davidwag
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:27 PM |
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Help Suspension Angles!!
Hi All,
Had a customer bring his recently purchased kit car in for an MOT.
When I drove it up the road I nearly got out and walked back
Home build special using cortina front end, but all the pick up points are in the wrong place. To say that the handling is unpredictable is an under
statement
Any Ideas to inprove geometery without cutting the front end off and starting again?
http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/photos.php?action=showphoto&photo=Midge%20front%20suspension.jpg
Thanks
David
[Edited on 1/10/06 by davidwag]
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robertst
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:33 PM |
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oh man you're making me worry about if i did put mine in correctly!
Tom
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robertst
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:36 PM |
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whoa i take that back!
that looks so odd doesnt it? the nosecone is way to high, the wishbones look like they were taken entirely from the cortina...
 
Rescued attachment Midge front suspension.jpg
Tom
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davidwag
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:40 PM |
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Hi,
Yes wishbones are from cortina,
How do i get the images to attach?
David
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Peteff
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:45 PM |
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Chop it up and build a locost.
Thge springs are too strong, they're lifting no weight so it will ride like a romping dog. Put a couple of bags of sand in the nosecone to weigh
the front down and pull the wheels in at the top. Put some lights in the shed as well 
 
Rescued attachment Midge front suspension.jpg
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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davidwag
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:45 PM |
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Try this
 
Rescued attachment Midge lower ball joint.jpg
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scotty g
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:48 PM |
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Its an old Robinhood, even RH owners don't like these ones!
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davidwag
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 12:56 PM |
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Hi,
Yes if it was my car I WOULD cut it up and build a locost.
But as it belongs to a Customer I have to try and persuade him to part with his money after i tell him his new purchase is a death trap!
David
Ps On the log book its called a Ford Midge 2 seater sports.
Some more photos in my archive for your ammusment
[Edited on 1/10/06 by davidwag]
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Danozeman
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 01:11 PM |
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THat looks horrible!!
Look at the angle of that lower ball joint.
If theyr standard springs off the cortina theyl be way to heavy for it.
Dan
Built the purple peril!! Let the modifications begin!!
http://www.eastangliankitcars.co.uk
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davidwag
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 01:58 PM |
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Hi,
I now done a bit of searching on the web and think what it is is a kit called a locust.
Box tube chassis and wooden tub body.
There is a report on the owners club web site about converting to tube wishbones.
Would like to run the design through some software before i decide to advise my customer to go down this route as the original chassis designer
didn't have a clue so is this going to be any better?
Does anyone have any links to some software?
Thanks
David
[Edited on 1/10/06 by davidwag]
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Mark Allanson
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 02:01 PM |
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Remember, a std cortina front end runs with 1°30' of castor
If you can keep you head, whilst all others around you are losing theirs, you are not fully aware of the situation
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StevieB
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 02:37 PM |
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I think the best advise you can give your customer is to go to Stuart Taylor, GTS et al, and buy a basic locost starter pack and transfer all the
relevant bits across, and then throw the reat away
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jack trolley
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 03:14 PM |
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Cortina front suspension is attached to a bolt-on subframe - easy to bolt on to a new chassis.
But it will be heavy and the springs will be too stiff for a 7.
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Guinness
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 03:42 PM |
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We had a guy come out on a blat into Scotland once with a similar car. We met up in Tesco's car park and when he did a u- turn the wheels
nearly fell over and the tyres were squealing at 5mph! He spent most of the day spinning it!
Mike
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roadboy
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 04:23 PM |
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That car should never have been allowed on the road, it is a deathtrap with suspension like that.
Regds
Ian
Jude Performance Services
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davidwag
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 04:48 PM |
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Hi,
Now you can see the reason for the SVA !!!
This was build pre Sva
Its got about 6 previous MOTs with it, I think the tester must have looked at it and didn't know what to fail it for
David
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skydivepaul
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 07:27 PM |
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looks like a friggin lotus seven monster truck.
my advice would be set it on fire and push it off a cliff
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 07:31 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by scotty g
Its an old Robinhood, even RH owners don't like these ones!
No it's not. I had one of those abortions (RH S7), only bought it to use as a donor. The RH used the whole Cortina front subframe, whereas
this doen't seem to. The nose on the RH was roughly in the right position too.
It could well be a Midge looking at it, but they were designed as an old MG replica. Looks like someones bunged a 7 nosecone on and hoped for the
best.
Have a look at the chassis in this auction:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MIDGE-2-SEATER-KIT-CAR-UNFINSHED-PROJECT_W0QQitemZ300002561315QQihZ020QQcategoryZ29750QQcmdZViewItem
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DIY Si
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 07:54 PM |
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Are steering componenst allowed to be welded for the mot? Since that track rod end has a welded extension, which I though was a bit naughty?
Otherwise, tell him to bin it and get a proper car!
“Let your plans be dark and as impenetratable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.”
Sun Tzu, The Art of War
My new blog: http://spritecave.blogspot.co.uk/
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 1/10/06 at 09:37 PM |
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If it is a Locust (both Midge and Locost made by J.C. original and appear to have simmilar chassis), then perhaps you can find some more information
at the Locust Enthusiasts website
http://www.locustenthusiastsclub.fsnet.co.uk/about/about.htm
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waterrat
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| posted on 22/10/06 at 12:21 PM |
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stearing rack
just a thought from looking at the photo, i think the uprights have been fitted upside down, isn't the steering rack sposed to be fitted so that
the it attaches to the uprights at the top behind the shocks. i had been told that this will meen that the wheels will want to run straight when not
beeing steered.
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flak monkey
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| posted on 22/10/06 at 12:45 PM |
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The uprights are on the right way up. The cortinas steering arms are ahead of the stub axle, not behind it!
Sera
http://www.motosera.com
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Peteff
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| posted on 22/10/06 at 02:18 PM |
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They've moved the website
to locust.org .
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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britishtrident
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| posted on 23/10/06 at 07:18 AM |
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Spartan used a similar setup -- complete Cortina front and rear truly awful to drive.
Many Locust were changed to 5 link.
Actually not a lot wrong with the suspension although the camber and other angles are all wrong there is nothing unsafe about provided the standard
Cortina bump stops stop the suspension movement before the lower ball joint binds up. But a whole Cortina suspension is just not suitable for a
lightweight sports car.
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