HPDE Driver checking out the Autocross Scene

[Mr.Rauq]

$500 for a car, or so they say... I'd be surprised if half the teams put no more than $500 into their cars before safety equipment, half the game is making your more than $500 car look like a $500 car. Then you have wheels/tires, brakes, roll cage, etc... is $1000 a reasonable estimate for what teams might put into their cars when it's all said and done, including safety equipment?

I still want to do it at some point.

[zache36]

I think $2000 might be a more reasonable expectation for a car. Safety equipment is not something you want to skimp on and especially in a lemons race where chances are your gonna get hit. When you add up tires, brakes, roll cage, seat, fire extinguisher, and anything else that can be considered a safety issue things get expensive.

[stevebullitt]

(03-10-2011 03:37 PM)Mr.Rauq Wrote:  $500 for a car, or so they say... I'd be surprised if half the teams put no more than $500 into their cars before safety equipment, half the game is making your more than $500 car look like a $500 car. Then you have wheels/tires, brakes, roll cage, etc... is $1000 a reasonable estimate for what teams might put into their cars when it's all said and done, including safety equipment?

I still want to do it at some point.

I worked at CMP for Lemons.....let me assure you that there was NO car out there that was truly only $500 after all was said and done. The kicker is the rules of Lemons require that "Your car must be restored to full mechanical functionality with OEM parts or non-performance replacements." You can easily get a crappy car for less than 500 bucks. But by the time you get new brakes, wheels, tires, add roll cage, add fire system or ignition kill, get the engine running and not leaking......you're looking at 4-5K easily. I'd even say I saw a few cheater for sure....."I got my buddy's VW for only $500......it just happened to be race prepped"

[Mr.Rauq]

$2000 is a lot of money for a group of college kids. Are you allowed to take money for stickers on your car? Anyone work for Michelin, perhaps?

LeeJohnson, this is your thread, if you'd like us to talk about LeMons on another thread, speak up. I like the conversation though.

[Clemsons2k]

Trust me, we've gone over the logistics of this on multiple occasions as a group of buddies and as a club. Its just not going to happen unless we save up for YEARS. Most of us graduate in the next year so it just doesn't look feasible.

[humjaba]

So i just read through this whole thread and you guys are way wrong. I was a part of the ASME group that did a 24 Hour of Lemons race last semester.

Our car was a 93 Nissan 240sx with 70,000 miles that cost $500. We bought it off a kid who used it as a drift car and slid the driver side door into a lamp post, got pissed off, and we swooped in before he thought better of it. We legitimately spent nothing on parts that weren't safety related.
Here is a rough breakdown of our budget:
car - $500
roll cage - $700
roll cage install - $blood sweat and tears
tires - $450 (with free mounting, and they were on closeout at tire rack)
emergency kill switch - $30 [POS broke the first day]
wiring from e30 + extra rim from junkyard - $40
brakes (carbotech xp - $250
brake fluid - $50
fire extinguisher - $30
+ weekend operations ($ don't remember)

All said and done it cost about $4000 to run the first event, including entry fees, and not including tow vehicle gas + food while down there.

Racing is expensive. That said, it was a blast.
That said, the car would be ready for another race once we remount the tires with new valve stems (blew out two, one is held in with superglue), replace the water pump and we already replaced the front driver side caliper (seal went bad, which was why we couldn't run it at the autocross)

[Mr.Rauq]

Tyler, do you know if the ASME group plans on running the car again? Perhaps we could see an ASME-CSCC group effort to put it back out there at Charlotte in September. Or are there already ASME plans to do that?

Edit: Coincidentally, Petit Le Mans is the following weekend. I'm going.

[jedimario]

Petit LeMans is amazing. Go go go go. Worth every penny.

[humjaba]

I saw an ALMS race at Laguna Seca - it's pretty darn cool.
Yes we're still trying to get the ASME LeMons car going, but we haven't been able to find any funding yet.

[93redfox]

here you go: http://charlotte.craigslist.org/cto/2253621302.html

Add seat, harness, fire extinguisher, and i guess tires. hardest and most $$ already done.

[LeeThompson]

That ad is weird. It says it does not have it, but they do, however it will only be sold with it..... Interesting....

Good find....

[davewmarkert]

Hey Lee!