Any ideas for a very cheap 'one-off' track day car

[mark387mw]

Has anyone bought a car just for a 'one-off' track day, or maybe two events if it never broke on the first outing?
I was wondering what the best throw-away car would be for my first track event that if I came a cropper I wouldn't be going home crying and that includes the car expiring due to hard use.
I was thinking of a very low budget, like around £200, and to drive it there. And perhaps home again.
Any suggestions?

Mark

[LRdriver II]

like some guys who showed up in a 150 quid pug309, stripped it all out, fitted worn slicks(free from somewhere) and proceded to out drive everything else

[accident]

any of the bigger engined granada's
cost nothing.all you need do is throw away everything inside the cabin.

[WHITECHIMP500]

shhhsh...... dont tell anybody, but the Peugeot 309 Gti is the unsung hero of the budget track day scene .

<£500 buys a tidy car that can be lots of fun, great fwd handling with lift predictable lift off oversteer.

I bought one (see profile) ,intending to get a couple of winter runs out of it (to give the Tivver a break) and got 18 brillant Track Days out of it(admittedly , on its last outing at oulton park, it was using 2 litres of water per 20 min session!).

That one's now in semi retirment awaiting engine work , but ive since upgraded(?!) to Mi16 converted 309 which (when ,when its running again) should be fun.

Being ,in the shadow of the 205,the 309 Gti can be bought for lots less, i.e a roadworthy 309 for the price of a completely peppered 205.

Anything you buy will benefit from a little track preparation and and TLC

Im all in favour of budget track day cars , but no one wants to see £100 scrappers lurching around the circuit driven by some total knobber who doesnt care if he writes it/himself/you/anyone off during the day .

But keep the 309 info under your hat......

[vteclimey]

hire one from the track day organiser?

[Rob P]

vteclimey said:

hire one from the track day organiser?

£150-200 each

tyres, petrol, insurance, tuition all taken car of. Cant go wrong.

[DustyC]

Completely over budget but look at this. Looks like brilliant fun!

www.pistonheads.com/sales/detail.asp?i=18569&s=176

[JakeR]

WHITECHIMP500 said:

shhhsh...... dont tell anybody, but the Peugeot 309 Gti is the unsung hero of the budget track day scene . <£500 buys a tidy car that can be lots of fun, great fwd handling with lift predictable lift off oversteer. I bought one (see profile) ,intending to get a couple of winter runs out of it (to give the Tivver a break) and got 18 brillant Track Days out of it(admittedly , on its last outing at oulton park, it was using 2 litres of water per 20 min session!). That one's now in semi retirment awaiting engine work , but ive since upgraded(?!) to Mi16 converted 309 which (when ,when its running again) should be fun. Being ,in the shadow of the 205,the 309 Gti can be bought for lots less, i.e a roadworthy 309 for the price of a completely peppered 205. Anything you buy will benefit from a little track preparation and and TLC Im all in favour of budget track day cars , but no one wants to see £100 scrappers lurching around the circuit driven by some total knobber who doesnt care if he writes it/himself/you/anyone off during the day . But keep the 309 info under your hat......

I looked at a couple of 309 gtis recently, and gotta say, for under a bag, they were absolute nails!

couldnt find a goodun, so went with the (far more expensive ) e30 beemer option instead....

maybe oneday tho...

as far as disposable track cars go, do an autotrader search for cheap cars, and choose one with a BIG engine!!

[mark387mw]

JakeR said:

as far as disposable track cars go, do an autotrader search for cheap cars, and choose one with a BIG engine!!

These are probably too cumbersome
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2455767755&category=18185
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456077217&category=9837

But is this more like it? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456881133&category=9859
or this?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456329427&category=18277

I agree with WHITECHIMP500, knobbers in £100 scrappers. Thats what I want to avoid hence asking the question. Looks like my best bet is to turn up to watch and see whats about.
Rockingham is close to me and they've started track days and someone did the side in of an NSX, another reason I'm looking for 'budget'!!

Mark

[trooper1212]

I bought my Golf GTi for £700 already race prepared. After a little bit of bodywork attention it's now ready to go (or will be once I've got the cam timing sorted out) It's very quick and won't be shown up on a track day unless i'm driving it

Places like these
www.rallycars.co.uk/For_Sale_roadrally.htm
www.rallyusedparts.co.uk/showcarsbydate.cfm (I got my Golf from here)

are good to look at, you'll get a better bargain on a car that has already had some race/rally preparation and it shouldn't be a total crapstand.

[domster]

vauxhall senator for 500-700 quid has a lot of grunt and fun rwd handling, and yes I have oversteered one even in auto form (they had an LSD as standard IIRC!), LOL.

whitechimp500 - it's not the knobbers in 100 quid cars you need to watch out for, but the people who spin on the sighting lap... they're the nutty ones

See you at Oulton in 2004 I hope

[whitechimp500]

Ahem............ Thanks for remininding me Dom .

Tivver plus sideways rain plus racing circuit plus nobber equals

See you on the track day circuit later this year

[Rob P]

THere was an EVO article a few months back about track cars. Suggested big engined RWD was the way to go for a "one off" track car.

[mark387mw]

Rob P said:

THere was an EVO article a few months back about track cars. Suggested big engined RWD was the way to go for a "one off" track car.

Like this then? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456852993&category=43124
A bit of paint...

Mark

[Rob P]

mark387mw said:

Rob P said: THere was an EVO article a few months back about track cars. Suggested big engined RWD was the way to go for a "one off" track car. Like this then? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456852993&category=43124 A bit of paint... Mark

Slap in a Rover V8 and you will be a trackday legend!
Plus you can tell your mates you drive a Roller

[coramlmp]

I heard or read somewhere that the *ahem* old Volvo 340 Turbo was the ultimate 'Q' track-day car - it's got a similar layout to the Porsche 924/944 mechanically, i.e. rear driver, g/box and diff at the back to improve weight distribution...

...probably a bit hard to get a hold of now, but I'm sure it would be pretty cheap if you could find one...

Steve.

[AJLintern]

I've have the oppertunity to drive both a Volvo 360GLE (mum's car ) and a 944 S2 (mine ) I can safely say that the one and only aspect they share is the transmission layout

>> Edited by AJLintern on Thursday 29th January 13:48

[chimhunter]

how about a Jag?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456176471&category=18185

or

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WWW/dpage_photoad.asp?abname=midas&pageid=1&id=200401123871211

Add some NOS a la TopGear....

[JakeR]

chimhunter said:

how about a Jag? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2456176471&category=18185 or http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WWW/dpage_photoad.asp?abname=midas&pageid=1&id=200401123871211 Add some NOS a la TopGear....

as a one off, yeah, cool. But if something breaks

[Bee_Jay]

Sierra XR4x4 was what I bought when I did this - LOADS of fun !!! I can imaging XR4i would be just as good...