Advice on a track day car.

I'm planning on building a trck day car, if anyone owns one of the following or has any advice, please help.

The car must be road legal.

Prefferably : Front engine, manual, RWD, normally aspirated, and not too special to look at. I want to completely strip the car, add a cage etc, It'll be on a limited budget, so losing weight is more important than engine tuning.

My short list is:
Clio 1.2 with a 2.0 Laguna lump.
325i
old Supra
old Celica
Torino ? (spelling)
Alfa 75
Volvo 240 turbo
Merc 190 E
944
200SX 13/14
106 Rallye
Golf I
928
XJS

Cheers.

Welcome to the forum Bruce! :)

From your shortlist, I'd be tempted by an old Supra (the wedge 2.8 version) or a Golf. 106 Rallye would be a cool option too. There's a huuuuuuuge difference in running costs in your list. If this is your first 'project' I'd stick with cheap and learn as you go - it's the best way...

Porsche 928 would be (very) costly. 944 would be more affordable. Why not a 924? I know it's got a VW van engine in it, but when stripped out you'd be surprised how quick they are. There's plenty around for very little money, and there's a couple of race series for them so you'd have no shortage of parts/advice. Shame it needs to be road legal - there's probably a few race prepped 924's knocking about, caged etc and ready to go.

Bruce.

You've posted this in two other forums.

Hmm - probably ought to be in the trackday forum, but it's awful quiet in there... ;)

It is in the Trackday forum.

So it is! Think we oughtta move this one too & merge them.

If I remember rightly, it'll leave a 'marker' in Road Car so people can still get to it from there...

...'xcept I haven't got access to do that here!

I don't know where you are and if you have easy access to early Toyota Corollas, but this is my combination.

1972ish Corolla
1.5l engine (up from 1.2l)tough as will rev to 8000rpm plus with only a cam, exhaust and carb change. No other work.

Standard gearbox and diff. Again pretty tough. Replaced each once in 5 years.

Modified brakes, from later modle corolla.

stripped interior.

Old Toyotas are built light and can take a heap of punishment. With regular servicing the motors will live forever (current engine has around two years of use without even lifting the rocker cover).

See my car at

www.cardomain.com/member_pages/view_page.pl?page_id=372278 (http://)

Originally posted by Bruce750
Prefferably : Front engine, manual, RWD, normally aspirated, and not too special to look at. I want to completely strip the car, add a cage etc, It'll be on a limited budget, so losing weight is more important than engine tuning.
XJS
Answering your preferences in order: Well it is front engine (a nice big engine too!). Obviously you'd need the manual, but I know several who have lots of fun racing the auto. RWD, of course. It's no E-Type. Losing weight: there is plenty of scope for that!

On losing weight, did you see the Top Gear program that stripped a (very ropey) XJS down and reduced the 0-60 time considerably.

Here is some information on a racing XJS and what was done to it.
www.ashmoreracing.co.uk Go to Diary to see what was done to the car in it's first few months. There are also some pics of the cage etc.
Obviously there is a big overlap with a track day car. And this one is road legal.

I know its a turbo but how about a lancer EX 2000 Turbo? Its front engined, RWD, a hoot to drift, cheapish and good fun.

I reckon a Porsche 924S would be ideal. 2.5 litres of real Porsche engine (165 Bhp - the same engine as in the 944) but a lighter bodyshell. They are incredibly cheap too - I know of one for sale for £995. Damaged repairable with just 90 000 miles and a FSH. On the road for £1500 and possibly even stripped and fitted with a cage for that, too.

I'm tempted myself but its a toy too far!

Go on. tell yourself its an investment. Cheaper than all those years down the pub.

£1.5k is a bargin too. It easily would stay ahead of all those hot-hatches.

I think an E21 or E30 BMW is what you need. They're cheap as chips, reliable, come with 4 or 6-cylinder engines, are torquey and - the most important requirement - they're rear-wheel drive

These cars also have lots of weight that can be lost, easily available roll cages, lots of tuning parts and lots of easy engine, transmission, diff and brake swops

Although a Porsche, Lancer, Supra or Starlet would be nice, an old Beemer will be cheaper to buy and to modify and much, much easier to find bits for. Also it will use easily available wheels and tyres

I run a BMW 2002 as a Track Day car and it's superb. Yes, it's more work than and E21 or an E30, but it's lighter and I prefer the seventies style. But one thing they all serve up is oversteer - and the ability to make the rear of the car move around at will. I think this is the single most vital thing, and the thing that will keep you learning when doing Track Days. Cars that understeer, or that can't tighten their line, prove to be very boring, particularly in the wet, and they will limit how much car control you can learn

Also don't underestimate the benefit of a big boot or a hatchback - if you're taking spare wheels & tyres, a toolkit and a trolley jack then you'll need more space than any of the other cars can give. I can get four wheels & tyres, a toolbox, race bag, trolley jack and lunch in the boot of the 2002

You can build, tax and insure (classic policy, of course!) a great Track Day car for around £1000 if you're canny. And that means more Track Days to enjoy it on...


Nick Froome
www.bolide.co.uk (http://www.bolide.co.uk)

I'd second the BM, they're So much fun

E30 BMW 325i sports (LSD as std) or Pug 205 1.9 GTi

both can be bought fairly cheap esp Pug and bits are cheap and easy to find.

Steve

Im glad to see the Pug 205 gets a mention, I bought one this week as a track day/sprint toy. It seems like a well handling car out of the box really, cheap to run and repair too.

Cheers

Simon.

out of that lot it would have to be a 944, but get yourself a Caterham.