DIY Car Kits

[peskybear]

I drive an old shitheap with a ton of miles on it and I was looking at new cars about a year ago. I've never owned a car newer than 10 years old and was considering a new car because I (at the time) had to drive way too far for my daily commute. New cars felt a little too pricey at the time, I couldn't lease because of mileage restrictions (even with a high mileage agreement), and used cars felt like russian roulette, so I didn't end up making any moves.

I like building things and have done a little bit of my own auto repairs over the years, so I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled across cars you can build yourself:

Beck Spyder - Beck Speedster

BECK SPYDERSTANDARD SPECIFICATIONS CLICK TO DOWNLOAD BROCHURE CONFIGURATIONS Please note that many custom options are available, including one off fabrications. To discuss a more custom build, please reach out here to set up a phone appointment.

beckspeedster.com

RCR 917 — Race Car Replicas

race-car-replicas.com

The main market seems to be sports/race car replicas and there are some hoops to jump through for getting them titled and street legal. Racecars don't make great daily drivers, but I understand why the market is mainly these replicas.

Has anyone built their own car before or seen one of these IRL?

 

[Arnox]

Actually no. I have seen many flashy old-style cars, but whether they were restored or done through a kit is unknown. Of course, one of the big problems of any DIY car kit is the equipment needed for it, which puts it out of reach for many people.

With that said, if you had enough money, you might be able to pay a mechanic to do it, I imagine.

 

[Dale Gribble]

I drive an old shitheap with a ton of miles on it and I was looking at new cars about a year ago. I've never owned a car newer than 10 years old and was considering a new car because I (at the time) had to drive way too far for my daily commute. New cars felt a little too pricey at the time, I couldn't lease because of mileage restrictions (even with a high mileage agreement), and used cars felt like russian roulette, so I didn't end up making any moves.

I like building things and have done a little bit of my own auto repairs over the years, so I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled across cars you can build yourself:

Beck Spyder - Beck Speedster

BECK SPYDERSTANDARD SPECIFICATIONS CLICK TO DOWNLOAD BROCHURE CONFIGURATIONS Please note that many custom options are available, including one off fabrications. To discuss a more custom build, please reach out here to set up a phone appointment.

beckspeedster.com

RCR 917 — Race Car Replicas

race-car-replicas.com

The main market seems to be sports/race car replicas and there are some hoops to jump through for getting them titled and street legal. Racecars don't make great daily drivers, but I understand why the market is mainly these replicas.

Has anyone built their own car before or seen one of these IRL?

Okay, so how much time and money do you have? What kind of kit car? Is it going to be like a fiero Lamborghini conversion, or are you going to build everything from scratch? Are you going to buy a compatibility drive train and go from there?

I Can't see it being worth it when you weigh time/money/labor vs buying a reliable used car.

 

[peskybear]

Okay, so how much time and money do you have? What kind of kit car? Is it going to be like a fiero Lamborghini conversion, or are you going to build everything from scratch? Are you going to buy a compatibility drive train and go from there?

I Can't see it being worth it when you weigh time/money/labor vs buying a reliable used car.

Honestly, I’m probably just gonna buy a used car. I don’t have the time/money/workshop space to build one of these things and while my mechanic might be down to take on the build, I don’t know if I could rent him for that long.

If I did it though, I’d probably go with one of the kits that don’t require a donor vehicle. I feel like something self contained would be a little easier for a first build since you wouldn’t have to deal with any quirks in the donor.

 

[Dale Gribble]

That's what I'd suggest. For the price of one of those cars you could get a really nice used car. For $6k I got an older, reliable, cheap American truck with only 45k miles.