Formula Ford 1600 startup

Formula Ford 1600 startup

Author
Discussion

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
Looking to get into FF 1600 next year but dont have a clue where to start. Ive done karting before and all booked now to get my B racing licence. Biggest concern is what car to buy, ie what type. Whats better and whats not so good ? My goal is win the championship after the 3rd season, dont expect to be at the top from the start but make improvements race to race.

Looking through the classifieds, theres 2 jumping in my eyes :

http://track-days.co.uk/sales/4160046.htm
http://track-days.co.uk/sales/4225142.htm

What would be better for racing around Knockhill ?

Any other tips ?

ribiero

539 posts

165 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
Good luck for your plans, if you dont already know ten-tenths has a belting Club Open wheel + FF Area smilehttp://www.ten-tenths.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f...

not much else I can help you with im afraid smile

Count Johnny

715 posts

196 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
MrCippo said:
...My goal is win the championship after the 3rd season...
You're kidding, right?

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
what do you think maybe i can win it sooner than that? Lets just ignore that for now, maybe its unrealistic, im really not sure, but thats my goal for now.

Any constructive info more than welcome!

HustleRussell

24,602 posts

159 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
Count Johnny said:
MrCippo said:
...My goal is win the championship after the 3rd season...
You're kidding, right?
He did say after the 3rd season, could be the 8th or the 15th smile

I am watching this thread closely as I want to go FF at some point after I'm done with Caterhams, and the array of cars and championships is baffling! I think I'd want to go into one of the Zetec classes personally, the cost of keeping a crossflow competetive must be eye-watering and the initial purchase cost of a later Duratec or Ecoboost car will likely be too high.

SHMotorsport30

32 posts

151 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
What championship are you going to race in?? 2 litre Zetec (Not popular at all anymore) and the Swift looks like like it has the 'Bold' 1600 cross-flow, deffo the engine to have and the 'Kent' championships have a strong following and loads of cars on track

Me and my colleague have worked on Formula Ford's for a while. Theres a lot of VD Formula Fords out there and usually at the front. However one I've worked on, a Swift SC94, has been at the front end. It's very much the driver not the car as all cars should follow the same rules!!

Also if you ever want any support at the track then my company S&H Motorsport 'Independent Racing Support' is always will to support you. Contact us at shmotorsport@hotmail.co.uk

Regards
Rob Sykes & Tom Harrison

Edited by SHMotorsport30 on Wednesday 26th September 16:41

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
i'll be entering the Scottish FF1600, so Kent engines. Yes, after the 3rd season could mean anything, I just want to get better really, dont expect anything spectacular 1st season.

SHMotorsport30

32 posts

151 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
You'll be wanting the swift the as its the 1600 kent

Also with the complete spares package it makes it worth while!!

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
fair enough, i was thinking the 2000 on the van diemen add refers to year of manufacture rather than cc / engine. maybe not ?

felix fisher run that car into the ff1600 at castle combe by the looks of things.

Edited by MrCippo on Wednesday 26th September 17:24

SHMotorsport30

32 posts

151 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
Yeah it is i just realised :P Dohh ...

The swift as it has a very decent spares package.. However the newer one has the necessary parts and the cars are generally faster as the are made lighter. Also as VD's are more common you should have no problem fighting set up information and spares easily where as with the shift you usually have to go straight to Swift.

Like i said at the right hands they can both be fighting up there

Edited by SHMotorsport30 on Wednesday 26th September 17:35

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
sorted. how important is a spare package like that ? can things be bought easily in case something needs replacing ?

SHMotorsport30

32 posts

151 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
Spares are important!!

I the swift comes with the following spare: suspension / wheels / uprights & all bodywork

I'm sure the prices are the same as the SC94 i work on: for example a full body can't buy old so swift will make you a new one for 1500 + vat.. The uprights, rears are £250 and the fronts are £300+ so to have those spares when buying the car is awesome! As they can get damaged easily as there are incidents and everything is light and fragile.

I cant answer prices for the VD as i'm unsure.

Things can be bought, we use URS, Universal Racing Services in Norfolk as they most local to us and there very good, so you can buy things if needed


MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Wednesday 26th September 2012
quotequote all
i presume there will be more cars on the market once the competitive seasons are over ?

What are the questions to ask when buying one of these ff1600 cars?

Has anybody written some kinda guide?

there's also this one on ebay : http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/130772342849?ssPageName=...

in terms of between races preparation, besides the obvious damage (if any ) , whats to be done and how often ?

Edited by MrCippo on Wednesday 26th September 22:51

Count Johnny

715 posts

196 months

Thursday 27th September 2012
quotequote all
HustleRussell said:
He did say after the 3rd season, could be the 8th or the 15th smile
True. smile

SHMotorsport30

32 posts

151 months

Thursday 27th September 2012
quotequote all
That one for sale on ebay raced against a car i ran the other week.. It looks a little rough around the edges, however its a decently quick car..!!

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Friday 28th September 2012
quotequote all
thats some good info. Meanwhile found out that the VD above has no engine at all. Not unusual, just that its not mentioned in the add.

Kickstart

1,061 posts

236 months

Friday 28th September 2012
quotequote all
There is a very good championship run at Oulton and Ty Croes which is not too far from you and Oulton is a great circuit.

Have you thought about renting a car in the Oulton series to get a flavour of things. I also think the best cars are often not advertised and just sold via word of mouth. If you went to a round of Oulton or Combe (huge series) you will see adverts for cars and you have the advantage that you can actually see them race before you pay for them.

As ever in motorsport there are lots of rogues and I would take your time before you buy a car.

Good luck

MrCippo

Original Poster:

589 posts

194 months

Friday 28th September 2012
quotequote all
i like that, thats a good idea, looking on the brscc website they are done for the year. good suggestion.

anymore suggestions on how to start with formula ford and be succesful ?

miloudiben

17 posts

141 months

Friday 28th September 2012
quotequote all
I don't race in FF, but formula Vee. I'd recommend that you check in great detail the cars results over the last couple of years. Who was driving, how far off the pace was the car in their hands. Has the car been reliable? The more research you do, the better. Also, look at the spec of the car, especially things like dampers - these can cost a lot to upgrade. If your looking at racing only at Knockhill, look at how successful the car your considering was at more twisty tracks relative to fast, sweeping tracks - you might find a trend.

Good luck!

matlockscot

99 posts

166 months

Saturday 29th September 2012
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All the above advice is sound, I would also add that you should always collect the car straight from the track - it has been known for parts to change between racing and sale. Talk to some of the well-known FF1600 preparers, the likes of John Loebell at Medina Motorsports and Mike Gardner at GT Motorsport. They'll probably know which cars are sound and may have one or two of their own available (which may be pricier but will almost certainly be better prepared than most). I know Mike Gardner has a tidy Van Diemen RF91 (might be a 92) for sale. You should be able to find them on Google