Westfield on the road in WA - Stupid idea?
Discussion
I'm once again considering building a Westfield for use on the road here in WA. It would be mainly as a weekend toy but would probably be a daily driver in the autumn and spring to and from work (non-freeway driving).
However, my biggest reservation is other drivers. All too often I see stupid driving on Perth roads and in a place where there are so many high-up SUVs and 4x4s I'm nervous about a car that will be too low for most of them to see me.
10 years ago I wouldn't have cared but now I'm getting closer toward "middle age" and have a young child, I think about this kind of thing!
Of course there are also those people that say its too hot to drive one here for most of the year.
However, my biggest reservation is other drivers. All too often I see stupid driving on Perth roads and in a place where there are so many high-up SUVs and 4x4s I'm nervous about a car that will be too low for most of them to see me.
10 years ago I wouldn't have cared but now I'm getting closer toward "middle age" and have a young child, I think about this kind of thing!
Of course there are also those people that say its too hot to drive one here for most of the year.
Bibbs said:
I'd be more tempted to get an MX5 / S2000. The thought of working on cars bores me now days, and the small jobs I do are a pain in the arse on a summers day.
I had looked at those but as an engineer in a vehicle related field, there are *ahem* advantages to building a car which cant be applied to something that starts life as a car 
A kit will end up costing me a fraction of the price that a "car" would.Probably no help at all, but I drive my Caterham over on the East Coast daily. I expect people to not see me as 7's move fast. So you learn to expect people to pull out in front of you at roundabouts etc. I've gotten used to it as I've used the car daily for the majority of my ownership since 2008.
I know you get hotter temps over there, but I find as long as I'm moving, the heat is fine here. I could put the half hood up to provide shade and still drop the doors if you want it openish, but I try to rarely put the hood on.
I know you get hotter temps over there, but I find as long as I'm moving, the heat is fine here. I could put the half hood up to provide shade and still drop the doors if you want it openish, but I try to rarely put the hood on.
Yes crazy idea, but where would we be if everyone was sane.
I doubt your Westfield would be all that much lower or less visible than my TR7, TR8 or my S2000. My TR7 was my daily for over 10 years, & apart from stone chips, suffered no damage.
Don't be too proud to put air conditioning in the Westfield. I have it in all mine. I even had a heater in the Morgan +4 that set lap records around Bathurst, back in the day. It was quite useful for additional cooling capacity actually.
The 8 originally had air, so no problem refitting, but it cost a king's ransom to get a custom made unit in the 7. It was worth every penny. I was using my ladies shopping trolley on those 35+C days, as I no longer enjoyed the car.
We remove the belt in the 8 when we want to do a bit of sporting.
I doubt your Westfield would be all that much lower or less visible than my TR7, TR8 or my S2000. My TR7 was my daily for over 10 years, & apart from stone chips, suffered no damage.
Don't be too proud to put air conditioning in the Westfield. I have it in all mine. I even had a heater in the Morgan +4 that set lap records around Bathurst, back in the day. It was quite useful for additional cooling capacity actually.
The 8 originally had air, so no problem refitting, but it cost a king's ransom to get a custom made unit in the 7. It was worth every penny. I was using my ladies shopping trolley on those 35+C days, as I no longer enjoyed the car.
We remove the belt in the 8 when we want to do a bit of sporting.
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