40 years of Project Cars. Wow, is that a lot of busted knuckles, stripped bolts and lifelong friendships.
At Grassroots Motorsports, Project Car isn’t just a descriptor but a proper noun with huge weight attached to it. And while I’m only 30 years old, I was there in some capacity for the vast majority of the Project Cars in our pages.
I was the baby at the Chimney Rock hillclimb watching my dad drive his first Spitfire off the edge of the cliff. The toddler putting carburetor jets into the drum brake inspection hole of his Formula Vee. The child playing with toy tanks built by a machinist named Steve Eckerich while he redesigned the Rotary Spitfire. The fifth-grader being dropped off at school in a race-liveried Civic Si. The middle-schooler replacing the dash in the supercharged E30. The teenager replacing the engine in Project Camry. The college kid rallycrossing his Focus. The twentysomething rotary-swapping a Miata. And eventually, the adult experiencing all of the crazy highs and wild lows that come with successfully building Project Cars.
What have I learned about managing a project? First, my biggest takeaway: Have a reason for every project. A clear, articulated, written reason. It doesn’t really matter what it is: “Have a cool car,” “Win a trophy,” “Learn about turbos,” “Test my fabrication skills.” Those are all great reasons to build a project car. Never lose track of your reason. It will be your North Star, your budget committee, your rock and your hard place for the duration of your build.
[10 lessons to keep your race effort disciplined]
Now that you’ve got your reason, you need your resources. I mean time, money, a workspace and friends.
Time is the only nonnegotiable one of these: If you don’t have at least 10 hours per week to spend on your project, you will fail. Devote less time than that, and your project will sink into the background, failing to rise above the tide of life’s more important obligations.
Ten hours per week means you’ll finish your car in a year. A few hours once a week “if you feel like it” means you’ll never finish your car.
What about money and space? Annoyingly, these have an inverse relationship with time. If you have infinite time, you can build a project with very little money on a gravel driveway.
Need to finish your car this weekend? Break out the checkbook and plan on the car filling your entire two-car garage. And the kitchen. And your office.
The biggest tip I can offer here is to try to create a zero-setup workshop. For me, 10 hours per week means I’m often working for only an hour at a time. If step one to every task is to move cars out of the way and push my toolbox around, then I’ve just burned half of my shift on busywork. So it’s imperative that I’m able to leave my workspace fully intact between sessions, meaning I can go from walking in the garage to turning bolts in 2 minutes.
But you won’t be turning those bolts alone, because no successful project car is built without help. So make friends in the community–be it the paddock, the junkyard, the GRM forum or somewhere else–and give and receive help as necessary.
[How to help a friend restart a stalled project]
I wouldn’t have finished even a fraction of the projects I have without Tim, Rennie, Steve, Andy, Wayne, David, J.G., Jesse and countless other experts by my side. These experts are often online, so every successful project involves hours of “desk time,” too. Sometimes you’ll hit your 10 hours a week by sitting on your couch Googling problems, ordering parts or asking advice. This work outside the garage isn’t just allowed: It’s imperative to finishing your project.
Reason and resources settled, it’s time to buy your car. I’ll repeat some boring, rehashed advice: Buy the best example you can afford.
But I’ll also put my own spin on it: Buy the best example you can afford in the context of your reason and resources. If your reason is to win a trophy, then “best” likely means a specific year, model or option package. And if your resources are great for engine swaps but terrible for bodywork, then prioritize perfect paint instead of perfect mechanicals.
And don’t buy the car with partners–splitting a cheap car multiple ways is a really easy way to end up with a stalled, half-finished project. You can and should build and race a car together, but at the end of the day, one person should be responsible for the project’s success.
Now that you’ve got your reason, resources and car, congratulations on your new part-time job. So go start building! If you need me, I’ll be on the Grassroots Motorsports forum, either offering advice or asking for yours–after all, I’ve got Project Cars to finish.
The clear vision/goal thing is so spot on. When I am working to a specific goal, I get a LOT done. Never as much as I'd like, but still quite a bit. Rebuilding the One Lap CRX this past year was one such project.
Often, once I have accomplished the more immediate goal...I then flounder as to what comes next. And the car then sits and gathers dust. I am embarassed to admit just how long a certain orange car has been sitting idly by in garage bay #2.
Be organized and plan ahead. Label things, be neat, have money lol
Take pictures of everything. Before and as you take it apart. Multiple pictures. Different angles. Electrons are free and don't weigh anything.
"I'll remember were everything goes." No, you berkeleying won't.
Andy Hollis said:The clear vision/goal thing is so spot on. When I am working to a specific goal, I get a LOT done. Never as much as I'd like, but still quite a bit. Rebuilding the One Lap CRX this past year was one such project.
Often, once I have accomplished the more immediate goal...I then flounder as to what comes next. And the car then sits and gathers dust. I am embarassed to admit just how long a certain orange car has been sitting idly by in garage bay #2.
I feel attacked but also have a sense of comradeship.
Putting Subaru subframes in a Mini, easy, done.
Putting a Subaru center tunnel in a Mini, easy, done.
Making strut towers, easy, done.
Fit an entire 3" turbo-back exhaust next to the transmission and inside the center tunnel above floor height so it can't snag on anything at a rallycross? Easy! Done!
Figuring out how to plumb the coolant back to the radiator and build a rear firewall around a roll cage that isn't there yet... um...let me get back to you on that
21 years goes by quick. Project #1 started in 2004, project #2 started in 2011. If only I had a dollar for every time someone asked, "Why a Dodge Neon?" Over the years, I've scratched my head and asked that same question a few times, but with no regrets.
Autocrossing the first car led to road racing the second ... and while I agree with the OP's statement about partners (been there done that many times before) this time with the right person it worked out great. I'm the wrench and crew chief, my partner is the driver, and all expenses are documented and split down the middle.
Over the years I have seen many people come and go in our sport, mostly because they fail to plan and look at the big picture. Besides talent, hard work and dedication, the two main factors to being successful in motorsports are time and money, and then deciding how much of each can be afforded to the project(s), and what sacrifices you are willing to make. These choices can be extremely hard and frustrating ... especially if you do not have a supportive significant other. How much will "life" get in the way of your goals?
Besides an adequate supply of tools and a decent size garage: the space needed to work on and store the race car, a sizable amount of spares, and all the wheels and tires are all essential, so are a reliable tow vehicle and trailer. Once you carefully plan how much time and money it will take to build the race car to the absolute limits of the rulebook, then add up all the incidentals: bent and broken race car repairs and maintenance, tow vehicle and trailer repairs and maintenance, entry fees, travel costs, fuel, driver safety gear, shelter, food and drink, etc., etc., and tires, tires, and more tires. And then, be truthfully honest with yourself about what kind of race car you can afford to run and in what class.
Come on in, the water is fine. Just be mindful: however much you think it will cost to go racing, double it.
Jim Kidd
In reply to Andy Hollis :
Specific goals - 100%. I had a decision to make in order to run in vintage racing in 2025. So, I divided up my 4 projects into priorities (listed in order) as well as goals. I am retired, so have more time than most.
Project Car #1 - 1972 TR6. Would have been a project, but decided this was going to be my "go to" race car as it has solid bones, pedigree and almost no time on a rebuilt race engine. I decided to outsource the work. $$$$ and more $$$. Boom. Done. Arrive and drive.
Project Car #2 - 1969 TR6. Will be my backup vintage race car, and a true project. This car was purchased "ready to race', but was "ready for nothing". This was a great example of why you should "Buy the best example you can afford" It was not. So, I am deconstructing, replacing and wrenching 100% myself, except for the engine build and cage. Investing the time, effort and money to get it right. Will cost far more $$ than if I had purchased the "best example". To make sure it gets done, it is in a dedicated garage, with tools. I can cut the lights out, leave, return, crank up the music, and pick up where I left off. It will be fun to work on with a target completion goal by end of 2025.
Project Car #3 - 1972 TR6 - survivor vintage street car, needs some minor work relative to #1 and #2, after sitting for a while. Has lower priority and will be done as time permits. It is in a separate garage with Project Car #4 below. This will be done by end of 2025 as well.
Project Car #4 - 1985 M635Csi - mostly 99% done vintage street car. Not quite a true project, but required my time and effort to sort out any issues. When acquired 20 years ago, was focused and got a lot of work done within the first year. Remaining work stalled after taking a back seat to my SE46 race car and now current projects.
Projects cars #1, #2 and #3 were purchased at the same time, after I sold my SE46 and decided to go full vintage. Oh, do not forget, there is always the "while there" and "one more thing", that can add to project creep that can drive up the budget.
Planning, planning and more planning. I did not jump into the projects above without a lot of planning, researching all the bits, I would need, but also where I would start. I have broken down the work into sub-projects which mitigates being overwhelmed, provides me a sense of accomplishment and motivation.
I cannot say enough about the GREAT resources I have able to tap into with Friends of Triumph, and the head of the local Triumph organization. Wow! Without them, not sure where I would be without their assistance, and now, friendships. Anytime someone on that forum needs something, I try to give back where I can help, such as loaning my torque plate to a fellow member in Wisconsin.
Having lived through many projects, friends and a few of my own, I can say with a certain degree of certainty that many young folks these days, don't seem to have the time or a workspace. Some have the $$$, but the knowledge and/or inclination doesn't seem to be there, at least in my small circle of "younger" acquaintances.
I think a story I read recently regarding the increasing popularity of O.E.M. prepped race cars, will more than likely have a big affect on the next generation of motorsports enthusiasts. Hadn't thought much about this newer categories impact, but having heard the stories rationale, I'm inclined to believe it. When one balances the cost of time and dollars, these ready to race options can be very attractive.
Sure, one will miss out on all of the bonding, learning and opportunities for closer engagement with cars, which many of us still crave, but the times, they are a changing.
Another vote for having a specific deadline, even if it’s something local.
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