Track day car 1-3k

[aka_kerrly]

fuel_intentions said:

aka_kerrly said:

However out of the original choices I think the mk3 MR2 is the closest thing to the perfect track car out of the box plus with plenty of scope to improve it. What you could do is buy a MR2 mk3 and a Celica 190 and swap the engines over , the mr2 with 200hp is a huge improvement, shed some weight and improve the suspension and you're not far off a Lotus Exige for 1/8th of the price

I went with an E46 325ti, but only since it came up locally for cheap. Otherwise was actually looking for a mk3 MR2. Poor man's Lotus.

That is also a very good suggestion. I do like the E46 Compact, has some good steering upgrades that other e46s didn't have and shorter gears which are more fun on track.

[jay140285]

So I’ve done exactly this over the last few months.

Car currently stands me at about £2500

Remapped
Exhaust
Lowered
Interior
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As it is now.





As I bought it

[bigothunter]

jay140285 said:

So I’ve done exactly this over the last few months.

Car currently stands me at about £2500

Remapped
Exhaust
Lowered
Interior
Wheels
Graphics

As it is now.





As I bought it

Looks like a racer. Will you drive it to track days or use a trailer?

[jay140285]

I’ll trailer it off the F150,

Purely because I’ve got the truck and trailer, so if anything happens I can get home.

Plus I can take all my tools and spares to the track.

[jordmcd151]

I'd definitely consider an Mini Cooper S, specifically an R53 with an LSD. They're plentiful, good handling as standard, plenty of mods available and the supercharger whine is addictive.

I use mine for track days and its been really reliable. Between the car, semi slicks, brake pads and fluid, smaller pulley, intercooler and all the services bits and pieces have change from £3,000.

[E-bmw]

jordmcd151 said:

I use mine for track days and its been really reliable. Between the car, semi slicks, brake pads and fluid, smaller pulley, intercooler and all the services bits and pieces have change from £3,000.

I wish mine was!

Mine must be over £5k and that is with a cheap buy for £1650 for an '06.

Good fun car though, but beware if it hasn't been mapped properly!

[Derek182]

Knoxville2410 said:

MR2 MK3.

I had one for a couple of years and was great fun. Get one post 2003 to avoid potential engine grenading and you're golden.

I'm a big fan of the MR2 Roadster as a road car, I've had 3 of them, and find it a much more interesting steer than an MX5.
But as a track car I'm not so sure, I nearly tracked one of mine but wouldn't do so without a proper roll bar, in theory required for trackdays ("open top cars must have adequate rollover protection" is a common trackday requirement). Finding and fitting one to an MX5 is easy, several UK suppliers do them but at the time I couldn't find anyone in the UK supplying them for the MR2 mk3, it must be possible, the 750MC race cars have a full cage, maybe the rear half of one of those?
Personally I would go for a Clio 182, they are going up in value but should be able to find a sound one for well under £3000 and need very little to be an effective track car, they hang on ok round the corners and if you catch someone up there is plenty of power to pass on the straights.

[handbraketurn]

Megaflow said:

bigothunter said:

How could you possibly prefer FWD on the track?

Depends what you are more comfortable with IMO. I have just bought a Fiesta ST as a track car, I want to have fun, and have much more experience in FWD than RWD, so for me FWD is a good place to start to remove the unknown aspect. As experience builds then I fully expect to convert to RWD at some point.

A well sorted FWD chassis is still great fun on track, and quite forgiving, allowing you to drive like a hooligan, in a way that many RWD cars would punish. They are still great fun.

Although, a lot to be said for starting in an MX5.

Interesting post about thee RX8, I'd always thought they drank a huge amount of fuel, but might be worth having another look.

[E-bmw]

handbraketurn said:

Interesting post about thee RX8, I'd always thought they drank a huge amount of fuel, but might be worth having another look.

Pretty much everything drinks fuel like Ollie Reed on steroids when on track.

e36 325/e36 328/r53 - All of mine did around 8 - 11 on track at Cadwell.

[Jonstar]

Mk3 MX5 is what you want, massively underated as a track car, much more modern chassis than most cars in the price range and a weapon with mild mods.

[HighwayToHull]

Interesting as I am currently toying with the idea of replacing the Mk1 with a Mk3.

By the way I used to own a Clio 172 and considered it the best FWD car I'd ever driven. Only ever did one trackday with it though (Combe) so can't really comment on that.

[Chr1sch]

I would suggest a Clio, you would easily pickup a mildly track prepared car either a 183 or 197 for £3k

[LightningMat]

Just some things to consider: How well you 'fit' into the cockpit - Anything other than around 'average height and build', then you have a few things to consider - If you are tall, then headroom with a helmet on (banging your head against the side of the roof in every turn is not much fun) and legroom around the pedals and steering wheel can be a challenge in some cars (MX5 for example) - if you are shorter then seat/pedal/steering wheel distances can be a compromise (a car with good steering wheel range can help a lot here) and visibility out the front could become an issue if the seat is not height adjustable (you want to have a good view of the front end to spot apexes, etc.).

Following the posts above, Clio is an obvious choice and they are popular for a reason. TT would make a good track toy and I have seen a few that have been done well, although they do seem to need a bit of work to make them really good on track (although I have no personal experience)... So many other potential choices though and I will never cease to be amazed at some of the more left-field choices for track cars that turn up every now and then (including a Honda Jazz at Castle Combe a couple of years ago!).

[PTF]

My Mk2 MX5 is ace, but struggles for power on bigger tracks. I know it's not all about that, but spending the ehole day jumping out of the way is tedious.

However, at cadwell it's awesome.

I have bought a replacement in the form of a Clio 200 Cup, but i'm loathed to get rid of the mazda because it's so good at cadwell. Bit of a luxury having a track car for use at a single track though...

[Evoluzione]

PTF said:

My Mk2 MX5 is ace, but struggles for power on bigger tracks. I know it's not all about that, but spending the ehole day jumping out of the way is tedious.

However, at cadwell it's awesome.

I have bought a replacement in the form of a Clio 200 Cup, but i'm loathed to get rid of the mazda because it's so good at cadwell. Bit of a luxury having a track car for use at a single track though...

Should have bought an NC, no problems there.

[rm163603]

jordmcd151 said:

I'd definitely consider an Mini Cooper S, specifically an R53 with an LSD. They're plentiful, good handling as standard, plenty of mods available and the supercharger whine is addictive.

I use mine for track days and its been really reliable. Between the car, semi slicks, brake pads and fluid, smaller pulley, intercooler and all the services bits and pieces have change from £3,000.

I'd second this.

My brother and I run an ex cooper challenge R50 and it's loads of fun with some decent suspension and r888s.

I've had a few other track cars including a westfield and a e36 and the mini is great fun. The handling is really excellent, it's amazing what it can hold it's own with around corners. It's a real test of commitment which I like as well.

You have to be really stupid with it to get into major trouble though so it's a friendly limit to explore.

Running costs are next to nothing, also worth noting that heavy stuff with lots of power will chew through brakes / tyres / suspension components a lot more quickly than a smaller lighter car and the bits are generally cheaper as well.

Otherwise clio 172 / 182 seems a popular option.

MX5's are the go to but for me I wanted a steel roof. Mostly because doing a trackday in a hard top car feels like such a novelty after doing many in my westfield and bike trackdays where afterwards I feel like I've been windblasted.

[phazed]

If you are going front wheel drive then definitely get something with an LSD.

Took out my track prepared Octavia vRS on Wednesday at brands Hatch. You wouldn't believe that even with stiffer suspension and stiffer ARBs it would still spin the inside wheel on every bend.

I stole a look at the Speedo coming out of the Clarke curve before the straight with the inside wheel spinning and I was doing 80 in third. You would never believe that this could happen, even running federal 595's.

Looks like I'll be paying a visit to Wavetrac.

[bigothunter]

phazed said:

If you are going front wheel drive then definitely get something with an LSD.

Took out my track prepared Octavia vRS on Wednesday at brands Hatch. You wouldn't believe that even with stiffer suspension and stiffer ARBs it would still spin the inside wheel on every bend.

I stole a look at the Speedo coming out of the Clarke curve before the straight with the inside wheel spinning and I was doing 80 in third. You would never believe that this could happen, even running federal 595's.

Looks like I'll be paying a visit to Wavetrac.

What were percentage increases in front and rear roll stiffness?

[phazed]

19–23 mm on the front

Not fitted with and ARB to the rear, New Whiteline 25 mm item added.

[FNG]

I think that might be your issue - the rear roll stiffness is higher than the front, so the front does more rolling, which unloads the front inner wheel.

Ideally you want the front to stay planted and the rear inner wheel to unload, if anything - which means you need less rear roll stiffness.