of the car (seriously, I asked and Ant said okay!). The feedback from this discussion is going back to him and the others involved to help improve the site and the kit. The US market was always going to be different than the UK market. 

I can see myself driving one of these to work.  Leather helmet, googles, scarf.   Yup.

BoxheadTim (Forum Supporter) said:

Someone needs to go full Allan Millyard and built a straight 8 out of two Miata engines then.

Definitely agreed...but it wouldn't really be going *full* Allen Millyard unless you mated two inline-four motorcycle engines. Further benefits of this plan are lighter with better weight distribution, plus more likely to have room for a supercharger, and closer to the displacement of the original Alfa. Probably best to select something liquid-cooled as the straight eight might not cool the rear cylinders well if air-cooled. Of course the downside is the minor detail of a transmission, but that should be easy enough for any Millyard-aspirational GRMers.