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What do we think of this?
russbost - 19/1/12 at 10:24 PM

Following on from my "redesign my bodywork" thread

Link

I saw this car



[img] 3 seater F1 2
3 seater F1 2 [/img]


[img] 3 seater F1 1
3 seater F1 1 [/img]

at the Autosport International show, it's a 3 seater F1 lookalike from France! There are more images
HERE
The sidepods are almost exactly the shape I was thinking of for my car except they are a bit wide, probs because it's a 3 seater - so what do we think, likey or no likey.

More constructive comments than pretty or fugly would be helpful!

bi22le - 19/1/12 at 10:47 PM

If I was going to buy a F1 look alike I would want the most modern edgy thing that looked most like a F1 car. That means wide, uncomprimissing and acurate in detail. Now I understand that IVA wont allow most of that. So if I was designing your shell I would look at the most modern F1 car and do as little as possible to its overall shape and outer design to make it get around 99% of roads and pass IVA.

Thats my immediate thoughts from an enthusiast, potential future customer, some one that wishes you the best of luck and likes your differnent stance on the kit car world.



Biz

Edit: To remove stupid question.

[Edited on 19/1/12 by bi22le]

franky - 19/1/12 at 10:57 PM

That looks really nice. From the pics it looks well proportioned and quite pretty.

JoelP - 19/1/12 at 11:00 PM

Id agree with bizzle, it needs to look as realistic as possible. The 3 seater looks like a joke you'd find at a funfair.

IIRC your second seat is hidden normally? Thats a good idea. I dont know if being a two seater is important for sales, but one seater will always look more realistic.

Doug68 - 19/1/12 at 11:28 PM

To me a 2 seat version is always going to look wrong somehow, I'd compare with a 2 seat seat Spitfire.
Yes its a Spitfire yes I'd love to have a ride in one, but in the end it will always look wrong.



I thought there was (I may be mistaken) a 3 seat indy car with the passengers going in the side pods? Might be another direction to look at.

Anyway good luck, its a tough task you have set yourself there.

[Edited on 19/1/12 by Doug68]

James - 20/1/12 at 12:43 AM

quote:
Originally posted by bi22le
If I was going to buy a F1 look alike I would want the most modern edgy thing that looked most like a F1 car. That means wide, uncomprimissing and acurate in detail. Now I understand that IVA wont allow most of that. So if I was designing your shell I would look at the most modern F1 car and do as little as possible to its overall shape and outer design to make it get around 99% of roads and pass IVA.


Basically agree 100% with this.

Have you noticed how quickly F1 cars date aesthetically? They're so much more curvy and 'rounded' than a few years ago.
Don't have to go back far before they look soooo ugly and clumsy!

My favorite of the 2011 cars was probably the Mercedes:
http://www.zercustoms.com/photos/Mercedes-2011-F1-Car-W02/Mercedes-2011-F1-Car-7.jpg.html

So the more it looks like that, the better!

Hope that helps,
James


ETA: I quite like that one at Autosport. But the 3-seats is a compromise too far- the body should narrow/'coke-bottle' in far more at the side-pods than it does- because of the 2 extra seats. Stick with the 'hidden' 2-seater design that you have IMO.

[Edited on 20/1/12 by James]

SeaBass - 20/1/12 at 07:50 AM

I really quite like the shape of the French car - the width makes it looks good somehow. I also like the choice of wheels, tyres and mudguards they've gone for.

russbost - 20/1/12 at 09:32 AM

Ah! I think most of you have misunderstood me. I'm not thinking of doing a 3 seater (tho' it would be an interesting challenge) I simply want to redesign my sidepods to look more modern - I've put a link on my original post to my recent thread on this, we're already working on it & the French car happens to be almost the exact shape I had been thinking of, but which we've not acheived as yet.

If you look at the pics on their website (website? well, what there is of it!) they do have a cover for the rear seats which actually looks rather neat.

jabbahutt - 20/1/12 at 09:45 AM

I think it looks really good. Okay you're never going to think it's the real deal but I'm with Franky and Seabass that from the photos it looks a good looking car and nicely proportioned.

MikeCapon - 20/1/12 at 09:46 AM

Hi Russ,

My view for what it's worth (about 2 bob usually) is that the overall look of the french car is stunning for a 3 seater. At first sight, the two passenger (victim?) seats are hardly evident.

The sidepods, along with the rest of the car look good. Very 'current' and they fit well with the rest of the car. Would they look good on your car? Needs a photoshop whiz on the job to see how they'd fit with the Furore...

silverback - 20/1/12 at 10:07 AM

Personally I think that 3 seat are great fun. I used to race f1 stockcars and as everyone knows they are single seaters, so trying to give people the ride of a life time, you have to trust them not to smash the car up. So with either a twin or triple seater you can give other people the time of their lives.
Honestly the replica looks brill.

dlatch - 20/1/12 at 10:18 AM

i think that looks fantastic especially with the 2 well hidden rear seats hidden, very impressive job they have done there.
i see what your saying about your sidepod design russ i would prob wait until we find out what shape is in vogue for this years F1 season before committing on a re design

scootz - 20/1/12 at 02:38 PM

I saw the French car at the show and thought it was very nice! I like those side-pods!

JC - 20/1/12 at 07:59 PM

Russ,

I think that the french thingy's style would be just the job for the Furore!!!

Ninehigh - 21/1/12 at 01:08 AM

The pods look good, don't think you can go far wrong with them.

That nosecone looks like it'd improve your model too (just a facelift, nothing wrong with your current one!)

And looking through that gallery with them seats hidden it looks like there's an almighty engine under there

franky - 21/1/12 at 07:23 AM

has anyone got a linky for their site?

russbost - 21/1/12 at 12:02 PM

I put it on the original post!

But just click

Here

to link direct to their picture gallery - not much else on the website TBH

franky - 21/1/12 at 01:54 PM

That does look great, I think you're missing a trick with the seat cover. Could you not do the same so yours can have the single seat look?

ceebmoj - 21/1/12 at 06:26 PM

I realy like it. I'm most impresed by the lights, I atualy missed them on the first photos as was thinking that adding lights would realy mess the frount of the car up.

scudderfish - 21/1/12 at 06:43 PM

quote:
STREET FORMULA 2012 ROAD
(registered) for 97.000 € without VAT


Ow!

russbost - 22/1/12 at 03:51 PM

"That does look great, I think you're missing a trick with the seat cover. Could you not do the same so yours can have the single seat look?"

I've always offered a rear seat cover/front half of airbox, see below


[img] Latest build
Latest build [/img]

russbost - 22/1/12 at 03:53 PM

"I realy like it. I'm most impresed by the lights, I atualy missed them on the first photos as was thinking that adding lights would realy mess the frount of the car up."

Yes, strange thing is so far as I can see the lights would swivel with the wheels, which certainly wouldn't pass IVA over here, so I'd like to know how they get it road legal in France where regs are normally far stricter!???

Ninehigh - 22/1/12 at 07:36 PM

quote:
Originally posted by russbost
Yes, strange thing is so far as I can see the lights would swivel with the wheels, which certainly wouldn't pass IVA over here, so I'd like to know how they get it road legal in France where regs are normally far stricter!???


How does that not pass IVA when BMW, Citroen and Vauxhall (that I know of) do it?

russbost - 22/1/12 at 09:43 PM

Difference with the mass produced ones is that the lamp doesn't move, it's just the internals that do & then only slightly.

I was thinking of :-

"4. All lamps and reflectors fitted to the vehicle must be fixed and not move by swivelling, deflecting or otherwise while the vehicle is in motion,"

But it does go on to say

" except for:

any lamp or reflector which by design can be deflected to the side with the movement of the front wheel or wheels of the vehicle when turned for the purpose of steering the vehicle"

So possibly it would be legal to have the lamps swivel with the wheels, but I don't see any way that headlamp aim would be maintained with the suspension moving up & down, my understanding of this was that the only lights which it was ok to have move in this way were the front indicators, but always ready to learn or be proved wrong.

Edited to say, of course production vehicles don't have to pass IVA, they have to meet type approval instead.

[Edited on 22/1/12 by russbost]

Ninehigh - 23/1/12 at 03:48 AM

I suppose you could use some kind of lever/fly-by-wire system attached to the steering rack...

I figured anything allowed under type approval would be allowed under IVA