Calling All Lightweighters And Interested Parties

[Guest diyer]

Guys,

 

I have had various discussions with a collegue regarding the issues of RHSC and particularly the Lightweight. He has built a 7 type car also.

He as suggested and i can only echo his remarks that all the potential issues with the lightweight can be solved!

 

It is important to focus and remember that anything will pass an SVA providing it meets the guidelines set out in the manual, and the tester is satisfied.

Would it be wise to setup a meeting/ focussed discussion group in a formal mature way to identify exactly the issues with the lightweight and solve them. It would be simplier to obviously engineer modifications in at the first build stage, but it is important to think about part built/ fully built cars too.

I would suggest it would mean more extensive dialogue with VOSA and maybe RH, but i think the key is to have structure and common sense.

 

It is very understandable that there are a lot of bitter people with part builds. But the challenge of solving these issues can only be in the interests of kitcar builders in general and the long term relationships the industy has with VOSA.

 

Maybe the club could organise something?

 

 

Simon

[Guest Battery Bill]

Maybe the club could organise something?

 

Why the club?

 

Surely its up to the Lightweight owners to get together themselves first before getting the club involved.

This forum supplies plenty of help to everyone but its not up to the club to fight your battles for you.

 

I would suggest that the forum is supplied with pictures and diagrams of what the problem points are

and then I'm sure you will get any answers you need.

[Guest diyer]

This forum supplies plenty of help to everyone but its not up to the club to fight your battles for you.

 

I would suggest that the forum is supplied with pictures and diagrams of what the problem points are

and then I'm sure you will get any answers you need.

 

 

Bill,

 

It could be argued i am not an interested party - i have been lucky enough to get my car SVA'd. Therefore it is not my battle. But i still think it is important to raise and discuss these points.

 

There also appears to be some confusion on exactly what VOSA requires from a construction/safety point of view and such some sensible clarification is required.

 

Surely the club is about supporting everyones interests!

 

 

Is appears that there maybe some degree from certain 2B owners that the lightweight is getting all the attention at the moment!!!!!!

 

 

Simon

 

 

I would also add that yes, it is probably up to lightweight builders to organise something, the idea of involving the club was just a suggestion.

 

With the experience the club has on coordinating things, i thought this might be of benefit

[Guest Bob's Babe]

Tim has e mailed VOSA this week asking for clarification on what they consider the big fail issues to be. He also asked if they could clarify the memo they sent to all their stations and if they feel if a light weight can be adapted to pass.

 

No reply as yet

 

SUE

[Guest john]

Maybe Matt can create a new forum for the lightweight discussions to take place , it might be more focussed , and easier to follow for those involved.

[Guest Battery Bill]

It could be argued i am not an interested party - i have been lucky enough to get my car SVA'd. Therefore it is not my battle. But i still think it is important to raise and discuss these points

 

Well you are just the person to guide the others through the SVA hurdle then, you know what it takes so go

ahead!

 

Therefore it is not my battle.

 

Well why on earth should it become a 2B, Exmo, S7 or whatever other owner except a bl00dy Lightweights battle?

 

 

Is appears that there maybe some degree from certain 2B owners that the lightweight is getting all the attention at the moment!!!!!!

 

Not from me you can have all the attention you want

 

 

I would also add that yes, it is probably up to lightweight builders to organise something, the idea of involving the club was just a suggestion.

 

 

Well I suggest you are the man to do it

 

 

Remember the 2B is not in the slightest bit like your car

 

 

You are the so called expert so you sort it out

[Longboarder]

This does seem to rouse passions. The situation is up in the air at the moment. LW builders seem to have differing advice as to what is needed for a pass from VOSA and from Nottingham SVA test center. I get the feeling that most other test centers will go along with VOSA but Nottingham has a recent history of cooperation with RHE which is why they are more helpful. This is a bit surprising as they are supposed to sing from the same song sheet. I further suspect that if Nottingham starts being the test center for lightweights and a couple are passed VOSA will react to stop this and may even revoke passes.

 

The club is for everyone with an interest in Hoods and some just to share the beer. This board and the officers of the club are volunteers who have many other commitments and give there services at some personal cost for free. You have the support of most everyone on the board. A pm to Tim will probably get you official support in the club name but I suspect you will have to get organised yourselves, temporarily decide on a LW representative and channel the handling of the LW situation through him.

 

The LW rep can then handle clarification of concerns with VOSA to obtain advice on moving the situation on.

 

It would also be sensible to contact the administrator at RHSC, explain the problem that lightweight builders have and seek his help in obtaining and releasing to VOSA the design and test data that RHSC should currently hold. This should be done double quick while the administrator is still there. This is just my take on positive action and no I don't have a lightweight but I came very close to buying a mild steel one. (but they never made any!)

 

Nigel

 

While posting I see Tim has already made a positive approach to VOSA.

[Guest stevec]

Why the club?

 

Surely its up to the Lightweight owners to get together themselves first before getting the club involved.

This forum supplies plenty of help to everyone but its not up to the club to fight your battles for you.

 

 

 

 

Simon is not asking you to fight a battle, Just suggesting on a Robin Hood forum that Robin Hood owners of Lightweights perhaps get together to see if they can sort a way to resolve issues regarding thier Robin Hood Cars. I agree with Simon.

Where would you suggest he puts his post? The Cateringvan forum?

Edited September 19, 2006 by stevec

[Guest ScotMac]

Why the club?

 

Surely its up to the Lightweight owners to get together themselves first before getting the club involved.

This forum supplies plenty of help to everyone but its not up to the club to fight your battles for you.

 

I would suggest that the forum is supplied with pictures and diagrams of what the problem points are

and then I'm sure you will get any answers you need.

 

Simon is not asking you to fight a battle, Just suggesting on a Robin Hood forum that Robin Hood owners of Lightweights perhaps get together to see if they can sort a way to resolve issues regarding thier Robin Hood Cars. I agree with Simon.

Where would you suggest he puts his post? The Cateringvan forum?

 

I completely agree. He is only asking for the club to help organize a special "forum" to help organize the discussion. Seems totally appropriate to me.

[Guest Tim Norman]

There is no test data regarding the Lightweight.

[Guest salty_monk]

Oops that doesn't help then... reckon it's a case of trial & error. Pretty sure it can all be resolved with some kind of external or internal sub frame & tubes or z beams grafted into the top side beams.

 

Be nice to get this all into one space but also a shame to segregate like Lolocost does, will limit the bits that people look at somewhat & thus the help received may shrink too...

 

Most Hoodie owners are fairly resourceful, a few fag packet sketches over hob nobs or at a meet would probably sort most of it out....

 

Dan

[Mat-Moo]

I'm not sure what you expect of the club, we don't have a huge pot of money to buy and test chassis etc.. I will not add a specific forum for Lightweights, this has been asked before for the 2b etc. but the bulk of each car is the same (Electics, interior, running gear). The only real difference IS the chassis which is the point of this forum. Simply use a subtitle of leightweight or even in the title (like this) and I'm sure it will get the attention needed.

 

Oddly enough (no offence, maybe you just need to upgrade) but the only two people here arguing both show as community users! Not even club members, yet you talk about the club helping you out

[Spannerman]

I can obviously only speak for my self, I will do what I can to help and support fellow “MEMBERS” of the club weather they own a “Robin Hood” or not (the model is not important). As far as I am aware owning a “Robin Hood” is not compulsory to be a “MEMBER”. I hope the “Club” is of the same mind.

 

A them (Lightweight) and us (2b, s7, Exmo, etc) mentality is not good for the club. If the owners club as a whole dose not try to help and support the Lightweight builder with the problems they have, then what is the point of being a “Member”?

 

However I do not think it would be appropriate to use Club funds in this help & support.

 

If they are not a “MEMBER” then that’s a different matter, they cannot expect anything at all from the club.

 

The title is clear “Calling All Lightweighters and Interested Parties” any one not interested could stay away.

 

Cheers Kevin

[Guest ScotMac]

Oddly enough (no offence, maybe you just need to upgrade) but the only two people here arguing both show as community users! Not even club members, yet you talk about the club helping you out

 

Whereas it is true that i am not really arguing here, i am in favor of the club doing whatever it can, w/in its charter *and* resources, to help resolve the l/w issue. And I am not a community user.

 

It is also interesting to note that the SVA obviously has no relevance to me...but the strength of the chassis does. In fact, i brought up strengthening the chassis well before the current crisis.

 

Yes, i agree the discussion could simply reside w/in the chassis section, w/ the appropriate title/sub-title. And i also understand that similar problems have arose in the past, and have been resolved w/out special treatment. However, w/ the current state of RHSC and thus their lack of support for this issue, the club might want to take (small) special measures to help members (and some non-members) for this issue and others. I have no idea what form that "help" would take...one possibility might be

 

- a pinned thread on where to acquire parts that we would normally get from RHSC

- a pinned thread on how to strengthen the L/W, w/ special emphasis on passing the SVA

 

But i am not sure that "pinned threads" are the right approach, since they are usually for "finished" discussions that were deemed very important...

 

Note, i agree w/ Bill that it would good if someone could take leadership of the l/w issue. A pinned thread does nothing if no one posts, or the discussion is unfocussed and disorganized.

 

Just a thought.

 

Cheers, -sm

[Guest Tim Norman]

I am still waiting for a response from VOSA re the Lightweight. I suspect they may have the same customer care operatives as RHSC had.

 

As for the Club, our mentality is and has been since the last management change, "Car" doesn't matter. Being a Hoody is a mind set. In saying that of the 100+ lightweights sold, only 13 decided they had the right mind set.

 

We will continue to help were we can but financially we can't, and with all due respect won't, do anything. It is not our money to spend. If 800 peope let me know that we can spend the limited funds we have on crash testing and doing pull tests then fair enough.

 

Can't see it happening though.

 

In the meantime can I sugest we continue to help and just be the true Hoodies we all are.