MG Midget - 570hp/tonne

[svensktoppen]

This really has nothing at all to do with an actual Midget though, lol. It's a space frame gocart with a Vauxhall engine, lightly dressed up in Midget-like bodywork

It will be brilliant fun to drive

 

[gixermark]

you know my views on this baby mate............ LOVE it..... and you've been a patient man waiting for it - I cant wait to see and hear this thing on track.

the sound of that.. and my wee k series singing will be music to our ears after this isolation !!!

 

[gsmith]

That is awesome. There is a lot of nice cars on here including high end cars etc but this is another level for me. Stunning.

 

[IL]

I think it's Damask Red which is a lovely colour.
I have a bad need for a K-Series powered Midget but need to get rid of a lot of cars first.

Correct it is Damask Red, great colour!

Funny you should mention a K-Series, the first of these Midgets was built with a 240hp K-Series, it was ultralight, reportatly 440Kg!!

And boy did it sound good at 9000Rpm

Fabulous, just feckin fabulous.

First dibbs when in a couple of years time you haven't used it because you're spending all your track time in the TR7. Gives me time to sell a kidney, the wife, and anything else I can dispose of.

Well Alex, this has been in the Pipeline since I sold that last NI7's Westfield, I'm overdue a break from Projects for a while so these will certainly have to be keepers

you know my views on this baby mate............ LOVE it..... and you've been a patient man waiting for it - I cant wait to see and hear this thing on track.

the sound of that.. and my wee k series singing will be music to our ears after this isolation !!!

Can't wait Mark!! heartbreaking not being able to get a test after the 3 Year wait

 

[IL]

It will be brilliant fun to drive

Oh it will!! I Reckon it should be fit for a 58sec lap around Kirkistown

 

[svensktoppen]

Funny you should mention a K-Series, the first of these Midgets where built with a 240hp K-Series, it was ultralight, reportatly 440Kg!!

And boy did it sound good at 9000Rpm

A K that highly strung would need a full rebuild after every outing though!

I loved mine at 170, at 190 it went spectacularly bang

 

[FM155]

A properly built K-Series is a wonderful thing, for a while at least lol !! Although, the new Chinese blocks and liners are apparently a good bit more robust than the original items. I've built a couple of 1.4's for fast road and targa's and they are a great wee unit, so light. There is somewhere around 20kg weight to be had with a K over an A Series, I'd say it's closer to 30 or more kg on an XE. Having said that, no K-series will produce the power that an XE or Duratec will.

 

[Paul Hamill]

Utterly Gorgeous.All the best with it.

 

[Mr.Mint]

Wow!

That is beautiful and health to enjoy...

 

[martybelfastsri]

serious looking machine ian well done!

 

[acsmyth]

That's incredible, would you mind sending me a private message with how you went about acquiring it?

Would love something similar in the future!

 

[MagicRat]

Oh it will!! I Reckon it should be fit for a 58sec lap around Kirkistown

I would love to see that. Can you post an update when you have your first race entry.

I'd love to see you do Knockalla; one of the best roads on the island.

 

[stevyg]

Good Lord! That's utterly amazing Ian. Tell me a bit more about the setup. What suspension are you running?

 

[IL]

A properly built K-Series is a wonderful thing, for a while at least lol !! Although, the new Chinese blocks and liners are apparently a good bit more robust than the original items. I've built a couple of 1.4's for fast road and targa's and they are a great wee unit, so light. There is somewhere around 20kg weight to be had with a K over an A Series, I'd say it's closer to 30 or more kg on an XE. Having said that, no K-series will produce the power that an XE or Duratec will.

Your not far away, I believe the K is around 85kg and the Vauxhall is closer to 120kg, its a fair difference but I was prepared to have the weight penalty for reliability, My Vauxhall even at the 285hp tune should be pretty robust, I just couldn't afford the rebuild costs of anything more highly strung!

That K was 1900cc on an Evolution Block - Judd also did the K2000 which was the K used in the MGZR touring cars - 250hp apparently.

That's incredible, would you mind sending me a private message with how you went about acquiring it?

Would love something similar in the future!

No Problem dude, drop me a message.

I would love to see that. Can you post an update when you have your first race entry.

I'd love to see you do Knockalla; one of the best roads on the island.

It's usually the 1st weekend I September, I'm not sure if its being run this year tho

Good Lord! That's utterly amazing Ian. Tell me a bit more about the setup. What suspension are you running?

Hi Stevie,

Suspension wise I'm running Quantum, its an English company, the dampers are alloy bodied 1.9" and built specifically for the car and to a spec the chassis builder requested.

Drive Train wise Vauxhall into the Elite Sequential gearbox ( with flat shift & Autoblip) to an Live English Axle running a 3link setup.

Brembo Brakes all round from a Dallara F3 car, ultralite 4 pot callipers onto a 278mm 16mm 2-Piece vented discs up front.

Wheel setup its 13" Dia Lightweight Split Rims - 10" Fronts & 11.5" Rear Widths

 

[Lappintyre]

Any vids of it running @IL ?

 

[IL]

Any vids of it running @IL ?

No, Not really, I haven't run the car other than Running in and Mapping on the Rollers.

It's not really good to be starting and stopping race engines anymore than in necessary!

Here are some Videos from the Mapping day...

 

[michelinman]

Sounds like it has really great throttle response! Certainly loves to rev! I love it!

 

[stevieturbo]

Its a pretty versatile little truck, I'll be able to do a range of events in it, coming from Hillclimbing background i'll maybe do a few, I've a set of extra soft tyres ready for Craigantlet, Cairncastle & Knockalla which are my favourites.

But.. Predominantly built for Circuit Racing, Approx 20min races, I had it built to race in a series in England where all tech including the body shape had to be Pre 93..

Surely engine, box, suspension, brakes, ecu etc are all post 93 tech ?

1993 is a good while ago lol

 

[IL]

Sounds like it has really great throttle response! Certainly loves to rev! I love it!

Kevin Gallagher does some of the best Vauxhalls around, proven reliability over long Rally Seasons putting out some fo the best figures so it should be a cracking Engine, it is however still on the standard crank which is good for 300hp but 8500Rpm Max.

Surely engine, box, suspension, brakes, ecu etc are all post 93 tech ?

1993 is a good while ago lol

Hi Stevie, the people writing the regs for the class look at it that if the tech was available in the Era is can be used.

Engine - Brought into production in 1987
Box - Sequential Technology was around then - but Paddles and Blippers are banned for the series
Suspension - Coilover suspension was used Pre93
Brakes - Alloy 4 pots where available and used Pre93
Ecu - Injection and Management was available pre93 - Making people run actual Pre93 ECU's wouldn't really be feasible?

Had I not been following the Regs, I probably would have installed a Duratec but routing the exhaust out and over the drivers side is more difficult also.

 

[FM155]

Properly sensible set of regs.
Rare thing in motorsport sadly.

 

[svensktoppen]

At the end of the day race regs are just race regs, and are whatever they are however the series happens to be labelled.

"Historic racing" rules just crack me up every time, lol Forever going on about originality and period this that or the other, and then you look at what the top cars are actually running "within the regs" and just lol

It's just race series.

 

[IL]

At the end of the day race regs are just race regs, and are whatever they are however the series happens to be labelled.

"Historic racing" rules just crack me up every time, lol Forever going on about originality and period this that or the other, and then you look at what the top cars are actually running "within the regs" and just lol

It's just race series.

I suppose I should emphasise the series is not a historic series, it is a revival of the famous Special Saloon period where basically anything ran as long as the silhouette of the car and wheel base reflected the road going car..

For example in the 70's many of the cars where based on large single seaters draped in fibreglass bodies such as..

This 'BMW M1' was a Lola T400 F5000 7000cc Chevy

Or The Mick Hill Beetle -

Again Trojan F5000 Based

My Favourite - John Churchills Lancia Stratos - Based on an Argo F3000 car with 3.0L DFV

 

[svensktoppen]

Lol, some mad cars there There were similar things here in "Super Saloon", don't know if that series is still going. Honda-powered Elise were doing well there against the likes of Ginetta race cars and the odd spaceframe silhouette special

 

[michelinman]

Those historic cars are beautiful! I did laugh a bit at the centre steering wheel on the „M1“ and also at the fact that I’m almost one month younger than the picture of the beetle

 

[IL]

Lol, some mad cars there There were similar things here in "Super Saloon", don't know if that series is still going. Honda-powered Elise were doing well there against the likes of Ginetta race cars and the odd spaceframe silhouette special

There where several different era's and classes of the cars -

Special Saloons
Super Saloons
Thunder Saloons
Special GT's
& Modsports

The Cosworth Pug 309 I had previously was a Thundersaloon.. Steel Bulkhead, floor & Roof.. Many Variations of regulations!

Those historic cars are beautiful! I did laugh a bit at the centre steering wheel on the „M1“ and also at the fact that I’m almost one month younger than the picture of the beetle

Yes, later in the regs the drivers had to sit over the centre line of the car, that lead to some off adaptions of single seater tubs!!