Best track only car?

[577HondaPrelude]

I'm thinking about getting an old crx, civic, integra, and turning it into a track only car. I'm thinking like 2K or less on the car, then doing all the fun work and spending much more $$ to get it track ready. What cars would U guys recomend for this, so I can start keeping an eye out for one that comes to a local action or junk yard. Anyone with advice plz let me know what ya think

[urbanlegend21]

Accord

[SPiFF]

My picks:

CRX (good HPDE, AutoX, ITA, H4 car)
E30 325is (good HPDE, ITS car)
Sentra SE-R (good HPDE, NASA car)

[Vracer111]

I'd go with an 88-91 Civic....you can pick one up for less than $1000 if you look hard enough....and don't mind doing a little work.

[Todd Reid]

sheesh. this thread again....

ask most of us racers, and we will tell you to buy a ready to go racecar. it will cost less money, and if it is a well put together car, will cause you less headaches. little to no development; just purchase it, maintain it, and race it!

there were a few H4 and H5 cars for sale on the board fairly recently...

good luck

[Ross]

Diasio

[.RJ]

i forget who said it.... maybe Kirk on IT.com forums.. however anyways start saving, and when youre ready to race buy a built race car. If things come up or you never make it to getting out on the track as planned, you have a bunch of money saved up - on the other hand, if you start building a car and dont quite make it to the race track then you have a dissasembled car and a pile of parts that is worth half of what you put into it.

RJ

[travis]

If you're not going to compete, just buy whatever car you're comfortable working on yourself and has a lot of parts (both junkyard and aftermarket) available for cheap. The key to HPDEs is saving enough money for tires, brake pads, and track time. My top choices would be the older CRX/Civics or even older RX-7s.

[Mike_C]

Diasio

Wasn't an option, although a great option that too many people overlook.

[ITACivic]

If you are headed towards w2w racing, then follow all of the the advice from the road racing crowd.

If you just want to have a car for track events. This car would be something to smote up and tinker with, and it would not be something of a great lose if you break it or ball it up, right? Think about getting something like a 92-95 Civic or the 85 CRX generation. Lots of parts to be purchased. Maybe even a Miata, keep it street legal get a roll bar and cruise in it.

[carl_aka_carlos]

Diasio

<---wished he had a tow vehicle, 'cause that's what i'd run

[travis]

Diasio

For sale: http://home.pacbell.net/tblackey/

[.RJ]

you cant tow that with an integra?

<---wished he had a tow vehicle, 'cause that's what i'd run

[owen_the_soyboy]

For sale: http://home.pacbell.net/tblackey/

WOW sure looks like fun when parked in his driveway in a suburban neighborhood

[travis]

WOW sure looks like fun when parked in his driveway in a suburban neighborhood

I would HAVE to drive it around the corner from my house to Circle K to get a soda just once

[auto-x]

88 CRX DX.

can u please explain ur pick? thanks.

[madhatter]

Miata. I have been leaning this way more and more lately, it seems, but it is a solid choice. A roll bar, a tire trailer + hitch, and gas and oil are all you would need to worry about.

[Crazydave]

miata

[577HondaPrelude]

thanks for all the info guys. The only porb. with a miata is I have to start hanging out on the miata message boards and leave the honda ones. Now who would want to do that? I have a truck btw so I have the toe car already, I'm talking about trak event only car here.

[Knestis]

Given all of your constraints and opportunities - even the BB thing - your best bet is indeed the '88-91 CRX Si. If you MUST build your own car (and we all seem to, ONCE) find a really straight, rust free but worn out street car. Don't start with a wreck or anything that needs more than a fender or a minor paint touch up or you will be labor/money behind from the outset. Wait until you have a good one...

* Learn the IT rules and don't do ANYHING to it that is contrary to them - this will leave you room to move if you stick with it and help sell it if you don't.

* Start by making sure that the OEM systems are good - go completely through the brakes, suspension, hubs/bearings, steering, and electrics. Buy good aftermarket brake pads from the outset.

* If it doesn't have one, get a sound boneyard motor - the original one, not a damn B17, B25 or some other goofy crap. Make sure that it is healthy but do not put any aftermarket parts on it!

* Buy new, reasonably good tires for the stock wheels, assuming they are in shape for the job - Don't spend the money on aftermarket wheels until later in the game as they gain you little and eat up budget better spent elsewhere.

* If the shocks are crap, get reasonable coilovers early on - if they are not junk yet, don't sweat it at this point and leave them be. If you are going to buy suspension, do it right the first time and get IT-legal coilover kits. Be conservative with your spring rates, however, even for a dedicated track car. It makes set up easier and is more forgiving when your learning curve is steep.

* At this point you can start autocrossing and do HPDEs, as long as you don't time yourself on a real race track. If you do put a watch on your performance, skip immediately to the next step - do not pass GO and get ready to spend WAY more than $200.

* Put a basic, legal cage in it - if you can't afford one in a dedicated racer, you should rethink your hobby options. I like bass fishing as a second choice. This step pretty much assumes that you have done a legal interior strip, clean, scrap, and paint which is labor (but not money) intensive. This crap is a right of passage and you must do it, or spend your life getting razzed for your nappy car.

* Proper harnesses come immediately after the cage - SCCA is instituting a 2-year rule for belt repacement (it looks like) so there will be lots of perfectly good, illegal-for-racing harnesses for your first couple years of developement. You CAN use real harnesses with stock seats but a race seat comes next.

* Finish kitting out the safety equipment - window net, extinguisher, master switch. Put luxury items (steering wheel, shift knob, groovy mirrors) on your holiday shopping list for others to spend money on.

* You now have a sound, safe car that you can use for autocross (Street Prepared), ECHC, SCCA driver schools and regional races, HPDEs, open track days and time trials, hillclimbs, ice racing, tarmac rallies, Solo I, or even driving in the snow (like today in VA) to get beer - if you put the M&S tires and OEM skinny wheels back on...

* Get IT-legal wheels at this point, when your stock-size tires are pooped - 14x7 only. Resist the temptation to buy bigger ones that will be illegal for the most common place to race this car, recognized by every sanctioning body that I know of. Put more good rubber on them.

* This is going to sound funny to anyone except people who have actually raced IT-type cars but build yourself a set of good front brake ducts, to the IT rules. Ask Travis how and plan on making a decision about an airdam at this point as well, since they tend to be a system.

* Start doing the suspension - shocks/springs (if you didn't earlier), bars, and bushings as budget/interest/time allow. This car is basically a kit, if you go with the known quantity suppliers, so it is hard to screw up.

* When the engine goes to full crap-out mode, it is time to have it freshened. Don't get all crazy about spending money on it. Start making legal modifications like exhaust, emissions removal and all of that stuff, under the guidance of someone who knows what he or she is doing. It is easy to trick your engine into running poorly when you start diddling with things. This may also be the end of your ride's streetability/tagability, depending on where you live.

* Have fun! The key here is that you have not done anything that (a) will have to be undone, (b) compromises the opportunities to move up or move out, or (c) puts good money into some aspect of the car that is out of scale with the rest of the project - the "$500 saddle on a $50 horse" syndrome. You will have a safe, dependable, toy that can grow with you. OEM parts are reasonable, body panels aren't rare or expensive, and aftermarket support is huge. It is also a potential overdog in its class, so you have no built-in excuses if it comes to that.

Just think with your head and your wallet, rather than any glandular parts of your body, and this can work fine.

Kirk

[Madracer1]

WOW, nice write up Kirk! Mods should put that as a sticky .....

Rado

[Kamin]

holy crap thats good info.
im keeping that.

[travis]

Ask Travis how and plan on making a decision about an airdam at this point as well, since they tend to be a system.

Bah! I know nothing...

-travis, who made Kirk which he hadn't checked the IT.com board this morning

[Knestis]

FWIW, the same process could also be applied to an '84-87 Civic HB (the ITC version) with equal success. The $$ savings would be nominal over the long run, however...

K

Or buy the "Triple Champion ITC Honda Civic" listed at http://improvedtouring.com/Classifieds/ - it couldn't be duplicated for twice that money...


[Modified by Knestis, 8:41 PM 12/5/2002]

[joeseph]

sheesh. this thread again....

ask most of us racers, and we will tell you to buy a ready to go racecar. it will cost less money, and if it is a well put together car, will cause you less headaches. little to no development; just purchase it, maintain it, and race it!

there were a few H4 and H5 cars for sale on the board fairly recently...

good luck

I think that buying a used racecar is by far the best value, but it may not always be the best choice.
In my opinion a car closer to stock is better for a someone still learning such as myself (if doing HPDE's, open-track events, clubs etc). For me a 88-91 crx with decent tires, pads, and saftey equipment as well as replaced worn parts, would seem to be a much better option for a beginer than someones elses used ITA car.

just my 2 cents