I raise.

I fold. I was bluffing.

The DC2R is a great first track car. The trick with most of these first track cars (Miata, DC2R, E36) is recognize their limitations (which is very high) and if you ever get to a point where you need more, sell the car and buy something faster. My E36 was absolutely brilliant up until I decided it needed to be faster than it reasonably could be, and then it was pretty mediocre. I should have sold the car and bought an E46 M3, a 911, a Z06, etc.

I haven't owned an ITR but I have some seat time in a few and they are incredibly rewarding cars to drive - they handle responsively, are reliable and predictable, and are quick enough to still be fun - a perfect car to actually learn to drive quickly in. My good friend had a supercharged ITR and it was a complete waste of time - not much faster and much more of a pain - always overheating, etc. Just buy a relatively stock car with a good suspension, good wheels/tires, and proper brake pads and you can lap all day.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.n...c51c89f210c2ca

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.n...2449f9c13a262e

This was my JDM B18C-R swapped EG. It was stripped down to 1950lbs, had a built motor with a standalone tuned by G5, DC2 brakes, complete suspension, and 15x10" wheels with huge Hoosier race tires. In theory, a killer car, but in reality, not that faster than an ITR which simply worked much better as a package. And way more expensive, much worse resale, and classed terribly if you actually want to be competitive.

I wish I had just waited and found a decent DC2R. :)

-Mark

In my experience something you can buy for $15k might end up costing you an additional $20k when you start tracking it. Find sponsorship or make more money are my suggestions.

I'll support the DC2R choice. It's a great car to learn on and get comfortable at speed with as it is very forgiving and predictable. Even in stock form with better tires and front brake pads it is still a potent little package. Upgrade as you progress as a driver. A thicker rear sway bar can really make the car rotate and front compliance bushings will help with high speed brake wobble at faster tracks. Honda reliability FTW!

I've had mine for over 10 years and starting tracking in '05 and cant think of another car to move into that isn't 4 times the price.

Personally, I like the miata and the rx7 for track cars. I can only speak for AutoX and drag though, as I haven't done road courses yet.

I'm not going to recommend a specific car, because I am biased towards Porsches and Corvettes.

However, like Mark, I have "been there, done that" over the last 15 years and here are few things to consider that haven't been mentioned yet:


You don't want to trailer, but you want to go to Ridge/ORP etc - you'd better make sure your engine and transmission are BULLETPROOF. That means, no questionably modded cars AT ALL, because nothing sucks more than a $1000 tow from Oregon to BC due to a shitty /wiring/engine/turbo/tranny/ job by the previous owner.

Better be able to fit a few extra wheels/tires inside or on the roof, cuz driving on racing slicks across 2 states SUCKS, and driving across 2 states to do a track day on shitty street tires that will get prematurely worn also sucks!!! While I'm at it, buy a car for which you can actually find affordable performance tires for the wheels it comes with.

You're on a budget? Get a car that runs on regular or at least on 91 just fine. The expensive stuff gets REALLY expensive especially when racing and burning fuel at max rate.

Buy a car that is easy to get spare parts for locally. Don't buy a car where if an A-arm breaks at ORP you have to wait 6 months to get a replacement from Pennyfarthing UK.

Buy a car that the people you are tracking with also have, or know about, so when shit goes wrong they can actually help you on site.

Mostly importantly, if this is going to be a TRACK car, make sure you can destroy it, and walk away from it without being financially shattered. There is no insurance on the race track (except in some RARE cases) and even if you are a really really good driver, another asshole's oil leak can end your day with your car upside down.

Don't let any of that scare you away.

^ on the tow job front, be sure to get the top-tier BCAA coverage. The big perks being 6 tows/year, 2 can be up to 320km or 4 to 160km, and after 2 years they'll cover hotel and rental car costs up to X amount if you're more than 160km from home.

Jesus fuck that is some awesome driving in an awesome car.
I'm loving my e36 on the track, and if I was going to build a track car, I'd buy a much shittier salvage titled e36 m3. Coils, sways, cage, pads and rotors and a few bolt ons and be plenty happy for a few years to come.

Can I nominate this for post of the year?
After making the 10 hr drive down the I5 and across Oregon to ORPT, I blew up the motor on my ITR 10 minutes into the first session.
$200 USD to tow from the track to the a UHaul that was open on a sunday. By chance, they had a truck and dolly. 1 way for the truck and Dolly was $1000 USD.
10 hrs on the I5 with an F350 that had a bad steering wobble from 35 - 55 mph was not fun.

Also, he is bang on about the tires.

Another thing to consider. As you get older and wiser, you'll enjoy the comforts of AC, a quiet exhaust, and cruise control.

***edit***

I forgot to mention, my car also had an attempted break in when it was sitting outside the tow yard. I guess my race wheels and equipment in the back of the car seemed too good to the 300 people of Moro. Worst part is, they scratched the hell out of the car and ripped the weather strip on the door and didn't even get into my car.

E36 with a 5.0

Cheapest parts you can get anywhere for the BMW body + Mustang drive train

Can fit rims and tires in the car OR build a small trailer to tow!

Can probably keep the 5.0 running on nail polish and spit

Can find someone locally at every track that probably raced the 5.0 engine for a decade

Can build for under 10k, if you crash it you can sell the drive train or use it for your next E36 body which you can pick up for next to fucking nothing:

1992 E36 BMW

When you swap the engine out for a 5.0 you can sell the BMW engine and transmission and recover a bunch on the cost of the body

BMW differentials have room in them for extra fiction discs directly from the factory AND you can pick up another LSD diff with a wide range of gearing for under $400

If you blow up the engine or transmission you can easily source another one of either for under $500

I never thought I'd say this but Jason's 5.0 e36 post finally is the right one.

I'm not responding a lot, but I am reading everything!

I really appreciate all the advice in this thread, i know sometimes it's hard to take the time to give advice when threads like these end up with the OP not following through about 95% of the time. Hopefully the advice here will be helpful to everyone, not just me.

Thanks to those that are offering up cars now, but I'm only planning this for next spring.. just trying to learn right now so I can plan properly.

Based on what was said here, it seems like a stock DC2R would be a great choice until I actually feel like I'm being limited by the car, and not by driving skill (which should be a while..)

I don't have any track experience, but the MR2 popped into my mind.

Anyone have any input on MR2s for track duty?

Early 91 model has snap oversteer suspension problem


Every mr2 owner complains about leaks

In case anyone in this thread is interested, a friend is currently selling her track built B-Spec Ford Fiesta race car for $20k:

So tempting... This is why I was previously saying that the best way to get a track / race car is to buy someone else's.

Some great advice from Rich and Mark on this thread!

What Rich said about finding something bulletproof was dead on; the more time you can spend on track the better. A lot of suggestions to do x car and do y swap, for a 1st 'track/race' car I think is a terrible idea. I rarely see those kind of builds at events, and when I do it isn't for long. KISS

Mark also had a fantastic point about identifying your goals! If you're hoping to compete in any way I suggest looking into rule books and attending events before jumping in with both feet!

IF you're interested in doing any real competition I highly recommend looking into karting, the best bang for buck wheel to wheel!

Check out my thread on kart racing in the PNW here:
http://www.revscene.net/forums/69540...m-journal.html

Rich

No local MR2s are really taken out to the track :okay:

Will make it my goal to make it to at least a couple of track days next year when my car is all fixed though.

r6- 6000
full exhaust - 1000
ecu - 500
dyno tune - 500
misc accessories -750
fairing -1000
gear - 2000

lots of money left over?!
AWEEEEYEEEUUUUUUUUUUUUUH

sounds like me!

the twitchy suspension was all of 91 and 92, changed 93+

changing to the 93+ 30-width tire stagger greatly changes the predictability of the car compared to the 10-width stagger.

mine started leaking on my first autox event. :pokerface:

i would say miata > mr2 for a lot of things...coming from an mr2 owner. unless you bring in the first gen supercharged.

^ as much as I love MR2's I wouldn't get one for a track car, those engine bays are a huge hindrance when trying to fix something quickly. Even something like loosing a bit of coolant becomes a pain because you have to burp the system from 3 places, and 2 are under the car.