Bailey Blade Prototype 2009-

[Sledgehammer]

(from BaileySpeed)


Blade Prototype overview:
This car was designed to capture the look and feel of old school automobiles with a hint of modern touches. This is a full performance car built with modern advancements. Big V8 fuel injected power plant up front riding on a tubular hybrid chassis with full independent suspension. The addition of belly pans and rear splitters are added to keep down force up without the need of a giant rear spoiler.

Powertrain:

Engines types range from Roush 400HP to 500+HP. The B1 engine compartment is designed to accommodate most small block engines including the newer Ford modular 4.6L engines.

Suspension:

Several suspension types can be applied. Standard equip is a fully adjustable independent rear suspension with adjustable shocks. Front suspension utilizes adjustable upper and lower control arms and with adjustable performance shocks. The rear end can be swapped with a Ford 9" or 8.8" straight axel with 4-Link or 3-Link rear control arms. Also included are adjustable anti-sway bars for both front and rear of the car.

Chassis:

Full steel chassis consisting of tubular roll cage affixed to a solid ridged box steel frame. The tubular roll cage is hidden from view and protects the driver and passenger sides with the addition of two hoop style bars to protect in case of roll over.

Body:

Full Vinyl Ester hand laid fiber glass body that is Light weight in design with functional trunk doors and hood. The hood is a clam shell style hood that flips forward to allow for easy access to the engine compartment.


Blade Concept Kit Car | Bailey Speed | Bailey Blade | Concept Prototype Car Design (http://www.baileyspeed.com/)
specs:
Engine = 5.8 liter V8
Weight = 2200 lbs
Aspiration = natural
Torque = 460 lb-ft @ 4200 rpm
HP = 480 hp @ 4200 rpm
HP/Liter = 82.8 hp per liter

2008 Bailey Blade Prototype

[Sledgehammer]

2008 Bailey Blade Prototype #2

[Sledgehammer]

2008 Bailey Blade Prototype #3

[kigango123]

Pretty Interesting prototype, I must say

[Duell]

Pretty impressive design, although I don't think EuroNcap will rated it particularly good on pedestrian safety :D

[Gt1Street]

Pretty impressive design, although I don't think EuroNcap will rated it particularly good on pedestrian safety :D

im not sure if the people that might buy it are gonna be interested in its safety features :)

[VtecMini]

Looks grand, but hasn't modern-retro been done to death yet?

[digitalcraft]

Very TVR. Speed12 even.

[Lotec_Sirius]

Looks pretty good, reminds me of the Weismann GT

[Sledgehammer]

Shelby Cobra with a longer front and mustang mix. Still looks pretty damn good.

[Dino Scuderia]

Barf to the tenth power.

[Ferrer]

im not sure if the people that might buy it are gonna be interested in its safety features :)
I think its best safety feature is under the bonnet. :D

[Mr.Tiv]

If it comes to fruition it should be very, very fast and it's rather good looking. I wish their website was bit less vague about pricing.

[Fuerte100]

I don't like it, it is trying to be very curvy while having very sharp edges.

[Vindesh17]

I really like it. It does rip off many classic designs but at least they look good together.

[092326001]

looks pretty good except for awful front/side view

[BladeX1]

Hello Everyone,

I was doing a search on my car in Google and I noticed you guys talking about it here. I just wanted to stop by and say thanks for all the great comments. The project is going smoothly so far and I’m still on schedule to have the first running prototype by the end of the year. It’s been getting a lot of media attention which is great, but overwhelming at the same time. I will post more images on the website this month of the body and hopefully some interior layouts with some nice race style seats.

Hey maybe you guys can help with something… The only area of the car that has not been shaped yet is the backend where the Tail Lights go. I am having a difficult time finding some nice round LED style tail lights that have a modern look. I would like to use something that is already available on a current car or something aftermarket. This is why I left the back unfinished so that I can shape it around what ever tail light setup I decide to use. I looked at using the Chevy Cobalt lights but they are not round even though they look like they are. The new Ultima GTR’s have nice LED tail lights, now if I can only find out where they get them.

Anyway… maybe you guys have some ideas… I have tried and bought several lights so far with no luck.

Thanks,
- Neal
- Blade Website (http://www.BaileySpeed.com)

[LeonOfTheDead]

The only area of the car that has not been shaped yet is the backend where the Tail Lights go. I am having a difficult time finding some nice round LED style tail lights that have a modern look.

i was about to post that the only part i don't like is the rear view because it seems like it misses something. now i know what. i'm not sure about a round light, maybe it wouldn't fit properly with the rest of the design. can i suggest you to look at the led tail light of the Lancia Thesis, or of the discontinued Maserati 3200 GT? i think they could work. as regard the light of the Ultima GTR, i guess you could ask to the folks of Ultima, from their official video of the 0-100-0 record they seems to be very easygoing people.
good luck with your car, i really like it, more as a roadster than as a coupe.

[IBrake4Rainbows]

Round Tailights In my Opinion do not suit the car. It's an Old-school touch on something that is obviously trying to be a little more nouveau.

[Gt1Street]

you can try the ones on the Farboud GTS if you can manage to find them
or the ones from the MG Xpower

[Quiggs]

Baby got back.

Adam like.

[Sledgehammer]

Update


(from Bailey Speed) Blinded by the lights...

Over the past month, a lot of things have happened with the Blade. The Blade project is still going full force and now that the weather is warming up, it is picking up speed. During the past two weeks, I have been dealing with a variety of regulations for the headlights, specifically how high they were off the ground. When I first designed the car, I used a lot of information from Europe’s specialty car documents and a limited amount of info from the US. In the United States, it is harder to find the right information because every state has its own regulations for specialty cars. I designed the car according to the information I could find regarding headlight heights. While the car met European standards, it did not fully meet US standards and this forced me to redesign the front end and raise the headlights about 2" inches higher.

I took the opportunity to make some styling changes based on various comments and suggestions I received as a result of our recent publicity. While the first design was unique and aggressive, I could see ways I could improve it. I addressed this with the new design. The goal was to make the front end flow better with the rest of the car and keep the unique styling and aggressive looks. Feel free to let me know what you think.

As I mentioned above, progress is moving forward even with the new changes to the front end. I do not expect the modifications to take long. Luckily, when building the full scale body buck, I made it so that the front end was easily removable, as I had a slight feeling that changes might have to be made.

Tall folk’s can drive small sports cars, if I have anything to do with it...

The head clearance is still looking good. I have yet to add humps to the Hard Top, but once I do, there will be loads of room for us tall people. The amount of leg room is outrageous... I am 6’4" and can fully extend my legs on both passenger and driver sides and still not touch the fire wall.

New Corbeau FX1 seats have been test fitted in the car. These are similar to the type of seats that I imagine the car will come with in the future. I was worried that they may be too wide, but it turns out, that they fit perfect with room to spare. This is good news for folks that will want Recaro, Sparco and Cobra style racing seats. This is the style of seats I intended for the car from its conception.

Body Works...

Once the front end is back together, work on the final body shape will begin. I expect this will take a good amount of time to complete, as there will be what will seem like an endless amount of sanding and surfacing to do. But once done, it will be off to the mold makers to have molds made.

New Suspension and Chassis Design:

New development on the chassis and suspension is currently in the works by Eric Rodela. Eric is my partner in crime on this build and has an engineering background in hi tech mechanics and robotics. We are developing a new Independent Front and Rear suspension system for that chassis that will help make adjustments easy for both street driving and racing. The idea is not to over complicate the suspension and use standardized parts, but in such away to allow adjustments without having to purchase more parts or add and remove components. We should have some images of this on the next newsletter.




Image Credits: Bailey Blade
2008 Bailey Blade Revised Design #1

[Sledgehammer]

2008 Bailey Blade Revised Design #2

[Sledgehammer]

2008 Bailey Blade Revised Design #3

[CdocZ]

The revised one...it is hot, I like it more this way. Reminds me now of the previously said things, but more Viper now than a Mustang. Still has Shelby Cobra "hips", which is not a bad thing at all :)

[Vindesh17]

I fell in love with the menecing look of the old one. Now IMO it looks like an ordinary car.

[Duell]

Ouch, the front looks even better now. :D
Those lines are classic and futuristic at the same time.

I'm in love :)

[whiteballz]

I like it too, Its awesome.

[Ferrer]

I like it too especially the hardtop.

[Sledgehammer]

I love the revised front. It looks classic and modern from the sides with or without the side exausts.

[LeonOfTheDead]

maybe too aggressive, but full of personality, which is very good. i like this project. i hope Neal will have is first prototype soon :)

[BladeX1]

Thanks for the great complements on the new design. It defiantly seems that the majority really likes this new design the best. So this weekend we removed the old front and a have begun to re-model the new front end onto the car. Believe it or not it’s not a major ordeal at this stage, it just cost more money. UGH! We should have the new front end completed next week. I think this may be the last big change to be made but I am sure there will be things to tweak as we progress.

Just as a teaser… We may have a deal in the works to provide the Only Jack Roush Signature Specialty car ever. This means that the car will be signed and badge by Roush and carry the 500+Hp Roush series engines. None of this is confirmed yet but its looking good.

Stay tuned… and please fill out or guest book on the site with your comments.

Thanks,
- Neal
- BaileyBlade Website (http://www.BaileyBlade.com)

[CdocZ]

How much do you expect these things to cost? And if you get the 500+ hp Roush engines....this car could easily = American-styled Win^x. (Yes, I did just raise Win to the xth exponent)

[BladeX1]

The Blade is projected to sale between $50K to $80K depending on engine types and options. The engine is a big part of the cost as for example a 500HP Roush engine is around $18K to $25K just for the engine. The plan is to keep it as affordable as possible but the demand so far is pushing for the much larger engines and possible turbos. Once the first Prototype is built and out for testing we should have a better idea of pricing.

- Neal
- Blade Website (http://www.BaileyBlade.com)

[CdocZ]

Sounds good. Unfortunately I will never be able to afford such a thing :p Or at least for a very long time, but know, that if I could afford it, I would definitely look into one if these. They look good, and so far they sound good :)

[LeonOfTheDead]

The plan is to keep it as affordable as possible but the demand so far is pushing for the much larger engines and possible turbos.

pretty good, but in my opinion, you could built a very exclusive version in a slw volume and keep its price higher.

[MidNiteRide89]

I fell in love with the menecing look of the old one. Now IMO it looks like an ordinary car.

x2

The viper is a nice car, but this looks too much like it from the front... and disrupts the wicked creases in the front.

Can you make me a one off with the original front end? :D

[LeonOfTheDead]

x2

The viper is a nice car, but this looks too much like it from the front... and disrupts the wicked creases in the front.

Can you make me a one off with the original front end? :D

so i guess for you a muscel car with a big bonnet is like a viper no care how it really appears. i don't see the viper under this car, but i think Neal thought about it sketching this, btw i find the Blade the most interesting really new muscle car since some times. he declared its design it's inspired by a lot of famous cars, but i think it is kinda peculiar. i like it.

[70cuda88]

i see so many different cars in it, im not sure i can find something original that draws me to it. maybe its got so many cars in it, its the most original!:eek:

[jugga]

bit of a beast. make it handle sweet and keep with n/a raw power and you have a winner. competition for the ultima gtr then???

[CapnBoost]

This + vq35de with all the bolt ons and the AEBS 4.3L stroker kit with two hybrid ball bearing turbos with the wastegates plumbed to the extra collector. 5-600hp and an exhaust note befitting the design.

I could live with that.

[BladeX1]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the great comments… Stay tuned for some big updates towards the end of this month. Make sure to sign up for the newsletter to get all the updates.

Just as a teaser… part of the news involves, big facility, jigs, machinery and big names!!!..

Thanks,
- Neal
- BaileyBlade Website (http://www.BaileyBlade.com)

[Ferrer]

Will it remain as a US car (and Canada I guess) or will it come overseas as well?

[BladeX1]

The Blade is being developed for both US and European markets and will come with left and right hand drive versions.

Thanks,
- Neal
- BaileyBlade Website (http://www.BaileyBlade.com)

[clutch-monkey]

^ what about Australia? or will distribution there depend on private imports?

[BladeX1]

^ what about Australia? or will distribution there depend on private imports?

Yes absolutely… I am not sure how we will get it there as it just too early for all that. But we are talking with a few import/export companies that have an interest in deliver our car to Dubai, Romania and Egypt. It’s kind of crazy really… I never expected all the attention and media on this, it’s still shocking every morning when I check my email and find so many people interested in this project.

It’s just plain crazy and exciting at the same time!... :eek::D


Thanks,
- Neal
- BaileyBlade Website (http://www.BaileyBlade.com)

[Sledgehammer]

Two updates




Fast Ventures selected as strategic advisor to BXR Motors, Inc.

Dallas-Forth Worth, Miami – January 05, 2009. Fast Ventures announced today that it has been selected as exclusive strategic advisor to Dallas-Fort Worth-based BXR Motors Inc., which is home to the widely anticipated Bailey Blade Roadster.

The company’s founder, Neal Bailey, initially achieved semi-celebrity status through his commitment to build the high-performance car based on a shoestring budget in his garage.

Today, Neal Bailey’s vision has grown way beyond an ambitious idea and led to the development of a curvaceous super car that will be available with a zero-emission electric powertrain, or a traditional 750 horsepower, 5.4L V8 combustion engine. Neal has also teamed up with his friend and business partner Eric Rodela to further his vision and make the Bailey Roadster a reality. The company’s website regularly receives more than 250,000 hits every month and has been featured in more than 80 periodicals, blogs, and articles from around the world. While BXR Motors, Inc. has yet to set a definite sales price for the Bailey Blade Roadster, they expect to be able to accept orders as of October of 2009.

“It’s funny, but when Eric and I received the first inquiries from people who wanted to know when the car becomes available and how much of a deposit we require to reserve a car, we knew that we needed the help of a seasoned strategic advisor to reach the full potential of our project,” said Neal Bailey. “By teaming up with Fast Ventures’ technology group we feel that we are not only in very capable hands, but also work with people who share our vision, enthusiasm, and commitment to the future success of our company,” he continued.

“Neal’s and Eric’s commitment to BXR Motors, Inc. is a text-book case that proves that the entrepreneurial spirit and can-do attitude is still going strong in America,” said Mark Alexander, Director of Fast Ventures’ technology group. “In times when American automakers whine over declining sales and line up in Washington, D.C. to apply for government handouts, these two entrepreneurs prove that timeless design, high-performance, and alternative fuel technologies do no longer reflect a far-fetched futuristic vision, but rather a prerequisite for building a successful car company,” he added.

Fast Ventures will assist BXR Motors, Inc. with its strategic business development, including the exploration of a viable capital market strategy to fund the completion of the Bailey Roadster prototype and subsequent production of up to 50 cars.

About BXR Motors, Inc.
BXR Motors, Inc. was founded by Neal Bailey and Eric Rodela. Although Neal initially conceived the idea for the Bailey Blade Roadster in 2007, the two have only recently decided to turn their vision for a next-generation high-performance car from a hobby into a business. As of January 2009, BXR Motors, Inc. plans offering the Bailey Blade Roadster with a 100% electric powertrain, powered by leading-edge lithium phosphate battery technology and a fuel efficient 750 horsepower 5.4L V8 combustion engine. While the company has yet to set a definite sales price for the car, they anticipate being able to accept reservations as of October of 2009. For more information, please visit Bailey Blade Sports Car | Supercar Roadster Sportscar | Blade Electric Sports Car | BXR Motors (http://www.baileyspeed.com).

About Fast Ventures
Fast Ventures is a leading boutique consultancy advising talented entrepreneurs and emerging growth companies on strategic business development, corporate finance, and marketing & sales related issues. The firm has offices in London, Budapest, and Miami and recently announced plans to launch its own venture capital fund in 2009. For more information, please visit Fast Ventures - Welcome (http://www.FastVentures.com)

[Sledgehammer]

Second update.


We are introducing two new concepts based on the current Blade design. Although we are two simple guys building a fast sports car does not mean we are oblivious to our economy and environment. Therefore we are introducing two new concepts, the Blade EVR and HDR. Also we named the current Blade to the Blade XTR. These two new concepts are something that we have wanted to do from the beginning but due to lack of funds and resources we simply focused on the standard internal combustion engine version. Now we with the current economy we are seeing new technology everyday that makes it possible and even affordable to venture into the world of Green Technology.

Don't think for a minute that we are leaving the world of Gas Guzzling hi horsepower super cars. Oh no... The first prototype will still have the 750 horse power engine. We simply realize that we need to also look into alternatives for clean energy vehicles. There is no reason why going green can't be fast and powerful too.

Here are the new models:

Model 1: Blade XTR

750HP 5.4L V8 ROUSH Supercharged Engine w/ 6 Speed Transmission
Simple, Powerful and Fast...


Model 2: Blade EVR - Hybrid

Front and Rearl Hi-Torque Electric Motors - 300x2 Foot Pounds of Torque each
4 Wheel Drive system providing 600 foot pounds of toque from 0 RPMs to 3000RPMs. (Big Block Performance but all Electric)
Powered by Lithium Iron Phosphate Batteries (LiFePO4 - cells), Light Weight, Long lasting, Inexpensive to replace and will not explode or over heat.
Gas powered 100HP light weight 30kw Generator.


Model 3: Blade HDR

600HP 5.4L V8 ROUSH Supercharged w/ 6 Speed Transmission
Hydrogen on demand injection system.
20% Projected fuel savings by injecting hydrogen with standards fuels
Cleaner burn, higher combustion means cutting emissions down for high horsepower sports cars.
Our primary goal will be to complete the Blade XTR first while also working on the other two models chassis setup and testing the Electric and Hydrogen systems.

PS. We understand the controversy surrounding the Hydrogen (HHO) systems, but we have seen some promising results for Hydrogen where we can see this playing a role in green cars.

Please keep in mind that as well dive into all these various technologies, we may change the current configurations for both the EVR and HDR prototypes depending on new ideas or newly developed resources.

The Blade XTR will remain the same… its rather simple. More Engine, More Gas More Power!!!...

[Sledgehammer]

Why start designing two new drive platforms when it seems the origional engine and test vehicle have yet to be complete? Am I alone in thinking Neil might be biting off more than he can chew?

[LeonOfTheDead]

Why start designing two new drive platforms when it seems the origional engine and test vehicle have yet to be complete? Am I alone in thinking Neil might be biting off more than he can chew?

don't know, the two petrol engines aren't really different, and probably an electric drivetrain is mandatory if you want to receive some attention this days.

EDIT:O too bad he removed the possibility to browse and download all the images and renderings of the car :(

[Rasmus]

Just out of curiosity, with side windows that tall, will they be able to roll all the way down? And if they will, won't they then start flapping bit if they're rolled up and the door is open? Doesn't seem like there's enough room in the door to correctly support the windows.

Oh, and Model 1 is going to have the GT500 plant with the Roush 2.3 TVS?

[LeonOfTheDead]

Just out of curiosity, with side windows that tall, will they be able to roll all the way down? And if they will, won't they then start flapping bit if they're rolled up and the door is open? Doesn't seem like there's enough room in the door to correctly support the windows.

Oh, and Model 1 is going to have the GT500 plant with the Roush 2.3 TVS?

since the beginning Neil said he wanted to build a car capable of fitting a man 6.2 or so tall, like him, that's why the windows are oddly tall.

[Rasmus]

I'm aware of that, that wasn't my point. I was asking how they would be supported. Now I'm far from an automotive engineer, but to me the doors don't seem like they have enough room to support windows that size.

[LeonOfTheDead]

I'm aware of that, that wasn't my point. I was asking how they would be supported. Now I'm far from an automotive engineer, but to me the doors don't seem like they have enough room to support windows that size.

yeah, I saw your point. I think there is a small margin, about a couple of inches or a bit more, so the window could both fit in the door but also being a little taller than the exposed part so to be kept vertical without flapping when the door is open or the window is half out of the door.
just a guess.

[BladeX1]

Why start designing two new drive platforms when it seems the origional engine and test vehicle have yet to be complete? Am I alone in thinking Neil might be biting off more than he can chew?

Hey Sledgehamer,

Thanks for keeping up with us… Wow there has been a lot going on with the Blade Project, almost too much to cover.

First to answer your question… Yeah it’s a lot to take on multiple projects but not all that difficult. Mainly because during the initial design of this project we have always wanted to try alternative drive systems, whether it be electric, hydrogen or some type of hybrid. We have built the chassis to accommodate most of these systems without too many changes or modification to the main chassis design. It only made sense to announce these two versions during all the economical fall out to see what the response would be and to test whether or not it would be accepted by people.

So far the response has been great and overwhelming; the only system that has received any raised eyebrows is the hydrogen injection… it’s a bit controversial but it really does have a place in the automotive world if it can be standardized somewhat.

At any rate our main focus is the XTR version first as it will be the main test mule for everything.

As for additional news… we have a lot going on that’s for sure, we ended up scraping the original design and began on what we call Blade 2.0. We had to go back and redesign few more things on the back end and some on the front. We are pretty close to have the body buck complete and the first chassis completed as well. The Chassis has taken a lot of time to work out, as it requires the most engineering and is the heart and soul of the cars performance. We are expecting to have the first prototype ready for showing in October this year, 2009.

Also we are working on various big funding opportunities as this will be a critical part to ensuring the success of this car. We still have a lot of Hype and excitement surrounding the car and we will get it built, but if we had some investment funds or grants we would be able to speed things up tremendously. So far everything is funded by me and my partner.
Here pretty soon we are going to revamp the website since we changed name and became incorporated. And we will send out regular emails and newsletters. It’s just been too busy to try to update everyone and every time I try, something changes... LOL.

- Neal

[BladeX1]

don't know, the two petrol engines aren't really different, and probably an electric drivetrain is mandatory if you want to receive some attention this days.

EDIT:O too bad he removed the possibility to browse and download all the images and renderings of the car :(

Yeah your right… not too much, the EV version is the only one that requires a few changes to the chassis.

PS. Yeah we had to remove all the images, because all the various websites and media outlets were using them to represent the car instead of contacting us for the latest images. It was confusing people a lot… because the galley had images of the first design… like in the thread. We plan to add more images soon.

- Neal

[BladeX1]

Just out of curiosity, with side windows that tall, will they be able to roll all the way down? And if they will, won't they then start flapping bit if they're rolled up and the door is open? Doesn't seem like there's enough room in the door to correctly support the windows.

Oh, and Model 1 is going to have the GT500 plant with the Roush 2.3 TVS?

Hmmm the windows do not seem that tall to me… maybe it’s just the rendering of the images. If you saw it in real life its looks vary proportionate. As for the answer to your question, yes the windows fit fine and sit about an inch from the bottom of the inside door. And when rolled up they are supported by about 6 inches of extra glass still inside of the door along with the quarter window which has a track for the glass.

With that said if we get funding then we will probably change the doors to not use the quarter window at all.


- Neal

[BladeX1]

Just to get an idea what it would look like in real life… here are a few test renderings of the Blade XTR.

Early Video of Blade 2.0 body buck build.

StreetFire.net - Home (http://members.streetfire.net/uploaded/BaileyBlade.htm)

- Neal

[LeonOfTheDead]

Thanks a lot Neil, it's very if you success keeping people and websites updated with your improvements! :)
the rear looks very good, even better now, maybe the front is became a little bit too aggressive and tall, it looks mean nonetheless. I like it.
good idea to show the car in a different color and in some realistic shots.
did you come after those problems with the technical partner which gave you the space for starting working on the car out of your garage?

[Sledgehammer]

I really like the new rear. The only thing that I dont like aesthetic whise is the intercooler/radiator on the front end. Mabey I just got used to the idea that on the front their was just two large black holes instead of something within. My reason is that the exterior looks to much like a simple shell or KIT car with apart of the engine showing at its location. Any thoughts of using the inlets to tube back a ram air intake?

Also, which tailights did you end up going with?

[Duell]

The Blade XTR goes to SEMA 2013

Bailey Blade XTR gets funded, going to SEMA - Autoweek (http://www.autoweek.com/article/20130523/SEMA/130529911)