Track Oriented Car: Build vs. Buy?

ddavidv wrote: I did consider doing a vintage car before I built mine, but the affordable cars to build/race were generally pretty slow, fragile and eternally rust prone. I wanted to drive more than wrench. I may still go vintage racing some day, but the low number of events locally was a big deterrent. Having $10,000+ tied up in a car I could only race 4 times a year seemed a bit silly. However, I've found that a racing budget only allows me about the same number of races in my Spec class (figure a grand per weekend), so that really didn't matter.

Not sure where you live ddavidv but I can do about a dozen vintage events in less than a days drive per year in TEXAS. I know that the NE, SE and West coast have even more than that. Plus a decent well built Vintage car can run SCCA and Nasa somewhat competitively. If you want to stay around $5k, go MG or Fiat spider, up to $10k will get you a something a little nicer. You'll get your money back, maybe more if you buy well when you sell. The only downside is you will have to wrench more than a Spec but most vintage cars are pretty simple. Keep in mind that unless you spend serious money in Spec or have the ability of Dario or Mario you'll be at the back of the pack with a $5-8k car.

I've built two and bought one. My answer is buy, with a disclaimer. It needs to checked by someone that knows what to look at, ie cage spec, other legalities, quality of welds, etc. No point in buying if you have to rebuild the car. The last IT race I went to I wouldn't have driven a number of cars on the grid they were so badly built. Poor welds, improper fire system mounting, poor seat mounts, etc.

but buying for the most part is always cheaper and a faster way to get on track.

For Improved Touring, one could look for a former Spec Neon. Streetable and cheap, relatively cheap to maintain as there are tens of thousands of them in the wrecking yard, and can be surprisingly quick.

www.specneon.com

www.detroitneonowners.org

TxCoyote wrote: Not sure where you live ddavidv but I can do about a dozen vintage events in less than a days drive per year in TEXAS. I know that the NE, SE and West coast have even more than that.

When I looked into it several years ago, to do that many events I'd have to travel up to 10 hrs in various directions. Add to the conflict the multiple vintage organizations and their different classing structures, and not everything was comparable from one to the next. This may have changed since I was cross-shopping.

I question it being possible to do it at half the cost of my Spec BMW, as you still need to buy a solid donor car, new suspension, roll cage, seat, safety equipment, multiple tires/wheels, etc. Having a BMW E30 I didn't have to rebuild any of the drivetrain; on an old MG or Fiat you're going to need to do an engine rebuild if you expect things to last real long (and I've owned 23 Fiats, which are more durable than any Brit car). Entry fees are probably about the same. The only real advantage I see to Vintage is the no-contact rules, which are pretty much non-existent in SCCA and occasionally forgotten in NASA. I'm not trying to pick on Vintage; I just don't think it's any more of a bargain than running the alternatives.

racerdave600 wrote: I've built two and bought one. My answer is buy, with a disclaimer. It needs to checked by someone that knows what to look at, ie cage spec, other legalities, quality of welds, etc. No point in buying if you have to rebuild the car. The last IT race I went to I wouldn't have driven a number of cars on the grid they were so badly built. Poor welds, improper fire system mounting, poor seat mounts, etc. but buying for the most part is always cheaper and a faster way to get on track.

This, make sure you take people who know what they are looking at. I took car guys with me to look at my ITB VW and while the car operated just fine, the safety equipment and overall build were done poorly, something I didn't realize until after I got the car home and started the log book process. I could find properly built, documented, log booked, and ready to race cars with spares for the same price had I known what I was doing. IT(X) cars are legal for their respected (X)SP Autox class, btw. For an autox car/fun dd, I'd build but for a race car, I'd buy.

You typically cannot get nearly as much car by building as you can by buying a complete race car and it eliminates all the questions about what is and isn't going to get past tech - it's already got a logbook.

From the perspective of someone who has built a few... buy your first race car. Build your second.