I am looking for car advice. I currently have a 2010 Ford Fusion (manual) that I have for commuting and work. I have been autocrossing previously, and I really enjoyed it.
Should I try finding a cheap (sub $2000) dedicated car or run the Fusion this year.
Buy a good set of street tires and run the fusion. Use the summer to see what sort of car deals might come from one of your fellow car guys that show up at the autocross.
I think only you can answer the question, if your goal is to become a better driver running the Fusion probably makes the most sense. Buying, prepping and tuning a second car will consume a bunch of time which you could have spent behind the wheel.
if you like it, why get something else?
I think running the Fusion should be OK. I do like the idea about looking for car deals from other autocrossers. I always worry about damaging my DD. I guess a few cones won't completely kill a car.
Have you ever considered seeing if there is anybody in your region who would be willing to let you co-drive?
I would say just run the Fusion until the right deal come up. I doubt you will do any damage to it at an autocross.
I fear the power steering pump might not be able to keep up. I base that on some quick U-Turns and messing around Ive done in my 08 Ford Fusion company car.
Spare wheels plus good tires plus Fusion equals cheap fun.
I am going to just start running the 2004 Dodge Stratus 2.4L auto on a set of used wheels and grippies as well this year. I can't afford the divorce I will need if I bring home a real car again.
What is your intention? Your purpose? Do you want to compete, contend, and hopefully win your class? The season? Fastest Time of the Day? If so, your best bet is to do some research. Pick a specific make/model to fit your budget, the type of car you enjoy (if you prefer RWD then a Civic would be out, for instance). Get it, then prepare it to as close to the class limits as you can.
Do you want to just have fun, improve your driving skill, and see what you can do with what you've got? Then the cheapest way to go is buy an extra set of wheels and appropriate tires for the Fusion, go out, and enjoy yourself. I would recommend wheels and tires so that you don't burn out the tires you commute on, since tires will be your biggest wear item. If events are close enough, or if you run a sticky street tire, you can swap wheels at home, drive to and from events on your "race" rubber, then swap back when you get home for Monday's commute. This is certainly the less expensive way to go - run whatcha brung.
I don't like autoxing my daily, so my vote is gonna be to get something quick, tossable and cheap. I'm thinking early-mid 90s Escort GT or Mx3 GS v6, I've had both and they're right up your alley.
I will definitely run the Fusion at least once in an Autocross, just to get the feel for the limits of the car, but I do want to be somewhat competitive. I really don't think my car would be remotely competitive. I am not looking to set FTD, but I want to make sure I even have a chance!
I just did a quick craigslist search for a few of my favorite cars to thrash on, seems like your area has a ton of Escort Zx2s for 2k or less. Go to ZXtuner.com for aftermarket parts and to see what other people are doing with them. ST would be a good local class to be competitive in too. 
senador wrote:I think running the Fusion should be OK. I do like the idea about looking for car deals from other autocrossers. I always worry about damaging my DD. I guess a few cones won't completely kill a car.
Autocross will not kill a car. However for 2k however you can have a car that is alot more fun to toss around the cones. However it will take alot more work to buy a car and then get it ready.
It in the end it depends on how deep you want to get into autocross. If you want simple easy fun stay with fusion. If you really want to drive the wheels of the car and don't mine 1hour of labor/transport/set-up time per run then get autocross beater. BTW... expect to spend 2-3 hours per autocross getting the car build tweaked and driven to the events.
I see no reason not to run the Fusion. However, for myself, stock class cars are boooorrrinng. I didn't have fun autocrossing until I ran a Prepared class car. Which is not so outlandish to make...mostly just take things off the car and make it light, and add really wide sticky tires. 
It can still be street legal if you desire. May not be competitive on a national level, but most regions don't have a lot of P class cars running. I'd rather be having fun than trying to do well, but that's me.
I would say it depends on your experience. If you're just starting out, then stay with the Fusion... run a second set of wheels & tires, and get seat time, not worrying too much about being competitive. Too much fiddling with the car can detract for the more important factor - the driver.
I also vote for sticking with the Fusion, unless you're the type of person who's REALLY into keeping their DD show-car clean (i.e., keeping a bottle of quick detailer in the trunk).
Jeez, no one has mentioned Miata yet?
Keep the Fuzion for DD duties and keep doing some autox if you enjoy it in that car. Keep you eyes open for other more sporting cars that you might like like and take a few test drives and then decide what makes sense to you.
Of course, the answer is always "Miata", but I still say run a season or so in the Fusion. Get seat time and see what other folks run in your region. Yeah, I'm sure running a Prepared car is fun, but not if it's the only car in the class... To me, it's more fun to run in a class with a few other competitors... even if it's the slow-azz HS class I run in. It's not just the competition, but also the commaraderie of the event. At least for me. I have little tolerance for those who take it too seriously.
It's easy to go nuts, tho... for example, one of our region members sold his SM class E30 and bought a Miata to run in ES-class ... only he's now in the process of turning the car into an R-spec car... and by the time he's done, will probably have more $ into the car than he paid for it... Granted, he's not just going for class wins but PAX as well (where his E30 was heavily handicapped)... and already has a few years of auto-x experience...
Basically, the nice thing about running in stock class when starting out is it more or less takes the car and mods out of the equation. You just concentrate on driving correctly. A car that is too good can mask driving errors.
Or you could buy my fully sorted, championship winning autocross RX-7 with spares for $2K and have a ball... 
So I can get a Miata
use what you have
First season? Run the Fusion and get yourself some seat time. If you are still addicted at the end of the season, then start looking for a good deal. I ran my Daily Driver for 2 full years, won the local class the second year. Then went with a dedicated toy for last year. Last year was a lot of work, teething problems, getting thecar sorted, figuring out how to drive a car that weighs half as much and is a thrid the size of my old car..... but I need to be committed so I keep pushing through. Wait, I mean I was committed (not to an institution) to follow it through.
My suggestion, enjoy what you have this year and if you are still fired up about it this fall, pick up somethign dedicated.
I say run the Fusion.
As for car damage, you will be making 1 minute runs about 5 times a day. That means you will be "beating" on the car for about 5 minutes and at most, one day a week (likely less.) There is nothing you will be doing to the car that it should not be more that ready to accept.
Sure, you will not be the fastest guy there but i think you may be suprised just how many people you are faster than. If you are not, do not blame it on the car. Blame it on the driver.
Since the Fusion is your daily driver, I highly recommend you compete with it to learn the abilities (and more important the limits) of the car.
