Sparepart

I purchased an Exmo in one of the batches, not sure which, think it was second batch. Echoing what others have said this was a budget kit. I bought an MOT failed Sierra, stripped it down, fitted the parts to the kit and hey presto! .... well not quite so easy as I found out. I have the original simple brochure and order form that I picked up at the Exeter car show where I saw a fully built example that started me on a path of many triumphs and tragedies. I also have copied all the build videos to digital format, but they are quite long, poor quality and no longer any use as no one has a fresh kit anymore. In any case, I have uploaded some files to my cloud space, a PDF with the brochure, order form, partslist, and collection instructions (with a map of where to drive your van to collect all the parts). Also there is a big MPG which is the first build tape (too big for the BT server to play, needs to be downloaded) and a few WMV clips that give you an idea of the video quality. I also have a printed 21 page "Build Manual", I could scan that if you want, but like I say, not much use now. Use the link below, and feel free to rummage through the few files that are there. https://btcloud.bt.com/web/app/share/invite/0BwowO474i

Apologies, I forgot to congratulate you, well done! ...also I remember that the SVA pass certificate had to be the original and they kept it .... so make good copies of everything (sorry if thats grandma sucking eggs). This period of time is very frustrating, you are all ready to go out joyriding, just need to get those plates. Patience.

It's been years since I did this, however it was just paperwork pushing ... and not much cash, at least then. I'd start with this link to the gov site ... https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-registration/kitconverted-vehicles Good luck.

For some reason I find a bit more time on my hands just now. I often look at For Sale and other forums (fora?) that are near the top of the list ... but not scrolled down ... now I see Chit Chat ... and over another cuppa .. notice this thread ... and see that on Feb 1st I was listed as a new member .... suprising since I have been paying subs and getting mags for years ... no matter ... I saw a new member in Chichester ... then looked at the map but neither of us were there ... then I saw the request to add ourselves if we wanted (I agree, you cant do it automatically, its confidential) ... so I added myself. I wonder how many others are not on the map through ignorance like myself?. I am not sure if I want to get really chummy with a load of local people in the South whom I have never met, at my age I can be quite grumpy at times (no excuse I know but true) .... however If I can help someone with obviously one common interest ... and they are not far away then ... some form of quid pro quo (that is Welsh for lend my a pound) might be possible.

Thanks for that input. Easy to try when I re-assemble, and no cost.

Sorry I can't help, I have one but it's on my car. I am lazy however, and it looks like you are motivated to look for a replacement. I would like to try splitting the one I have and using a piano hinge, but I am too chicken to just go ahead in case I end up with a useless bonnet. So I am very interested in how you get on with your search. Please update this thread to let us know how you are getting on. I wonder if it would be easier to get one in aluminium, would that look too odd ? I guess you have looked at this on eBay ? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Robin-Hood-Kit-Car-Bonnet-stainless-steel-Super-Spec-Ref-267-/352652923096 It's SS and not cheap .... might fit ?

Thanks for sharing your experence. I'll look at tie bars if only for better handling. As well as all the challeges you mention the radius arm ends will move foward giving a twist to the inboard bushes. It all stacks up against trying, just leave the caster as it is, be happy with that. You may well have saved me undertaking some dangerous experimentation. I am glad that you reminded me about the top mounts, mine are as from factory, no bulge or crack, only a matter of time though. Better to fix that rather than worry about self center.

I am rebuilding my Exmo, in a few weeks time I hope to reach the front end. When I put it together the first time I made sure that the wheels were squared up, in line, body in middle etc. It took a long time measuring before I bolted it all up. There were just too many measurement going on for me to consider caster, I just let things settle where the bushes seemed to take them. The result was even tyre wear, no wandering, no crabbing, BUT no self centering. I have skimmed through the 77 other topics in this forum that mention caster. I did not notice anyone making adjustments to caster on an Exmo. As I see it, I can't change the fore and aft position of the top of the strut because its trapped in the outrigger. The only way is to move the bottom by sliding the antiroll bar forward or backward. In principle a simple thing (I think) just move the two U clamps. I wonder if anyone else has tried this?. Is it worth making the mods so that it is easily adjustable, like mounting the u clamps on beefy brackets with a screw adjustment that can then be clamped firmly?. I am not confident that I can measure the caster accurately enough ? to say add x degrees of caster, so if its easily adjustable I can set it via a suck and see approach? If I over do anything then it could get dangerous and behave like a supermarket trolly. Any insights would be gratefully recieved.

Hi, I did not notice this thread before, I must be asleep. I have been rebuilding an Exmo for a long while and will go through all your posts more carefully. The one I am rebuilding was very hastily thrown together by myself in 1999 just before the end of the world, just past what was then SVA, on the road for a bit, no WS, no carpets, plywood seats, see road out of back etc, then in a garage till 3 years ago when I remembered what was under a tarp under a load of junk. Shocking what time can do, worst thing a leak of battery acid (no I had not removed it) eaten a hole through the car like that creature in Alien. Oh, sorry yes, get to the point Sparepart!, I Have just gone through the trauma of shaping those thick steel winscreen pillars, so have the windscreen (another construction challenge) in place. I have cut the square bit of SS that has the four demister vents punched into four seperate vents ..... here is the question ... how far away from the base of the windsceen have you fitted yours? and how are they distrubted about the centre line? .. a photo would obviously tell a thousand tales. BTW I did read about using the Capri shocks, I have fitted even shorter ones from a mini. I wish you good luck on your re-test, looking at your photos of the re-build you have done a great job. Back in 1999 we were told that this kit would not get through the "new regs" that were coming, so do it now or never, you are proving them wrong.

I am rebuilding an Exmo that I "threw together" before an amnesty from the checks that are done today. It went through a relaxed version of something called an SVA. Seat belt mounting came up as an issue. I needed to buy a pair of triangular plates, long and narrow that make a diagonal from about a quarter of the width of the rear boot edge narrowing all the way to an apex at the fixing point for the bar that runs across behind the seats. It is quite thick SS and has a hole pre-blown for the optional life saving (tee hee) roll over hoop to go through. The rear fixing point for the RH supplied harness was then on the rear boot edge and half way on the base of this triangular bit. Even then I had to take some lovely seat supports out and mount the flimsy two panels of plywood seats directly on the floor (which no one batted and eyelid about) because the height of the rear mounting point was too low when measured from the base of the seat. You probably have these plates ?, in which case I have wasted 10 minutes typing this reply.

I would want to fit them in an Exmo. The passenger side is narrow, the absolutely useless seats with the kit are based on two rectangles of 3 ply that are 400 mm wide, I look at the published dimensions of "narrow" seats and very few are that narrow (+ expensive), then I see photos of Exmos with other seats which on paper are too wide. I think it must be a question of just trying to fit some that are billed as narrow. So bottom line is that at £200 a pair I would like to purchase these seats from you, no returns, to try and fit them. I can pick them up in person, cash on collection. Most convenient for me would be sometime on Thursday 17th Oct (this Thursday) as I will be staying in Swindon that night.

Hi Dan, Are these still for sale?, open to offers? Jan.

I have uploaded some snaps and vids to BT Cloud, to help. The snaps show the cycle wings, and steering wheel mounts, taken when I was stripping down for a rebuild. The vids are extracts from the tapes that were supplied with the kit, for steering and cycle wings. Snaps at https://btcloud.bt.com/web/app/share/invite/tLDkYg0ddk Vids at https://btcloud.bt.com/web/app/share/invite/UulSi0fjPD Hope this helps.

I have built my Exmo with cycle wings. I followed the destructions on the build video. They do not turn with the wheels because they mount to the suspension outrigger at the top and to a bar from the engine bay at the bottom. I have converted the original VHS build tapes to a series of mpgs, I could put these on my BT Cloud for you if you want, the cycle wing construction is on these somewhere. I have seen quite a few EXMOs with cycle wings that turn with the wheels, however you have to be prepared to cut off the ends of the outriggers (and presumably do a bit of welding to strengthen the ends). This needed because otherwise the top of the cycle wing will bash against the end of the outrigger when the spring is compressed by a bump.

I guess that a discussion of picture handling software is not what this thread should be about..... however You could try http://www.irfanview.com Its free. Use the 32bit version. Lots of features, I use "Resize/Rescan" to reduce pixel count and then save as jpg has option of quality level to reduce size further.