SteveF

Burfy -I've put a topic on the WSCC BBS (http://wscc.ggr.net/cgi-bin/BB/ikonboard.cgi?s=3c160a8651f2ffff;act=ST;f=1;t=425) for this thread - there are a few people who may help you there :-)

Steve

[Edited by SteveF - 12/11/2001 1:51:38 PM]

megabusa

I've just finished building one! I have an Evo VI which I use only at weekends, and the Westie for track days, although with the current weather I aint done any tracks yet! I have however driven it up and down the road and yes it is quick, very quick. I can send pictures or any info you like. I am in Yorkshire if you wanna have a look/go?!? All I can say is that after being spoiled by the easiness of driving Scoobies and the Evo it is a real shocker to the system, and bloody difficult to keep in a straight line!

[Edited by megabusa - 12/11/2001 7:23:21 PM]

burfy

Has anyone on this BBS got one of the above. They are a lightweight Westfield with a 1300cc Suzuki Hayabusa bike engine (pumping out about 185 bhp). 6 speed sequential g'box - 0-60 in 3.2 seconds. Thinking of one as a second car to the Scooby. Trouble is, can't seem to find any road tests or opinions.
Any thoughts?
Thanks.

Rich Curtis

It was reviewed in a new mag a couple of months ago - can't remember the name of the mag but it was specifically aimed at track days.

It was reviewed along with a few other similar lightweight high power cars.

My m8 bought a copy, I'll try and get it off him and have another look.

Warped Chris

I think it was in Evo.

They rated it pretty highly, but not as good as the Caterham Fireblade (which is a bit of a con, as Caterham don't make one and you need to get it built by an outside outfit).

I've been poking about looking at these, and the Caterham Superlight R seems to be the best compromise.

Should be good for a giggle - give the factory a bell and they'll set up a look around and test drive for you (apparently - not been myself as I'm fleeing the country to go and live in California in the new year)

Chris

burfy

Thanks for the input.
I thought about the Superlight, however can't get the idea of whacking up and down the g'box using a sequential shift out of my head!!!

Cheeky Jim

Hi,

A good pal of mine built a Westfield Megablade. It is the same idea with the Honda Fireblade engine. I think it's 900cc, but with about 130bhp or thereabouts (may need correcting). He built it from scratch with new parts and a reconditioned engine in 3 weeks flat!

It had a 6 speed sequential gearbox that you could bang up the gears without the use of the clutch!!

It was fairly rapid. We went to Santa Pod together (I have standard UK MY00). I was doing 14.7 Second runs, his best was 13.2. However, it was always the same, I would shoot off and get about a car length headstart because of the traction, but he would catch me up about halfway and then slowly leave me behind. I think he was popping through the lights at 98mph and I was going through at about 92mph.

So it is fairly comparible with a standard Scooby. I think if I had a tweaked exhaust and possibly an air filter I would have beaten him.

There was an STi running on the same day (not sure of any mods), he ran low 13's as well.

Good car, but bloody drafty (he had the aero screens). Great on the twisty's.

Total cost was about £12k thereabouts. He sold it about 4 months ago for £9k I think.

Hope thats of interest.

Jamie

TRIGGER

Test drove the Megabusa at the factory back in Sept - havent driven anything like it !! I have a short ratio geared Sti RA which isnt slow, but this is the first car to feel faster - and alot faster at that. Absolutely crazy as you rev it to 10,000 rpm, back off a touch and just whip it into the next gear. I am saving my pennies to get one - I just have to have one....

Type R

I test drove one last September too, the gearbox is excellent, and i loved it. The power is out of this world, it feels like you are doing warp factor 9.

I very nearly bought one, but i wanted to keep my CTR aswell, which seemed daft having two Track cars so i left it.

May well look again in a couple of years, the service and follow up i received from Simon was excellent and personal.

Nikko2

GaryC has one.

munch

oct nov banzai"s the mag superbike engined westfields-

burfy

Thanks for the input people. I guess that my family will have to go without Christmas this year so that I can get the Megabusa!
I was thinking of using it as a weekend car too. Any idea as to how well it behaves on the public roads?


[Edited by burfy - 12/12/2001 8:38:13 AM]

TaviaRS

Wouldn't really recommend it, not a lot of torque so you need a fair few revs to pull off the line cleanly and it is a tad brutal (but damn good fun) - good out of town but for popping down the shops, don't do it. Brilliant on a track however!

Edited to say, give the factory a bell, they are more than happy to let you test drive whatever you want, they usually send someone with you to show you what it will do. Also, they have second hand factory built cars for sale. Also, have a look at Terry Nightingale in Suffolk www.terrynightingale.co.uk/westfield.html. I've been and had a look, always fancied a caterham but found that the Westie fitted better (its cockpit is 3" longer and 3" wider than the 7) and the company are much nicer.

[Edited by TaviaRS - 12/12/2001 9:05:37 AM]

Gary Foster

I have a Fisher Fury Fireblade, similar thing but with a properly designed chassis

Don't listen to anyone who says they haven't got any torque, you
can't pull away etc it's just not true. The gearing is very low in these cars and they are very light so Torque at the wheels / Ton
is substantially higher than your average Mundanovectra.

Pulling away isn't really a problem, I only stalled it once on my
first drive out of a total of 9 or 10 pullaways. If you've riden a bike you'll know all about slipping the clutch (wet clutch) whilst pulling of. It's really not as bad as the magazines make out.

That said, IMO these are not road cars. Mine is terrifying on bumpy wet road, wheel spinning happens lots in the first 2 or 3 gears (too light for wet weather). On a dry sprint track they are incomparable to Tin Tops. Lots of Sideways G's happening

Ps my Fireblade is fast (280Bhp / Ton and feels it) but the Busa is in another league of terrifying, as someone pointed out these cars are not nice and easy to drive fast like a Scoob. I get overtaken by anything in the wet / bumpy.

Gary

Warped Chris

Gary,

Did you build the Fury yourself? I've had a poke round the websites looking at a 7 a like with decent aerodynamics and the Fury looks like it could be a winner.... especially with a Blackbird or Hyabusa engine in it

What have you done about a reverse gear, or have you just not bothered?

Chris

Gary Foster

Chris

Anything Based on the Sylva chassis has to be a good thing (in the
last 10 years, 8 championship wins in the 750mc were in a Sylva
chassied car), and the Fury / Sylva Striker (according to the
Sylva website) get a 15mph advantage top end over the
equivalent 7.

I didn't build mine, and if I was to build my own It would be a Westfield. Where Westfield win is the easy of construction, quality of documentation and the modular build concept (ie every nut bolt and screw comes with it). The 'build your own car with nothing more than a halford socket set' philosohpy seems to be true for Westies at least.

However, you pay a hell of a lot of money for the convenience (though they depreciate less) and if I it wasn't my first build I would be looking at Sylva Striker / Fisher Fury etc

Cheeky Jim

On another note,

Another good friend of mine is builing a Sylva Fury, with a TVR tweaked V8. Sylva actually redesigned the front engine mounts on his behalf as they hadn't fitted a V8 to the Fury before (or so he tells me!)

He previously owned one of the 750 championship winning cars, it was a Sylva Striker (Westfield/Caterham lookalike) with a mildly breathed on Rover V8 (about 250BHP). That went like **** off the proverbial stick. It was quite possibly the fastest car I have ever travelled in. We timed the 0-60mph with a g-meter at 3.4 seconds. Wheelspin in every gear....thoroughly good fun!

Jamie

Toerag

Someone over here has a Fiat 126(!) with a kawasaki turbo engine in it (1100 or 1200 I can't remember) and it is totally bonkers. I think it does our local sprint course (1/4 mile on gently curving public road) in sub 14 seconds if I remember rightly. I guess a westfield or similar would be quicker due to better traction and aerodynamics.
Now, hasn't someone turboed the busa engine...........

Or how about one of those Tiger jobbies with 2 blade engines? Aren't they making one with 2 busa engines or similar to break the world 0-60 record?

SteveF

Dax are the people who make the really mental Hayabusa turbo Dax Rush (a 7 type car) - with 350 bhp, they also do the 'Rush Quadra' which is based on Cossie 4x4 mechanicals - I think this is the one that holds the 0 - 100mph - 0 record at about 12 seconds

Sounds like fun!

Steve

GaryC

I have a Megablade Awesome car, without doubt the maddest, fastest and best thing I have driven let alone owned. Takes some getting used to, a quick drive in that and you realise how flattering the Impreza is to the driver, a wesite/cat takes SO much more skill, but nothing can touch them for bang-per-buck, in fact, performance wise nothing much with 4 wheels can touch them at all

The Megabusa has 40bhp more, giving it approx 30% more power EVO did rate the Caterham (James Whiting) Fireblade better, but the article was written by someone from the Caterham Fraternity (Comittee member of the Lotus7 (Caterham) Club to whom Westifield is a swear word I looked at both, but Caterham wanted approx £7000 more than I paid for my Westie for a lesser spec car

Oh, and anyone thats think a scooby with airfilter and exhaust could beat a megablade has obviously not been in one

My MY99,PPP,DP,IK,ETC was producing 289bhp, giving it approx 225bhp per tonne, my 'blade has approx 330bhp/tonne A Lamorghini Diablo has about 320bhp/tonne

Even with the disadvantage of RWD against AWD, far more difficult set-off (the 'blade has a tiny bike clutch) and very peaky performance (peak power at 10700rpm, redline at 12,000, engine 'dead' below 6/7000rom ) the Westie pips just about any Scooby to 60 (mine does 4.1) then just screams away

....But then if all you buy a car for is to test its 0-60 or 1/4 mile time, buy a Cosworth


Scream if you want to go faster

Dizzy

ok terrifyingly tempted to trade my crossflow in for one wonder how much I'd get for it....

how much is the Westi Busa now?

Have you seen the latest roadgoing (ultima style) westi in CCC? that looks pretty sweet