Have you seen some great off road buggies, and you’ve decided that owning and driving an off road buggy wood be good fun. So you have decided to build an off road buggy because you're good with your hands and want to save some money.
Before you do anything though, you need to know where bouts in your area you will be allowed to drive you’re buggy. Different areas have different laws and rules. Like driving on the beach isn’t aloud in some places. So you will need to find this out. So depending on where you are going to drive you’re buggy will depend on the type you will probably build. Basically there are 3 places that buggies are driven, and 3 different types of buggy (1) road legal buggy (2) off road buggy (3) Dune buggy and each requires a different build or set up.
Firstly is the road. Yes you can drive an off road buggy on the road. But of course it needs to be road legal, needs lights, indicators and insurance etc. and to pass sum kind of road legal test. Usualy these buggies have a lower suspension setup because they will not be going over jumps etc.
Then there's the classic place for dune buggies, the dunes. Sand driving is probably about the most fun that you can have in a buggy, but it needs a buggy with specific characteristics. For example very light, with a good power to weight ratio. Huge sand tires on the rear, and small tires on the front.
Then there's the off road buggy designed for off roading. Steep hills, mud and tracks and fields. They need a stronger frame and roll cage because a rollover can be more severe, (i.e. hitting a rock for example), the tires are different, front brakes are much more important, and the frame needs to be stronger. The driving surface you'll be on will be rougher and will require better suspension, longer travel and mud and dirt tires.
So if you're intending to build your own buggy, then you need to work out your exact requirements first. Like what size engine. If you’re going to use a car engine or a bike engine. What tires, suspension, brakes, roll cage, body etc.
So is it hard to build your own buggy? Well of course that all depends on your level of skill. If you've spent a lifetime fixing cars, and welding and things like this then you might be well able to build your own buggy. However if you haven't done much work with cars and things before then yes, building a buggy isn't easy. It takes skills, it takes money and it takes time, and be prepared for many hours of frustration.
My recommendation if you’re thinking of building your own off road buggy for the first time? Buy an off road buggy kit or at the very least some high quality off road buggy plans to work from. Now a kit usually doesn't provide everything you need. You might need to supply your own engine, for example, but it does supply you with some of the basics that are hard to build yourself. For example the frame and roll cage etc.
But if I was going to do it again I wouldn’t. Not unless you have piles of time and wanted to be able to say that I built that. It isn't easy, and usually takes way longer than you imagined it could, and costs more, if I was doing it again I would buy a good second hand off road buggy. Or if i had the money, a new one!