Locost
Encyclopedia
Lotus Seven
The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight two-seater open-top sports car produced by Lotus Cars between 1957 and 1972....
. The car features a space frame
Space frame
A space frame or space structure is a truss-like, lightweight rigid structure constructed from interlocking struts in a geometric pattern. Space frames can be used to span large areas with few interior supports...
chassis
Chassis
A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...
usually welded together from mild steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
1 by 1 in (25.4 by 25.4 mm) square tubing. Front suspension is usually double wishbone with coil overs. The rear is traditionally live axle
Live axle
A live axle, sometimes called a solid axle, is a type of beam axle suspension system that uses the driveshafts that transmit power to the wheels to connect the wheels laterally so that they move together as a unit....
, but has many variants including independent rear suspension or De Dion tube
De Dion tube
A de Dion tube is an automobile suspension technology. It is a sophisticated form of non-independent suspension and is a considerable improvement over the alternative swing axle and Hotchkiss drive types. A de Dion suspension uses universal joints at both the wheel hubs and differential, and uses a...
. Body panels are usually fiberglass
Fiberglass
Glass fiber is a material consisting of numerous extremely fine fibers of glass.Glassmakers throughout history have experimented with glass fibers, but mass manufacture of glass fiber was only made possible with the invention of finer machine tooling...
nose and wings and aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
side panels. Each car is highly individualized according to the resources, needs and desires of each respective builder.
The original design was intended to be built from scratch. However, the design has become so popular that several fabricators have begun producing the chassis in kit car
Kit car
A kit car, also known as a "component car", is an automobile that is available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then either assembles into a car themselves, or retains a third party to do part or all of the work on their behalf...
form. Additionally, fiberglass body components, suspension pieces and other Locost-specific components can be sourced from various suppliers.
Ron Champion's Locost
The Locost pattern originated in the mid 90s,and then with the publishing by Haynes Manuals of the book Build your own sports car for as little as £250 by Ron Champion (ISBN 1-85960-636-9). This design was based heavily on the original Lotus Seven. It also used a live axle rear suspension. The De Dion tube setup was used in factory racers and some of the models offered by Caterham.Both Colin Chapman
Colin Chapman
Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman CBE was an influential British designer, inventor, and builder in the automotive industry, and founder of Lotus Cars....
and Ron Champion have a background in the 750 Motor Club
750 Motor Club
750 Motor Club is an auto racing club in the UK. It was founded in 1939 and was originally for Austin 7 fans . It later led to racing and the 750 Formula where specials were raced...
and the design of the Locost is based on a Clubman's Race Car designed and built by Ron Champion in 1963. The rear is of course "inspired by" Lotus 7.
Haynes Roadster
Ron Champion's original book was followed up with Build Your Own Sports Car: On a Budget (ISBN 1-84425-391-0) by Chris Gibbs. The subject car differs most significantly from the original in that it has an independent rear suspension. Additionally, the car was designed using CAD softwareComputer-aided design
Computer-aided design , also known as computer-aided design and drafting , is the use of computer technology for the process of design and design-documentation. Computer Aided Drafting describes the process of drafting with a computer...
, eliminating the measurement errors inherent to the original design. Other additions to the original Locost design include information for fabricating a rollbar and advice on using engines with Fuel Injection
Fuel injection
Fuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
.
The suggested donor car is a Ford Sierra
Ford Sierra
The Ford Sierra is a large family car that was built by Ford Europe from 1982 until 1993. It was designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément. The code used during development was "Project Toni"....
. The book contains alternative suggestions for incorporating other donors including a BMW E36
BMW E36
The BMW E36 is the third generation of the 3 Series compact executive cars produced by BMW. It was introduced in late 1990 for Europe and in late 1991 for US and Canada. It was the successor to the E30 3 Series and was eventually replaced by the E90 3 Series in 2005, though E36 coupes were still...
, Mazda MX-5
Mazda MX-5
The MX-5, also known as Miata in North America and Eunos Roadster in Japan, is a lightweight two-seater roadster, of front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout, built by Mazda in Hiroshima, Japan. The model was introduced in 1989 at the Chicago Auto Show...
and also motorcycle engines.
Roadsters are becoming an increasingly popular choice over the Locost due to the more plentiful donors and the more advanced suspension. Approximately 10 (as of April 2010) cars have been completed and passed by their countries government for use on the road. In the UK this entails an IVA test and registration with the DVLA.
Other Variations
The Locost is not to be confused with the similarly named LocustLocust (car)
Locust is a kit car inspired by the Lotus 7.The Locust Seven differs from most other Lotus / kit cars in that it does not use a space frame chassis, but a ladder frame and a body constructed from three 8ft by 4ft sheets of 3/4" thick exterior grade or marine plywood alternatively MDF sheets...
which is also a Lotus Seven inspired car. In contrast to the Locost's space frame
Space frame
A space frame or space structure is a truss-like, lightweight rigid structure constructed from interlocking struts in a geometric pattern. Space frames can be used to span large areas with few interior supports...
inspired chassis
Chassis
A chassis consists of an internal framework that supports a man-made object. It is analogous to an animal's skeleton. An example of a chassis is the underpart of a motor vehicle, consisting of the frame with the wheels and machinery.- Vehicles :In the case of vehicles, the term chassis means the...
, the Locust uses a ladder chassis and a body constructed from plywood
Plywood
Plywood is a type of manufactured timber made from thin sheets of wood veneer. It is one of the most widely used wood products. It is flexible, inexpensive, workable, re-usable, and can usually be locally manufactured...
skinned with aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
.
McSorley Locost
The Champion Locost and the Haynes Roadster share similar chassis dimensions to the original Lotus Seven. Locost Builder Jim McSorley revised the Ron Champion design in order to accommodate wider engines, rear axles, and seats. In particular, the McSorley 442 design was referenced by Car and Driver Magazine in August 2006."Australian Modifications"
In AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, kit cars must pass structural testing for certification for road use. This has led to a series of improvements to the Champion design, including increased reinforcement at the nose of the chassis and around the occupants. These modifications also increase the stiffness and torsional rigidity of the chassis and have been adopted in Locosts in other countries.
Various projects have analyzed the strength of the Locost Chassis under Finite Element Analysis for interest's sake. The FEA is known to show the original Locost's design to be slightly under engineered.
Cost of Construction
While the title of Ron Champion's book claims to offer a means to build a car for £250, most Locosts are usually as much as ten times that cost or more.The £250 figure does not include the cost of tools, which can equal or exceed the cost of the car. The book also is based on purchasing a Mk1 or Mk2 Ford Escort that has been rejected for road use by the British MOT
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
. At the time of printing, Champion claimed said cars could be purchased for £50. Rear wheel drive Escorts are now hard to find due to their becoming a classic car in their own right, continued use in Rallying and increased interest from collectors.
The book gives some hints and tips on how to cut the costs for the build:
- Build the chassis from scrap metal instead of buying new
- Make your own fibreglass nose cone and wheel arches instead of buying them
- Use the rear seat from the donor or one from the junkyard instead of buying new race seats
- Use the donor gauges, steering wheel and rims instead of buying new
- Buy wrongly mixed paint at a discount and paint the car yourself
- Find some aluminium sheet metal at the scrapper(for instance from the side of a van) to use for the bonnet
Some builders have come up with additional cost saving tips:
- Use the sheet metal roof of the donor for the bottom of the chassis instead of buying new sheet metal
- Use the fuel tank from a Saab 96Saab 96For the modern car, see Saab 9-6The Saab 96 is an automobile made by Saab. It was introduced in 1960 and was produced until January 1980, a run of 20 years. Like the 93 it replaced, the 96 was a development from the old Saab 92 chassis and, on account of its improvements and modernisation, it...
or Triumph SpitfireTriumph SpitfireThe Triumph Spitfire is a small English two-seat sports car, introduced at the London Motor Show in 1962. The vehicle was based on a design produced for Standard-Triumph in 1957 by Italian designer Giovanni Michelotti... - Use the headlights and chrome rims from an older Volvo 240 and an 8 inch stainless steel salad bowl from IKEAIKEAIKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
to make the headlights - Make your own coilovers using Mini shocks and springs.
Even at ten times the £250, Locosts frequently cost far less than a car of similar performance.
Common Donor Vehicles
The car described in the Champion book is built using parts from a Mk1 or Mk2 Ford Escort with front spindles from Ford CortinaFord Cortina
As the 1960s dawned, BMC were revelling in the success of their new Mini – the first successful true minicar to be built in Britain in the postwar era...
. Due to the dwindling supply of Escorts, the Haynes Roadster is based on mechanicals from the Ford Sierra
Ford Sierra
The Ford Sierra is a large family car that was built by Ford Europe from 1982 until 1993. It was designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément. The code used during development was "Project Toni"....
. Some use small car based trucks as donors such as the Mitsubishi L300, Mazda E1800 (same gearbox as the MX5) and Suzuki Carry
Suzuki Carry
The Suzuki Carry is a kei truck produced by the Japanese automaker Suzuki. The microvan version was originally called the Carry van until 1982 when the van was renamed as the '...
(aka Bedford Rascal, Vauxhall Rascal, Holden Scurry, Chevrolet Supercarry and Maruti Omni).
In North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, the Toyota Corolla
Toyota Corolla
The Toyota Corolla is a line of subcompact and compact cars manufactured by the Japanese automaker Toyota, which has become very popular throughout the world since the nameplate was first introduced in 1966. In 1997, the Corolla became the best selling nameplate in the world, with over 35 million...
and Mazda Miata are popular donor cars. The Wankel engine-based Mazda RX-7
Mazda RX-7
Series 1 is commonly referred to as the "SA22C" from the first alphanumerics of the vehicle identification number. This series of RX-7 had exposed steel bumpers and a high-mounted indentation-located license plate, called by Werner Buhrer of Road & Track magazine a "Baroque depression."In 1980...
is also starting to become popular.
Many different companies make and sell parts and complete kits for building the car. Examples include MK Engineering (who have continued on the concept and now offer their MK Indy
MK Indy
The MK Indy is a Lotus 7 replica based on the Locost principle, built by MK Sportscars in Maltby, Rotherham. The Indy has an independent rear suspension using the differential and drive shafts from a Ford Sierra. It uses many other components from the Sierra, including front hubs and steering rack...
, based on the Ford Sierra
Ford Sierra
The Ford Sierra is a large family car that was built by Ford Europe from 1982 until 1993. It was designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément. The code used during development was "Project Toni"....
), RaceTech
RaceTech
RaceTech is a company in Estonia that makes karts, the Lotus 7 clone ESTfield and GTest, a two seated, mid-engined sports car kit modelled on the Ford GT40....
with their Lada
Lada
Lada is a trademark of AvtoVAZ, a Russian car manufacturer in Tolyatti, Samara Oblast. All AvtoVAZ vehicles are currently sold under the Lada brand, though this was not always so; Lada was originally AvtoVAZ's export brand for models it sold under the Zhiguli name in the domestic Soviet market...
based ESTfield
ESTfield
ESTfield is a Lotus Seven-style car manufactured by RaceTech in Estonia either as a kit car or in key ready form. The design is basically a Locost that has been adapted to take Lada parts instead of the Ford Escort of the original Locost...
, DD7 in Umeå
Umeå
- Transport :The road infrastructure in Umeå is well-developed, with two European highways passing through the city. About 4 km from the city centre is the Umeå City Airport...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and many more.
Racing
While locost racing is not as popular in North America, Locosts are eligible to compete in several amateur racing formats under many governing bodies such as the SCCA and NASA
National Auto Sport Association
The National Auto Sport Association is an American motorsports organization promoting road racing and high-performance driver education....
. Grassroots Motorsports
Grassroots Motorsports
Grassroots Motorsports is an American periodical devoted to low-cost performance cars, driving skill improvement, and amateur motorsports such as road racing, autocross and rallying. It was established in 1984 and is published eight times a year...
' $200X Challenge has a special category for Locosts and other kit cars.