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Post by jake on May 4, 2017 20:31:50 GMT
The Rocket is rear engine rear wheel drive. It is a good car and I do enjoy driving it mainly on a tracks. However if I could do it again I would build an Exocet. I think the Rocket is a better looking car than the Exocet but there are just too many variables in the build and setup. The MX5 is a tried and tested platform with good steering and geometry and has always been well known for being a great drivers car with super handling. You're removing a big lump of weight so it can only get better and there's lots of tuning options likes turbos.
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Post by jake on May 4, 2017 18:16:03 GMT
Hi Craig welcome to the forum. Sounds like you've got a good plan. I've got a Rocket so probably not the best person to answer the technical questions. I am just down the road a few miles north of Newbury on the A34.
Jake
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Post by jake on Apr 25, 2017 10:05:04 GMT
That looks good fun. Like you said not very forgiving roads if you get it wrong. Would take some big ones to push hard. Good on you for having a go. Beautiful scenery similar to the British country side only a lot warmer 😂
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Post by jake on Apr 23, 2017 19:47:14 GMT
Excellent day at Gurston Down. Good to meet fellow MEV owners Pete and Richard. Great driving Richard.
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Post by jake on Apr 17, 2017 18:21:12 GMT
Ha ha not that rare then.....
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Post by jake on Apr 17, 2017 9:47:01 GMT
No I've not ever seen it in the flesh. I found it online a while ago whilst googling Rocket images. I really wanted to get my hands on a powerworks kit but they are very rare. You've got yourself a rare thing there well done. I did manage to get my hands on a Jackson racing supercharger and that's now work in progress. There is another Rocket out there with the powerworks kit on an ST170 engine, I think it was Ades build. It was for sale recently.
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Post by jake on Apr 14, 2017 15:25:55 GMT
Is that the Rocket with the powerworks kit?
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Post by jake on Apr 8, 2017 12:25:27 GMT
The valve cover gasket was won't have any affect on the compression, it'll only give you an oil leak. Mmm yes check the timing. Easy now you've got the cover off. The biggest Timing pin is the one you want and the long plate. Turn the crank over until you're just before the 2nd timing mark on the front pulley. There's a marker on the oil pump. Screw in the pin and turn crank until it's clonks against the pin. The plate should tap into the ends of the cams without too much force. You may be 180 degrees out at the top in which case turn the crank over another turn and try again.
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Post by jake on Apr 6, 2017 19:42:16 GMT
I'll try and make that date too, Gurston Down is great.
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Post by jake on Apr 5, 2017 14:00:34 GMT
On the front of my rocket I have a full size (not square) stick on plate. It's just below the bonnet grill at the widest point before it starts to narrow again. See my profile picture. The number plate was a bit too wide so I trimmed the sides a bit so it fitted nicely. All that's important is the letter size and the spacing are correct so if there's excess at the edges to the letters I don't see why you can't remove it whilst still leaving an even border. I've just done the same with a rear plate which is a square full size plate. (No engine cover) I've carefully taken 15mm off each side with a jigsaw and then sanded smooth again. It's still big but looks a little bit better . The way I see it the average police officer won't know what's right or wrong with regards to the way a kit car is built i.e. Iva but they will know if they think your number plates too small. The next thing they're having a good look round it maybe looking for other things......" should this have a cat ? etc.....then you're off to the local MOT station with a producer. My view is try not to give them an excuse to pull you over and potentially find other things. I suppose you might just get pulled over because they're a car enthusiast and just interested in the car but that wouldn't be so bad.
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Post by jake on Mar 15, 2017 9:57:52 GMT
My chassis came from RTR without a chassis VIN let alone an allocated VIN on an invoice. Having never built a kit car before I wasn't familiar with the whole process, so you put trust in the "reputable" company you're buying it from and assume thats correct and how it's done. At the time I was building my Rocket chassis numbers were quite a hot topic on the forum and it appeared that a lot of people were in the same boat, and having to seam weld a plate or stamp into their nicely powder coated chassis. So it appears this wasn't a problem with only a few. I have bought many cars through the years and know to check the VIN plate, the visible VIN , and Chassis stamp against the logbook however I don't think building your first kit car is comparable. For convenience my car went back to RTR for IVA and registration so it obviously wasn't a problem for them and I ended up with a chassis stamp through the powder coat. It wasn't without its problems and I wrote a list as long as my arm with things they'd left off or damaged. Let's just say I didn't get the Mabbs treatment but that's another rant for another thread. I'm not bitter
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Post by jake on Mar 2, 2017 7:56:05 GMT
Today I took the car to have a dyno test. Turns out I have 120 ponies at the wheels, less than the 135 I was expecting, I had got 135whp in my head as a realistic figure from the 150bhp that RTR claimed (and still do claim) the Zetec 2.0 produces. However it turns out the 2.0 produces only 130 to 135bhp so 120whp seems quite reasonable, (I don't have a cat) the dyno was hub mount rather than a wheel driven so the figures should be pretty reliable. I never had anything done to the tuning though as it found that the engine is running too lean and it is better to get that sorted first, going to check the cleanliness of the fuel filters and have the injectors cleaned then look at a revisit although the cost of that my not stack up without perhaps making a change that demands a retune. Also had the cat weighed, never done that before but it is a question that often gets asked so on the way home I called in at the refuse weigh station. With the roll cage on, myself and some junk (laptop and bits n bobs) we weighed in at 720kg. Taking myself and the junk out brings it down to 625kg. I figure the roll cage weighs around 30kg (will have to check that next time it is off) this brings the car to 590kg wet. I was under the impression it would be around 550kg but I think that might have been the weight of Mabbs car and I know I was going to be heavier. Anyone care to comment on that figure please? Another thing that comes out of the dyno figures and weight measurement is that the figures I have been recording for 0-60 aqnd 1/8 mile test are actually more in line with suggested figures from online calculators. Whilst there are differences in theoretical performance calculations it still brings me closer to those figures when I put a lower power / heavier weight car in! My car weighed in at 580 kg, that was with about half a tank of fuel and no driver. Sounds like yours is about same without the roll cage.
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Post by jake on Feb 8, 2017 17:58:00 GMT
I'm with you on that one I live in the sticks too and have grounded out the rocket a few times on the lanes. It's not really a daily driver and it's really more for track days now where it's flat and smooth. For what you're after then the Exocet off road would tick all the boxes ( if you' want to build another car that is? ) I wonder if they'll export to the uk. Last year I bought a cheap MK1 Toyota Rav 4 for a winter nag. I was so impressed with its capabilities it got me thinking it would make a good off road buggy kit. If you could put all the running gear in an Exocet type chassis I think it would be brilliant off-road. They're permanent four wheel drive with drive shafts not solid axles so not heavy, front diff lock, coils all round, good ground clearance and 2.0 petrol engine which I've got a feeling is the same as the MR2 engine so I imagine good scope for modifications. They're very cheap to buy now......mmm
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Post by jake on Feb 8, 2017 13:31:58 GMT
I guess there is a bit of a trade off with rear engine rear wheel drive, but once you get the feel of it you learn to steer a bit with the rear when sliding around off road. This does look like a good product for what it's designed for. Ideal for rally cross and flat track racing where I bet it's got great control, but for me personally If I get an off roader I want it to be able to go up vertical banks and through quagmires, so overall grip and drive is paramount. Different strokes for different folks.
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Post by jake on Feb 7, 2017 13:09:07 GMT
I wonder what this would be like in some real mud and trying to get up some steep slippery inclines, with front engine and rear wheel drive? I used to have a UVA fugitive copy with a modded beetle engine in the rear. With all the weight over the driving wheels the grip and drive was phenomenal. It would go up any slope that the most modded 4x4 could go up.
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