Mid Engine Single Seater

Mid engine, single seat vehicle.

Built from scratch. (not a Kit)

How this car came to be:
Three years ago my wife left Des Moines for Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She was driving a 1994 Chrysler LHS. She had her trusty cell phone and she had triple "A" (gold) with 100 mile towing. There was only one slight problem, there was a slight water leak in the cooling system. My twin sons were riding with her. They were eleven. My sons told me the story. According to them trouble started about twenty miles from Des Moines. That's when the red dash lights and bells started. She answered those warnings by pressing down harder on the accelerator. Later the car answered back with a loud knocking sound. She stomped harder on the gas.

"Half a league half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred:
'Forward, the Light Brigade!"

Then the knocking sound and the vibration seemed to double. "It sounded like two drummers having a drum battle" according to one of my sons. I noticed a sort of glazed look in the eye of my other son. He said there was a lot of smoke coming out the back of the car.

"Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do & die,
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred. "

I asked my wife why she didn't use the cell phone and triple "A" gold towing option. It seems that because we had all been to her sister-in-laws funeral the day before, she just knew that the dead woman's spirit would get her through this difficulty. So she just gave it a little more gas and pressed on.

"Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd & thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred. "

Finally, they did get the Cedar. But the car didnt quite make it all the way home. When the little lady slowed to leave the interstate at the Cedar exit, the car died and could t get up.

"When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wonder'd.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred! "

I found that I could sell the car to the junk yard for $150. Repair it, or get really upset about it. So I repaired it. While repairing the engine I found that it had a single overhead cam with roller rocker bearings, four valves per cylinder, and hemispherical combustion chambers. Also it had a very short transaxle and the engine was positioned for to aft, not side to side. I was going to just put the car back together (I really was) but with the engine / transaxle sitting on the floor I realized that I was looking at something very similar to a formula 1 power plant. That's when I decided to design and build a mid-engine, single-seater. It's a work in progress and probably always will be. It has been fun to design and build, and even more fun to drive
(I would imagine).

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• mid engine
• midengine
• mid-engine
• mid-engined
• single seat
• single-seat
• single-seater
• car
• vehicle
• home-built
• home built
• kit car
• kit-car
• built from scratch
• original design

[c4ndysuxx]

Good luck with the project my friend. It's difficult when you're designing and building from scratch huh. It will all be worth it when yours id the only one like it though. Looking good!

[1skybolt]

Thanks for the encouragement. I have had it inspected and is now legal in all 50 states.. It is realy lots of fun to drive and handles like a gocart with suspension. The mid engine 6 really moves it. I am trying to find time to get an actual video of it. Maybe i'll take one from the driver's seat.

Thanks again,

Ron

harris

[1skybolt]

video comming soon - the car should be legal in a week or two.

[RayitosolarBIN]

Bery good, muy bueno...saludos...

[JasonWW2000]

Nice concept. Did you know about the Formula 1 Street company? They make midengine cars using this same engine/trans combo.

Do you have any pics online, or a website? I'd sure like to see how this came together.

[Bamfmg1]

I really like your concept, and would like to hear more about it. I'm sure you have a lot of blood sweat, and tears invested. Guys like you is what made this country great, and here in Florida we don't have quite the restrictions that other states do.

[martrg]

Did you ever get a vid of it moving?

How about a supercharger/twin turbo setup for it?

And yes I know I'm just putting more ideas, like you said, it should be a work in progress for a while. haha

[STINKYbongWATER4207]

cant wait to see a video of it moving. looks like a fun build, and an even more fun ride. sweet design. looks like you were able to use a lot off the origional car. good cost effective approach. nice metal work. all around sweet ride, and no wife in the passenger seat to tell you "slow down, youre driving like an ass." good idea