Photo of British Middie Locost

I know some of you reading my blog may not have an idea about the shape, look, size, etc. of a mid-engined Locost car, so I've posted one here to give you an idea of what I am shooting for. There are very few built middie Locosts and I happen to run across this one once while surfing around looking for info associated with Locosts.

Ordered Fiero LH Front Spindle

Part of my initial design for Neo was to use the Neon's front spindles in the rear. Since the Neon's hub is a 5x100 mm bolt design (not very typical), I needed to decide whether I was going to use a Neon front spindle with some alterations for my design or utilize another spindle that had the same hub bolt pattern. It so happens that spindle for the Chevorlet Chevette and Pontiac Fiero (actually same spindle) has the same bolt pattern and is also a highly respected front spindle when building scratch built cars. The spindle is designed specifically for a RWD car and this fits very well with my utilization of the spindle in the Neo.

I ordered (1) left hand 1986 Fiero front spindle today for $15 and about $10 for S&H. If you don't know about Car-Parts.com check this website out because it links to several "junk yards" (used vehicle parts) around the country and most will ship small to medium parts to you for a reasonable fee.

Why did I order only one? I am going to use the one spindle to get measurements so that I can begin designing the front suspension a-arms. I plan on starting to use Staniforth's string computer technique, but will eventually move to using a software program built to simulate suspension components and their respective measurements in relation to the car and the ground.

Gentlemen, start your engines.....

After a few months, O.K. more than a few months, about 12-14 months actually I have been in the pre-design (dreaming) mode and I have finally decided to move forward in 2007 to begin building Neo.

What is Neo? Neo is the name I have given to my future creation. It is a Locost type car that is based on a mid-engine placement versus the usual and typical front engine placement. I plan on using a front-wheel drive Dodge/Plymouth Neon 1st generation donor car to help build the Neo. I plan on using the Neon's engine/transmission (manual), front spindles, front brakes, pedals, instrument cluster, wheels (at first) and any other parts that ae usuable in my build.

Neo means "new" and I would like the help of the North American Locost community to put together a decent reproducible design for a midde (mid-engine) Locost car since there are so many more available FWD donor cars in North America that it makes sense to have a car design like the one I am creating.

So just as the announcer starts the race by broadcasting over the loudspeakers "Gentlemen, start your engines", I'm announcing to the Internet my intentions of starting my Neo project.