Stimulus priced Father/Son project car ideas.

I've been looking for a good father/son project to do with my 16 yo that's taking auto tech for his shop at the voc school. He'll be taking drivers ed and getting his license this year  

We're looking at trying autocross this year, but I've never done it. I'm thinking that we'll both enjoy it, so that could influence what we get for a project,

His interests are typical F&F cars, JDM, RX-7s, civics, Sentras, Mini, pickups, etc. 

I'm flexible, but lean toward the classic American choices (Camaro, mustang, firebird, G-bodies, trucks, but have developed and interest in rotaries, miatas, and British cars and expanded my horizons being on here)

There are two ways I'm thinking about approaching this:

1) A street car that would be a daily driver and also minor project/upgrades. This would be something like a Focus ZX-3, Civic, Golf, or similar. 
 

2) An autocross car that can be driven to events. The benefit of this is there would be a clear distinction between the daily driver conservative and safe VS competing and operating closer to the edge. 

I'm sure you guys can come up with some good suggestions, and reasons for option 1 vs 2.

Budget target would be less than stimulus check (but isn't what the stimulus check would be used for), but could go to challenge level for the right car.  I expect there will be many projects in that range showing up on FB and CL over the next several months  

Vehicles needing mechanical work are preferred over bodywork, but it would depend on specific vehicles. My experience include cars, motorcycles, boats, snowmobile, and large trucks. The work scope goes from tune ups to complete rebuilds, swaps (GM carbureted engines) , and most things in between. 

The goal with any work is for my son to do it, with guidance from me and his school instructor. He also has access to online manuals, specs, and shop info through school  

An example what I've seen that is tempting for option 2 is something like this as and entry into rotary engines even without the stimulus check. 

RX8 - could be trial by fire

But I also know the Miata is probably the answer if we go option 2,  but I also want to think about other options that could be modified progressively as exsperience and skill improve  

So put on your thinking caps and help me  figure out the best option and how to spend my money and future free time.

93-95 MR2

Get this 1970 Triumph Spitfire out of my pole barn and tell us all about the joy and/or pain and suffering you experienced.

In reply to Tim Suddard :

He could hone his mechanical skills and vlogging skills to truly share the joy and pain.

There would be a certain amount of irony with any electrical gremlins since his name is Lucas

Is there any more info on that potential source of joy, pain, and tears?

I have a soon-to-be-engineless 2011 Volvo C30...and no good ideas on what to do with it so selling it seems best.

In reply to No Time :

It sounds like it's his birthright

I'm gonna throw out the same car I usually recommend.....and say zx2

91-94 Sentra SE-R or 95-98 200sx. There are also Infinity G20s as well. All of them can be turbo'd extremely cheap

ChrisLS8 said:

91-94 Sentra SE-R or 95-98 200sx. There are also Infinity G20s as well. All of them can be turbo'd extremely cheap

Good call.  I had one of each of those and either would be a good choice. I will have to say Miata or Civic. CRX or early Civic even better. Si the best!  

In reply to ChrisLS8 :

Don't forget the NX2000

So beyond autocross fun, definitely consider rallycross and ice racing into consideration. It'll lengthening the involvement and strengthen his bond and love for the car and thusly hopefully the care given to it. 

With that being said the B13 chassis Nissan's, BG chassis Mazdas and Ford escorts, duratec ZX3 foci are where I'd be looking. 

Another plug for my 96 Impala SS.  Mostly cosmetic, but plenty of not-important mechanical stuff that could be done for the sake of education/bonding.  That thread link outlines all of it.  I was asking challenge money, now I'm asking stimulus money.

Already began setting it up for autocross (shocks and springs, torsen-style posi, 4.10 gears)

Not a C5 at the autocross, but also not a G-body.  Its running, driving, inspected.  I drive it every few days and sometimes daily when I'm fixing something on the truck.  So he can learn to drive and get his license and have something to drive as well.

In reply to Curtis73 :

You're going to have me tempted to cheat the towing capacity...

In reply to Curtis73 :

Thank you for reminding about the SS. That is an interesting option, but I forgot to mention he is set on something with a stick. 
 

Everyone else: 
Thanks for the ideas. Now I need to start researching what the different models/generations are so I can get him started on some research. That should help give home something to do while home for the next several weeks.

The original plan was for this to be an incentive to do well in school and shop early summer or maybe in the fall, with the goal to find the right car to make a project for junior and senior year  

The cancellation of school until at least May 4th (potentially longer) and the possibility that summer camp may be canceled (normally he's away for 8 weeks), has made me start rethinking the timeline. 

Finding the right project may be helpful in keeping him out of trouble over the summer if he's home instead of at camp. 

In reply to captdownshift :

I know there is autocross at Devens and also in Thompson, CT but I'm not sure where we have rallycross locally to check out. 

Any starting points to check for info on that?

No Time said:

In reply to Curtis73 :

Thank you for reminding about the SS. That is an interesting option, but I forgot to mention he is set on something with a stick. 
 

 

Well... there is the little tidbit that I have a spare T56 that could go with it... but you won't get that for stimulus money.  

In reply to Curtis73 :

A T56 in the SS could make it one of the coolest cars in the auto tech shop, but the buy in does put it outside of the budget. 

In reply to captdownshift :

I miss my NX. I had a VE, with carbon hood and hatch from Seibon. Goofy lil cars but alot of fun and capable. I shouldn't have sold it

In reply to Loweguy5 :

I've never really looked at Neons.

Is there a good source of info to help me understand the appeal? 

In reply to No Time :

https://www.motorsportreg.com/orgs/scca/new-england/rallycross

The NER SCCA Rallycross people have a pretty active Facebook group as well, for event schedule and registration, the link above is the spot. 

I checked out the NER site and it looks interesting. 

This may become much more expensive and time consuming than I was anticipating, but in a good way. 
 

Now to wait out the virus and then check out some autocross and rally cross events. 

In reply to No Time :

Bonding with your son and making new friends via low dollar competition is a good thing. Nothing wrong with enjoying a project for several years. Rallycross doesn't need to be expensive either. 

I don't mind the cost, and believe it will be time and money well spent. Working together on the prep, friendly competition, and time together driving to and from events will be priceless experiences. 

Cost will definitely be kept low to start by running  my Elantra on the snow tires to try rallycross, and running the general RT 43s to try autocross. But I can also see that if we enjoy it, I would want to move us away from trying to have a daily driver do double (or triple) duty.

After looking at the NER website I found myself looking at FB and CL to see what project cars out there and what a trailer would cost, but I'm getting ahead of myself. It looks like my sons drivers ed class is going to be delayed (or online only), so he may not get his license in time to try driving this season even if the events are rescheduled. 

I'm sure I'll have many more questions when getting closer to being able to try out rallycross and/or autocross. 

No Time said:

In reply to captdownshift :

I know there is autocross at Devens and also in Thompson, CT but I'm not sure where we have rallycross locally to check out. 

Any starting points to check for info on that?

I believe they have rallycross or winter rallycross down that Stafford Springs

My entry into the auto enthusiast and gearhead world was a pair of AWD 1G DSM's my Dad purchased right before I got my license. One was to be my first car, which was a DD-able example that needed some minor repairs and maintenance. The other one was driveable, but needed a lot more work, especially cosmetic, that was supposed to eventually be his. I kind of ended up doing most of the driving in both though... 17 years later, I still have both cars. 

All that said, I think the only way a DSM fits the stimulus budget now is if it's naturally aspirated. These days, a turbo example at that price is either going to be a shell with no engine or trans, or a really neglected example. In both cases you'd probably end up going way over budget to make it roadworthy and then actually keep it on the road.

As far as cars go, there's been a lot of good suggestions here so far (1G Neon, ZX2, ZX3, factory SR20 powered Nissan/Infiniti stuff, DOHC Saturn, old Honda stuff).

Here's a (mostly Fazda slanted) list of other that I've bought (or talked someone else into) or considered in that price range, anywhere from running and driving to cheap project, and wasn't already covered:

-Both generations of Probe/MX6
-91-96 Escort GT
-MX3
-MP3 or MazdaSpeed Protege
-91-94 Mercury Capri - (I've owned 2 XR2's purchased for well under $1000. The one I still have was $500 and just needed a trans and some TLC)
-Ford Festiva (especially with the drivetrain from the aforementioned Capri swapped in....)
-Geo Storm GSi
-89-92 Corolla GT-S (friend of mine recently picked up a running/driving example for $800)
-87-88 Corolla FX16 GT-S
-Pontiac Vibe GT
-Cavalier Z24/Sunfire GT
-All sorts of older Quad 4 GM stuff
-8 Valve 2.2/2.5 Turbo Mopar stuff

-Saturn Ion Redline or Supercharged Cobalt SS - The key here is to find one with a blown engine. Don't even spend one minute looking for another supercharged "LSJ" engine, though. The GM era Saab 9-3 "B207R" turbo engine longblock sans forced induction goodies and Saab or GM specific sensors/etc. is almost identical. Outside of an oil pan that has a temp sensor (which will need to be capped off or just hit with a hammer to break off the harness plug), the shortblock is identical. The head casting is only slightly different. You just need to grind off some stub on the timing side to make room for the SC motors serp idler or tensioner, and drill/tap for the SC motors larger manifold studs. The Saab motor is WAY more plentiful, and depending on where you shop, can be had for even a couple hundred bucks. If the Saab motor included it's intake manifold, you can either sell it or put it on the shelf in the garage incase you decide you want to make a lot more power down the road. The Saab manifold can be modified to mount the SC motors throttle body so you can use it as a budget intake manifold for a turbo setup vs. retaining the SC engines goofy air-to-water setup or an expensive aftermarket unit. I bought a SC Cobalt SS with a rod knock for $1,100 a couple years ago and was going to do the Saab motor swap. However, I had too many other projects going on, so I decided to part it out instead... which netted me about $4k. They can also usually be had for cheap if they need a trans (which can be pricey) or even just a clutch.... especially the Saturn variant.

Aside from "cars", you mentioned pickups/trucks and American. Not sure which of the two categories it would fit in, but perhaps a widely available Dakota/Ranger/S10/Sonoma? Depending on how the truck came out of the factory, you're looking at:

-Super cheap to buy even a running/driving example
-Super cheap to fix/maintain
-Lots of aftermarket for suspension/performance/cosmetic
-Easy to fairly uncomplicated and widely documented swap-ability to 8-cylinder engines that are likely a dime-a-dozen at your local "you pull it" junkyard (there's also interesting performance oriented 4 or 6 cylinder options for each as well....)

I swapped my V6 Dakota to a V8 and I'm pretty sure I could do it again and get a truck and everything I'd need for the swap for just under the stimulus budget.

If you go with that option in RWD, he'll definitely need another car for winter though.