PLEASE DON'T TELL ME TO SEARCH BECAUSE MY REQUEST DEALS WITH SOME MINOR SPECIFICS. Thanks!

I may have a slight dilemma. I was expecting a budget of approx. $20K for purchasing an ITR this year to begin autocrossing and an occasional HPDE, but of course reality has set in and the budget may only be approx. half of that now. I'd say $11K max. is what I'm willing to spend on something now. I realize additional funds will be needed for tires, track time, etc. but the budget I'm mentioning is for a vehicle only.

My question is what vehicle would any of you consider purchasing to have fun tooling around with autox and HPDE's that can be kept as close to stock as possible???

2 vehicles that come to mind are an 99-00 Civic SI or a 98-00 Impreza 2.5RS

Anybody have any experience with those or can offer any other suggestions? I need something with decent reliability and average repair costs. (That pretty much kills any old school M3's so don't even mention it!)

Thanks!!!!!

 

Buy a CRX, hook it... and OWN the world!

 

Not bad. Any other suggestions?

 

my soon(aug 16 2003)-to-be-for-sale 1996 GS-R?

 

And the answer, of course, is...it depends.

Will this be just a fun car, or a primary means of transportation and occasional auto-xer/tracker?

Are you more interested in HPDE, or in being competitive in auto-x?

What Auto-x class do you want to run in?

How much <u>DO</u> you have to spend on maintainence and parts after purchase?


Not trying to be one, but you really have a lot of decisions to make before you even think about what car to buy.

Look at what's competitive in the auto-x classes. Think about what you want your long-term goals are. Realize that the car that's best for auto-x may not be the best if you decide that HPDE isn't enough for you and decide to go racing. See which car has the best after-market.

Welcome to our world .

 

I'd go with the 2.5, if you can find one, cuz you'll have more potential with awd and understeer is a bitch in the si. you'll be able to handle better for less money with the subaru.

 

CRX, Miata, Integra GS-R, some RX-7's, MR2s, etc. there are plenty of choices if you just want to have fun. The question is, do you want to WIN a stock class? That narrows it down a lot more.

 

I did want to have a good chance at winning in the stock class or at least be competitve, hence the original decision to purchase an ITR. My choice would start out as a primary vehicle for a little while, but eventually I'd pick up a beater and dedicate it to whatever avenue I will enjoy more.

I'd say at this point I could realistically budget about $2000 - $2500 a year in expenses to cover my addiction to the GFCP. And that's taking pretty much everything into consideration. (travel,lodging,parts,fees,etc....)

It's especially difficult to make a good decision when trying to determine what avenue to go towards. Autox or track?? Is there anybody that can balance out the two?? Or better yet, a vehicle?? (besides an ITR or M3)

I have had some experience with GSR's and have seen good ones in my price range. I just know the creature comforts like the sunroof and leather would really start to annoy me once I get started with everything.

I don't know, I'm just venting and appreciate everyone taking the time to make suggestions on my behalf. I could always wait a while until I'm financially able to take out a loan for the difference in getting an ITR. That's really the vehicle I'd be the most satisfied with.

Thanks again!!

Jay - who finds himself tossing and turning at night about all of this car crap!!

 

88-91 Civic Si Hatchback as an STS/trackday car. Primarily these cars are ruling STS.

Example (scroll down almost to the bottom for the STS (aka street touring -S) class:
http://www.scca.com/amateur/so....html

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LonelyDriver02 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'd go with the 2.5, if you can find one, cuz you'll have more potential with awd and understeer is a bitch in the si. you'll be able to handle better for less money with the subaru.</TD></TR></TABLE>

spoken like someone that a) has a poorly setup si, or b) has never driven a 2.5.

the car suggestion emwavey made is a good one. racing in sts for autocross is actually a little cheaper then a stock class once you get the car built. i say this primarily because the tires last longer in sts, and are about $100/ea cheaper. another awesome sts car would be a sentra se-r. it takes a little more coin to set that car up, but it has more power and is a lot of fun for HPDE's. either of these car choices make a pretty decent IT car later on in life. however, if you are interested in getting into w2w racing, plan on buying a car that has already been built for this purpose. ask RJ, building one yourself is both frustrating and expensive, though to some that's the enjoyable part.

fwiw, my sts car has cost me roughly $4500 to build up. if i were to do it again, i could save myself nearly $2000. it has something to do with knowing what works and what doesn't and being able to buy what works the first time around. the cost of developing a w2w race car is _much_ higher.

nate

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by J. &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">My question is what vehicle would any of you consider purchasing to have fun tooling around with autox and HPDE's that can be kept as close to stock as possible???</TD></TR></TABLE>
Sounds like you just described a Miata. Fun, dead nuts reliable, cheap as hell to track, and no need for modifications to make it handle well.
You can get a 94 or 95 in great shape with low miles for 6k-7k (or less). Slap in a hard-dog rollbar and some good tires and brakes and you are still well under your budget and have a great multi-purpose HPDE/AX car that doubles as a fun summer car too

 

Miata. 'Nuff said.

Quick, nimble, competitive in SoloII, fun on track.

If you need trunk space or a back seat, a Chevy Camaro fits the bill pretty well. They do real well in F-Stock. Tire costs might be an issue.

 

Cliff notes: Miata

Long version...

A friend recently asked me a similar quetion, his chices were a used Celica GTS (2000+), a Miata, or a few others.

In spite of my bias towards the Celica, I give him a whole page of reasons why the Miata was better.

He's driving a Miata now and doesn't regret it in the least.

Scott

 

And you guys wonder why I didn't buy a HC car.

r2x ~ who her Miatas.

ps - I recommend a Miata. (duh!) Find an R, if you can.

 

Get a Miata for the reasons mentioned above.

Bonus: in two years when you've got a better job and you wanna get into road racing, Spec Miata will still be there.....



Jarrod

 

miata, crx, or ef si

 

Unpopular option coming through - considered a Neon ACR?

1st gens are dirt cheap, easy to work on. $2-$5k. A 1st gen R/T is also an option.
2nd gens are better daily drivers. $7-$10k.

Reliability is better than you think. My '95 never left me stranded. Buy a '98+ for best results. Repair costs are so low they make a Honda look exotic.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by AKADriver &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Unpopular option coming through - considered a Neon ACR?</TD></TR></TABLE>

we're ricers here, dodge is out of the question.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JMU1337 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

we're ricers here, dodge is out of the question.</TD></TR></TABLE>

lmao.....yee man dont get a dodge i have one and i hate it to many problems

 

If you are looking for something new (ish) that you can drive 'right out of the box' I'd say the 99 SI is a good choice.

If you're looking to get your hands dirty and build something you can always go the tried and true route of a clean EG hatch with a B18C1 (or C5) swap.

My own opinion (for whatever it's worth) is to go for the EG. with that route, $11,000 will get you a faster car and better 'fun factor' than either the 99 SI or Impreza. Plus, if you ball it up you are only out the cost of the chassis (hopefully) You can always just build another one.

P.S. Yes, the Miata or EF chassis civic are excelent choices as well (although a swap is significantly harder in the EF than in the EG)

Mike

 

For $7,000 you could find a excellent condition 95 MR2 non-turbo. They are a blast in ES and drive great without any modifications. The first time I ever rode in one I was blown away. If I ever make my GSR a track only car I would highly consider getting a MR2 as a daily driver/backup autocross car.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DesiEg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">lmao.....yee man dont get a dodge i have one and i hate it to many problems </TD></TR></TABLE>

I know someone that had four Civic motors grenade on him. It doesn't mean a thing. My '95 was rock solid - and that was the worst year.

A '99 ACR will cost half as much as a '99 Si, trounce it in every performance category, and if it breaks... so what? You've got an extra $6000 in your pocket, and the parts cost half as much to replace.

 

Thanks again for all of the suggestions. I'm currently exploring the hybrid hatch option. There's some decent pickings in the classified section.

I hope to be out racing soon!!


Modified by J. at 11:30 PM 7/10/2003

 

Well i'd get the subaru more potential in the long run, but then again i always dreamed how much fun would it be to have a miata hardtop with FCRX-7 motor. Ahh yes not a practical car for every day driving. Well good like with everything.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Geratol &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">For $7,000 you could find a excellent condition 95 MR2 non-turbo. They are a blast in ES and drive great without any modifications. The first time I ever rode in one I was blown away. If I ever make my GSR a track only car I would highly consider getting a MR2 as a daily driver/backup autocross car.</TD></TR></TABLE>

93-95 was the same mechanically... and the 94-95 cars are a lot more rare, so you'll pay a premium. 93 cars would be my choice. And if you can, look for a hardtop or sunroof car.

and FWIW, I believe Randy Noll is selling his ES car for close to your budget...

One thing to note, this car will be aggrivating at a HPDE. You will catch most ANYTHING in the twisty stuff, yet won't be able to overtake anything in the straights. People will tell you pass, and you will try.... the thing is NOT inspiring in a straight line. Just be fore-warned.