I will first start off by saying that I am very excited what is developing with the 818. Thank you very much to FFR for all that you've done so far, and what you do for the automotive enthusiast community.
One thing that I wanted to say, and I'd really like to hear some feedback regarding it, is the engine and transmission selection for this concept. Understandably the idea was to have a one-car donor for the components used in this platform, and therefore the engine and transmission selection comes naturally from a Subaru/WRX based vehicle. Without a doubt this car may very well be FFR's introduction into the younger crowd due to the price range and donor car choice. However, I am curious if FFR will allow other engine/drivetrain configurations as a possibility with this car? Understandably the WRX/EJ engine configurations would be the original intent, but due to the pricing and potentially "tuner" niche that this car may be able to cater to I am curious if the size constraints will allow for other options. I'm sure it's been addressed before, and everything is still in the design phase right now, but I'm curious what FFR's take on this idea is right now?
While the EJ engine series would be the original intent, other options such as Honda K20 series and Mitsubishi 4g63 options could provide even lighter, cheaper, and possibly better suited engine/transmission platforms for those that would WANT to have options. From my research so far it appears that an engine such as an EJ255 runs around 380lbs, vs an iron block 4g63 at around 300, or an aluminum K20A at around 280. The pricing of the iron block 4g63 is extremely cheap to most EJ engine applications, while the higher revving, lower torque K20 would possibly be another great choice for this type of a lightweight platform. Being that there are many fwd transmission options for these type of platforms, it would also keep the user from having to modify the awd Subaru transmission, potentially providing a stronger drivetrain and another lighter weight transmission option. Leaving other engine selections as options may very well allow even more development of this car, and possibly even further acceptance by potential buyers. Something that I noticed from the GTM was that the availability of the transmission selection which has increased the build cost tremendously as it was the sole option available for the platform.
Just curious what FFR's stance is at this point, and whether or not they will leave the spaceframe engine/transmission compartment spacing large enough for other non-boxer platforms? Obviously this wouldn't be the route that everyone would take, but since the spaceframe size constraints will ultimately limit the engine/transmission options for this car, I am curious if FFR is considering leaving these as "options".