yeah i like the s2000 idea, but was told by someone that theyre not reliable as track rats, and repairs on the car can be expensive. Any truth to that? how do consumables compare to a miata?

the main reason i am gravitating to a spec miata is because it is dirt cheap to get into, and dirt cheap to maintain, thus allowing me to do more events with my money and get more seat time without dishing out a ton of $$. I've driven an s2000 and absolutely loved the way it handled, but wasnt sure about costs associated with maintenance....

 

You know, if you have the unquenchable thirst for speed, a Miata can be made to be fast and reliable for not a lot of money. Take your Spec Miata, add a $3-4k Supercharger kit (or up to about $5k turbo kit... or DIY something for half that) and suddenly it's scary fast. It's not "spec" any more, but it's fast.

S2K parts are definitely not cheap. Have you considered open wheel? Something like a Stalker would make a really fun dedicated track car.

 

I think the Chump series is a great deal. We have done double 7 hour enduros, Were about to do a 14 hour endurance at Sebring.. And last year we did a 24 hour even at PBIR.
Like Loren said its the cheapest way to go, Plus you have a team to support the car. So if it needs work and to split up the bills. IE fuel to get to the race etc.
Chump also will let SPec E30 and Miatas run in a non compete class.
Lemons is also fun but there still is more contact and bad drivers in that series.

 

haha that is what my buddy was telling me; if you get to the point where you can get 10/10ths from the car, and get bored with the power, add more! i saw the supercharger kits, turbo kits, and they even have LS1 swaps for them. Maybe take the LS6 out of the CTS-V and shoe-horn it in the miata? lol.

No, I havent considered an open wheel car; but am definitely open to it. Are they a PITA to maintain? How about up front cost? I'll have to browse racing junk and see what they have for open wheel.

I've been in a Miata once at Sebring with an instructor and honestly I had more fun in that thing that I thought it would. It was an absolute blast riding shotgun in that car. I just enjoyed how well that thing would handle, and we would get killed on the straights, but would be on their ass through the turns and braking zones, and you could see the guys looking back in their mirrors, lol.

 

do you know of any Chump teams in the area looking for an extra body? what's it typically cost per person to run an event?

 

Great thread Scott, We already talked about the obvious stuff like brakes, tires and gas. What is the repair/replace rate on the engine/tranny/clutch? These are the expensive items I would think.

 

For the V, engines are about 5k (LS6 vette motor), trannys can be had for about 1500 at best, clutch isnt bad; like 500, diffs go out all the time though; theyre about 1,200. I'm getting tired of beating up a perfectly nice car on track, lol.

 

how about this for an open wheel idea? a little bit more than the spec Miata price range I was looking at.

3 Formula Ford Style Racecars For Sale

 

Not the V, Silly! I want to know how often you have to rebuild these items, in a typical year of racing a spec miata.

 

whoops, lol.

I know engines can be had for well under $1k (something like a 1.8L w/ 40-50k), but brand new crate engines are between $2k and $3k from what I've read, rebuilt transmission around $500, ACT clutch $300-$400. I'm not sure the repair/replace rate for these things; I'm sure the competitive SM racers will replace everything after a season or two, but the guy I talked to who went from a Cobra to a Miata for just DEs and AutoX has 3 years of about 14 events per year on his Spec Miata and all he's replaced mechanically is a radiator; engine, trans and clutch are fine.