Looking for a Multi purpose CAR

yenko66 · Post by **yenko66** » Sun Jun 08, 2008 8:15 pm

Hey guys.
Many of you know me , If not I'm the crazy guy that races the 65 Chevrolet Corvair.

I have a standing excellent offer to sell me Corvair. And While pondering this I'm trying to decide what to do for a racer.

My thought process is to trade my Tow Vehicle in (2006 Nissan Titan Crew cab 4*4) And to also sell my Car trailer.

Not having the Corvair as a race car means I don't need the tow vehicle nor will I need a trailer.

My current hope is get an all around car that I can do track days, Autocrossing and even drive daily if needed.

I'm leaning towards a used Subaru WRX STI..
Anyone out there with experience in these cars that can tell me of what kinda problems to look for I welcome your input.

Also If any of you have any other good sugestions for cars to look at let me know. I think my goal will be to look for spending no more $25,000

Thanks up front for anyones help.

Oh yeh and not to worry I still have two other Corvairs..
David C

MR2 KIX · Post by **MR2 KIX** » Sun Jun 08, 2008 9:14 pm

Sti would be a good choice. Watch out for it eating front alum a-arms when using a stiff front bar. I have a fix for that though. I have heard of them breaking endlinks as well. Both of these are only if you are running in A Stock which I highly doubt you would leave the car in A Stock. Very easy to mod, a big Suby crowd in the Roanoke area. Basically nothing wrong with this choice that can't be corrected.

I will miss the Corvair.

drum3 · Post by **drum3** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:54 am

RX-8, C-5 Vette (32mpg highway), both under $20,000. Theres also a 350Z, Mini (You're a little tall but 42MPG ) ,Neons ( 38mpg) , SRT4 (30mpg) MazdaSpeed 6 , Mustangs , Camaro's ( A nice one on RR-AX.com for sale.)

drum3 · Post by **drum3** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:13 am

http://www.rr-ax.com/bbs/forums/thread- ... 13&start=1

1999 ss Camaro in Roanoke no less.

00GTJustin · Post by **00GTJustin** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 10:33 am

Karen is selling her 1997 Camaro for $4500 OBO hint. Comes with DA Konis already...take it to ESP and have fun

oh and PS. Any setup help you need with a subaru you get I should be able to provide...

Some notes:
ESP 06+ WRX: pax killa (I sold mine for $13,900). Coilovers, turboback exhaust, tuning, and some big wheels and tires, and you'd be able to run top pax at least from time to time.

STi: buy an '05 or later. AS is reasonably competitive, STU is the class to run one in (although I'm sure you're addicted to crack tires), BSP at the national level would require a bank vault...

914geezer · Post by **914geezer** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 10:54 am

Dave, have you considered a German Corvair?

tac911t · Post by **tac911t** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 11:31 am

Probably not, he still has visions of his American Porshe almost melding with a certain green German Corvair at one of the Lynchburg events

Chiketkd · Post by **Chiketkd** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 12:34 pm

drum3 wrote:RX-8, C-5 Vette (32mpg highway), both under $20,000. Theres also a 350Z, Mini (You're a little tall but 42MPG ) ,Neons ( 38mpg) , SRT4 (30mpg) MazdaSpeed 6 , Mustangs , Camaro's ( A nice one on RR-AX.com for sale.)

Agreed. All excellent choices. Heck, I'd even add a lightly used Solstice GXP/Sky Redline to that list.

00GTJustin wrote:BSP at the national level would require a bank vault...

+12345

MR2 KIX · Post by **MR2 KIX** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 6:08 pm

Fully prepped GXP ZOK with trailer and spares on sccaforums now for 30,000. A little over budget but no prep required, that should save some money...I will buy one of the extra set or rims from you to help on the cost.

aged racer · Post by **aged racer** » Mon Jun 09, 2008 8:45 pm

David- anything Mazda has a big advantage, in that you can join Mazdaspeed and get speed and stock parts at very favorable pricing if you auto-x (or race) the car. If you need a backseat, give some thought to the Mazdaspeed 3. Not sure about auto-x classing, but a good combination of speed, handling, and usability.

If you don't need a backseat, you can do a lot with a 2nd gen Miata and your budget....

Steve

SierraFox · Post by **SierraFox** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 5:10 pm

Honda perhaps? The new Civic Si's have good power and LSD. Can be had for aroudn $30k new.

They even have a Brembo brake option.

yenko66 · Post by **yenko66** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 4:55 am

Thanks for all the great Idea's... This was exactly the kind of information I was looking for.

For an update. I'm looking for a fun car that I can be competitive in our region with. I have no dreams of trying to win at the national level.

My class plan was to stay in the Street Mod classes and make the move back to SM.. in our region the SM2 class died out last year and with Lane gone there aren't many people showing up.

Another thing to think about is It will be a back up family car so It must have room for My wife and son. This throws out the Corvette, and the Miata choices. I also want to keep the car totally streetable as I will now be driving it to the events.

On the Subaru STI choice does anyone have any things that I should look at closely on them. Like known problems that they have or items that break easily (other than the A arm issue). I test drove an 2006 Monday and I really like the feel of the car my only complaint is that being a 6 speed the gears are real short and why the hell did they install a tach that shows 9000 rpm if the factory rev limiter comes in right at 7000 rpm. Is there a simple upgrade to the computer that can change the rev limiter?
Are there any signs of driveline failures after lots of miles?

I have never seen any major failures of any the car mentioned at events

Thanks again for everyones input and help.
David C

rschumin · Post by **rschumin** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 5:05 am

I test drove an 2006 Monday and I really like the feel of the car my only complaint is that being a 6 speed the gears are real short

The Mini is that way too. There's no law that says you have to use all the gears all the time.

tac911t · Post by **tac911t** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 8:01 am

Ray is correct about not needing all the gears. I drove a RSX-S, with the 6 speed, and the V-TECH motor, you can skip gears going up and down, and when the 2nd cam profile opens up at 5500, it was a totally different car, it was like having another lower gear.

Speaking of RSX-S, check them out, they have a back seat, are a hatchback, and being a Honda are incredibly reliable.

00GTJustin · Post by **00GTJustin** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 9:21 am

The only real 'issue' with an STi is the clutch from abuse. Tranny is indestructible, axles CAN break but that is rare. Front wheel bearings are a quick job so even if they are worn I wouldn't be too worried. Basically I would look to see if all of the heat shield bolts are on the turbo hot side. That screams that a downpipe has been on the car, and you might be able to use it as a bargaining chip. (It's been modified, so it's been driven hard...yadda)

NOW. The ring lands on STis are weak. I know of two STU STis that have broken ring lands off, and that's without extra boost. If you start getting into real power with the car I would seriously consider breaking into the bottom end to put in some forged pistons. The rest of the block should be ok, so save yourself some money and just do the pistons....but it's just a daily driver headache that could be avoided.

MR2 KIX · Post by **MR2 KIX** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 8:00 pm

Another one I just thought of is the Cobalt SS. It now has the same turbo Ecotec as my Redline. In your price range new. If you can slot the front for camber by TSB it could be a good DS contender. 100,000 mile warranty. If staying in SM, STI or Evo would be a good choice.

MR2 KIX · Post by **MR2 KIX** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 12:24 pm

David,

Here is your car. Go get it...

http://sccaforums.com/forums/thread/302570.aspx

rschumin · Post by **rschumin** » Fri Jun 13, 2008 3:58 pm

MR2 KIX wrote:David,

Here is your car. Go get it...

http://sccaforums.com/forums/thread/302570.aspx

That does look like a great car. The problem is that it will cost at least $1K just to get it back here

yenko66 · Post by **yenko66** » Wed Jun 18, 2008 7:29 pm

the shipping along with that fact that the asking price is above the level of payment I can afford.. Oh yeh and Then I have to find someone to sell my truck to.

Man this is exactly what I want to be driving!!!

Just for an update the Corvair has sold!!!

David C

monta · Post by **monta** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 11:38 am

I've been toying with getting a Diamond Star Motors all wheel drive turbo,
like the 1991 Eagle Talon (eclipse, or laser).

AWD is great for launches (Right Martin?

the car is relatively cheap (old), and is already turbocharged.

The wikipedia entry says the block might support up to 500hp stock.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_Talon

Any thoughts or experiences with these cars?

Wasn't there one at our last event?

-Monta

00GTJustin · Post by **00GTJustin** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 1:33 pm

perma-broken.

Like working on cars? I hope you like working on them more than racing them.

IamRascal · Post by **IamRascal** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 2:56 pm

MR2 KIX wrote:Another one I just thought of is the Cobalt SS. It now has the same turbo Ecotec as my Redline. In your price range new. If you can slot the front for camber by TSB it could be a good DS contender. 100,000 mile warranty.

It depends on year model, only the most recent released Cobalts with have the turbo setup, all previous year models will have the Supercharger. I really don't think your going to be to happy with cobalt if you really mod it, they still have twist beam rear axles which is still my only complaint about my sunfire. The engine, provided you don't have an oil filter implode on you is damn near bulletproof.

My vote is for a MiniCooper, but I'm a little biased from my love affair with those cars since the new ones were released.

I did see a used STI over on Duncan Honda's lot for around 25K in Christiansburg a few weeks ago, I'm just not able to make the wife go for it

, she still wants a new hatch.

Post by **glenthompson** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 3:07 pm

My vote is for a MiniCooper, but I'm a little biased from my love affair with those cars since the new ones were released.

After driving Ray's Mini, it's high on my list for my next fun vehicle.

fspmx6 · Post by **fspmx6** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 5:17 pm

i can probably find you several turbo mx6's, though i doubt you'll want the headache of fabbing up any go-fast parts yourself. beyond that, a 328is has excellent handling, a good rear seat, decent fuel mileage, and a fair bit of torque. not to mention RWD, and you should be able to pick one up fairly cheap and source any good parts off of an M series.

Post by **DSPDA3** » Tue Jun 24, 2008 11:41 am

glenthompson wrote:
My vote is for a MiniCooper, but I'm a little biased from my love affair with those cars since the new ones were released.
After driving Ray's Mini, it's high on my list for my next fun vehicle.

I concur 1000 times over.

Even in stock trim, it handled very similarly to a light DSP-prep Integra, but with 60-70 more hp.

yenko66 · Post by **yenko66** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 9:07 am

Thanks for the continued input guys..

I will say that this group saved me a bunch of money. I had decided to go and get a New 2008 STI... Just a few hours before I was planning to make the trip to the dealership Steve told me about a few that where at the Pro SOlO in DC. All of them have been experiencing motor problems. SOme have even already gotten new motors in them.

I did some internet research and found lots of people across the country having similar problems.

So the 2008 has been crossed off my list...

Last month in Sport compact car mag they had a challange between a new 08 STI, their custom built non STI and a stock 2007 STI. The numbers don't lie. The 2007 looks like it is the better car.

I'm going today (Friday) to look at an 05 on a lot close to here.

I will keep everyone posted.

David C

drum3 · Post by **drum3** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 10:04 am

Steven Rankins went through 2-3 motors in less than 6 months on his 2007 STI, but he is not exactly easy on cars either.

gtfour77 · Post by **gtfour77** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 1:08 pm

Ahh, missed this post alltogether.. First of all, great to hear you're trying to get back into SM David! Either STi or an Evo would be killer cars for SM in almost any trim really... Definitelly looking forward to what you choose for your next car, I am sure it'll be a good one no matter what it is. And listen to Monta, AWD IS the way to go in SM anymore, Although PJ Corralis and Chris Travis can be super fast in their 2WD cars in SM... I am staying in SM for a few years and will be a regular from now on at BRR's events.

BRR-SCCA

Looking for a Multi purpose CAR

Looking for a Multi purpose CAR

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