ITA Civic

[EV]

In with the first "Buy don't build" advisory!
AJ Nealy has a CRX in the classifieds. TOP notch car, and I bet he's got double the money in it compared to his ask. Guaranteed even if you work overtime or get a second job to save up "the nut" to buy that car, you will be time and money ahead compared to building, AND you get a no excuses top 3 at the ARRC car. And there are other options for less. Everyone thinks the car sitting in the driveway is half the expense, and if it's there they are half way done. Uh,no, the donor car is a mere slice of the big pie.

I will second the recommendation.

I started with a showroom stock classed car, and am converting it to IT. Trust me when I say, it's better to buy than build.

If you are just getting started, with the budget you mentioned, I would get AJ's ride, then you will have some $$ for a suit and such. You can then concentrate on driving instead of fixing, and worrying about set up (like me).

Learn from my mistakes...

[autotec]

It is a coupe, so it's a little longer and has a few more pounds than a hatch.

I'm going to dig around and see exactly what the differences are between a EX and a DX. From what I can tell, the only ones are a few small trim pieces and the engine. All of the suspension pieces cross between the 2. But I have a few more calls to make and some more research to do.

For me, building is where half the fun is. Trust me, I would love to buy a car today and be at the track next weekend, but I would feel that I missed out on some of the experience.

Thank you though for trying to save me all of the headaches/expense of building a car.

Justin

[gran racing]

For $15K, it sounds like you'll do a pretty extensive build. Be aware of just how much time it'll take to build the car if you're doing it relatively right and haven't built one before. I know, that can be part of the fun.

Last year I finished building my second Prelude and had quite a bit of knowledge about what was needed for the project. I also had a shop build the engine, tranny went elsewhere, header somewhere else, cage, and the list goes on. In the beginning I really enjoyed it although required a ton of time just doing research alone. When I finished it all, I was so burnt out I didn't even want to race the darn thing.

As long as you know what you're getting into if you build, then have at it. Oh, once you've spent the $15K good luck getting $8K for it the next day.

I absolutely can not believe no one has bought Ajah's CRX.

[lateapex911]

$15K is a good budget amount. One consideration when deciding whether to buy/build is the pool of cars available. Right now, the pool is great. The economy is down, and there are deals out there. While AJs car might not look like a deal, when you actually jump though all the hoops to get a car that fast, you'll discover that the price he's asking is short money.

Depending on the class, much of the value of a race car is it's history. I think a car with a good history, (ARRC wins, lap records, etc) is worth as much as double of an equivalent car.

That's because: A- people KNOW that car can get it done, and B- knowledgeable buyers know that all the tricks it took to get there cost a ton of time and money. Cars like that are well built, and it shows in the results.

I appreciate your desires, and I can't say we all don't agree to some degree, LOL. But think long term. In three years, when you're a fast racer, will the car be holding you back because it doesn't have "the right stuff" or because it was the wrong choice for the class?

If so, you're stuck, having to shell out $$ (again) for the right stuff, or selling it for pennies on the dollar to get a better choice.....assuming that competition is your ultimate goal.

Just some thoughts...again, we're all glad you're here and will help in whatever way we can.

[autotec]

Competition is not my goal, yet. I really just want to go out and have some fun. Even if I finish in the rear of the field, I'll be happy.

I don't plan on spending the entire budget on the car, I have to be able to race out of that money also. My early figures are if I do everything myself, ( besides the machine work on the engine )I should be able to complete the car for under 8K. It will not be 10/10ths build, but it should be enough to keep me happy for a few years. Plus my wife will be able to use it for a HPDE car at the same time.

Justin

[lateapex911]

It's cool that your wife is into it! When "things happen" at least she'll have a degree of understanding.

[almracing]

Chimning in... time is the killer for maintaining a car, much less building one. Buying a car will get you on the track tomorrow... building will be next year.
Figure you can build a basic car for 12K... or buy a well built car for 8K and put 4K in upgrades in it.
Before I bought my CRX I put together a spreadsheet of costs to build. I bought the car for 1/2 of my estimated cost to build. Since then I have been able to upgrade the car and I am now just reaching the total cost I estimated... 5 seasons later.

[autotec]

There are some really good deals out there right now for somebody. It's just like Street Rods, you can buy one for the tenth of the cost to build one. But when you build it yourself, it's your car. I just enjoy the building process. I learn something new everytime I take on a new project.

Justin

[EV]

I absolutely can not believe no one has bought Ajah's CRX.

I know why I wouldn't. I am pretty sure I couldn't drive it like him. I suxer right now, but at least I can say "It's not full prep car."