The first event of 2023 for the GBS Team was a great success….

It’s been a busy start to the year at GBS as we were straight into preparing for the first event on the GBS Calendar which was the Autosports International Show at the NEC in Birmingham. The event started on Thursday 12th until Sunday 15th January, it was great to be back there as it was 2019 since we were last there due to Covid. It was nice to see and catch up with so many customers over the 4 days as well as meet many new customers that we look forward to welcoming to the GBS Factory over the next few months.

We were based in Hall 3, where we had two very nice spec Zero’s on display. Including our new high spec Zero Race Car along with a Gen 2 factory built Zero that GBS Customer Robin Copley kindly let us have on display for the show. Both Zero’s attracted a lot of attention and we were also delighted to have Tri-Tech 3D join us on our stand. On display, along with the Zeros was one of the newest 3D printers from Stratasys – the F370CR. Built for robust applications and ideal for the Automotive industry, this industrial FDM printer 3D prints in ABS-CF10 and Nylon-CF10 materials – perfectly suited to supplement traditional fabrication technologies. Tri-Tech 3D also bought with them a host of 3D printed models & previous projects that attracted a lot attention including some components that were created and displayed on our Zero Race Car on our stand. We will share more details on them later this month.

The next event on the GBS Calander is our GBS Cars & Coffee event that is proudly sponsored by A-Plan Insurance which is happening on Saturday 18th March at GBS. Visit our events page for more details and to see what other events that we have planned for 2023, its updated regularly so keep checking.

The First GBS Cars & Coffee event of 2023 is announced......

Saturday 18th March

We are excited to share with you all that we have now confirmed the date for the first GBS Cars & Coffee event of 2023, which is proudly sponsored by A-Plan Insurance and will be taking place on Saturday 18th March at GBS from 10am-2pm.

Sponsored By

 

As many of you know everyone at GBS has a strong passion for cars and anything to do with motorsport and we love our Cars & Coffee events and Track Days etc and we all love to host our Cars & Coffee days which are getting busier and attracting a variety of sports cars each time we host one.

After working with A-Plan Insurance for several years now and promoting their Insurance services we are delighted that they are joining us again this year and will be sponsoring our first GBS Cars & Coffee event of 2023.

About A-Plan-
A-Plan has been providing a personalised service to over 600,000 clients since the 1960s. We have over 100 high street branches however, Thatcham branch is the specialist vehicle centre. It opened in 1994, focusing on private car, commercial vehicle and home insurance and offering an independent professional service with a dedicated in-house claims management team.

With a total of over 100 years of insurance experience in our Thatcham branch, the team are on hand to offer a professionally qualified personal service when you need it. Due to our enthusiasm for specialist vehicles, we have developed an experienced team dedicated to classic, kit, high performance and modified cars, as well as imported vehicles… and let’s not forget our track day cover!

We are proud to be associated with many car clubs and associated businesses within this specialist arena and we offer discounts and access to bespoke policies for car club members. So, if you own a specialist vehicle, or are thinking of buying one give us a try. To find out how competitive our prices are give us a call on 01635 874646 and we'll be delighted to discuss your needs. 
Great prices, great cover, great people - we're confident you'll agree!

The GBS Cars & Coffee event at GBS was created in 2016 and has since been a massive success & we have continued to hold the event again for several years. Its an event that we have created that gives the chance for you all to have a ride out in your sports cars / meeting point and enjoy a coffee (plus biscuits/ cake of course) and chat about your cars, all are welcome to join us in any car (modern or classic including bikes). Everyone is welcome to join us and this year we will have even more parking available!
Another great thing about our GBS Cars & Coffee events are that we raise more money for two great charities…. We collect for the Notts & Lincs Air Ambulance & Cancer Research, and will be collecting on the day. Refreshments are free and all we ask for is a donation to our chosen charities.

The Kit Spares shop and showroom ( www.kitspares.co.uk ) will be open on the day. Please feel free to call us or email and pre order and parts, ready to collect on the day to avoid any delays.

All of the GBS and A-Plan team look forward to seeing you and welcoming you to GBS on Saturday 18th March.

ALL CARS ARE WELCOME TO JOIN US…..

EXCITING NEWS – Great British Sports Cars is expanding

We are excited to share with you all that we are expanding, we are pleased to be doubling our site here in Nottinghamshire with the purchase of our premises and the adjoining site. 

Just before Christmas we got the keys and the team have now started all the hard work of preparing the building, this move will give us room to grow and expand our business and crucially allows us to bring all elements of our production under one roof. 

As well as bringing the team to one site and the extra space we are pleased to take this big step as a business as it will give us, our employees and our customers stability, given the current economic environment and the challenges and costs faced by business and all of us at the moment we are grateful to be able to ensure that our premises are stable for the future. 

We look forward to welcoming you to our growing facilities at our next cars and coffee event which we will be announcing next week and keep an eye out for factory tours later this year. We are also busy preparing the GBS Zeros for our first event of the year which is the Autosport International Show at the NEC in Birmingham which is happening next week where the Zeros will be on display including our new Zero Race car.

Happy New Year, stay safe & Best Wishes to you all.
Best Wishes From
Richard and All the GBS Team.

Happy Christmas to you all and best wishes for 2023.... From all the team at GBS

 
 

All of the GBS and Kit Spares  team would like to wish you and your families a very Happy Christmas, and also like to take this opportunity to say thank you all for your support this year.

After a successful and busy year, we are now looking forward to a continued busy & successful 2023 with many new and exciting plans ahead for us. We will be announcing some very exciting news in January.

But for now we are all looking forward to a well earned break and rest over the Christmas period and we look forward to seeing you all in the New Year. Don’t forget you can still follow us over the Christmas break on our social media channels for updates – Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Happy Christmas Everyone & Stay Safe

Best Wishes From
Richard and all the GBS & Kit Spares Team.


GBS & Kit Spares Christmas & New Year Opening Times….
Both GBS and Kit Spares will be closed from Friday 23rd December and we will be open again and back to normal opening hours on Tuesday 3rd January 2023.

You can still place your orders online from our parts website Kit Spares but please note any orders placed after 23rd December 2022 may not be processed or dispatched until 3rd / 4th January 2023. www.kitspares.co.uk

Happy Christmas & Happy New Year

Tri Tech will be with us on our stand at the Autosport Show in January.....

Click here for more details about Tri-Tech and what they offer.

We are looking forward to being at this years Autosport’s Show in January and we are delighted that Tri-Tech 3D will be joining us on our stand.
On display, along with the Zeros including our new Zero Race car there will be one of the newest 3D printers from Stratasys – the F370CR. Built for robust applications and ideal for the Automotive industry, this industrial FDM printer 3D prints in ABS-CF10 and Nylon-CF10 materials – perfectly suited to supplement traditional fabrication technologies.
Not only will Tri-Tech 3D have the printer on the stand (printing live), they will also bring with them a host of 3D printed models & previous projects that are sure to make you stop and look.
We can be found with the Tri-Tech team in Hall 3 on Stand 3642 over the four days, follow us on our social media channels during the lead up to the show for more details of what will be on display on our stand.

The learning curve of building a Zero is one the most rewarding things I have ever done......

We always love to see photographs and hear about customers Zero build stories and experiences they have had and how we as a team can improve and make the build experience even better and more enjoyable. GBS customer Andrew Ives has been enjoying his Zero on the road for some time and we asked him to write a few words about his experience…….

My name is Andrew and I've been asked to write something about my experience with the highs and lows of building and owning my own GBS zero race.  
After lots of research and meeting the team at a car show, followed by a factory visit, I made the decision to go with GBS for lots of reasons but mainly for their attention to detail, and design. The quality of the wielding and powder coating on the frames and parts was also a very good reason as its nothing short of remarkable.
With the build, I took my time. From the trestles to being on the road, it took me just under 4 years. I would say the whole build went as I envisioned it, with only a couple of surprises, one having to do the IVA 3 times down to just emissions, funnily the road tax on my Zero is less than the MX5 the engine came from! And two, having to shell out an extra £900+ on individual throttle bodies because the MX5 engine plenum would not fit in the engine bay, at first this stung but now in hindsight it may be the best upgrade on the car and I would highly recommend them. Talking of upgrades, well one that I chose to buy, I would also recommend the solid rear end bushes as they transform the feel of the rear end and you can set up the geometry exactly how you like it.

 Being 6 foot 4 and fed up of feeling cramped in other 7en's, I chose the GT frame. The GT also only comes with lowered floors which meant I had lots of headroom for my crash hat under the roll cage, this means I wouldn't have a problem with scrutineering on race events. I've owned and done a lot of work on MX5's, so it was an easy choice to go down the MX5 donor root. It also kept the cost down, then and now due to parts being cheap. 

At first, I thought I may have bitten off more than I can chew, as I decided to build as much of the car as I possibly could, starting with the ECU, a Megasquitrt MS3X kit. A full engine and diff rebuild. A custom wiring loom to my own design but using the fuse box from the MX5. The headlight switch I used from a VW Golf, this helped with the IVA fog light rule. Setting up the geometry, doing the tuning and finally taking it through the IVA. But this was another nice thing about GBS and kit spares, If I got stuck at any point, I was safe in the knowledge that I could just call GBS for help or spend some money for a short cut to get me over the finish line.

 And yes, without question, before I started, the idea of not having a build manual was terrifying but looking back on it now, it allowed me the freedom to build something fit for my purpose and unique to my needs.
I'm currently using the car on the road and track but also for grassroots motorsport which has to be the most enjoyable thing I do with the car. Being a member of Farnham district motor club has opened up a world of new
possibilities that I've only just started to discover. Click here to watch a short video. 

If you're like me and grew up building RC cars and unable to stop yourself thinking about everything on wheels, you have to put building a kit car on you bucket list. The learning curve of building a Zero is one of the most
rewarding things I have ever done! - A. Ives

The learning curve of building a Zero is one the most rewarding things I have ever done…. 

The first event on the GBS Calendar for 2023 is confirmed & announced....

BUSY START TO 2023….

The very first event on the GBS Calendar for 2023 is announced, we are delighted to be exhibiting at the Autosport International Show at the NEC in Birmingham in January where the GBS team will be with the Zeros.
Make sure you follow us on Instagram to see more details of what we will be revealing on our stand. We can be found in Hall 3 on stand 3642, we are all looking forward to being back their as it was 2019 since we were last there due to Covid.

More events have now also been added to our 2023 calendar and the GBS Cars & Coffee dates will be announced very soon, so make sure you keep checking our GBS event page to see what we are upto.

GBS Christmas Competition - WIN a Sealey Mechanic's Tool Kit 144pc....

COMPETITION TIME……WIN THIS SEALEY Mechanic's Tool Kit 144pc.


We have teamed up with Sealey Tools and are giving you the chance to WIN this Red 144pc Mechanics Tool Kit worth £225….

One of a comprehensive range of Premier Hand Tools, suitable for daily professional use.
• Comprehensive range of frequently used hand tools.
• 1/4" and 1/2"Sq drive 72-Tooth offset comfort grip ratchet wrenches.
• Includes 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2"Sq drive sockets, hex keys, spanners, screwdrivers, pliers, bits and accessories.
• Housed in a sturdy storage case with reinforced corners, aluminium trim and lockable metal catches.
• Lifetime guarantee*.

Ideal to have in the Workshop and for anyone building a GBS Zero or something similar. For the chance to WIN head over to our GBS Facebook page to see more details.
*The Winner will be picked at random and notified on Friday 16th December 2022. Good luck!

Visit our parts shop Kit Spares to see our range of Sealey Tools or contact us with the part number and we can give you a quote. www.kitspares.co.uk

This competition is now closed. Thank you to everyone who entered.

The mince pies went down well at our GBS Christmas Cars & Coffee event.....

Thank you to everyone who joined us last Saturday (3rd December) at our GBS Christmas Cars and Coffee event which was our last event of 2022……. We had another fantastic day with great weather, cars and mince pies, it was great to have a car park full of so many different sports cars. We would like to say a big THANK YOU to you all for joining us and helping us make it another great event and enjoyable day, the mince pies went down very well, with only a few left for the GBS team to enjoy.

The GBS and Kit Spares show room was very busy with people and the Kit Spares  Shop was also very busy with sales and enquires. The GBS Workshop was also open on the day for viewing, to see more about the workshop services we offer click here.

Another great thing about our GBS Cars & Coffee events that we love, is that we are able to raise money for our 2 chosen charities which are the Cancer Research UK and The Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance. We all feel and hope you agree that The Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance is a fantastic service and has helped & will continue to help many people, as well as the Cancer Research UK that is again a fantastic charity that makes a big difference to so many people and their families. Thank you for your kind donations, we will let you know soon how much money we have raised.
Follow GBS on Facebook and Instagram to see more photographs from the day. Or click here to visit our GBS YouTube Chanel to see a video from the day.

The 2023 GBS Cars & Coffee dates will be announced very soon…..

GBS & Kit Spares Christmas Opening times & Gift Ideas….

All of the GBS and Kit Spares team are all looking forward to a well earned break over the festive period, below are our Christmas opening times.

The GBS Factory and Kit Spares Shop will be closed from Friday 23rd December and we will be open again and back to normal opening hours on Tuesday 3rd January 2023.

You can still place your orders online from our parts website Kit Spares over the Christmas break, but please note any orders placed on or after 23rd December 2022 may not be processed or dispatched until 3rd / 4th January 2023. www.kitspares.co.uk Don’t forget to follow us on our GBS, Kit Spares & ATR Products Social Media Channels and over the Christmas holidays to see what we are up to!

Its also our GBS Christmas Cars & Coffee event this Saturday (3rd December) at GBS, we hope you can all join us. More details can be found on our event page the Kit Spares Shop will also be open on the day and also Sealy Tools will be joining us, if you need any parts to keep you busy over the Christmas holidays or are looking for some Christmas presents.


Below are just a few Christmas Gift Ideas for you and your Zero’s, visit our parts website Kit Spares or contact us for details.

A Kit Spares Gift Voucher could make the perfect gift….

Behind the scenes Factory Tour at GBS..... See what we are upto.....

We are always busy here at GBS and we often have some very interesting cars with us in the workshop and are involved in some very interesting projects. With full in-house design, development, manufacturing and testing we manage projects through the full product life cycle from concept to final production. Our capabilities range from less complicated prototype fabrication to complex composite structures. 

At GBS our philosophy remains to design and manufacture critical and custom components in-house. This ensures the highest quality, control of costs and lead times. For those parts we do not manufacture and wherever possible we select local sources to streamline the management of our supply chain and our delivery commitments. Click below to see a short video behind the scenes of what we are upto at GBS.
We have created a short video that shows Behind the Scenes of what we are upto. This short video shows an insight into the GBS Showroom and Kit Spares Shop, Kit Spares Stores, Engineering, Clean & Assembly Room, Design Room, Fabrication, Workshop, Composite and bodywork and an overview of the Zero.

GBS ENGINEERING

ATR PRODUCT RANGE

GBS WORKSHOP

GBS DESIGN ROOM

GBS FABRICATION

GBS COMPOSITES

Job opportunity - Workshop Mechanic and Car Builder

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Workshop Mechanic/Car Builder to join our team. Our company manufactures cars as well as other engineering projects from concept to final production, and one off specials to Formula 1 cars.

This is not simply working in your normal workshop; this is an exciting opportunity to join the enthusiastic and dynamic workshop team at GBS. The ideal candidate will enjoy the challenge of working on a range of vehicles including the Great British Sports Cars Zero and have an interest in all things mechanical.

This role for a Workshop Mechanic/Car Builder will be based on site at Great British Sports Cars Ltd (NG22 9ZD) within the engineering and workshop facilities.

To apply for this role please forward your CV and a covering letter to the email provided on our GBS Careers page or click below for more details.


THANK YOU for your generous donations at our GBS events, we have now raised over £2,000 for our charities....

At our GBS events we hold we always offer free refreshments on the day and always ask for donations to help our chosen charities which are the Cancer Research and The Notts & Lincs Air Ambulance.

We would like to say a big thank you to you all for your generous donations you have made to our charities on the day. We were delighted to have raised a total of £1,063.28 for The Cancer Research Charity and £1,244.79 for The Notts & Lincs Air Ambulance since we started collecting for them at our GBS Events several years ago, which is fantastic and we thank you all for your generous donations.

Our last GBS Cars & Coffee event of the year will be taking place in a few weeks on Saturday 3rd December and we hope you can all join us and enjoy some mince pies with us. We will be announcing the 2023 GBS Cars & Coffee dates very soon.

GBS Composites facilities relocates to the companies Head Quarters.......

GBS Composites moves to a new purpose built facility at the GBS HQ site. This new composites department enables us to meet growing demand in a larger modern workshop space and to help meet the growing depends of future projects.
All the GRP bodywork for the Zero range is created in house by our team, and is available in a choice of 9 gel coat colours along with the carbon fibre parts, we have also recently invested a new plastic vac forming machine that will enable us to create new parts and expand our product range further which we have planned for next year.
All the GRP bodywork products for the Zero are available online from our parts website Kit Spares www.kitspares.co.uk lead time for current GRP is currently around 4 weeks but often quicker.

Fantastic time at the Classic Motor Show with the Zeros….

We had a fantastic time this weekend at the Classic Motor Show at the NEC in Birmingham. Thank you to everyone who visited our stand over the 3 days this show is one of our favourite shows of the year and it never disappoints. Both the GBS & Kit Spares stand were busy all 3 days particularly the Saturday, it was great to see so many customers over the weekend as well as meet many new customers that we look forward to welcoming to the GBS factory over the next few months.

On our stand this year was a customers Zero build by Jim Burge.
The Zero Build Spec:
Zero Ultimate Self Assembly Customer Build Sport Chassis / Painted Ford Focus RS Blue / 2.5 Duratec Engine Power 200 - 350 bhp / 5 Speed manual gearbox / Carbon Dash with Smiths Gauges / Carbon Fibre Finishing panels / DRL Style Headlights / ATR Adjustable Suspension / ATR Brakes Front: ATR 300mm floating discs 4 pot caliper Rear: Disc & Caliper Standard. Click here for more details about the Zero Ultimate Self Build Kit and other Zero Self Build options we offer.

We also had a range of Kit Spares and ATR Products on display attracting a lot of attention particularly the popular Ford 2.5 Duratec engine. Visit our parts website www.kitspares.co.uk or come and visit our showroom and shop that is open Monday - Friday to see more products and details.

This was our last show of the year but we still have one event left, which we are all very much looking forward to which is our GBS Christmas Cars & Coffee event that is happening on Saturday 3rd December at our GBS Factory, please click here for more details.

The start of 2023 is looking very exciting for the GBS team and the GBS calendar for 2023 is looking very busy with lots of new and exciting events scheduled in, the 2023 GBS calendar will be released very soon. We hope to be at more events, do more track days and much more! So make sure you keep visiting our event page.

GBS Christmas Cars & Coffee is happening at GBS on
Saturday 3rd December.

Job opportunity - CNC Machinist / Programmer......

An opportunity has arisen for a CNC Machinist / Programmer to join our team.
This is an exciting opportunity to join the enthusiastic and dynamic team at GBS with many exciting things happening in the new year and new products planned.

We are looking to significantly grow GBS in the coming year, this role for a CNC Machinist will be based on site at Great British Sports Cars Ltd (NG22 9ZD) within the engineering and workshop facilities.

To apply for this role please forward your CV and a covering letter to the email provided on our GBS Careers page or click below for more details.


Start your Christmas shopping early - Kit Spares Christmas Gift Ideas.....

Below are just a few Christmas Gift Ideas for you and your Zero’s, visit our parts website Kit Spares or contact us for details. Or why not come and visit our Showroom & Shop.

The Kit Spares Shop will also be open on Saturday 3rd December at our Christmas Cars & Coffee event.

A Kit Spares Gift Voucher could make the perfect gift….

GBS 4wd high performance EV with integrated carbon structure.....

The whole GBS Team is proud to share with you an exciting new project which we have been working on behind the scenes for the past few years which has recently come to a point where we can share and show case what we have been creating.

Along with two other partners we were involved in this project to create an all-new Low Carbon super Car, this project focused on a zero emission, high performance super car for low volume production.

The project has been supported by innovative UK whose involvement has been a key part in GBS journey towards EV zero emissions, collaborative R&D nature of the project has allowed GBS as a smaller niche vehicle manufacture to push the boundaries of technology and design, whilst increasing the companies skills and engineering expertise in low carbon technologies giving accelerated progress of our low carbon technologies toward volume production product.

This project pulls together a number previous R&D programs, and development into one exciting concept car, that was designed to provide a concept/engineering platform for future projects with leading sports car performance and establish a superior position of zero emission vehicles in the sports car market.

It featured a four-wheel drive electric system with 220KW and 980Nm per motor fitted to each corner giving in excess of 1,100Hp and a weight of 1100Kg, fitted into a lightweight carbon fibre monocoque chassis, giving true super car performance with zero emissions.

GBS were responsible for the overall vehicle design and packaging and the design and manufacture including the new lightweight chassis using our innovative low-cost carbon fibre processing technology that we have developed inhouse. We also developed the vehicle styling, interior and ancillary system for the prototype.

The project has integrated four Yasa P750 motors with torque vectoring for increase control and performance, and we have worked closely with Yasa on the development and use of their own Yasa motor controllers, the lithium-ion Batteries are a dual chemistry set up with pouch cells from A123 giving the car a combined 60Kw hours and the ability for rapid charging and extremely high output from the high voltage system.

Going forward we are now looking for investment and partners to bring the car to market as a British Super car offering.

Supported by Innovate UK

Let us work with you to design the bespoke paint design and graphics for your Zero.

Let us work with you to design the bespoke paint design and graphics for your Zero.
Paint is now fast becoming a popular option and is a service that we offer, we are able to colour match and design your cars paint effect with you from start to finish. The paint option is available on both Zero Self Builds and Factory Builds. Paint can take around 2 to 3 weeks, depending on the design and paint colour. Once your car is with us and the design is confirmed we will be able to give you a more accurate time scale of how long it will be. The other option which is also bespoke to you, is to transform your Zero with vehicle graphics.
Now your Zero is painted you can make it even more stylish with bespoke vehicle graphics which can be truly individual to you. Eye catching graphics can transform your Zero and make it stand out from the crowd even more, we are pleased to work with a local family run design and graphic company and together we are able to offer a bespoke design service for your Zero. You can use your own design or we are able to work with you to get the perfect design.

Below are some recent Zeros that have been painted to give you an idea of what you can have for your Zero. Follow us on Instagram to see more updates of what we are up to and of some other cars that we have painted. Follow us on Instagram here.

Full custom Paint & Vehicle Graphics…

Ultimate Zero Build up close & being enjoyed on the road.....

The Zero range is available as both a self-build and factory built option. This GBS customer Zero build by Jim Burges is an example of a customer’s complete component Zero build which is now on the road and being enjoyed since it was registered earlier this year in March.
You can select from a variety of Zero Self build packages to suit all budgets from our starter kit through to a complete kit of components that can be assembled easily by yourself. The GBS Zero range is available as right hand or left-hand drive and as a Standard width or GT (grand tourer /wide body) chassis option, which allows greater access and a more comfortable seating position for the taller/larger driver. The complete component build comes with all parts to a high specification and many options are included as standard giving you a exceptional and capable car out of the box.
At a Glance, how it works…….. We have designed the ultimate self build Zero kit, to be assembled and purchased in five different stages. This helps with planning, building and budgeting, or if you prefer it can be purchased as a whole package. There are a range of optional extras and upgrades available along the way, so you will be building a truly individual sports car that is unique and bespoke to you.

Explore our Zero Self Build page to see more details on the Zero Self build options that we offer, or contact us and one of the team will be able to advise you. The specification of this Zero Ultimate Self Assembly Customer Build is - Sport Chassis, Painted Ford Focus RS Blue, 2.5 Duratec Engine - Power 200 - 350 bhp, 5 Speed manual gearbox, Carbon Dash with Smiths Gauges, Carbon Fibre Finishing panels, DRL Style Headlights, ATR Adjustable Suspension, ATR Brakes Front: ATR 300mm floating discs 4 pot Caliper, Rear: Disc & Caliper Standard. See more details below about the Zero range and the bespoke factory-build and self build options that we offer or call and email us for any questions that you may have.