Entering Motorsport - Does this budget look right??

[ktm301p]

Hi all

I am looking at the idea of starting to race a saloon at the weekends, but first need to budget to see whether I can actually afford it. I would buy a £1000 saloon, currently looking at the MK2 Toyota MR2.

After some research into what you need as a driver and what you need for the car, I have estimated that a years racing could cost a bare minimum of £6824. Does this seem about right, or am I way off the ball here?

Here is my dodgy pricing breakdown for a years racing after some research this morning:

Car - £1000

Equipment/apparel - £200 (x2 for 2 drivers)

Race licence - MSA National B - £362 (x2")

Racing - £1500 (5 races a year X £300 (or 7-15 track days at 99-200 a time)

Car preparation - max £2000 (£600 for roll cage, £30 air filter, extinguisher £50, race seat and harness
£200, led rain light £40, shocks and springs £200, clutch £400, exhaust £70, pads, discs, calipers - £200 = £1790+£210 in unforseen costs=£2000)
Fuel, tyres, bits on the car going wrong - £500-1000.

Total estimated cost: £6824.

Thanks in advance.

[ktm301p]

Dr JonboyG said:

Can you really get your gear for £200 each?

I think so, yes. Looking at everything second hand and from a few friends who have raced previously, although like I said - it is an estimate, so it might cost more/less for all parts on the list.

[ktm301p]

andye30m3 said:

I'm doing my first year in production bmw this year,

I'm expecting around £5k + the car, license and race wear which I already had. This includes a few friday test days and things like fuel to travel, fuel for the race car etc.

The car cost £4250 although I have receipts for near 8k for the build and the base car was £150.

Sounds somewhat similar to mine, how many races are you planning on doing for the season?

[ktm301p]

jagracer said:

think your overall figure isn't too far of the mark, just some of the figures in-between are a bit off. I'd be more inclined to say £500 apparel, extinguisher £150, led rain light £11 from Maplin including a 26p resistor. Why exhaust, calipers and clutch although a set of discs and pads will cost you £200. don't MR2s have them fitted? Don't forget fuel and expenses getting to races.
Good luck

Thanks,

I included the cost of exhaust, pads etc because it was recommended that you do it on this MR2 racing website that I picked up from another thread here on PH. Although, if I found that the pads, discs and everything is ok I wouldn't go out and buy another set.

[ktm301p]

pistol pete said:

Where are you getting a plumbed in extinguisher for £50?
Likewise the seat & harness. Personally I wouldn't touch 2nd hand safety gear with a barge pole.
Also remember that all safety kit except the seat (for national racing) are life'd, so often not worth buying second hand or old stock unless the discount is very significant.
Do you need a rain light? Will fog lights not suffice on an MR2?

If you want to start racing on a tight budget, buy a prep'ed car.

There are so many little things you don't price as you don't think they cost much, but the cost adds up. -cut-off switch, cable, nuts & bolts, stickers etc

Thanks, I've noted the price on the fire extinguisher and I believe that its in the MR2 racing regulations as shown in this pdf (skip to 12. electrics)http://www.reddragonraceandtrackclub.com/downloads/regulations/2012-mr2racingseries-technical.pdf

In regard to the safety gear, I agree with your point and I will change the budget accordingly to take into account the cost of new safety equipment. Also, I had a quick look at the MR2 track prepared cars, and I found this one which looked like a possible candidate. http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3807563.htm

It may also be ideal because it could be a £1000+ cheaper than buying a base care and preparing it myself. (£1000 for base car + 2000 for modifications - or £1,995 for track ready car.)

[ktm301p]

pistol pete said:

Where are you getting a plumbed in extinguisher for £50?
Likewise the seat & harness. Personally I wouldn't touch 2nd hand safety gear with a barge pole.
Also remember that all safety kit except the seat (for national racing) are life'd, so often not worth buying second hand or old stock unless the discount is very significant.
Do you need a rain light? Will fog lights not suffice on an MR2?

If you want to start racing on a tight budget, buy a prep'ed car.

There are so many little things you don't price as you don't think they cost much, but the cost adds up. -cut-off switch, cable, nuts & bolts, stickers etc

Thanks, I've noted the price on the fire extinguisher and I believe rain lights are essential, it is in the MR2 racing regulations as shown in this pdf (skip to 12. electrics)http://www.reddragonraceandtrackclub.com/downloads/regulations/2012-mr2racingseries-technical.pdf

In regard to the safety gear, I agree with your point and I will change the budget accordingly to take into account the cost of new safety equipment. Also, I had a quick look at the MR2 track prepared cars, and I found this one which looked like a possible candidate. http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3807563.htm

It may also be ideal because it could be a £1000+ cheaper than buying a base care and preparing it myself. (£1000 for base car + 2000 for modifications - or £1,995 for track ready car.)

[ktm301p]

Trev450 said:

Do you really want to wear other people's clothes/helmet? I know it will significantly affect your budget, but I have always subcribed to the principle of not being able to put a price on safety and as such get good kit to start off with.

Agreed. Helmet I would definitely buy new without a doubt - but to an extent, I can't see the problem with purchasing secondhand overalls, as long as they're clean, and have no rips or tears there shouldn't be a problem or am I just being naive on the subject?

[ktm301p]

dapearson said:

You haven't included information on transport, storage, or the costs of staying at circuits (zero for a tent obviously).

I'd agree with the comments above - buy a car that's prepped already.

Thanks, I will add transportation and accommodation to the list! The more I look at it, the more I can see how a ready prepared car would save on time, effort and most importantly cost.

[ktm301p]

Lee Mack said:

Not sure you can use the words 'Motorsport' and 'budget' in the same sentence

Apart from the things you have mentioned, Fuel, Tyres, Pads and Discs are going to be your biggest additional ongoing expense for the season. You will go through a lot of each.

Also - depending on how competitive you want to be, this will have a bearing on the depth of your pockets - outside of your planned budget.

I started building 4 years ago with a 5K base car. I reckon after 2 seasons and a lot of work (self build), i'm in for 35 grand in vehicle costs alone. But the car is very competitive in it's class.

Both my father and I are amateur drivers, although my father has about 20 years experience over myself. I think if we were to enter, we would be competitive in spirit but I'd imagine due to our limited budget with preparing the car that we would be towards the back of the grid!

[ktm301p]

dapearson said:

No way. That won't even get you a helmet that's approved to the right spec.

My safety gear (i bought it all new back in 2004) came to around £900. I bought a sparco sprint suit, sparco formula helmet, sparco gloves and boots. None of it was "top-notch" equipment, but i know where it's been!

Thanks, sorry if I'm repeating myself here but this was an estimate of price, and obviously I was way off the ball with the equipment cost. I wouldn't buy a helmet of ebay, only apparel that was in good condition if it was notably cheaper than others.

[ktm301p]

Greensleeves said:

BTW, why are you thinking of buying a car and prepping it when the market is already saturated with ready to go cars that are already developed and will just need a spanner check before you go out in them.

The idea was to spend a grand on a car, then a grand doing the safety equipment and racing necessaries to make an affordable race car. But if by ready to go, you mean cars with roll cages and full safety safety equipment in place - like bucket seat & harnesses then please direct me to the website. So far I have found that aside from the motorsport section of the PH classifieds, the choice out there seems a little sparse on motorsport websites advertising cars for sale. (in my price bracket anyway! - £1-2,500!).

[ktm301p]

Lee Mack said:

If you set yourself up as cheaply as possible and do 1 race, see how you like it. You can always pick up better bits as you go.

Thanks for the thought, I was thinking this too actually. I would be quite happy with doing the odd trackday, hillclimb or sprint instead of going full on racing to save cost, but my father doesn't get excited by the idea of track days because there is no real racing involved.

[ktm301p]

andye30m3 said:

If you based in wiltshire and on a budget what about looking at the Castle Combe saloons series http://www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk/racingclub/ saves on the traveling and hotel costs.

Thanks, this is a series I have regularly been to watch over the years and its almost definitely one we would enter!

[ktm301p]

Count Johnny said:

I would suggest that there's a reason for that and, don't forget, all of the above budgets assume a reasonably high level of mechanical aptitude on your part so - unless you're pretty handy with the spanners and have a decent tool kit and a fair bit of time on your hands - you'll need to factor in paying someone ~ £40 per hour to do the work for you.

Good thought, luckily my father was a mechanical engineer for some years before changing profession so we would probably making the most of his skills on the car, and he has accumulated quite a few tools over his time. Thanks.

[ktm301p]

pablo said:

I've only had a quick scan through the regs but I think the car prep costs are a bit naive. At the very least you will want the engine rebuilt, i know the regs state that you cant do much to them but a std 20 year old engine will be so far off the pace its untrue. get it rebuilt, use a bigger water pump too also fit new plugs and high capacity leads, boht in the regs as permitted.

you can upgrade the pads and hoses so it makes sense to have some better quality braided hoses fitted.

a good set of coilovers that will be effective on track will cost more than £200. wander round the paddock and see what peopel are using. suspension wise you can fit polybushes too so thats a no-brainer.

Thanks, an engine rebuild would be considered given your point on the pace of the car. However, before we rushed straight into an engine rebuild, a dyno run to test the power of the car would show how much power had been lost since when it was new. I think for the first race or two, it might be an idea to test the car to see if it really is off the pace to the other competitors. I do totally agree with you on upgrading the suspension and polybushes, unless it's already been done (from purchasing a car that has already been track prepared). Cheers.

[ktm301p]

Trev450 said:

Given that you are from Wiltshire, come and join us on the sprint scene here: http://www.aswmc.org.uk/sprint.htm

It would be a good way to test the water and also a comparatively low cost.

Thanks for the link, I'll check it out now.

[ktm301p]

Count Johnny said:

You REALLY should. It's not just about power. It's also about getting the engine - indeed the whole car - to survive in a very different and mechanically stressful environment and you'll also get the low down on costs.

Ok, noted. Thanks.

[ktm301p]

pistol pete said:

Last time I was at Castle Combe, cheap racing seemed to be all about Rover 200/MG ZR's. There were loads of them -which is what you need for an interesting race.

If you want cheap as chips racing, I don't think you will find a cheaper series than the metro cup. 25-30 car grids & very restrictive regs make for interesting racing whichever class you are in and where ever you are in the field. Unfortunately, we are not at Combe this year. We are at brands on the 5th/6th of May, then at Mallory for the televised race day at the start of June.
For comparison, a "new engine" to most of us comes straight out a rover 25 in a breakers, standard brakes (not even grooved discs), etc help restrict costs a lot. And theres at least one race ready car been sold for sub 1500 this year.


Whatever you decide to race, spend as much time in the paddock as possible & get every bit of information you can from the current drivers/put crews before spending money.

Thanks for the post! I found what you just said to be rather encouraging. I was watching the MG races at combe last year and thought they looked really exciting. I suppose part of us quite fancied the idea of getting something that was mid-engined and RWD! However, this the Metros are definitely worth some thought... Cheers!

[ktm301p]

bqf said:

I haven't read all 3 pages to be honest, so I am sure this has been said before, but £200 for equipment

If you triple that you are pushing it. Don't spend £200 on second hand safety gear, really.

Why not leave it a year and put some cash away - just do some Karting in the meantime. Generally, Racing never responds well to budget-keeping - it's ruinous.

Thanks, but your point has been made in all 3 of the pages now!

[ktm301p]

SmartVenom said:

Hi,

I'd just like to add to the argument for buying a car where the work is done already. This really is the best way to go, there are so many little things that you need to do that all add up. It's also nice to know that your car will be allowed on the grid and won't fail for something fairly small (you can probably fix that at the track but do you want that before a race).

Rob

Thanks Rob, after the comments on this thread and chatting with my father on the subject. We have decided that we're definitely going for a track prepared car!