I agree the rollbar looks both ugly and unsafe but that wouldn't be that hard to correct. I thought I saw somewhere the Exocet weights 1500lbs. That doesn't sound all that bad to me.
I agree the rollbar looks both ugly and unsafe but that wouldn't be that hard to correct. I thought I saw somewhere the Exocet weights 1500lbs. That doesn't sound all that bad to me.
I think you have to really, REALLY love the atom to be able see past the Exocets crude knockoff looks.
ditchdigger wrote: I think you have to really, REALLY love the atom to be able see past the Exocets crude knockoff looks.
Not quite sure what you mean there but I see all Exo's as individual's designs but that doesn't mean they are automatically rip offs or copies of the Atom - it is the "Exoskeleton Market" certainly created by the success of the Atom but at the same time open to anybody's interpretation.
FWIW I don't like the looks of any of the available Exos so built my own and in no way is it a copy of an Atom but of course wouldn't exist if not for the Atom.
dankspeed wrote: I thought I saw somewhere the Exocet weights 1500lbs. That doesn't sound all that bad to me.
Right, but imagine how light you could get an exoskeleton car if you tried.
...
Do you know anyone that has had experience with the Exocet? About three years ago I was looking into the MEV Sonic 7. One guy shipped the kit over here and was very dissappointed in the build quality and design. Maybe they have improved the Sonic by now but you might check out other builder's impressions of the Exocet.
Hasbro wrote: Do you know anyone that has had experience with the Exocet? About three years ago I was looking into the MEV Sonic 7. One guy shipped the kit over here and was very dissappointed in the build quality and design. Maybe they have improved the Sonic by now but you might check out other builder's impressions of the Exocet.
That "guy" did a lot of damage to MEV in the USA single hand'edly as it was the first one and a lot of eyes were on it. If you look at the build you will see that the Guy's self supplied and engineered components are on a totally different level and the thinking not compatible with the kit itself - apparently he chose poorly for his very high personal standards.
There are many Rocket, Sonics and Excocets around in the UK with many happy owners who expect and get exactly what they pay for, no more, no less.
http://mevowners.proboards.com/
MEV are putting out some of the cheapest, reasonable quality kits in the world, you need to make judgements for yourself and not based on just one guy's build.
I have nothing at all to do with MEV in anyway and I've bagged a couple of their products such as the Atomic but I do like the Sonic.
An "Exo" car is just something like a Lotus Seven with no side panels, really. They have no inherent advantages over any other tube frame and those side panels can be structural. Remember, the Atom started as a show car.
The Exocet is fairly new, I doubt there are any in the US. However, MEV does sell in the UK so I'd look over there for build impressions. A friend of mine who imports a number of vehicles (including Westfield and a Stratos) looked into importing the MEV line, and he decided against it after some closer investigation.
1500 lbs with the stock Miata subframes sounds completely reasonable to me. You'd have a hard time getting much lighter, that's right in range with what the Locost guys see when you consider that level of component reuse.
Hasbro wrote: Do you know anyone that has had experience with the Exocet? About three years ago I was looking into the MEV Sonic 7. One guy shipped the kit over here and was very dissappointed in the build quality and design. Maybe they have improved the Sonic by now but you might check out other builder's impressions of the Exocet.
There's a Guy in Columbus, oh that built a never Exocet. He extended the offer for me to come check it out. Pictures of his build look really nice.
There are at least two built in the US - the white one in Ohio plus the guy who is importing them (Atlanta area).
I just read on their forum that they are offering a lightweight version that integrates mounts within the spaceframe, eliminating the spaceframe and saving ~70lb.
Their competition rollbar looks much better, but it has, in my opinion, an un-safe loadpath to some dinky welded-in plates in the corner of the chassis. It could have just as easily come right from the main exo-spars.
Kram wrote:Hasbro wrote: Do you know anyone that has had experience with the Exocet? About three years ago I was looking into the MEV Sonic 7. One guy shipped the kit over here and was very dissappointed in the build quality and design. Maybe they have improved the Sonic by now but you might check out other builder's impressions of the Exocet.That "guy" did a lot of damage to MEV in the USA single hand'edly as it was the first one and a lot of eyes were on it. If you look at the build you will see that the Guy's self supplied and engineered components are on a totally different level and the thinking not compatible with the kit itself - apparently he chose poorly for his very high personal standards. There are many Rocket, Sonics and Excocets around in the UK with many happy owners who expect and get exactly what they pay for, no more, no less. http://mevowners.proboards.com/ MEV are putting out some of the cheapest, reasonable quality kits in the world, you need to make judgements for yourself and not based on just one guy's build. I have nothing at all to do with MEV in anyway and I've bagged a couple of their products such as the Atomic but I do like the Sonic.
That's good to hear. Was just reading in a Brit kit car mag that the Sonic was up for car of the year. Came in fourth out of the four nominees but that's still pretty good as the others were much more upmarket.
Hasbro wrote:Kram wrote:That's good to hear. Was just reading in a Brit kit car mag that the Sonic was up for car of the year. Came in fourth out of the four nominees but that's still pretty good as the others were much more upmarket. I'll get on that forum and re-consider it.Hasbro wrote: Do you know anyone that has had experience with the Exocet? About three years ago I was looking into the MEV Sonic 7. One guy shipped the kit over here and was very dissappointed in the build quality and design. Maybe they have improved the Sonic by now but you might check out other builder's impressions of the Exocet.That "guy" did a lot of damage to MEV in the USA single hand'edly as it was the first one and a lot of eyes were on it. If you look at the build you will see that the Guy's self supplied and engineered components are on a totally different level and the thinking not compatible with the kit itself - apparently he chose poorly for his very high personal standards. There are many Rocket, Sonics and Excocets around in the UK with many happy owners who expect and get exactly what they pay for, no more, no less. http://mevowners.proboards.com/ MEV are putting out some of the cheapest, reasonable quality kits in the world, you need to make judgements for yourself and not based on just one guy's build. I have nothing at all to do with MEV in anyway and I've bagged a couple of their products such as the Atomic but I do like the Sonic.
In reply to Hasbro:
How is a kit car (MEV Sonic) up for "Car of the Year"? Or are you thinking Chevy Sonic, a production car?
I'm so lost in this thread...
Not my cup of tea. I'm more impressed with this
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/atom-smasher/
If you're going to make an almost-an-atom car, don't make the front end as wide as the exocet
US Distribution: http://exomotive.com/
Javelin wrote: In reply to Hasbro: How is a kit car (MEV Sonic) up for "Car of the Year"? Or are you thinking Chevy Sonic, a production car? I'm so lost in this thread...
He referred to a kit car magazine. It would make sense that their COTY would be a kit car.
the Sonic is a better looking car than the Exocet
Regarding the various comments about the rollbar - at least the competition version is allowed to race in the UK so the rollbar can't be that bad. Admittedly they are a little more fuzzy when it comes to allowing vehicles on the track, at least for HPDE.
I'm also pretty sure that a completed kit would have to pass the UK SVA test to become road legal (Single Vehicle Approval, basically a safety check for kit cars) so it can't be that bad. And yes, IIRC these are road legal in the UK.
mad_machine wrote: the Sonic is a better looking car than the Exocet
Its also more expensive and more complex to build. The exocet's draw is how affordable it is and it design simplicity.
How much does the SVA cover actual safety? I know that it includes things such as no exposed bolt heads on the leading edge, so to get a Westfield through you have to cover up the bolt heads on the rear license plate frame. Meanwhile, the stock "roll bar" on a Westfield would have trouble dealing with a stiff breeze.
They did fail the Robin Hood monocoque cars due to poor seatbelt mounting, I know that.
I've got two miatas sitting in my garage. One r package with a salvage title and another clean title miata with rust. I'm wondering how close to $6k I can get but parting out the body on the r package and everything from the other. I think a Exocet with a black frame and white panels would look hot.
Keith wrote: How much does the SVA cover actual safety? I know that it includes things such as no exposed bolt heads on the leading edge, so to get a Westfield through you have to cover up the bolt heads on the rear license plate frame. Meanwhile, the stock "roll bar" on a Westfield would have trouble dealing with a stiff breeze. They did fail the Robin Hood monocoque cars due to poor seatbelt mounting, I know that.
Supposedly SVA is pretty complete. I don;t think they do crash testing.. but things like seatbelt mountings, Seat Mountings, lock bolts and washers where needed...
They don't do crash testing, otherwise it would probably be called Double Vehicle Approval 
.
There is a lot of checking at to general safety, though, and of course the conformance with registration laws.
The Australian process, by comparison, requires an engineer to go over your chassis design!
dankspeed wrote: I've got two miatas sitting in my garage. One r package with a salvage title and another clean title miata with rust. I'm wondering how close to $6k I can get but parting out the body on the r package and everything from the other. I think a Exocet with a black frame and white panels would look hot.
not my cup of tea but that does not really matter. most people would not like my datsun. build what you want
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