Racing, I was once told by a very wealthy man, is a rich man's sport. And indeed it must be, as he's probably pissed more money chasing checkered flags than I've earned in my two decades of chasing paychecks. So what's a regular guy to do when the racing bug bites? Well, you can always sit in the bleachers and watch the rich guys have all the fun, but that's a poor substitute for being part of the action. Luckily there are several alternatives to "real" racing that should satisfy your need for speed on a more limited budget. We'll look at the cheapest options — the ones that don't require you to go out and buy a dedicated machine to get your jones on...
Knowing him it's prolly some VWMS part that doesn't exsist any more. You can't get it. And just feel lucky you even saw it. -Cabe07 Ah VTEC. All the lag, none of the turbo. It's like waiting for bad sex.
Quote, originally posted by NOSPEED411 »
1. First off, you drive a Fit....you opinion on anything car related now does not count.
I believe there was a brief mention in the Autocross section, as rallycross is basically autocross sans asphalt.
Quote, originally posted by ChrisMD » How about some water from the moon to go along with that? Sorry, but you'll have better luck finding a purple unicorn that can heal any illness just by farting on you.
Another great resource for anyone considering amateur motorsports would be Dave Gran's book - Go Ahead Take the Wheel. http://www.vwvortex.com/artman...shtml
(regarding autocross): but don't make the novice mistake of showing up with deep treads; the closer to the wear bars, the better off you'll be. Tall treads tend to squirm more and chunk off under high loads.
So what do you do when you need new tires? I was going to get new tires within a month because they're a bit old. (see poll in sig ) I can wait, but I don't see my current set lasting past summer.
How serious is this point of not having tires that are too new?
Modified by Big M at 3:51 PM 4-11-2008
These streets will make you feel brand new Big lights will inspire you
How serious is this point of not having tires that are too new?
When you go to a track-day with street tires, you can pretty much count on your tires being toast when thru. Why not just use bald-ass street tires to save the money?
Quote, originally posted by ChrisMD » How about some water from the moon to go along with that? Sorry, but you'll have better luck finding a purple unicorn that can heal any illness just by farting on you.
When you go to a track-day with street tires, you can pretty much count on your tires being toast when thru. Why not just use bald-ass street tires to save the money?
I can ride this set out, but eventually they'll be too worn to drive daily. I expect that time to come by summer. I'd hate to show up at a Solo II meet and tear chunks out of my brand new tires. How likely is that for auto-x?
These streets will make you feel brand new Big lights will inspire you
Time Trials is the only thing that even remotely belongs there. What about karts or Formula Vee, or even ITB? Those are cheap forms of racing.
you have to have a dedicated vehicle and investment for those events. All of the ones mentioned in the article can be your daily driver. Well, unless your daily is a large pickup or SUV, then most event officials get a little worried.
Quote, originally posted by ChrisMD » How about some water from the moon to go along with that? Sorry, but you'll have better luck finding a purple unicorn that can heal any illness just by farting on you.
Time Trials is the only thing that even remotely belongs there. What about karts or Formula Vee, or even ITB? Those are cheap forms of racing.
For a lot of folks, buying a cart or Formula anything race car is out of the question. The article focuses on forms of racing someone could get into with their (assumedly sporty) street car.
I can ride this set out, but eventually they'll be too worn to drive daily. I expect that time to come by summer. I'd hate to show up at a Solo II meet and tear chunks out of my brand new tires. How likely is that for auto-x?
1/2 and 1/2, I could always tell the wear was increased, but when I first started, I was so rough with the car that it was pretty bad.
Quote, originally posted by ChrisMD » How about some water from the moon to go along with that? Sorry, but you'll have better luck finding a purple unicorn that can heal any illness just by farting on you.
I guess I can pick a slow month in the club's schedule and get my tires then. Skip the meets for a month and take a few road trips to break in the new set. If that would even do the trick.
These streets will make you feel brand new Big lights will inspire you
For a lot of folks, buying a cart or Formula anything race car is out of the question. The article focuses on forms of racing someone could get into with their (assumedly sporty) street car.
I know, I was just expecting something more than autocross and drag racing from this. Oh well, I guess amateur motorsports doesn't mean what I thought it did. Although I know someone who autocrosses a F125 kart and calls himself a "semi-professional"
"If God isn't a Penn State fan, then why is the sky blue and white?"
I love it when I see posts on this forum (and others) along the lines of 'oh yah i really want to go drag/auto-x/road racing!' What's stopping you?
The last time I autocrossed, I was in my GFs stock 9-2X. The last time I drag raced, I rolled up, paid $20, staged, ran & left. It's cheaper than a speeding ticket.
Another great resource for anyone considering amateur motorsports would be Dave Gran's book - Go Ahead Take the Wheel. http://www.vwvortex.com/artman...shtml
Track days are awesome.... I didn't really like Auto-X so much (I drive a 3300lbs Audi with an lump of an engine hanging ahead of the axles.... it ISN'T a fun Auto-X car) but my car was awesome on a proper track... chased down a few BMW's, some sport-compacts, and got passed by some proper sports cars (and better drivers in lesser cars)...
I feathered/chunked the living hell out of my tires (and they were only a month old) I cracked a brake pad I burnt my transmission fluid
hmmm as a note to the writer.. maybe you could do a follow up on the next step, cheap dedicated race cars where there is a fixed spending limit, like the GRM chalenges, or 24 Hrs of Lemons? there has to be more of them out there
I can ride this set out, but eventually they'll be too worn to drive daily. I expect that time to come by summer. I'd hate to show up at a Solo II meet and tear chunks out of my brand new tires. How likely is that for auto-x?
Good summer tires or "street tires" in the 140 to high 200 wear rating range should be able to handle it just fine. It's cheap tires and all seasons that one needs to be concerned with.
Modified by REDLINED600 at 5:59 PM 4-14-2008
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I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered. -GB
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Grattan. And my new helmet from Impact was worth every cent.