slow67

iTrader: (2)

I was considering doing the track day w/ TDS @ TMS for more seat time in my car, but I doubt Don would give me a break on price. In fact I'm almost certain he wouldnt, I worked for him for like 1.5 years.

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

I will be at Motorsports Ranch Sept 9/10 with The Driver's Edge shaking down some changes I've made to my Firebird.

Sign up and and get some seat time on the new section ...

dmiz0420

iTrader: (8)

I had an lt1 96 camaro, all I can say is the thing was a rocket!!!

Now I have a 97 corvette, It's a missle!!!!

The difference between them is missles are guided, rockets just fly all over the place and who knows where you'll end up. I ended up in a guard rail in turn 1 at Watkins

The corvette was made to turn and burn, for the amount of time, $$$, and effort you put into the Fbody, you could have a corvette for equal $$ and no hassles that turns just as well if not better.

PLUS its a Vette!!

slow67

iTrader: (2)

Nah, I'll probably wait a bit. I need some more suspension work before I head back out to MSR (none yet). Im about to build my own LCA's, PHR, TA, etc.

Also, on MSR's website, it only shows 1.7 Mi CCW

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

Like I said, a Vette will make a mediocre driver look good.

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

A great misnomer ... NEEd suspension in order to get seat time.

I wish I had learned on a stock suspended car so that the changes I made, like LCAs, would have taught me more about the car.

Trust me ... the 3.1 is a beast. Jack has taken the safest track in America and given a whole lot of teeth.

dmiz0420

iTrader: (8)

Irony. You can work your *** off on and in the car, but your handicapped by the platform your on. I know. I've had them both. Loved them both, but one was a sports car designed for handling and one was a musce car.

I gotta say a Vette makes everyone drive and look better, its like a Red Stripe!!!

Everyone should try one! Ever hear of an independent rear suspension? Probably a good thing to have if you want to turn.

For $20k vette, No switching tires after the drive to the track or if it rains, no trailer. Drive it to the track, take out your girl and close the deal.

Either way have fun and be safe!!!!

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

OK John ... you are beginning to sway me to your opinion of Vette owners. I thought it was confined to the German car owner ilk ... seems to have spread to the US like a bad cold. Hopefully this isolated and not a trend.

You know ... this thread was about getting into a race car, not getting into some brainless ****, goo-goo eyed over someone's car used to replace their dickless anatomy.

Probably should check your facts ... Lou Gigliotti's C5 Trans AM car had a solid rear axle. I think it turned pretty darn good.

http://lgmotorsports.com/gallery/alb...02_RaceCar.jpg

Next!

dmiz0420

iTrader: (8)

But he did need the frame of a c5. Interesting.... its good for a car to have a frame.

Foxxtron

iTrader: (1)

From what I have read and observed on the now defunct Trans-Am series, those later cars were what they referred to as "silhouetted stock cars". Essentially pupose built tubular steel frames with an exterior that repesented what drivetrain (at least powerplant) that was being operated, therefore it isn't a C5 frame, unlike the world-challenge vettes and the C5R/C6R's. When Lou operated that vehicle, he even had some pictures of it on his website, and the frame was definitely not that much different than the silhouetted F-bodies that competed as well, which they too were pupose-built tubular frames.

AFA the whole tubular frame being better than a monocoque, that is not necessarily true for race vehicles. Many open-wheel, LeMans protoype, and Daytona prototypes are monocoques, and very successful ones at that. The Daytona prototypes may indeed be referred to as a "hybrid", but the hyrbid aspect is mostly from the safety cage that is needed to protect the occupant, and less to do with the overall stiffening of the chassis, though it does contribute to some extent.

Ojustracing

iTrader: (4)

I guess theres alot of the C-6 left too. Wow alot of chassis bracing for such a good car!!!
c-6/zo6

I stand corrected about this Corvette owner..

John

dmiz0420

iTrader: (8)

frames are good, fair enough

slow67

iTrader: (2)

Its not that I need more suspension to get seat time, I'm just saving my money for suspension, as I already have some seat time on the 1.7 CCW.

Ya know its hard to build 2 cars, make the payments on the new one, go to school, and work 40+ hours a week and still make the bills. It sucks that racing is like a drug.

Teutonic Speedracer

iTrader: (20)

dmiz0420.....you're names not Ray is it? If it is, I didn't realize you looked down so much on f-bods. This is Dennis....and if it is you Ray, my car could've been a $300 roller with $10k in it....but it started out of the showroom for $23k by accident.

Mitch being a well experienced driver and racer who I've met, I trust a lot of what he says and his comparison between F & Y platforms. Solid rears can handle very well if setup correctly and if a track isn't outright bumpy.

dmiz0420

iTrader: (8)

ok listen,

First: I don't look down on fbodies.
Second: One can make anything into anything.

As I said before, I had a lt1 Camaro and Loved it. I wish it were sitting in the garauge and have never had the whole trying and terrible experience. Better yet have that bad *** lt1 pinned going through the 6spd, and out to the 275's through the 4.10 ls.

But thats not what got delt to me.
Through my mistake (not that of car selection) I was able to learn. Because of the exposure my Camaro gave me in road racing, it helped me understand the inherant advanteges of a low milage, mostly stock, sub $20k C5 Corvette.

The guy on the original post said he wanted a car that could drive to the track. I was humbly trying to reference what an unplesent experience helped me conclude. No setting up, swapping out, just ready to roll.

Again, being fortunate and determined enough to have had them both, and still do something that pinns a grin across my face, thought I would throw in my $.02 of experience if it could help someone else down the road.

The words were not written to diminish the appreaciation, admiration, and respect for the hard work, knowledge, and skill of any driver on any platform.

And from that viewpoint, if I could take it back, rather than harbour anomosicity between bowtie owners, and have to impart some other words of wisdom:

Drive em all and decide for your self.

You know you could just give the next guy a

Jeff F

iTrader: (1)

Best advice in this whole thread. Pick up a used spec Miata and have fun. if you are going to do tracking seriously, do not screw around with a street car. You are going to have comprimises no matter what if you have a dual use DD/track car.

Let me say again, buy a prepared car. Do not build your own.

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

Priced a spec Miata motor lately? Over $10K for a new spec motor. My jaw dropped when the guys are Mazda North America told me that. I was having my car dyno certified and chatted with them for a while.

I bought and built my whole car for less than that ...

Porsche's ... jeez, what a racket that is. Get one sorted and they are still twitchy as hell.

I did instruct a guy once who had a Cobb prepped Subaru. He did things in it that would have spun my car, like nailing the brakes and then the gas in mid corner. That felt amazing. I wish my car weighed 2800lbs, and had AWD w/300 HP.

The 1/2 dozen or so "already built and sorted" cars I've known and raced with took thousands of dollars to fix things done half-assed. It sounds good on paper, but the rebuild costs are a LOT more than the initial build costs.

A lot of wasted time is spent just trying to figure out what the builder was thinking ...

For instance ... running a knee bar on the OUTSIDE of the dash. WTF? The dash is now trapped. Any kind of under dash work has been complicated 2 fold. I guess you could alwys bust out the windshield to get it out.

Buying built being cheaper vs building was something a person came up with that couldn't build his own car. If you have to PAY someone to build it, then I would agree. Of course, then you have to pay to get it "rebuilt".

Jeff F

iTrader: (1)

And compare that to a solid built Chevy/Ford motor where the sky is the limit. You start out on the low scale which is the Mazda, then move up. Seen to many people lose their butts trying to start out in vettes or other high end cars.



There is a difference in buying a piece of crap for cheap, and buying a quality car for a lower price. If you are building the car, meaning your own labor, yes it can be cheaper, but in 99% of the cases, you will spend money that you will never ever get back.

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

Remember, we're discussing a race car ... a platform where one can be competitive. You mentioned Spec Miata, which, to be competitive, costs a lot of dough.

The Chevy/Ford motor you are discussing is for World Challenge, competing with Lou Gigliotti.

Now, to put things in perspective, the only comparison I have is the motor in my race car ... an 80K miles LT1. Motor, accessories, ECU, harness, and trans was under $2K.

I literally pulled it out of a wrecked car and installed it in my race car.

Don't lose sight of the original poster's needs .... cheap.

And when looking for a race car, the line between quality and cheap is not very defined. It's not like you can look at mileage or how clean the interior is. The only way you can know if you have a nice car vs a piece of crap is get it out on the track. Not many owners will let you test drive a race car on a race track.

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

OK ... I have reconsidered and have decided that all of you are correct.

By all means, purchase a C5, C6, Spec Miata and/or Porsche ... please ... anything so that you do not compete in Camaro/Mustang Challenge.

I realized that if you all DO buy a CMC car, that will put you in my race group and therefore I risk getting crashed into by clueless rookies and newbs.