Who is the best speedster turnkey manufacturer beyond IM?

Beyond IM, what is the best company to buy a new turnkey from? I am looking at consistency, quality, durability,
reliability and effectiveness of after sale. I cannot find any rankings or anybody clearly rating Vintage vs. Jps vs. Becks.
Thanks for sharing thoughts as i am new to this
Zdouga

... and answer me this one as well: who's kids are smartest?

Zdouga, Stan's right. You won't get a reasonable answer from any of us. They're like shoes. You need to walk in them for a while and try them out. Come to a gathering of the cars at some point, and do a lot of reading here.

Edit -- Angela's got a good point. Ol' Doc Merklin produces a fantastic bargain.

Stan, I'm betting mine is. ;)

A used one from Dr. Clock - lOL!

No one's trying to pick on you, it's just that there are alot of variables. Water-cooled versus air-cooled for example. The price range also can factor in. The best $25,000 speedster might not be as good as the best $45,000 speedster and probably none of them as good as the best $120,000 speedster.

Another signficant factor is can you work with the person building the car and possibly sorting it out later? Do they stand behind their product or do they act like a horse's patooty after the fact? After the sale customer care varies from the guy who would give you the shirt off his back to the guy who acts like you're a red headed stepchild.

Hey wait a minute...

angela

One of my Jack Russells won "Dog of the Month" at Gibson Kennels, once.

OK, back to the question: No, you won't get a straight answer on here because of customer loyalty or public embarrassment at making a poor purchase choice.

You asked about; "consistency, quality, durability, reliability and effectiveness of after sale.

Some builders consistently produce a reliable, quality product that requires very little "sorting out" after delivery and then they stand by their product with support after the sale. Usually they don't need to provide a whole lot of support because their product is good going out the door and only needs minor tweaking, but they take the lead and make things right for you with no hassle.

Other builders (who may have a devoted, local following) send out cars that seem to need a lot of sorting out after delivery. Some of them have even shipped cars with questionable quality and/or safety issues. If you're local to the builder this may not be a big deal, but if you're on the opposite coast it becomes a very big deal. Some also make you beg for support after the sale by coming up with lots of excuses, but no fixes. Once that's made public on here, fixes seem to miraculously happen (but not always).

You may have to wait in line for a long time for some builders to produce a car for you because of their backlog. If you're happy with the final result, then the wait isn't a big deal.

All of this has been posted on this website. All you have to do is search a little and you'll be able to find out a lot about all of the builders, their quality, their post-sales support and so forth, but I bet few people will answer your post publicly with direct builder comparisons and name names because then they feel that they're liable for court actions and nobody wants that. Also, it's winter. People get cooped up in their house with the internet during the winter and it allows them to surf a little and learn a lot.

Start by using the search function on here and maybe search for info on each builder. After that, follow along and decide who (which members) might be worth emailing and send them a private email with specific questions and see what happens. It might take a little digging, but I'm sure you will get your questions answered and be able to make more intelligent decisions based on what you learn.

Good hunting.

gn

Thanks Gordon - i looked at the registry on this site and it seems - with a few exceptions - everybody is in love with their cars regardless of the manufacturer.
Zdouga

No, no....Forget the registry (you're right about everyone being in love with their cars AND their builders).

Look in the technical or engine/mechanical sections and see what's really going on!

Zdouga - Welcome to the Madness! Short answer to your query...read the post at the top of this GENERAL thread with title "Ready for a Speedster Replica?".

It is a good article written by our illustrious SOCer Paul Harford. The article will give you a good starting point for your quest. Hope you can join us at one of our SOC events to check out the different vehicles.

Peace - Out!

I have a Jack Russell who has never won anything, bites me when he feels I have done him wrong and chases cars, I also have an IM. I think I have both the best dog and the best Roadster, but that's just my opinion... The only one who counts:)

Buy what you love, expect to put a bunch of yourself into the car and then love what you buy by driving the snot out of it any chance you get.

Tomm

Zdouga, make sure you attend one of the major gatherings (Carlisle on the east coast, Pismo on the west) to compare cars. You will certainly have offers for rides and probably test drives as well. The Carlisle show also includes many of the manufacturers, so that it definitely worth coming to.

Amen, told exactly as it is. And I am again too late, but here goes anyway:

Welcome to The Madness!!

Dr. Clock is completing just ....one more speedy ..tnx for the kudos :~)

Then what, Alan?

When I was in this process I got much good info. I bought a used one and saved maybe 10M. I made that choice because I was not familiar with these little beauties. Just a thought.

Bob

"Dr. Clock is completing just ....one more speedy "

Yup . . . Heard that one before.

As an old drinking buddy used to say at the end of the night - "just one more!"

Sure Doc . . . One more.

Cheers!

;-)

What's the best color for a speedster?

I LOVE my Beck!

Jack, its usually a color that your current speedster isnt.

The best color? Mine, of course!

Beautiful car, Ron

Bob

That REALLY is pretty - particularly when you know the history of the car.

Ron. that is a great picture! Photoshop that yellow Miata out of the picture.

Bob---so true. I was just kidding of course. I do like my car's color (ivory) but the answer is the color YOU like.

Ron, your car turned out AWESOME!!

Ron, your car looks great, did you finally get the EFI taken care?

A choosing a speedster is like choosing a wife....

Some look good on the surface but are not worth a damn.
Some purr like a kitten and look like hell.
Some just beak down for no good reason.
They both take time to get the bugs out.
All look good with the top down.

Ron -- that's an 84?!?!? Wow!

Max, it sounds like you may not be familiar with the story about the car.

After a fire it was recently rebuilt by Henry.

The car looks beautiful, Ron!

You and Henry did a great job on rescuing what could have been a write off.

Thanks guys. Yes, Henry worked his magic on this vehicle. I'm very happy with the exterior/interior colors and the car is a treat to drive. On my four day summer cruise I got two waves from motorcycle riders. I have never had a motorcyclist give me a wave before, let alone two.
When I stopped for lunch in a small town an older lady, who was walking by with her grandchildren, asked if my Porsche was worth over or under 200. At first I thought she meant $200 and was a bit miffed. Then I realized she meant $200,000! I still laugh at that one.
Eddy, my fuel injection is just about where I want it. She still doesn't like firing up right away when she's hot, but other than that she runs like a top.

Mike - thanks for catching me up. A beautiful save.

Ron:

What type of fire extinguishing system do you have in the car now?

Bob