FSAE Car Value

I have an FSAE car that I might be looking to get rid of. I know this sounds crazy, so let me explain. I have been working on it for almost two years. I completely restored and repainted most of of it. The parts it did not have I either fabricated or bought replacements off the shelf. My only problem is that I have not been able to get it running. I am fresh out of school and I don't have much room or tools to work on it anymore (no more access to the school lab). Right now it is about 95% finished. I am chasing a wiring problem (it uses the stock harness). I figure I have invested nearly $10,000 in it (including the open trailer). I am getting frustrated by it and it is losing it's appeal to me after two summers of unsuccessfully trying to 'race it this summer'. I am moving again and it would help me to either have no garage or to have a car which was better on gas.

Here are some things the car has going for it-

Steel space frame, TIG welded

Won the Road and Track FSAE competition about five years ago

New CBR 600F4i engine ~100 Hp(no restrictor), ~1000mi

New Hoosier slicks

Completely Powder coated frame (bright red)

Custom Stainless Exhaust w/ Yoshimura Carbon Fiber Silencer

Tilton Pedals

Wilwood brakes 2 front, 1 rear

Wilwood Clutch master cylinder

Wilwood Clutch slave cylinder (pull type)

AP Master cylinders

Momo wheel with Stiletto mini sprint rack

Torsen differential

Single Axle Aluminum Trailer w/ Black powder coated aluminum ramps

Koni shocks (I believe 2012s)

CNC Machined uprights (7075 AL, anodized black)

Pullrod suspension, all four corners

New fuel system, tank to fuel rail (MSD Pump, Summit aluminum tank)

New battery w/ battery tender

Mechanical (cable) paddle shifter behind the wheel

Kirkey kart seat

Teamtech 6 point harness

Longacre Carbon Fiber Switch Panel

Custom C&R Radiator with Visteon core

Here are the things it needs still-

Electrical troubleshooting (extra unmodified harness included- in case you want to start over)

Two cooling lines hooked up

Hydraulic clutch line fabricated, pedal to slave cylinder

No Body

So my question is, would it be worth even half of what I have invested? Would anyone even be interested in a project like this? I'm kind of 50/50 on getting rid of it so I am hoping everyone just tells me to finish it and enjoy it for a while. But I had a Miata before this and I would probably trade someone straight up if another nice stock one came along(94-97 pref). At least I could actually start a nice Miata up and even drive it to work if I had to. So I guess I am just trying to get an idea of the market for this type of thing, or if there even is one. I will try to take some pics tomorrow and I can email them if someone wants to really give me a good estimate, or is actually interested. I am trying not to broadcast the pics or where this car came from publicly, because some people pulled some strings to let me get it from the school. I don't want anyone who helped me getting in trouble with their insurance company or lawyers. Right now I am just looking at it's value so I can make an informed decision about whether to keep it or not. Thanks for the help to all who have managed to read this entire post.

Jason

PS Also thanks for all the other help I have gotten here, I've been lurking for a long time now.

It is probably not worth $5K (half of what you have in it). It sounds like a nice collection of parts, but these things generally sell for pretty cheap - especially since 100 new / better ones get built every year. I passed on a runner with trailer for $1200 a couple of years ago, and in the last couple of weeks a similar collection of parts to yours sold on this board for $500, though that one didn't sound quite as complete or modern as yours (VFR engine vs. CBR for example).

Sorry to give you bad news.

Ummm... what Dave said. $1000 is about right.... and that means that you should do whatever it takes to keep it and finish the job. You can take your 10k back in grins at the track.

$1k doesn't sound too far off. You might be able to make back some more cash by piecing the engine out separately, and any other non custom part. Or consider selling it internationally, I've seen some foreign teams ma

I'm an FSAE alum, and I have two cars in a state of disarray in my buddies garage right now. I say finish it, run it in exhibition or possibly A mod.

I'd be interested in trading you for my 94 miata if you're interested.

There's an FSAE-specific class at Solo Nats and they can run in AMod locally. Index, schmindex.

If I wasn't on a rampage to find a DSR, I'd be interested in it. Where are you located?

Per

I am located just outside of Columbus, OH.

I am an FSAE alum as well. I would love to get my hands on an old car. However, there seem to be precious few used ones on the west coast. Maybe I am looking in the wrong places. IIRC to run A-mod, the minimum weight is 750lbs. To the FSAE national class you have use the restrictor and be legal in every other for the year in which the car competed.

So how well will a 95th percentile male fit in this thing?

I am 6' and about 180, and I fit great. The pedal tray could be modified (redrilled) to move a few inches forward or backward to account for height difference. The kart seat is aluminum and not really adjustable. If it was really uncomfortable though, other sizes are available from Kirkey.

I haven't had the car on the scales yet (because I haven't put water in it), but my somewhat educated guess is 500lbs. I planned to run it locally unless I got protested. You could make or buy a restricted intake and tune it with one of the piggyback units(power commander or equiv.), if you wanted to get serious.

I plan on running mine wherever they stick me. I'm not that interested in dominating a class, as much as I am in having some fun. Running in an exhibition only class is fine by me.

That being said, and being a big fat guy, no way am I going to restrict it again. 500 pounds with 100hp is better than 500 pounds and 70 or 80hp. Traction limited blah blah blah, its way more fun.

Are these things crack pipes or are they legitimately fun track toys that won't cause too many problems?

If they're not too headache causing, I'd love to get one and trailer it with some boring POS wagon or Jeep Cherokee?

Where are these usually sold? GRM? Craigslist? FSAE Message boards?

As far as I've seen, they are normally sold through the schools to former team members, or crushed. There are a lot of tax, liability and insurance issues with getting them out of the clutches of the schools that ultimately own them.

I tow mine with my 2002, two door Chevy Blazer (4.3L, MT). I can barely tell that it's back there on the highway.

And I would be scared to take it on an actual track. It will do 100-120mph no problem. With only 2" of suspension travel, it can get pretty wild sitting that low. It's great for autocross though, and I have had an older one near 80 mph on a normal sized course (third gear of six).

dkreindler wrote: Are these things crack pipes or are they legitimately fun track toys that won't cause too many problems? If they're not too headache causing, I'd love to get one and trailer it with some boring POS wagon or Jeep Cherokee? Where are these usually sold? GRM? Craigslist? FSAE Message boards?

The concept of the compention is that the team is building a prototype A-mod style car for a mythical manufacturor. They can be really reliable toys or sources of endless frustration. It really depends on who designed it, who built it and whether they really knew what they were doing. They are all one-off's built by engineering students.

Anyone contemplating buying one of these should be prepared for for a vehicle with design mistakes that need re-engineering, poor fabrication needing to be redone, and plenty of "what were they thinking" moments as you work on it. As for where to buy them, its hard to say. Many universities do not allow these to be sold directly, lest the someone injured by a student project. I think those let out of captivity are are most likely bought as "salvage" of some kind. I suspect that older cars most often get raided for parts to use on newer ones. As Dave alluded to, I think you are most likely find something that is missing vital parts such brakes, dampers, an engine, ECU bodywork, or even wheels.

I guess what I trying say is don't expect anything turnkey. This is not like buying a quad or a personal watercraft.

Type Q wrote: The concept of the compention is that the team is building a prototype A-mod style car for a mythical manufacturor. They can be really reliable toys or sources of endless frustration. It really depends on who designed it, who built it and whether they really knew what they were doing. They are all one-off's built by engineering students. Anyone contemplating buying one of these should be prepared for for a vehicle with design mistakes that need re-engineering, poor fabrication needing to be redone, and plenty of "what were they thinking" moments as you work on it. As for where to buy them, its hard to say. Many universities do not allow these to be sold directly, lest the someone injured by a student project. I think those let out of captivity are are most likely bought as "salvage" of some kind. I suspect that older cars most often get raided for parts to use on newer ones. As Dave alluded to, I think you are most likely find something that is missing vital parts such brakes, dampers, an engine, ECU bodywork, or even wheels. I guess what I trying say is don't expect anything turnkey. This is not like buying a quad or a personal watercraft.

Although I agree with most of what you are saying, this particular project is fairly well spelled out above as to it's completeness. It was built by a fairly competitive team and performed well at it's competition. There are few compromises in the design performance wise, and certainly nothing unsafe. The fundamental design is solid and the fabrication work is some of the best I have seen. I wouldn't expect anyone to buy it without thorough inspection. I also wouldn't to sell it to someone who didn't understand that it is a very custom piece of work, not some production line item.

My background (besides over 2 years of FSAE) is a bachelors in engineering and an associates in CAD. I have three years experience in the automotive industry, two in design, one as a brake engineer for a major Tier 1 supplier. I did most of the re-assembly work myself, except for welding and powder coat. I raced and modified a Miata for multiple years before constructing this car.

It is an incomplete custom race car that has been re-built, albeit a nearly complete one. And just to clarify, I am not currently offering it for sale, I just wanted to get a feel for the market. Based on the responses so far, I may go buy a garage heater and 'race it next summer'.

I was on the OSU team a few years back.. on the one hand i would love to have one, on the other being on the team exposed me to what it could take to keep one going.. (then agian the older the car the less problems we would have with it.. hmm)

i STILL remember when the diff came loose in testing the night before competition and munched the frame (tear apart, cut, tweak design, weld in new tubes, paint, reassemble, ONE NIGHT!)

as i said, it would be fun to have one agian, but im still working on the degree (different school now) and have a ESP mustang project.

AM = 900 #'s with driver and 72" wheelbase.

FSAE is a 60 wheelbase and the restrictor stuff as mentioned.

Honestly, incomplete they are not worth a whole lot except to the right person. If you want to get some money back on it, finish it, autox it, trophy high in nats. That will get some peoples attention. Then you can gain a few more bucks.