Want to add a little Sport into your Toad but on a budget, lookie here!!

[Neweller]

I plan on building one of these cars from a company called Factory Five Racing started and owned by a great fella named Dave Smith. I have had hands on with several projects from this company over the years and it all started with the acquiring of a second hand unfinished Cobra kit. Since the company started about 17 years ago, it has increased its choice of offerings to include this super cool soon to be released Project 818 that will utilize a Subaru WRX donor. I have a stored Donor car waiting to be dismantled, I bought recently for about $4000 because it was damaged. The cost of the kit will be right at $10,000 and then I will marry all the pieces together and have something pictured below. Factory Five Racing, ensures a flawless paint free body which will save a ton of time and money. This company builds first class components and I believe them when they say don't worry about the paint. I might have a total of $16-17k in the car finished but I will be ready to give Larry Brachfeld's Mini Cooper a run for his money! Sorry Larry, I couldn't resist.rollinglolOr a group of us could get together and buy the racing version kits like the blue one over at the factory link here: http://www.factoryfive.com/kits/project-818/ and start a Newell Owners Racing Club!

By the way, this is a mid-engine that will surely give Porsche Boxsters a run for their money!!!!!! You know twin turbos and so on.......Do I have to say anymore??

[Neweller]

Here is an update on the Project 818 due for production in June 2013. I still have my sights on building one of these.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=lGLX4HpMZsA

[rellick]

Sweet!! that would be a fun build Ken!:thumbup:

[PIExpress]

I'd be interested in a turn key version this way all I need is a key and put the pedal to the medal.

[smagown]

Will it have airbags?

[Neweller]

Steve, would you want airbags? I suppose you could have them if so desired. This would be totally up to the owner and if he wanted to make an airbag system work.

If an individual so desired to add airbags, he would have to do this after all the physical properties of this particular vehicle are completely modeled, a firing algorithm can then be developed for the airbag system. This algorithm would decide when to fire the bags based on things like how fast you are going and the direction from which the impact comes. On average, a driver's side airbag, from the time of the current pulse to firing of the initiator, to bursting through the steering wheel cover, to fully inflating, to the internal bag pressure returning to less than 80% of max pressure, is about 40 Milli-seconds.

Something to remember, airbag effectiveness is diminished as vehicle speeds exceed about 50 - 60 MPH. Ever notice how all the top tier race leagues use a combination of energy ablative/absorption and driver restraint techniques?

I Myself in a vehicle like this, prefer the best available restraints for the application.

https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/818chassis-694x413.jpg

[jWolfe]

Sweet. I would be interested Ken those are little bad boys toys.

[bigcatwally]

I'm into classic cars but now you've got my attention. Let's hook it up! :thumbup:

[Neweller]

This is the latest update as of this week on the Factory Five Racing or FFR Project 818. I have my pre-order in and I'm excited about building this car. Something to break up the monotony of this lousy weather going on for now over 5 months. Actually it's probably only wishful thinking since guess I won't have this kit until probably summer. The kit that I will be building is the "S" model for street and not this "R" Racing version shown below. Wish me luck!

Project 818 - Project 818 Update #6



4005
As of yesterday, we have received 222 orders for the 818 sports car! The S-model (street) has 184 pre-orders and the R-model (race-competition) has 38 pre-orders. Current production plans call for the S-model to enter production first, with the very first kit shipping to Grassroots Motorsports Magazine on June 15th, which is our Open House here at Factory Five.


This month, we are ending April with more testing on the track. Jim and his crew are down in North Carolina with the boys from KONI Shocks getting final valving and shock testing completed for both S and R models. We should have performance testing completed by the first week in May. One of the biggest differences from many of the kits we’ve developed over the years has been the degree to which we’ve asked for, and received help from partner companies. I cannot say enough good about the crew from KONI, but they’re not the only ones. Hewlett Packard and SolidWorks Software, Wilwood Brakes, Toyo Tires, Sherwin Williams Finishes, AJW, SMG Motoring, the Factory Five community, and Grassroots Motorsports Magazine are among the development partners that have made this car so good.


Production tooling is also on target with molds being in their 3rd generation and the main chassis jig nearly complete. We’ve scheduled the month of May for the completion of our third street car and completion of our 818 assembly manual. A lot of people have asked about whether we would have an 818 at either Huntington Beach or Carlisle Replica Nationals. Huntington Beach is out since both cars are undergoing track testing, but we are planning on bringing an 818 to the Carlisle show in May.


Big plans are in store for our summer Open House, where we will be showing (and shipping) 818S kit number 001 to Tim Suddard and his crew at Grassroots Motorsports Magazine. We will also have a street car and race car on display for people to sit in and check out. Since there are a good number of orders already scheduled, we are transitioning from design/development to a careful and planned production ramp up.


Look for a comprehensive evaluation of the 818 in a major magazine soon. The test results were exciting and we can only report that the car ran under 4.0 seconds to 60 MPH and performed above all of our expectations. The car was tested by a top tier magazine and the communication I got from the editor after he drove the car at full-tilt was this:

“$#!* that car’s a rocket! It’s like driving a mini can-am car. Job well done!”

That was a private note to me but knowing the source it speaks volumes about the competence of the design, and its extremely satisfying after all of the work we’ve done on the chassis and suspension to get that kind of feedback from an experienced driver/editor.


I’ll continue to communicate as we are now less than 8 weeks away from the production launch of the next great Factory Five.
https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/dts.png
Dave Smith
President

[Neweller]

The fact that FFR has worked through three generations of panels speaks volumes about the team’s commitment to paint-free, perfect fit composite panels.

[stewart33]

Nice! :love:

That's me ^ Just dreaming...

[Neweller]

Looks like I have to wait a while to receive my project 818 from FFR. I guess I was dreaming about getting to build it this summer. The fall will be the soonest or at the latest next spring, that's how many orders they have ahead of mine on this. I will know within a couple of weeks a better time frame. I was really hoping to build one and if it worked out I want to build additional for another market. Oh well, I'll just keep dreaming for now. Maybe it's a sign to get a shop built for use stateside and maybe refurbish Newell's or something.....

Here's a SEMA video of the Factory Five owner and his main design/build engineer;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=1voMV-W6ztw

[larryweikart]

41284127I've got a great, fully equipped Race shop, fenced in around 3 acres. with a loft bedroom, all very new, in Pahrump, Nv. which you can lease for next to nothing Ken. Great year around climate and low cost of living are pluses!

[Neweller]

That's looks like a really cool set-up Larry. I sure like those professional tools on four wheels too. You are sure good at teasing a poor fella. What size is that place? Heck, I would have to start building the 818 Race versions out there. Maybe sell them as turnkey race cars or something?

[larryweikart]

It's 50X80 Ken, and would be perfect for building cars. There's a great race track there for testing those little rascals before shipping to the new owner.

[rellick]

Sounds like a great place Larry, will a Newell fit in there? Ken this looks like a great opportunity! I'd be jumping up and down like a kid in a candy store!!

[Neweller]

Keith, you know it! I would say I'm definitely enticed. Nothing like Newell and Fast Car Dreams! I could then pull those Snap-On boxes out of mothballs which I was actually thinking of just selling. I was wondering the same about how well a Newell would fit in there?

Tell me if this isn't a sexy little machine right here: https://www.factoryfive.com/galleries/project-818/

Then click on the following link and check out the slide show: Project 818 Development Archives 2

https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/FFR-818-front-view-150x100.jpg

Photographs of 818S and 818R during molding, prototyping, and developmental engineering. …

[rellick]

Those are sweet Ken, I love building things like that

[NewellCrazy]

Larry, Do the cars come with the building rental :thumbsup: 4141

[larryweikart]

41514152Cars do not come with the building, but I do! I would love to help build a beauty like that, the building has 16' overhead doors on both ends and you can pull a semi/trailer in and close it up. It has swamp coolers which actually cools it very well. Surprisingly there are a number of car collectors in Pahrump. Here's a couple more pics to keep Ken pondering his next move!

[rellick]

Larry, do you have a welder in there? And maybe a lathe and milling machine? I'd love to come down there and help build some bad a$$ cars and coaches!!

[Neweller]

https://www.factoryfive.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/IMG_8603.jpg
Factory Fives are not like any other kit cars in that they DRIVE and RACE their designs. The 818R is about to go up against the fastest open track cars in the country at the annual Ultimate Track Challenge sponsored by Grassroots Motorsports Magazine, July 19-21!

Larry, that is a darn interesting offer.

Keith, are you itching to machine some components? Can you machine close ratio gear sets?

[rellick]

Haven't worked in a gear shop for about 15 years Ken, but with the right tooling anything is possible! What kind of ratio are you talking? Probably wouldn't be practical to tool up for a couple of sets but I do still have friends at the gear shop, they would need to be spiral bevel heat treated gears, there is quite a science to building them. Send me some info and I could get a qoute on some.

[larryweikart]

41564157Well, you car guys need to go out and take a good look at this place, you might be surprised! The shop is pretty well equipped including a welder, Drill press, metal lathe, etc.

[Neweller]

Haven't worked in a gear shop for about 15 years Ken, but with the right tooling anything is possible! What kind of ratio are you talking? Probably wouldn't be practical to tool up for a couple of sets but I do still have friends at the gear shop, they would need to be spiral bevel heat treated gears, there is quite a science to building them. Send me some info and I could get a qoute on some.

Gear sets like this Keith. There are lots of things you could machine to save thousands or to make thousands.

4158

Keith it does look like there is a mill behind some of that equipment Larry is picturing. It might be a Bridgeport?

[rellick]

Hey Nice shop!!Yes that does look like a bridgeport or maybe a summit. Those look like helical transmission gears, can you get any specs on them? and or a set to measure up? Would have to get ahold of a rotory indexing head and the right cutter. They would still have to be heat treated and precision ground after they're cut, but possible.

[Neweller]

You down there now Larry? I sent you a PM.

Keith, yeah those are Subi close ratio trans gears. They run around $2300 WD a set. These particular ones come out of Japan.

[rellick]

Are they stock ratios? building gear drives is one of those things, either you get into the big leagues or its not practical to do it, they use very specialized tooling, there is a different cutter for every diametral pitch or tooth shape. gears like this need to be carborized after rough machining then hardened, after that tempered, this takes a very controlled heat and atmosphere. Then precision ground. This gives the gear a very hard tooth surface so it doesnt wear out but still leaving a softer tough inner tooth. There really is alot more to it than meets the eye. Gears can be cut on a conventional mill but not for this application. We could get some engineered drawings and cnc programs made up and get some quotes. Quantity is where it would be practical.

[larryweikart]

41604159No Ken, I'm in Michigan getting ready to go to France for the 24hr DuMans. I don't find a PM from you. By the way some of that equipment in the shop belongs to our friend who was chief mechanic on the White Lighting ALMS championship team, and who also designed and built all of the Herbie Love Bugs. He might be interested in building something. There are also 2 very large shipping containers located outside for parts storage. You can see them behind the van, By the way, look at this beautiful sunset outside of the shop, nice to look at after a hard day building a handsome car.

[Neweller]

Keith, I figured it would take a much more in-depth setup to make those kind of gears. That is why I always paid the piper for the hard goods. The closet thing I've been to a machine shop was high schoool and back in the eighties I invested in an automotive machine shop with a friend who now builds Sprint and some Nascar Tour engines. I did spend a little time using a a headshop, Sunnen CK-10 and Sioux Valve Grinder. It was fun but tough times in a suckie economy.

Larry, I realize why you don't get my PM's, I have been sending them to your old name we set up for you a long time ago for migrating the old Newell Coach Techtalk. I have probably done that with others. I should migrate those names for you. I'll send you another to the right name.