Track day car

  • Thread starter Thread starter Zac007
  • 61 comments
  • 4,909 views
Z

Zac007

Messages
214
Messages
zac_attack_007
Hey so I'm thinking about buying a car to use for track days. Looking to spend around 8 grand. I live in Australia so some of the classic American muscle cars are expensive as hell over here. Thinking about getting a 1990 mazda miata. I think that has the best performance for the price. Anyone have any suggestions on any other good cars?
 
Even if the classic American muscle cars were cheap, they would make terrible track cars. :lol:

A Miata would be great, though.
 
xXKingJoshXx
Even if the classic American muscle cars were cheap, they would make terrible track cars. :lol:

A Miata would be great, though.
Click to expand...

True love the old muscle cars though, probably not best for the track
 
You can make a muscle car turn, but it will cost a lot more than 8k. I'll also say Miata.
 
Would rather spend the extra cash for performance upgrades for the miata
 
240z, Silvia, Miata, 240sx, Celica Supra, AE86, possibly an E36 M3, non M3 E30s, EG9 Civics, MR-2s of various years and they're some more I'm forgetting but that's basically what you usually see. Sorry if you don't get some of these vehicles as I'm not sure on what you guys get and don't get.
 
Fox Body, Neon or Miata.


Living in Australia leaves you with the last option.
 
The answer is always Miata.

Barring that, you might be able to pick up an S13 Silvia for that price or get a VTEC yo!-equipped Civic.
If you don't mind doing a ton of work, how about a Cressida with a 1JZ/2JZ swap or something similar?
 
Tornado
Fox Body, Neon or Miata.

Living in Australia leaves you with the last option.
Click to expand...

That plus 944 or E30.

Not sure about their price or prevalence in Australia though.
 
First gen RX7s make pretty good track cars. They are very simple and pretty tough little cars. 12a or 13b is strong for track work as long as you keep it cool, oiled, and non-turbo.
 
The Miata is a great track car, from what I hear.

I'm not sure how prices run in Australia, in the States $8k would either get you a relatively new Miata or would allow you to consider a more expensive alternative, e.g. S2000. (Car budget goes down if you're planning to do significant alteration/prep on the car.)
 
+1 for the Fox body Mustang... What about an older Toyota Soarer/SC 300 or SC 40 (1991 - 2000)? Sure these are heavy cars, but they could be stripped down.
 
Cano
You can make a muscle car turn, but it will cost a lot more than 8k. I'll also say Miata.
Click to expand...

This.

I'll go with a Fox Body. They aren't terrible and they are pretty nimble.
 
Xavier2342
+1 for the Fox body Mustang... What about an older Toyota Soarer/SC 300 or SC 40 (1991 - 2000)? Sure these are heavy cars, but they could be stripped down.
Click to expand...

Never start with a car you have to really work at to get it track ready unless you have lots of time and/or money. At best, you'll get something that might match if you just bought an appropriate car to begin with. More likely is that you'll run out of something (time, patience, money) before you get done and will end up with an undriveable wreck in your garage, or something that technically works but is no fun to use.
 
Slashfan
This.

I'll go with a Fox Body. They aren't terrible and they are pretty nimble.
Click to expand...

"Aren't terrible" is kinda damning with faint praise.

The handling is decent, but it's not as good as a Miata. My experience is driving a caged Mustang, but I believe it's a fairly floppy chassis stock, meaning putting money into stiffening e.g. subframe connectors and/or strut tower braces. It's heavier and, assuming you're talking a V8 or turbo-4 (the N/A 4 is gutless and would be painful to track unless you like wringing performance out of a complete dog), you'll go through consumables faster with a Mustang than you would with a Miata.

The Mustang does have the edge at being faster in a straight line and, on the right track, it might make it around faster than the Miata. Plus, there's no question that the 302 is a lot more fun to listen to than the Miata, depending on your preferences.
 
Slashfan
This.

I'll go with a Fox Body. They aren't terrible and they are pretty nimble.
Click to expand...

He's in Australia...
 
Crash
He's in Australia...
Click to expand...
I was refering to what I'd take along with what others suggested.
MrWednesday
"Aren't terrible" is kinda damning with faint praise.

The handling is decent, but it's not as good as a Miata. My experience is driving a caged Mustang, but I believe it's a fairly floppy chassis stock, meaning putting money into stiffening e.g. subframe connectors and/or strut tower braces. It's heavier and, assuming you're talking a V8 or turbo-4 (the N/A 4 is gutless and would be painful to track unless you like wringing performance out of a complete dog), you'll go through consumables faster with a Mustang than you would with a Miata.

The Mustang does have the edge at being faster in a straight line and, on the right track, it might make it around faster than the Miata. Plus, there's no question that the 302 is a lot more fun to listen to than the Miata, depending on your preferences.
Click to expand...

Personally I don't see a whole lot really wrong with the Fox. It has it's faults, but what car doesn't.
 
AE86 or a first-gen MR2 would be my first choice, but due to the money pits that those can turn into (not always, but sometimes) a Miata would be a good bet. Even with the kind of money you have, I'd go for the Miata.
 
Miata wins, every time. Some good brake pads and you are good to go.
 
This looks entirely too familiar.

https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=273742

At least you're thinking along more sensible lines this time, but I'll add another sensible line:

cp5318418866011434219.jpg


http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/Renault-Clio-2002/SSE-AD-2111672/?Cr=5

Click "Show more cars like this" if it's not in the state you require.

2.0L naturally aspirated, manual gearbox, short-wheelbase, better power-to-weight than the NA tuner cars that most P-Platers desire for their provisionals. A cult classic.

Also, while I don't discourage the notion of track days, be insanely careful if this is your only car. Stuff it up and you'll be left with a pretty big bill to clean it up and, in the majority of cases, no insurance.
 
Slashfan
I was refering to what I'd take along with what others suggested.
Click to expand...

That makes no sense. The OP is asking for good track cars that's within his criteria, not what you would take if you were looking for an $8k track car, never mind the location difference. All the Fox Bodies that I found in Australia were well beyond his $8,000 budget. Even the cheapest Fox Body was $8,850. Therefore, no matter how good they may be, it doesn't apply to him.


Murcie_LP640
This looks entirely too familiar.

https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=273742

At least you're thinking along more sensible lines this time, but I'll add another sensible line:
Click to expand...

Oh, you have a thread for what is a good car for you already? Are you looking for a good track car, or are you actually looking for a good daily driver and dreaming about a track car?
 
I say get an old mid-late 80's RX-7 if you have those down in OZ. What I use for my every day & track car. Got mine for under $1,000 at a police impound lot. Now if you are clueless about rotary engines then don't get one.
 
Murcie_LP640
I'll add another sensible line:

cp5318418866011434219.jpg
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, I'll step up and say these are excellent. A friend had one and it cornered like on rails, stock. I then rode in one with suspension, semislicks and upgraded brakes, half a cage and some engine tweaks and I couldn't believe the grip. People often forget these but they are amazing 👍 are they even available in Australia?
 
I'd drive the **** out of a Clio if I could get one here. Don't forget about the Mazda2, 2007+ they are absurdly fun.
 
Are there any other rwd options such as other cars that may have not been released in the US? Also, although most of us would probably prefer rwd as a track car, what about fwd cars? Maybe an older Golf?
 
FWD is probably much better for a beginner. Most australian-market cars, from what I've seen, are very heavy. Not really well suited for track work. Heavy cars are much harder on components like tires, suspension, and brakes.
 
To the OP, all I've got to say is that you are one lucky individual. Before I continue, let me just state for the record that I'm a car enthusiast and appreciate cars of all genres. Now I don't know what part of Australia you live in but just from taking a look at the cars for sale within 2,500 - 7,500 you have a ton of awesome selections. I can't believe how cheap some of those cars are, especially the R33 Skylines. Man I wish I could import one of these into Arizona because those cars are crazy cheap. Checkout the link below...

http://www.carsales.com.au/all-cars...Coupe]))&vertical=car&limit=24&sortby=TopDeal
 
Wow that makes me jealous haha
 
Slashfan
Personally I don't see a whole lot really wrong with the Fox. It has it's faults, but what car doesn't.
Click to expand...

It should be noted that I race in a Fox Mustang, so I don't think it's a terrible platform. And perhaps the fact that I spend a lot of time in it in a race setting makes me less interested in it as a prospective track car.

I agree, there isn't a whole lot really wrong with it, but I'm not sure if it's the best choice for a track car. Then again, as I said, it depends on what you want... if you're seduced by the 302 (definitely a sexy-sounding engine) and the straight-line speed, it handles reasonably well* and can be fun to drive. If your interests tend toward something more nimble, though, you may be happier with one of the more-designed-to-handle roadsters.


* My experience with the handling is with a four-cylinder (with and without turbo), stripped, fully caged, with a coil cut out of the springs, so I'd hazard a guess that it handles a little better than a closer-to-stock version. On the other hand, racing it in a budget series means that there are some nice aftermarket options for improving the handling that are off-limits for us.
 
MrWednesday
It should be noted that I race in a Fox Mustang, so I don't think it's a terrible platform. And perhaps the fact that I spend a lot of time in it in a race setting makes me less interested in it as a prospective track car.

I agree, there isn't a whole lot really wrong with it, but I'm not sure if it's the best choice for a track car. Then again, as I said, it depends on what you want... if you're seduced by the 302 (definitely a sexy-sounding engine) and the straight-line speed, it handles reasonably well* and can be fun to drive. If your interests tend toward something more nimble, though, you may be happier with one of the more-designed-to-handle roadsters.


* My experience with the handling is with a four-cylinder (with and without turbo), stripped, fully caged, with a coil cut out of the springs, so I'd hazard a guess that it handles a little better than a closer-to-stock version. On the other hand, racing it in a budget series means that there are some nice aftermarket options for improving the handling that are off-limits for us.
Click to expand...
There are definitely more nimble cars out there, I agree. But like I said for what it is, it isn't too shabby. Personally I'd rather go fast in a straight line than try to take corners insanely fast but that's me. That said the 4cyl versions shouldn't handle much better if any, since they practically weigh the same as the V8.
 
Back