1986 Novakar F500, it's the 3rd Novakar ever built. It will need some serious cleaning up. Plan is to run F-mod at local autocross and then possibly run some VARA events. Makes the little 1200 look large
1986 Novakar F500, it's the 3rd Novakar ever built. It will need some serious cleaning up. Plan is to run F-mod at local autocross and then possibly run some VARA events. Makes the little 1200 look large
Very Cool. I agree, the Cooper may look a bit prettier, but you have 2 race cars, I only have one!
LOL
Leo
Picture 2, these cars go well 750lbs with me in it, 83 HP, 55" wide 73" wheelbase. 0-60 is 3 seconds with a 130mph top end plus the usual G's expected on sticky slicks.
Leo........I have 2 race cars? Where where where??? Oh you mean the Datsun, it has served me well.
You can also see the Beta in the background, it was the fastest thing in the garage, behind the Beta is the old YZ125( technically that one makes it 3 classic racers in the garage) above that is the Blata pocket bike......they race them on Kart tracks, it will go 40mph which is scary.
OK final picture
JG, our art director, just came home with this. Yes, you'll see it in Grassroots Motorsports.
In reply to David S. Wallens:
I've been wondering why you guys haven't done much with F500's, given how cheap they are to operate they really are the "grassroots" of the open-wheel world. The $/speed ratio is very hard to beat. They make Formula V's look expensive to run.
And now we have one. Look for web updates soon. It just, just joined the fleet.
They don't seem to be too popular in SCCA racing here in the Northeast. I was at an SCCA regional at Thompson back in July and there were two of those things running (running pretty poorly I should say), compared to Formula Vee, which had 25-30 cars providing a spectacular race. Maybe there's a reason why they're so cheap to acquire.
Gary, FV is one of the top three classes in SCCA numbers wise no surprise there were more of them.
As for F500 there is no reason for them to run poorly. Two strokes are very easy to tune. They are also wallet friendly, if you do have a serious engine issue it tends to be an easily remedied seizure........versus 4 strokes bent valves and bashed pistons.
As for the popularity of the class; let's face it most people like 4 strokes, as a bike guy I prefer 2 strokes much more.......lighter more powerful cheaper to run. The other factor is the CVT drive and clutch set ups, these require special knowledge and there is a learning curve.
David, OH SURE!!!! Now I have to start reading Grassroots Motorsports regularly as well.....as if all the car and bike magazines I'm reading aren't enough.
Tom
OK Tom, got it. I was only basing my opinion on my Thompson SCCA regional experience, and unfortunately that wasn't very favorable. I'm just not familiar with this class. I've been a vintage racing fan for the past 30 years or so and I've never seen an F500 car at a vintage event. Thompson in July was my first SCCA event since the 70s before the class was established, so that was my first experience with it. I just did a little research on F500 and watched an on-board video taken during a race at Road America. They're definitely unconventional with the two-stroke engine, rubber suspension, and CVT. Seemed a lot like kart racing. So from my perspective, if low cost entry and operation is the motivating factor, wouldn't kart racing be even cheaper and deliver a similar road racing experience?
I'll be back at Thompson next weekend for another SCCA regional. I'll pay more attention to the F500 cars and talk to the drivers about them. Good luck with yours!
In reply to Gary:
I'm not sure where in the Northeast region you're talking about (never heard of Thomson). F500's aren't legal for vintage. Some F440's are, but most of those cars have been turned into dedicated F-Mod autocross cars due to a change in safety requirements that obsoleted a bunch of F440/500 cars. The way the vintage rules are written, the car would have to be as-raced when new (440 engine, odd rear suspension layout) - and with updated safety requirements. A F440 meeting this requirement simply doesn't exist. If the car has been updated to current GCR safety, then it'll have been updated with later engine and rear suspension. A large majority of original roll-hoop cars were converted to F-mod autocross cars.
From the history my F500 friend has told me, that change and how it was handled by the SCCA put a major hurt on F500 fields to which it really hasn't recovered from. Basically - they changed the roll-hoop size requirement and then accelerated the time-line for implementing it. Since the roll-hoop is part of the back-bone of the car, the rule change decimated the field as a lot of guys didn't feel they were given enough time to update their cars.
At races my friend attends, he usually races with FV's.
Ian, at the beginning of the thread Tom said he would possibly be entering VARA events with the car. VARA is a SoCal vintage racing organization. Most vintage organizations have wildly differing rules and regulations. The disparity is amazing. My recollection of VARA from back in the 90's is that they were pretty liberal, although I don't know what their stance is today on F500. I can only assume Tom has done his due diligence if he plans to race the car with them. Concerning my one experience watching a couple of forlorn F500's last July, that was an SCCA regional race at the new Thompson Speedway Motorsport Park in Thompson, CT. It's located in Northeast CT, the opposite side of the state from Lime Rock. Check their website. They opened the revived historic road course this year with a big vintage event in June sponsored by VRG and VSCCA. Since the 50's the road course has just been known as "Thompson." Sorry, I just assumed everybody recognized it as such. (Incidentally, Lee Duran raced his MG PA there in June. His next race at Lime Rock was his last). Both VRG and VSCCA are pretty conservative Northeast vintage racing organizations, and they're planning another big vintage event there next June as well. However, no F500's allowed!
Yes VARA is very liberal with the cars they will allow to run but with certain classes they follow the applicable SCCA rules to letter; FF FV etc. if you look at thier entry list you will see modern cars back to a 1907 Chevy racer (it has a rule hoop that complies to no rule book I know of). My car is indeed one with the old main hop dimension of 1.255 versus the new 1.375. As for vintage cars not having the exact motor they had in the day, there are a lot of sports racers that are not "proper" yet they are being run. To me it is silly to exlude a race car at club level events simply because an updated engine is in it, especially when the originals are no longer available, the performance and layout are very similar. In case of the F500 both motors are 2 stroke twins with similar power outputs. Monterey, Goodwood or Monaco are a different story. What I like about VARA is they will find a place for pretty much any race car, I like their open attitude, they still want a proper fuel cell and fire system. You may not like the class they put your 1275 powered Frogeye Sprite but you will be able to run. There may be a few groups who can afford to turn away entries but they are few and far between.
Gary to your question about Karting; they are about the same costs, depending on the class Karts would be a little cheaper. While the driving style in a Kart is similar it's still different enough. If Karts in my area ran on a road course I might be more inclined, I've driven Karts a little and have run laps in everything from KT100 to TAG to F125 and even a 250 shifter (stupid fast) and just never really warmed up to them. My friend who tuned my road racer once said of me that if I do not like the bike in the first 200 yards I never will and that tends to be true of 4 wheels as well.
Tom
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