Donor car sugestion

Hi all,

I am looking to put together a car for a local, ultra low-budget racing series with the following rules:

• 1980 or newer
• FRONT wheel drive
• 4 Cylinder (or 6 with two deactivated)
• 90" or longer wheel base
• Hard tops only (No trucks, convertibles, sub-compacts, El Caminos, SUV’s, pick-ups, Imperials, or T-tops.)

I'd like to spend $1,000 to $1,800. This racing series tends to have a lot of contact and most of the cars are incredibly far from "clean" in terms of body work, etc. It will only be gutted and used on the track. Though the car can be as old as 1980, I'd love to go for something a little newer just as it seems more likely to be in good mechanical shape. Though probably out of my budget, I was thinking a Celica could be a fun option . . .

I realize I may be asking an impossibly broad question as tons of salvage cars could fit into the above, but any and all suggestions are appreciated and welcome!

Thank you,

Kevin

Neon

bgkast wrote: Neon

Pretty much /thread at this point.

I'd agree that a neon or maybe cavalier will be the cheapest and easiest to source cheap junkyard body parts for.

sentra

Saturn. The steel frame underneath can take some pretty good hits. Plus, the plastic skin over the top unscrews easily, and sells for $12 a panel at the local salvage yard.

belteshazzar wrote: Saturn. The steel frame underneath can take some pretty good hits.

The front subframes cannot. Curbstrikes that only scratch the wheels can fold the subframe.

So, um, if you do decide to take a massive power hit and go Saturn instead of Neon, reinforce the snot out of the subframe...

Thanks for the feedback! It does sound like a Neon is the popular choice . . . from some basic research it does look like there are fair amount of aftermarket parts available such as a cage and seat bracket options so that definitely helps.

Any other thoughts welcome!

Thanks again,

Kevin

How long of a race?

Not too long - generally 18 - 25 laps at around 1:20 per.

K.

Cavalier? They're practically worthless

^^ That's what I was thinking, they aren't fun but they are hard to kill

Ah, interesting thought! I don't know a ton about them but they sure seem tank like which with the amount of potential contact would not be a bad thing.

Cant beat a neon. Might get a turbo one for 1800

N/A only?

I've always liked Neons for some reason - definitely glad you guys reminded me about it.

The rules don't seem to care if the engine is N/A or not but because I may also use this car for skid plate racing part of me worries that a turbo would probably kick in in exactly the wrong moment. Can be managed I am sure though.

Say it with me kids. MX6 GT! Turbo, bulletproof, awesome, and cheap!

Do the rules require fwd?

Hi,

Yes, the rules do require FWD. RWD would be my first choice, but the car will be used for two different events. A normal FWD race (for example http://kevinzanit.wordpress.com/2013/10/29/endurance-skid-plate-racing-irwindale-speedway/) and then a "Skid Plate" race (http://goo.gl/TfQnSz).

Thanks!

Kevin

GameboyRMH wrote: Cavalier? They're practically worthless

True, and durable (as has been mentioned) but go drive a 5-spd Neon and a 5-spd Cavalier back-to-back. The Neon is a gas to drive and the Cavalier is just a chore. Neon is the answer.

I know the Neons drive way better, but I figured since there would be "a lot of contact" and the emphasis is on keeping it cheap, those factors might outweigh the Cavalier's general crappiness.

1st gen Altima or any 90's Sentra. There are always a crapload of Altimas in the junkyard, and they have a pretty stout 2.4 liter 4 cylinder. Gut, add oil, and go!

A ford Fiesta was of the time you describe and the ones which came with the higher output engine were good. The others with std motors were disappionting. A Cavalier is not much good for anything.

The first thing that came to mind here was Neon, but an early '90s Escort GT could also fit the bill pretty well.

In reply to MadScientistMatt:

The '90's Escort GT was another REALLY fun car, but when I was looking for one a few years back for a winter beater they were VERY rare on the ground in Ohio. The ones I found were well-priced ($1000-1500 I think) but there were only maybe five for sale in the whole state. I ended up with a B13 Sentra instead, but I miss the hatch.

I wonder what happened to all the EGTs? I felt like they sold pretty well back in the day, they certainly didn't rust any worse than the j-tin of the era, was there some mechanical flaw that killed them all?