Moving to a more dedicated track car, need help with narrowed down selection.

In reply to RacerBoy75 :

The OP has some track experience otherwise I would have done my usual caveat of DSRs are not for new drivers. 

If you upgrade the aero on a DSR you're talking about a car that will pull 3gs. 

Maybe I missed it, but did the OP say what type of track he plans to run on? Twisty, low(ish) average speed, a big open track, or superspeedway high speed ovals?

Not to get too far off-topic, but one thing I'm learning from this thread is that trackdays must vary a lot regionally. Sure, in my area we have a few high-hp cars with steamroller Hoosiers, but we also have lots of variety locally. Cars like lightly-tuned Miatas, moderately-tuned 80's/90's Honda Civics, stock new sedans like Hondas and Hyundai N models, E30 BMWs, BRZ/86 twins, Focuses, Fox-body Stangs, Porsche 944s, Toyota MR-S, etc. In other words, lots of fun and companionship to be had without 500hp or tire warmers. YMMV.

I realize this doesn't help if your area is filled with modified late-model Corvettes, Porsches, STis, etc, but figured I would mention it in case the lightweight, low-hp option is intriguing. I personally love seeing if/what I can do to press drivers in much superior cars in the twisties or under braking in my street-driven N/A Scion FR-S, and want to make sure the joy of a slow car fast isn't overlooked for fear of being "too slow."

I'm thinking OP lives in Northern Alberta, and I wonder if you've seen The ex Motorola Cup Hyundai on Pincher Creek in racing.ca ads.

ae86andkp61 (Forum Supporter) said:

Not to get too far off-topic, but one thing I'm learning from this thread is that trackdays must vary a lot regionally.

I think this is true. Where I'm at it also varies a lot by organizer; where I'm at, two organizers seems to focus on lower powered "regular" cars, and two others have almost exclusively high-powered exotics. I don't know where the OP is in Canada, but I'm pretty sure they have Miatas?  What we call an SM-SE car down here (early 1.6L SM) would be perfect. 

I am also in the process of looking for a dedicated track car. I will be able to store it at the track so no need for a tow vehicle. My list is longer but I have been also considering an e46. My goals might be a little different as I want something to turn a lot of laps at a low consumable cost. I don't really care about speed since I am looking for driver improvement. Cars I have in mind at the moment are e46, e36, NC Miata, dc2 Acura Integra, eg/ek civic hatch. 

My question at the moment is where to look for track prepped cars? 

jonnyd330 said:

My question at the moment is where to look for track prepped cars? 

As in where to find them for sale?  Racingjunk.com is one place for classified ads.

In reply to jonnyd330 :

Facebook for sale groups would be another good place to look. As much as I hate the thought of using FB, that's where a lot of the selling activity seems to be these days.  

I think the type of track and the group is definitely a consideration.

My next track event is a PCA DE in two weeks on a medium speed track.

There are 103 entries; 44 of the cars entered sport more then 400hp, 18 of the cars are low powered cars, the remaining 41 cars are sporting around 300hp (give or take 25).

The passings zones are straightaways only, so a low powered car isn't an issue.  

By contrast a Shelby Club event at Road America or Willow Springs  probably wouldn't be an event you'd want to do in a bone stock Fiat X1/9.

In reply to Puddy46 :

Agreed, sifting thought fb is not ideal. 

I agree that track days depend on the organization running them. I used to attend Track Night in America events, but stopped going to their events. Lots of variety in the cars there, but SCCA's goal in putting on those events is is to get people hooked on getting involved in track activities, not to provide an environment where hardcore guys like me can go to really push the car and set some good times. That is certainly a great goal on SCCA's part, but that means pretty low oversight of the level of driving, and specifically what groups they let drivers in. As an experienced driver, it was just too frustrating to me. There were also too many people driving that clearly were a danger to others that I was worried about getting piled into by someone that was in way over their head. Too much of a circus for me! 

Don't get me wrong, TNiA is a great way for people to get there first taste of driving on track, and it is a terrific program for that. It just wasn't what I wanted in a track day.

So I found another outfit that is the opposite - an instructor will follow you around for a few laps in his own car before signing you off to drive in the advanced group. Almost all the cars are pretty serious, and the level of driving is pretty high. Compared to most of the other drivers, I don't feel so hardcore at all! The downside is that those events are much more expensive than TNiA.

Thanks again for the great discussion.  To reply to Rons, I did see that Motorola Cup Hyundai, my worry with it was replacement parts and general quality but I may be biased against Hyundais.

I did buy a car, YAY!  It wasn't ever a strong competitor but my buddy gave me a price on the E30 that we've been building that I couldn't refuse.  So yesterday we hauled it to a Mustang shop to try to solve the last remaining problem I have with it.

• E30 - V8 Swap - $??? plus finding a trailer.  I'm not sure what will be fair for my buddy.
  • I have a running/driving Ford 302 swapped E30.
  • It runs like E36 M3.  Currently doesn't seem to be running on all cylinders.
  • It's a co-project with a good friend - his car, my work and money.
    • He doesn't care about the car.
  • I could just buy him out of the project.
  • I know everything about it.
  • It needs so much work... I am a bit burnt out on it.
  • It is awesome.

In reply to CodyD :

Looking forward to the photos of the new toy!

In reply to CodyD :

Congratulations! be sure to post your pictures and progress

In reply to CodyD :

Once you get it sorted it should be stone ax reliable and quite fun. 

A note on Ford 302s; with the aluminum heads & manifold plus a light flywheel they are right around 410lbs. So the V8 shouldn't add any weight to the car. It might even help the balance.

jonnyd330 said:

I am also in the process of looking for a dedicated track car. I will be able to store it at the track so no need for a tow vehicle. My list is longer but I have been also considering an e46. My goals might be a little different as I want something to turn a lot of laps at a low consumable cost. I don't really care about speed since I am looking for driver improvement. Cars I have in mind at the moment are e46, e36, NC Miata, dc2 Acura Integra, eg/ek civic hatch. 

My question at the moment is where to look for track prepped cars? 

jonnyd330 - I'm going to send you a PM regarding a track car I'm going to be selling soon. I'm in Gainesville, so not far from you.