Starting autocross from almost zero

With rallycross venues getting fewer and farther from home (and me not having our rallycross car ready), I am thinking the unthinkable and of giving autox a try again.  Part of the reason I prefer rallycross is it feels like more of a thrill, and is just flat out more fun to me.  If I do, I'll start out with the ratty Miata, 14" all season touring tires and all, and see if I want to keep doing it.  However, the Miata will not be modified to autox better - it is my relaxing back roads cruiser, and I do not intend to ruin it for that.  
 

If I like it enough to keep at it, I'll need to come up with something.  My wife's GTI has potential, but probably only after she's ready replace it.  if you were looking for the best thrills per dollar/effort, and were starting from a blank slate, what would you go for?  Doesn't have to be class competitive.  I should have the ability to tow up to 3500 lbs, so carts and something like an F500 could be an option.  Any regular car, I think I'd want to just drive to the event.  
 

Mostly just pondering things right now, obviously not in a position to buy, especially until after I've dipped my toes back in the water with the Miata.  I'm also trying to figure out if drag racing or track days will scratch the itch.

Subaru?

In reply to eastsideTim :

If you like RWD I'd say stick with that. So either NA Miata, or something with more power, depending on your desires/budget. 

Me personally, I've figured out I'm an AWD guy - it just feels more natural and controllable to me. I just need to get the DSM fixed & find a home for my Miata eventually. 

Describe thrill?  To me, the competition part is a thrill, so I'd be looking at what cars populate the highly competitive classes locally/regionally.  

Aside from that, I think we all know what the answer is here.

What part of ohio are you in? If anywhere near pittsburgh, steel cities scca has an autocross class this year specifically for cars running on all seasons or other junk tires that might make your reentry more enjoyable. We're planning on running our rallycross car, snow tires and all, in it this weekend because we decided we weren't up to a full weekend of rallycross for various reasons but the rallycross venue is 2/3 of the way to pittrace so might as well head there for sunday instead of just going home.

As to your direct question, that's a hard question to answer without knowing your money and/or effort budget. There's a lot of things that are all pretty similar fun/cost but at wildly different total costs, in both time and effort.

Thrills/dollar to me means good in stock form, really good in modified form. 

Miata, again! 

Pretty much all my autocross experience is driving a stock Miata on all seasons (i did one event on mostly used up 200tw rubber). It will be a loud tire squealing ordeal but it's a lot of fun. So the car you've got is definitely plenty of car to get a few events in then decide if you want start looking at trying other cars. Since you mentioned F500s I will also note that everything I've seen and been told says FMod is a struggle bus and a half.

I would buy my datsun and add stiffer front springs 

You were part of my inauguration into AutoX, so I'm not sure what I can offer, other than go fast, brake, turn, repeat.

I know I'm a total amateur, but I find it to be ridiculously fun in the right car.  Driving captdownshift's Escort was a real eye-opener for me about thrills per dollar.  

As far as what to start with, for me it has a lot to do with what I know to do.  I'm not averse to new learning curves but if you give me $2000 and ask me to make something fast in the orange sorting hats, I could do it in a week with a G-body but I don't even know where to start with a Miata.  I know the Miata could be faster with the same money, but in my old-school brain I can almost recite the part numbers that make a G-body handle well.  I probably have half of them in a pile of scrap.

Throw some tires and maybe koni on the miata and send it in e street.

bmw88rider said:

Throw some tires and maybe koni on the miata and send it in e street.

A stock Miata in good condition on good tires can be quite effective. 

Daylan C. said:

 Since you mentioned F500s I will also note that everything I've seen and been told says FMod is a struggle bus and a half.

As a F500/F-mod competitor since 2014 I can tell you that they are extremely easy to live with, especially if you are a regional competitor. See my post below.

I am now in season number 8 of autocrossing a F500 and they are a fantastic autocross car. Mine is what got me back into autocross.

You can buy one for between $2500 and $6000.

You can tow them with a cheap single axle 5 x 10 trailer. The cars typically weigh 650-675lbs without driver. So you'd only be towing 1300-1500lbs.

They are cheap to run; while a set of slicks will run $1100-$1200 they will last 18 months. At autocross they get old before they wear out.

Consumables are really low. In 8 years I've used one set of brake pads and two drive belts. The pads were $100 and the drive belts were $30 each.

The motors require new top ends at the 16-18 hour mark which equates to 100 events or more.

While on the subject of motors do not buy into the hype that two strokes are somehow finicky and unreliable. The key is to jet them slightly rich. In the last 8 years I've had 2 DNFs; the starter locked up at one event and the chain popped off at another because I failed to properly safety wire the masterlink.

I've yet to manage FTD yet but we have shifter karts locally and they are a faster class.

Note I also vintage race mine; the older cars are no longer SCCA road race  legal and that's why they are so cheap.

Floating Doc (Forum Supporter) said:

bmw88rider said:

Throw some tires and maybe koni on the miata and send it in e street.

A stock Miata in good condition on good tires can be quite effective. 

A Toyota MR-S is also pretty competitive in E/Street and is a terrific car to drive, if you are looking for something different from a Miata.

125cc shifter kart.  Easy, fast, not expensive.

//thread

I think you'd have an awesome time just showing up in the Miata with some decent tires, honestly!

But for a contrary opinion, have you checked out G&J Kartway up in Camden?  It's a pretty low buy-in with rallycross-levels of camaraderie and some great racing on what I think is a pretty well-designed course.

I'm a big fan of the CAM classes because they're so much more open on what modifications are allowed. The spirit of the classes just seems more open to casual drivers or people that are just there to have fun. If it's American, RWD, and not a totally stripped racecar it can probably fit in.

What's wrong with the Miata? You can run it anywhere: E Street, STS, STR, XSB, etc., etc. I'm currently running my NA in Xtreme Street B and am digging it. Plus, lots of other Miatas to run against. 

Nothing is horribly wrong with the Miata.  I suppose I'd need to find out what class it could run in, since I won't worry too much about being competitive, and that is the likely first thing I'll do just to see if autox can draw me in or not. 

From a "thrills" standpoint, I think, if I can get around concerns of getting lost in a sea of cones, I will want something faster.  It's hard to put into words, but I think a big part of why I liked rallycross is that (at least in a reasonably competitive car like my old Neon), you were on the edge of control almost all the time, but still had time to plan/adjust your route through corners as the course conditions changed, or if you went a little wide on the last turn.  It also did something that few other hobbies have been able to do - draw all of my attention to the immediate task at hand, and push any intrusive thoughts away.  I'm not sure autocross can replicate the thrill factor well, as while the cones come up a lot faster, I'm not sure the constant edge of control feeling will be the same.

Part of this line of thinking came up when I was checking out a Legends car at a cruise in over the weekend.  Seems like they can be reasonably priced in the used market, consumables are cheap, and they fit on a 6x12 trailer.  They look like they could be fun to throw around a parking lot.

I may have to look up the kart track, too.  Been there on a scooter day, but didn't race, just spectated.  It's a bit of a drive, but not as bad as any rallycross events.  I'm also thinking of going slower, sticking with the dirt, and just getting a 4x4 to go to off road parks in.  I think motorsports cabin fever has set in.  Sold the old rallycross car back in 2018, I think, and haven't done any competitions at all since the 2020 Challenge, due to not being able to be out of the house for long (mostly due to taking care of a pet with medical issues).

Is the Miata stock or modified? 

And if you're looking for a competitive place to autocross an NA Miata, can't do much better than STS. 

David S. Wallens said:

Is the Miata stock or modified? 

Mostly stock.  Adjustable dampers (Tokico Illuminas, I think, they were on it when I got it), Flyin' Miata butterfly brace (chassis has well over 200K miles on it, so that helped a ton), various missing trim pieces, and a few visual mods from a prior ricer owner that I haven't removed.  Oh yeah, to get really pedantic, 14x5.5" wheels, instead of the 14x6" wheels a 1996 would have come with stock.  I'm sure the butterfly brace puts it into a fast class, but that won't bother me, just for dipping my toes in the water.

eastsideTim said:

 

From a "thrills" standpoint I will want something faster. 

on the edge of control almost all the time, but still had time to plan/adjust your route through corners.

 It also did something that few other hobbies have been able to do - draw all of my attention to the immediate task at hand, and push any intrusive thoughts away.  

An F500 will do this; the cars are also cheaper & faster than legends cars.

I am the ADD poster kid............F500 will keep you focused the whole run.

check this video of National Champ Jeff Colgrove.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0ofct1FdSM

In reply to eastsideTim :

I'd roll up in the Miata. Simple. 

David S. Wallens said:

In reply to eastsideTim :

I'd roll up in the Miata. Simple. 

Yup................then if he likes he should by an F500 (shamelessly pimping the class answer).