CHEW OVER THIS GUM
May 18th
Like a puncture, a hole in your exhaust can occur very unexpectedly and are just as annoying. Some people make the mistake of seeing a small hole and leaving it, but they can grow quickly and before you know it can develop into a big problem.
The resulting errant fumes can mess up emissions and cause possible other damage to your car, but replacing a back-box or complete exhaust system can be costly. It usually happens to me when I have a couple of car taxes to pay for or have another big bill due.
Holts Gun Gum has been around for More >
STICK ONE ON THE BRACKET
May 18th
If you’ve ever had to change a fuel filter on an injection classic Mini you will know that it is necessary need to remove the whole bracket in order to remove the filter as the securing bolt is on the wrong side for easy access. This is because the bracket was originally used on other models (Rover parts bin special!).
To make life easier Mini Spares has redesigned this bracket so that it splits in half; the bolts are on the correct side so that there is no need to remove the whole bracket from the subframe when changing the filter.
Order More >
ANUVVER ANU DIMENSION
May 10th
One of the stars of last weekend’s Stoneleigh show was the latest Porsche-based body conversion from ANU Dimension. It joins their original model, the GTB, in their line-up and is the GTB RS, which bears a pretty strong resemblance to a 911 GT3 RS.
Like its brother, it uses the Porsche Boxster (987 Generation) as the donor and you can use 2.5-litre, 2.7-litre or top-of-the-shop 3.2-litre variants.
Designed with simplicity in mind, no special tools or rocket-science skills are required, it really is just a panel swap project, so you won’t have to worry about welding, fabrication or grafting on a brand-new More >
I’M LOVING THIS
May 10th
Another of my favourites at Stoneleigh this year was the new DAX Coupe from JK Sports Cars.
It’s a pastiche of the Daytona Coupe of which just six were built between 1964-65 and are now beyond the dreams of most of us mere mortals in terms of value.
It’s based on an extended DAX 427 chassis (including lengthened footwells), de Dion rear suspension and the company’s patented Camber Compensation and anti-roll front set up. The usual suspect American V8 engines can be used, as one would expect.
The chassis costs £1995 with the body package including all GRP parts and windscreen costs £5500. More >
NEW HOME FOR SPIRE GT-R. MEET THE RACING AARDVARK
May 10th
Aardvark Racing Limited (ARL) is thrilled to announce that it has taken over the GT-R project from Spire Sportscars.
Spire has built a great reputation for quality cars with great customer service and while they will continue to focus on their very successful track-only GT-3 and GT-F cars, ARL takes on the road and track-going GT-R.
ARL has been created out of a passion for both high-quality engineering and innovative performance vehicles, the acquisition of the GT-R being the culmination of a lifelong interest in motorsport and kitcars by its founder.
The aim in the short term will be to give customers the More >
PUTTING A LID ON IT
May 10th
Another company making their debut at Stoneleigh this year was 427 Hardtops and it really isn’t too hard to work out what it is they make.
Their hardtop was designed around the DAX Tojeiro/Cobra, now made by JK Sportscars, although they will soon be unveiling a top to suit the AK 427 and GD 427, with others sure to follow. A leading American Cobra replica manufacturer even sent a car over for 427 Hardtops to develop a product for them.
Over the years many people have had a go at making a hardtop for the Cobra 427. Some have worked better than More >
THIS IS COOL
May 10th
Body kit maestros, Turismo UK came to this year’s Stoneleigh show with a brand-new version of their GT RS, this time a convertible, which joins the existing fixed-head, Evolution GT (Boxster-based) and Avalanche GT (Toyota MR2-based).
Based around a Porsche 911 (996 Generation 2 variant), the GT RS Convertible attracted a lot of attention at the show looking resplendent in its Porsche Miami Blue paintwork (yep, I’m a sucker for turquoise).
It’s a body conversion kit, so avoids the need for IVA, and those panels can be supplied in GRP or carbon-fibre, with lots of components now made in-house courtesy of Turismo’s More >
BARGAIN SEATS
May 10th
New from Neil Winnington of Enwin are these new narrow seats designed for Lotus Seven-inspired narrow-bodied cars. They cost £180 each without runners or £200 with said runners.
Standard material is faux leather (vinyl to you and me) available in a variety of colours, while other materials can also be specified at extra cost. Dimensions are 380mm across the front cushion and 330mm where the cushion meets the squab.
Covers aren’t glued onto the GRP shell so they can easily be unclipped.
Neil told me: “I deliberately set out to make a comfortable, ergonomic seat and these are orthopaedic, with a curved back More >
MAGNETIC PERSONALITY
May 10th
This super-flexible magnetic pick-up tool from Laser Tools (part number 7026) has a useful 300 mm length but features a very narrow shaft diameter of just 4mm, which makes it ideal for retrieving those metal nuts, bolts, screws and other metal pieces that have found their way into areas otherwise inaccessible.
If you’ve had to drill out a seized glow plug, this pick-up tool is narrow enough to be inserted into the glow-plug aperture to retrieve any metal swarf or broken glow-plug debris.
The soft grip handle provides comfort and control over the movement of the pick-up tool. The flexible shaft can More >
IT’S A WRENCH FOR SEALEY
May 10th
Sealey’s NEW CP2612 and CP2634 Hand Wrenches are powerful, compact and suitable for removing the most stubborn wheel nuts in the workshop or on the roadside with no compressor or mains source required.
There are no trailing cables to cause hazards and are suitable for workshop, bodyshop and tyre shop applications. They feature a variable speed switch for added control and produce torque of up to 680Nm (500lb.ft) and 816Nm(600lb.ft) respectively and incorporate a forward and reverse control integrated into the housing for ease of use.
Both powered by a 26V 4Ah Lithium battery, which retains its charge over long periods of More >
