Oliver Pickard and his father aren’t building an ordinary project car. What started as a tiny British kit car has become a years-long effort to create something that looks and drives like a custom supercar.
They call it Project Mosquito, and very little of the original car has been left alone. A Honda engine now sits in a custom chassis, while the body is getting a complete makeover. Even the roof wasn’t safe from the cutting tools.
In a November 6 Reddit update, Pickard gave fellow car fans a look at the latest progress. The photos show a strange little machine with six front lights, wide bodywork, and a shape that keeps changing as the pair work on it.
Building a car like this takes patience, especially when there are no set instructions to follow. Pickard and his father are making many of the parts themselves, and some of their biggest changes have come from finding problems they weren’t willing to ignore.
Nothing Stays Stock
It’s been a while so let me catch you up on the progress
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u/TheOliverPickard in
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The car began life as a Cox GTM, a small British sports car that used parts from the original Mini. It was already an unusual choice for a project, but Pickard and his father, Andrew, had much bigger plans for it.
Gone is the original setup. In its place is a custom chassis built to hold a Honda K20 engine and a six-speed manual transmission.
Earlier updates put the expected output at around 260 horsepower. Pickard has also aimed to keep the finished car near 1,370 pounds, which would give it plenty of power for its size.
Those are still goals rather than confirmed final numbers. Before anyone finds out how fast Mosquito is, there’s still a lot of work to do.
The latest Reddit post shows that the chassis and suspension are finished, and the engine fits where it should. With those major jobs behind them, the pair have turned their attention to the body.
The Roof Had To Go
Most people would think twice before cutting the roof off their sports car. Pickard had a reason for doing it, though. He wasn’t happy with how the original roof might affect airflow over the car.
So off it came.
A new windshield frame lets the glass sit at a different angle, and the pair have made another frame to support the redesigned roof. Their aim is to reduce lift without losing the rounded look of classic racing cars.
Then there are the headlights.
Pickard found a collection of old Cibie auxiliary lights and decided six belonged on the front of Mosquito. It’s certainly not a look everyone would choose, and some viewers have already made that clear.
In the Reddit comments, Pickard acknowledged that the lights had sparked disagreement among people following his YouTube channel. He still likes the design, so they’re staying.
Making It Fit
Getting the body right has brought its own headaches. The original shell suffered fire damage and was later repaired, leaving parts out of shape.
Rather than fight those old problems, the builders are working toward a new shell.
Much of the current work involves cutting and shaping MDF to create the forms for the body panels. Wide wheel arches and new rear supports are starting to give Mosquito its future shape.
There’s also a plan to add vents near the front wheels. Those openings should help air leave the radiator duct instead of getting trapped inside the body.
Once the wooden framework is complete, the team plans to add foam and body filler. From there, they’ll refine the shape and make a mold for the lightweight outer shell.
Pickard has been sharing the work through his YouTube channel, giving viewers a chance to see how much goes into a car built almost entirely by hand.
The newest update shows the pair still working on the body, with wooden forms replacing finished panels. Their next job is turning those rough shapes into the smooth shell they’ve been planning.