It’s been some months since Resin became roadborne. I’ve been meaning to write the first installment on the actual experience of ownership for a while, but pandemia, self reinvention and lately anarchy has taken over from normal life on the southern tip op Africa.
Be that as it may, herewith my thoughts based on the first 440km of having built my own car. Turns out, this car is fairly useable, considering it doesn’t have a roof. As previously stated, my old Birkin 7 was sexy but useless. There wasn’t space to even put away even a pair of shades, the suspension was noisy, the car was LOUD and my feat would burn after 10 minutes. I would only drive it if I really felt compelled to.
Resin on the other hand seems to follow me to work regularly. Fine, my current work is only a few blocks away, but still… It fires up every time. It doesn’t squeak or rattle. It goes better than it should and is relatively effortless to drive. It gives me ever so slightly better mileage than a mid-seventies 911 and honestly delivers similar performance up to legal speed limits. The tank only takes about 30 liters, so the stops are more regular, albeit more affordable too.
The stops and general driving are pretty entertaining. Everyone wants to know what it is. People hoot, flash their lights and wave. The first few kilometers I assumed I was on fire. Guess it is just part of it. People like tiny eccentric cars. No one seems threatened by it. Everyone is your friend. Basically the complete opposite of driving anything modern.
Performance-wise Deo built a cracker of a motor. Even in third there is enough torque to just leave it there at low speed. It is very driveable. I’m still running it in, so I’m trying hard not to go past 4k, but it is very revvy and gets there in an instant. The limitations of a beetle gearbox becomes evident on the highway, where 4 short gears don’t take you far past 120km/h. That said, it gets there quickly and the cabin is surprisingly comfortable when cruising at that speed. I think the hard tonneau and a low seated position helps a fair bit with the aerodynamics.
Long range cruising isn’t really what this car is about though. I still hope to do a few track days in it and I have no doubt that it will be a fairly reasonable at. I have 5 point harnesses in it which really does a great job at making you one with the car. Break adhesion or put the tail out and it feels as intuitive as a kart. The big steering wheel and beetle steering box (albeit new) is the obvious departure from a modern setup and fast corners do remind you that you should demonstrate a modicum of caution.
Reversing the car is tricky. Speedsters are wegde-shaped, so even while it may feel like you are going straight backwards, you may infact be pretty skew. The Raydyot replica mirrors are as expected ie. not exceptional. I seem to use a combination of door mirrors, windshield mirror and extraneous neck-craning to get the car out of the driveway.
Otherwise it seems to be going well. The drum brakes are slightly spongey (compared to discs) but pull straight. They will lock when stood on, so are definitely up to the job. Time will tell what they are like on a track. Initially second gear was tricky but some fettling has sorted that out. There is a slight leak on the left-hand aftermarket valve cover, which will need addressing. The car is running a bit rich on idle, but I have new idle jets that will hopefully sort that out.
All said… I’m enamoured. Here is a car that, so far, has been reliable, highly engaging and is completely paid for! Here’s hoping the experiment remains a success. It’s still pretty LOUD though.