Let's play "Guess the hot ticket for this class"

pinchvalve wrote: No idea if it would be legal, but IIRC it is a 4cy with a manual and RWD.

If it uses the Audi 2.0L, then it won't fly. They have solid lifters. Otherwise, it could be a variant of the GM Iron Duke which might work.

A 924S would be the hot ticket, IMHO.

The narrow body looks a bit unassuming and if you ditch the badges it could almost pass for a 1st-gen RX-7.

Like I said though, the engine could suffer oiling problems, so make sure there is a crank scraper and/or oil pan baffle to keep the oil in the pan.

Datsun Honey Bee (210?) with the 1200 pushrod motor beat me bad one year when I was winning (read killing them) in a Neon.

Im not exactly sure what they did to it besides some big tires but the secret was a very experienced driver who simply did not lift.

Typical of most circle tracks. The rules ae written by someone who is completely out of date. F-70 tires ?

Too bad a Twin cam is out, my friends Anglia with the Cosworth head would be a spanker.

Volvo 240 too heavy, you want a pre-DOT standards chassis, how about a 122 Volvo they were available with a factory supercharger.

A Chevette might be a winner?

Max weight-3000lbs. 19 advertised hp. per lb. No race tires, autocross tires permitted. All four must be the same size. Must be inside of the fender. No headers and stock air box. No AWD. All of the usual safety items. QED

From another thread how about an Opel Kadett?

Burrito wrote: M10 powered BMWs should be a good choice. E21s and early 4 cylinder E30s. 2002s too, technically, but probably not budget friendly for something that is going to get smashed up.

This. M10 early 318i's are light (~2300lbs stock if it's a stripper model) and not DOHC. Also very cheap on CL usually. I can't think of any 4cyl RWD older AND cheap cars that would qualify that would really be any faster than one of those, really.

Porsche 924S or early 944?

Funny I just list the two cars I have.......maybe I should do this.

Visited the track this weekend, and the class is, not surprisingly, almost completely full of Fox body Mustangs, although some had so much of the stock bodywork replaced with homemade sheet metal that it was hard to tell for sure. The lone exception was one of those things you'd only see on the circle track, a Pinto wearing a rubber Taurus front clip.

The class also seemed a lot like Spec Miata at its most piniata. Like Spec Miata, it's full of of entry level racers in cars that usually don't have enough horsepower to pull away from the pack. Combine that with a 12 car field on a quarter mile dirt oval, and there were a lot of caution flags out.

Pinto? GLC? 

Here is my input:

I raced in this class for many years. Yes, the preferred cars at the time were Pintos and Mustang IIs (gen 1 & 2).  At the time cars were cheap and plentiful. The 2.3 has great aftermarket support and Ford parts bins/salvage yards have Turbo parts, although rules limit the use of some parts. Put the car on a diet (they did not weigh our cars) and you will need at least 2 sets of tires. The track will change during the evening with slimy snotty wet clay early for qualifying heats and turning damp tacky or dry slick for the features depending on weather conditions. We could not use M&S tires. A good set of 200s would be great on dry slick.  A good 6 point cage with tie ins to the front and rear will make it safe and stiffen the car. An aluminum dirt track seat is a must so you can control the car. We used a plugged Mustang steering rack and shortened the steering knuckle arms to get quicker steering.

The engine will need an upgraded (brass) distributor gear and I would recommend a cam and upgraded valve springs. Lots of extra ponies in the head if you can find someone to open it up. There is a preferred cast header used on the Rangers and a tube header found on some Mustangs.  I would not recommend boring more than .40 over due to overheating. A larger 3 core radiator kept clean during the night will work great. Depending on rules, I used a Holley 350 cfm 2 bbl from a Ford pickup for specials when rules were run what you brung. The hot setup is the actual Weber 2 bbl found on stock European cars/Formula Fords. As far as the stock air box, I used a hole saw to allow it to breathe. Either eliminate the ignition resistor or parallel another. They break at the worst time. The Ford 8 inch rear will fit, but after market gears are spendy. Transmission and differential gearing is different thru the years and models. You will have to do some research to determine what you need for the track.

I know I am forgetting alot but I had a great time doing it and miss it. When our team gets together, we still talk about the good and bad times we had together.

Other makes would come and go with little or no success.  Front drives used a completely different line when racing and it did not make for good racing with everyone trying to avoid c0llisions and racing.

Have Fun

Edit: Upgraded connecting rod bolts are a must.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ said:

If you wanted to get cheaty, I bet the average circle track crowd would have trouble figuring out that an old longitudinal engined Saab is FWD

...until the first turn, when you couldn't hang the back end out without the p-brake.

Show up with a SOHC Subaru Impreza and run it until they ban you!!

Are engine swaps legal? If so, I'd say a 1.8SOHC-swapped Miata (from a Protégé DX). Should bolt up to the trans.

If not, a Chevette maybe? Fox Mustang? I can't even think of too many front engine RWD cars that are 4-cylinder and not DOHC and fit all those criteria.