Budget Track car
Discussion
I was looking at a 205.
However when i looked at what my money got there was'nt a lot of value for money.
So i looked at other GTi's looked at 106 and still pricey, then somebody mentioned the 206 GTi.
Guess what they start at a grand and for 1500-2000 you can get a nice 2000 w reg pug 206 gti. Then the secret is, you sell the bits youa re stripping on. All gtis came with a desirable leather and alcantera interioir that fetch 300 ish on ebay. The engine is solid and already 140 bhp. The car is lardy due to all the toys but once stripped is a little rocket.
out of the box in factory trim they do 0-60 in high 7's and top end of 135. Stip it out and you'll easily lose 200kg's of weight. which will then make the car more than enough. But more importantly reliable too.
I will purchasing one in novemeber, is going to be used for the ring and local circuit trackdays.
However when i looked at what my money got there was'nt a lot of value for money.
So i looked at other GTi's looked at 106 and still pricey, then somebody mentioned the 206 GTi.
Guess what they start at a grand and for 1500-2000 you can get a nice 2000 w reg pug 206 gti. Then the secret is, you sell the bits youa re stripping on. All gtis came with a desirable leather and alcantera interioir that fetch 300 ish on ebay. The engine is solid and already 140 bhp. The car is lardy due to all the toys but once stripped is a little rocket.
out of the box in factory trim they do 0-60 in high 7's and top end of 135. Stip it out and you'll easily lose 200kg's of weight. which will then make the car more than enough. But more importantly reliable too.
I will purchasing one in novemeber, is going to be used for the ring and local circuit trackdays.
MX5 agent006 said:
£2-3k will get you a very nicely setup BMW E30 325.
Given my time again, and having gone 205 last time I had the choice, I'd go this route. At Cadwell this year I was astonished at how well one of these 325s was going. It had been bought on the OPs budget ready to go, stripped, caged, suspension etc.jimmy306 said:
hmm 325 does sound tempting, RWD would be a lot of fun! i think this will be aroute i will seriously consider! anybody know how expensive they are to fix when things go wrong?
James
They are realitively cheap to fix as most parts can be had from the likes of GSF or Eurocarparts etc.James
They are quite heavy compared to hatches of the same era but they are better built and obviously power goes to the right wheels. An E30 325SE I bought to race was the reason why I carried on and bought a succession of BMW's, they are a quality car, something you easily see when you are stripping it. If you are going to strip it out for the track then you will shed loads of weight. The standard brakes are pretty good too (when the cars stripped of weight), you can get away with standard discs and just uprated pads (even Kumho challenge racers don't bother to upgrade massively here).
Decent suspension is realtively cheap too.
You just need to watch out for rust, cracked clyinder heads on the 325 and rear 'subframe' bushes (just a minor pain to sort) other than that they are pretty good.
You could stretch to getting the 325iS or Sport which comes with a LSD as standard but the Sports tend to command a hefty premium, better to get a decent standard 325 and fit the LSD later on.
Also consider the 318iS which has a whizzy 4-pot 16v engine and is supposed to be better handling than the 325 due to less weight up the front, I have seen it refered to as a baby M3.
Check out www.E30zone.co.uk for all things E30.
Hmmmm...I was thinking of downgrading my current track car and I think I have just talked myself into a 318iS
You could buy a pre prepared 205 gti for between 2-3k, the list of competition parts is endless aswell.
At a minimum for track car you want
Cage
Buckets + Harnesses- fully stripped out
Group N engine mounts
Rear beam group N/A mounts
Braided Hoses
Uprated pads-new fluid
Suspension from £200-£2000
And a good set of tyres like r888's
This is just the tip of the iceburg but at that spec would make a very suitable fun trackday car
Phil
At a minimum for track car you want
Cage
Buckets + Harnesses- fully stripped out
Group N engine mounts
Rear beam group N/A mounts
Braided Hoses
Uprated pads-new fluid
Suspension from £200-£2000
And a good set of tyres like r888's
This is just the tip of the iceburg but at that spec would make a very suitable fun trackday car
Phil
Mroad said:
You could stretch to getting the 325iS or Sport which comes with a LSD as standard but the Sports tend to command a hefty premium, better to get a decent standard 325 and fit the LSD later on.
Yep, sports are pointless for anything less than posing, or for originality freaks. LSDs can be had for £300 or so, and change it when you're rebushing the rear end. Although to be honest i've only wished i had an LSD on trakc at the hairpin on the full Oulton layout, it's far more obvious on road.Mroad said:
The standard brakes are pretty good too (when the cars stripped of weight), you can get away with standard discs and just uprated pads (even Kumho challenge racers don't bother to upgrade massively here).
I thought the Kumho cars have to run standard calipers and disc sizes?Whenver I see people hankering after 205 GTis and the like for trackdays I just want to SCREAM! lol
On a budget theres only one choice of car. MX5.
The RWD gives more fun on its own than a FWD car with more power would do. They dont break and you can get really low mileage examples for no money at all which are ideal for track use especially if you have to drive it home afterwards. I honestly dont know why anyone in their right mind would waste money on a front wheel drive track car.
On a budget theres only one choice of car. MX5.
The RWD gives more fun on its own than a FWD car with more power would do. They dont break and you can get really low mileage examples for no money at all which are ideal for track use especially if you have to drive it home afterwards. I honestly dont know why anyone in their right mind would waste money on a front wheel drive track car.
205's are excellent for trackdays. They are one of most(if not the most) adjustable and fun front-drive cars out there. £1500 would get you a good straight example and parts are cheap as chips to make gradual upgrades.
I deliverately kept mine standard and it is still great fun on track - and to put the cat amongst the pigeons, seems to be quicker around a track than any standard MX5. The only things I needed to do to mine to help for track use were mintex pads and .5 brake fluid.
You will find they pick up various niggles by being tracked hard - typically the odd broken wire which is to be expected on a car of the age. Otherwise they are incredibly robust cars.
I will be advertising mine next week, so PM me if you're interested.
I deliverately kept mine standard and it is still great fun on track - and to put the cat amongst the pigeons, seems to be quicker around a track than any standard MX5. The only things I needed to do to mine to help for track use were mintex pads and .5 brake fluid.
You will find they pick up various niggles by being tracked hard - typically the odd broken wire which is to be expected on a car of the age. Otherwise they are incredibly robust cars.
I will be advertising mine next week, so PM me if you're interested.
Antj said:
out of the box in factory trim they do 0-60 in high 7's and top end of 135. Stip it out and you'll easily lose 200kg's of weight. which will then make the car more than enough. But more importantly reliable too.
Can you really strip 200kg's out of it though? That is a hell of a lot of weight to lose.My Colt track car has been stripped of everything bar the dash, have even taken the sunroof and mechanism out, yet I dont think anywhere near 200kg's would have been lost.
Front and rear seats and spare wheel obviously add up to a bit, but interior panels weigh next to nothing. If you go the whole hog and remove all the sound deadening that is coated on the floors that may add a few moe kilos. Still cant see 200kg though.
I think 200kg's is feasable. I have heard someone else say this figure.
I have pulled 130kg's out of a 306 rallye which I thought was already supposed to have lighter bits than a standard 306. That's before any plastic panels & windows. I believe there is another 25+ kg's to be lost simply by replacing the boot & rear window.
I have pulled 130kg's out of a 306 rallye which I thought was already supposed to have lighter bits than a standard 306. That's before any plastic panels & windows. I believe there is another 25+ kg's to be lost simply by replacing the boot & rear window.
Gassing Station | Track Days | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff