How do you test drive someone's race car?

I built my car so I never had to take one for a ride, but if i was interested in something else, how would I make sure the car was what I thought it should be?

Video tape a session with the owner driving it to time some laps and watch, then a quick drive on the street or parking lot?

Should I expect to be able to take it on the track? What if i get stupid and put it into the wall? The seller doesn't know me or anything about me....

What is normal? thanks

 

If the car is street legal a quick drive around the block should be enough. You won't ever be able to test the limits of the car on a public street so you aren't trying to do that. I just sold my auto-x car last weekend and took the new owner on a 10 min lead/follow(me in my car, him in the auto-x car he was buying) drive around some decent roads. Nothing too fast or dangerous, but enough to see that the car was held together.

If you want to take it on track come up with a legal agreement just like you're renting a car. If you wreck it you are responsible for paying the asking cost of the car which he is trying to get.

 

Look it over from end to end. Take the wheels off. Check the suspension mounting points for damage or repair. heck the frame for damage or repair. Put in on a GOOD alignment machine to see if the car is straight. The new 3D machines can even tell you differences in wheelbase and engine cradle movement.

Chech the cage for proper installation. Have a tech inspector check the car over this way there are no surprises later.

Do a compression and leakdown test on the motor.

Even a short drive in a parking lot will tell a lot.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ryan12321 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you want to take it on track come up with a legal agreement just like you're renting a car. If you wreck it you are responsible for paying the asking cost of the car which he is trying to get.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yep.
Or go watch the owner race it.
Know what a good lap time is for that class and see how the car does.
You can also look up results and see how many DNFs the car has (aint the interweb wonderful?). Ask the owner to explain these. Sometimes its getting punted into a gravel trap, and sometimes its a big fat crash.

Then hope its legal when you take the motor apart.

There are 2 ways to make a car fast... The expensive and time consuming way (legal) and the quick and easy way. The 2nd one is usually illegal.

 

To add on...

Look at the car's history. The joys of the internet is you can find any information. Has the car been in any wrecks, any disqualifications, etc. Also, how does the driver do with the car in his/her class.

 

Maybe a little off topic, but......

You buy a car for any number of reasons, maybe you are not mechanically inclined. You take it to the track, you win, you get protested, and you lose the protest.

Guess what? The hit is on you for driving an illegal car!

 

Yep, look closely at the things you CAN see and know the rules for the class. If there is something visible thats illegal, there is probably other stuff you can't see.
I learned the hard way. I bought a car that was supposed to have a 4 speed tranny in it and it never occured to me to see if the thing had a 5th gear in it (it did). Had I just thought to check this, I would have immediately walked away. Because of course, once I found the 5th gear, then started looking for other things... I found more things.

A front running, well built, legal car with an established winning history is going to cost you. Be ready for that.
If the car has a history of being really good, if you don't buy it someone else will.

 

thanks guys....i wasn't sure if a "TRACK SESSION" was normal, which I don't think it is.....

 

I had to pay someone to put on my adjustable swaybar....doh!

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Grumpy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
maybe you are not mechanically inclined.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

 

You could always to a dest drive on track the same way many people do test-ddrives on motorcycles - you pay for the car before you take it out - if you damage it it's your new car and the seller keeps the money, if you like it, i's your new car, and the seller keeps the money. If something isn't as advertised, you hand the keys back to the seller and take your money back.

 

For my current racecar, I was able to drive it around the seller's neighborhood (in spite of some accident damage).

For my 1st racecar, some assembly was required (body was off the frame), but the seller delivered it (and its various parts).

Hope this helps.

 

NSX... [Brittany Murphy voice] I'll never tell!