smyth truck

[4229GL]

discuss.

[GTLee77]

I'm confident that Mark has the 40 beta kits as top priority but given that so much of the R&D was already done on the G3F I can see this FWD MK4 pick-up as a natural progression of the product line.

I'm a design engineer at a consumer electronics company and when we spend tons of time and dollars on R&D, we make sure that we apply our research to create as many reasonable products as possible.

Personally, I'm intrigued at the low price and the fact that the build time should be real short.

Regards

P.S. Nice pic... is it photoshop?

[4229GL]

don't know. I found it on vortex, but thought it looked better than the rough rendering on facebook.

[D2W]

I thought it sounded stupid when I read about it on facebook, but that picture you posted looks kind of cool. Anyway, I wish Mark would just finish the current project before he starts working on something new.

[dukegrad98]

Originally Posted by GTLee77

P.S. Nice pic... is it photoshop?

Looking at the drunken brickwork in the background and the truncated front end of another car growing out of the tailgate, I'm going to go with "yes." Still, it serves a purpose as a design idea. Attractive, it is not.

Cheers, John

[4229GL]

Originally Posted by D2W

I thought it sounded stupid when I read about it on facebook, but that picture you posted looks kind of cool. Anyway, I wish Mark would just finish the current project before he starts working on something new.

Me too, I believe my reaction on facebook was, "STOP WASTING TIME!"
...but a silly part of me really likes the idea

Originally Posted by dukegrad98

Attractive, it is not.

You're crazy! I think that photoshop looks killer!

[dukegrad98]

Originally Posted by 4229GL

...my reaction on facebook was, "STOP WASTING TIME!"

Here, we very much agree.

Originally Posted by 4229GL

...but a silly part of me really likes the idea

Here, we disagree, except for the part about it being a silly part of you.

Originally Posted by 4229GL

You're crazy!

Here, others may agree.

Originally Posted by 4229GL

I think that photoshop looks killer!

Here, you're on crack.

Cheers, John

[4229GL]

would it be crazy to hope this kit would have a steel bed? donor tailgate from a ranger or an S-10 or something? It would be sweet to mold an original caddy "VOLKSWAGEN" piece in it:

[dukegrad98]

Originally Posted by 4229GL

would it be crazy to hope this kit would have a steel bed?

It's not crazy at all -- it's practically necessary. The vehicle is going to have pretty limited weight capacity regardless, just due to suspension and brake limitations on the donor. A fiberglass box might be strong enough to take the weight the rest of the car can take. But without a steel bed or at least liner, I think it becomes ever less practical.

Mark has set a very aggressive price point, at $3500. Makes me wonder why the G3F is either $10,000 or $11,000. Both have new rear subframes. I accept that the G3F has more body panels. What other differences am I missing that add up to $6000?

Separately, looking at today's Facebook musing from Mark, it seems he adopted my Jettruck moniker. Yay.

Cheers, John

[JKleiner]

Looks a whole lot like what VW did to the Rabbit 30 years ago (they even offered it as an oil burner). Had a friend who owned one back then.



Jeff

[D2W]

Originally Posted by dukegrad98

Mark has set a very aggressive price point, at $3500. Makes me wonder why the G3F is either $10,000 or $11,000. Both have new rear subframes. I accept that the G3F has more body panels. What other differences am I missing that add up to $6000?

Cheers, John

Don't forget that the G3F was going to be $8000 when Mark started.

[4229GL]

I really hope the truck bed follows the lines of the photoshop. Jetta wagon fender, bumper, and lights. It really gives length the regular jetta can't offer. I'm also curious how he plans to close off the cab??? Out of curiosity, I cranked my seat-back forward to fit the constraints on the photoshop and it's snug. So many questions I wish there were at least two Marks. One to stay focused on the GF3 and another to fill us in on whats going on in his head.

[Big-Foot]

Originally Posted by JKleiner

Looks a whole lot like what VW did to the Rabbit 30 years ago (they even offered it as an oil burner). Had a friend who owned one back then.



Jeff

X-2 there....

A good friend had one that got a consistent 60 MPG.. The diesel engine was the same one used by Thermo-King at the time on Truck Mounted refrigeration units. He worked for TK as well and serviced the diesels.. Said that they were really hard to kill...
I'll need to look him up again but I bet he still has that truck...

[JKleiner]

Originally Posted by Big-Foot

Said that they were really hard to kill...

Getting a little OT here but you'll appreciate(?) this Randy. My friend's father killed his. Used to flat tow it behind a big motorhome and use it as their "runaround" vehicle once they reached their destination. Pulled it up to the MH one time, hooked up the tow bar and lights and drove away---with the little Rabbit Diesel still in first gear! Don't know how fast the poor thing spun before scattering, but it scattered well!

Back on topic; I was looking at the seating and B pillar of a Jetta in a parking lot this AM. Looks like it will need to have a little bit of an extended cab with a quarter window. I'm digging the looks of the photochop already; with a few more inches of cab this could be pretty cool and very doable!

Jeff

[Burnett H]

Doesn't do much for me. Never been too big on street cruiser trucks.

Trucks are supposed to be, well, trucks. You know. Utility vehicles that you can load up with a ton of gravel or dirt or manure. And they can be driven on dirt roads with ruts a foot deep. You are supposed to be able to beat the crap out of a truck and it still keeps on going.

It is NOT supposed to only have 2" of ground clearance and pussy wheel and tire sets that can't go over a 3" curb.

Trucks are NOT for show, except to say "Look how tough my truck is. I've used it on construction sights for years now. The bed is scratched all up, and the tail gate is covered with dried mortar and paint. But it has 200K miles on it and still goes." or something like "My Super Duty is tougher than your Ram".

But that's just my opinion.

[Big-Foot]

I can't imagine how many RPM that little diesel was spinning... Holy COW!

=-=-

I absolutely LOVE some of the Australian UTEs;

http://www.google.com/search?q=austr...w=1222&bih=778

[ixlr8]

During my visit with Mark today, he expressed surprise at the amount of interest in this truck idea. He loves the idea... but G3F comes first. I don't think the truck is anything more than a dream in his head at the moment.... at least nothing on paper. The interest shown does indicate to him that there is a market and he is fairly sure some sort of truck is going to happen. He did say nothing was going to happen with the truck until the G3F was selling in production car mode... sometime in the fall. Then we will all get to provide input just like we did on the G3F.

[dukegrad98]

One other thing surprises me about the truck... Originally, the G3F was going to be a tight 2+2 coupe. Lots of us were VERY interested in the practicality of that design. Then we lost the rear seats, and most said "we'll live with it, but wish we had 'em." Before it ships, I expect the parcel shelf is smaller than we had hoped for. (But less than a duffel bag and a briefcase and I'm out. Even the Roadster has a trunk big enough for that!)

There was huge consumer interest in a vehicle that you could get a family of four in, even if two were young kids or it was for short trips. The Jettruck is one more car that is strictly limited to two people. Is there a market? Probably. Does it catch anyone that the current G3F left out? No, I doubt there's very much crossover there -- it's a separate market. Just my guess.

I'm in on the G3F, and don't have a wife or kids anyway. I'm out on the pickup, as I have a real one. I guess I'm waiting on a good-looking kit luxury sedan to come next!

Cheers, John

[TD]

Originally Posted by dukegrad98

One other thing surprises me about the truck... Originally, the G3F was going to be a tight 2+2 coupe. Lots of us were VERY interested in the practicality of that design. Then we lost the rear seats, and most said "we'll live with it, but wish we had 'em." Before it ships, I expect the parcel shelf is smaller than we had hoped for. (But less than a duffel bag and a briefcase and I'm out. Even the Roadster has a trunk big enough for that!)

There was huge consumer interest in a vehicle that you could get a family of four in, even if two were young kids or it was for short trips. The Jettruck is one more car that is strictly limited to two people. Is there a market? Probably. Does it catch anyone that the current G3F left out? No, I doubt there's very much crossover there -- it's a separate market. Just my guess.

I'm in on the G3F, and don't have a wife or kids anyway. I'm out on the pickup, as I have a real one. I guess I'm waiting on a good-looking kit luxury sedan to come next!

Cheers, John

X 2................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. ........................................... There I hope the mesage is long enough now. I hate those popups.

[mn12]

Originally Posted by TD

X 2................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. ........................................... There I hope the mesage is long enough now. I hate those popups.

And I'll add another amen I think there is a major market being ignored with regard ot a 4 seat sporty car that can be built for the family. If thats what you want it seems the only option is to hot rod a model a

[4229GL]

if you want a sporty 4 door sedan, get an early MK4 jetta 1.8t, same generation audi TT rear floor pan, halidex stuff, chip and turbo swap, and bingo. 4 door all wheel drive turbo with independent suspension all around and swap in a nice OEM leather interior. You don't need a kit for that.

[dukegrad98]

Originally Posted by 4229GL

if you want a sporty 4 door sedan, get an early MK4 jetta 1.8t, same generation audi TT rear floor pan, halidex stuff, chip and turbo swap, and bingo. 4 door all wheel drive turbo with independent suspension all around and swap in a nice OEM leather interior. You don't need a kit for that.

Still an ugly, boring, undersized car. I'm talking S-class size and performance with Aston Martin Rapide sexy-factor, please! But back to the regularly scheduled programming of the Jettruck in this thread...

Cheers, John

[RedJoker]

For those that like this idea, what would you use it for? I'm trying to like it but I haven't really found any reason to, yet.

[Bill Shaw]

I don't get it. The interest must be coming from the VW crowd who think it is cool to swap a golf front end onto a Jetta.

Certainly a different market segment.

[4229GL]

Originally Posted by Bill Shaw

I don't get it. The interest must be coming from the VW crowd who think it is cool to swap a golf front end onto a Jetta.

Certainly a different market segment.

I'm honestly interested by it. I currently have a 4 door golf that I use like a truck. I haven't had the back seats installed in 3 years. In the back it currently has a pick-axe and shovels and a BMX bike. I really use it like a truck sometimes with the amount of stuff I carry - limited only by the roof. Do I need to carry a ton of mulch? Certainly not. could a ford ranger better suit my car needs? probably - but I'm a die hard volkswagen guy.

[4229GL]

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/04/01/bmw-m3-pickup/

[RedJoker]

Ok, I guess I can see utensils and bikes. Rarely do I haul anything that is bulky but not heavy so I was thinking everyone was in the same boat.

[4229GL]

the only big thing I'd want to move around is a motorcycle on track days. that would be perfect!

[RE63]

Originally Posted by Big-Foot

I can't imagine how many RPM that little diesel was spinning... Holy COW!

=-=-

I absolutely LOVE some of the Australian UTEs;

http://www.google.com/search?q=austr...w=1222&bih=778

There was one of these at SEMA a couple years ago in the GM(Pontiac) both, ready for production with a 395 horse 350 under the hood....

I was an Elcamino guy and would have bought one, but the project was scrapped with Pontiac.

As for a Smyth performance pickup? I am not in line for that, and I think it is too much of a niche market.

and........ are you guy really asking what a guy would USE it for????

C'mon, this is a subforum of a C*&^a forum.... what practical purpose do they serve?

[TD]

Originally Posted by RE63

C'mon, this is a subforum of a C*&^a forum.... what practical purpose do they serve?

I don't think it's about practicality.This truck seems like a compromise on too many fronts, where as the Roadster only compromises in one area, ROOM.