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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Bike Engined Midget

By way of an update:

No real progress - the '05 Honda CBR1000RR/Fireblade engine is too just too flippin' big to fit nicely - 20" long, 20" wide and 28" high.

The front of to midget (everything forward of the footwells, plus the chassis reails back to the gearbox crossmember has been removed. It'd be possible to simply move these outwards a couple inches and make a new front 'subframe' to carry engine/suspension and glue to the rest of the shell, but its only a half solution.

Present proposal - keep just the outer panelwork and sling a locost style frame underneath. Footwells will be tight (13" width rather than 15" as at present) and doors will never function again (big deal - never much use anyhow) but it can be made to look midget-esque still.

Run 15x7 "Spec Miata" wheels/tyres all round (excellent availability) by redrilling the hubs with larger studs. Keep standard rear axle and midget front uprights for now, possibly swap for mx5/miata items at a later date.

Height of the engine is a problem - the airbox is not just an airbox but the plenum chamber too, with a second set of fuel injectors in the very top. If I want to keep the stock EFi I need to keep it. Hole in the bonnet will suffice for now, longer term it'll require new, angled, intake runners and a remap. Turboing the motor at that stage is attractive too - nice light pressure setup for 220 horse or so and to add to the undriveability.
Marko

What about getting a Locost chassis and glueing a Midget GRP front and rear onto it? Then you'd not need any spridget parts other than suspension. easier then to lengthen/widen/shorten it.


It is like that old saying about getting directions from a yokel...."If I was going 'there' then I wouldn't want to be starting from here"
rob multi-sheds thomas

I suggest you start buying all the rear axles you can off ebay, because I think you will need all you can get.
Rik
Rik Hogan

I agree on the axle ssituation rik, carry lost of spare axle shafts...cause with that kind of torque, those axles are basically nothing more then tooth picks....Id chop down, and modify a muscle car rear end from a trans am, camero, or a 5 lug mustange.

prop
Prop

That's essentially what I'll end up building Rob - build a (smaller!) locost chassis to suit the spridget front uprights/rack, rear axle, CBR1000RR engine - then sling just the outer shell of the Midget over the top.

Can't see glass being materially lighter than the outer skins of a steel shell unless done really well - it's pretty minimal. Glass doors/bootlid/bonnet maybe, but I'll probably shell the doors and flush their skins into the bodyshell permanently anyway, seeing as there'd be a locost frame getting in the way of them when open.

At a later date, a mix of MX5/RX& bits at the corners would work well. Possibly just the RX7 bits. Would need ot buy/strip one to find out though.
marko

This thread was discussed between 15/05/2008 and 18/05/2008

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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