Best first IT car?

i was in a similar position in 2003. i wanted to get my permit and license, so i went and bought my first car... the fiat x 1/9, which several of the people on this board may remember.

this car was an oddball, supposedly taken care of. however, when we took it from NC to school in Ohio in April, we had minor cooling issues... issues that can't be diagnosed without being on the track. we again had issues a month later at it's first race, and blew 2 head gaskets... btw, thanks again for all the help guys!

5 months and another engine later, we finally finished our first race... with a blown head gasket! i traded that car for my CRX ITC car and have finished every race i have entered in 3 years (including 1 with a ventilated block!).

experience tells me that renting, borrowing or buying a built reliable car is the best way to get started in this business. you need seat time, not wrench time. at school, you will need to have someone with you to check pressures, add fuel and clean the mud off of the car when you go off.

after school, you need seat time to gain the experience it takes to deal with being lapped (because you will be lapped a bunch while you learn), deal with traffic, deal with the corner stations, deal with the brake zones and deal with the idiots who don't know any beter.

rent, borrow, or buy a know quantity. look at the log book, see how recently the car has run. see how it's finished, and enjoy the experience.

now that being said... i know where there is a reace winning ITC CRX coming on the market very soon :D

best of luck!

hoop
 
Starter IT car you say? Something reliable? Fast? Fun? Cheap? RX-7 even?

I wonder if there is something like that for sale in the classifieds on this site??

:P

(Hope I did not break any rules)

Anyway, I rented my first year of racing and that was the best thing I could've done. I bought the same car at the end of the year, and I was very familiar with it by that time.
 
i can vouch for the shop that maintains the IT7 car listed in the classifieds section, so it should be a good car. he's done some work for me too.

the ITB Civic built by KingRat towards the bottom of the page would probably be a good choice too.

you gettin out or switching classes nadeem?
 
What is the best car for a first time racer?
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This brings up another question to me, and maybe you more experienced guys can weigh in; how many guys begin racing with a "starter" car, and then move up to a better/faster car (not counting replacing a wrecked car)? I would be willing to bet that the majority of IT racers stay with their first cars for a long, long time.

The point I'm getting at is that if you do decide to buy a car you should seriously consider your goals, both short and long-term. Are you going to be happy racing a car that will probably always be a mid-packer? Or do you hope to some day be able to run up front? IMO if you think you will eventually want to be a front-runner you should probably start with a car that at least has that potential. Not that you need to buy a fully-prepped car right now, but I would give serious consideration to where you will be a few years from now.
 
Starter IT car you say? Something reliable? Fast? Fun? Cheap? RX-7 even?

I wonder if there is something like that for sale in the classifieds on this site??

:P

(Hope I did not break any rules)

Anyway, I rented my first year of racing and that was the best thing I could've done. I bought the same car at the end of the year, and I was very familiar with it by that time.
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DO NOT BUY THIS CAR! That way Nadeem will have to keep racing it!

Actually this is the kind of car that you should consider. It is well sorted and well maintained. It is not in pieces - that is NEVER a good deal. If you are buying a car always buy a winner and this car fits the bill nicely.

What's next Nadeem?
 
There may be a good ITC Civic Std roller becoming available this fall. This gives you the opportunity to "tinker" and "build your own" without having to worry about a cage.
 
i'd say that's a good point. although i've thought a lot about changing cars, i never actually have after almost 4 years now.

i'd say that this is another argument in favor of buying a popular/well known car. after all, they wouldn't be popular if they didn't have speed potential.
 
This brings up another question to me, and maybe you more experienced guys can weigh in; how many guys begin racing with a "starter" car, and then move up to a better/faster car (not counting replacing a wrecked car)? I would be willing to bet that the majority of IT racers stay with their first cars for a long, long time.

The point I'm getting at is that if you do decide to buy a car you should seriously consider your goals, both short and long-term. Are you going to be happy racing a car that will probably always be a mid-packer? Or do you hope to some day be able to run up front? IMO if you think you will eventually want to be a front-runner you should probably start with a car that at least has that potential. Not that you need to buy a fully-prepped car right now, but I would give serious consideration to where you will be a few years from now.
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Hmmm, intersing thought. We still have our first IT car, the Fiat but we now also have an American Sedan, and ITA 240SX and are getting ready to build an ITS 240SX so yes we still have our original but have added on as we have wanted to go faster.

As far as a good car to start with, Nadeem's RX-7 would be great, it is reliable and fast with Nadeem in it, not quite as fast as the PFM RX-7 with Jim in it but still fast :D

If you like working on your stuff, build your own car, it is fun but don't expect it to be cheap, Jude and I can build them quite inexpensively now but that took years to perfect.
 
ITS eh Jen?

i've been wanting to do an ITS 99+ miata, but never committed in part because there's nobody to race with in ITS around here.

that seems to be changing as a few ITS cars have popped up.
 
I just want to change classes. If the car does not sell, I'll probably just run it in ITA next year.

Thanks for the positive refrences guys
 
The point I'm getting at is that if you do decide to buy a car you should seriously consider your goals, both short and long-term. Are you going to be happy racing a car that will probably always be a mid-packer? Or do you hope to some day be able to run up front? [/b]
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Very true. Another suggestion is if you are o.k. running mid-pack (and there are advantages to that including $$$$$$), it's not a bad idea to buy a car that could never run up-front no matter what you do to it. In this case, get a decently prepped tweener car and you won't be tempted to invest money on go-fast parts. The other thing is these cars can typically be bought for less money (a well prepped tweener car = a much less prepped car that could be competitive with go-fast parts). Unless of course you get the car moved to a lower class then move onto a higher budget. :blink:
 
Unless of course you get the car moved to a lower class then move onto a higher budget.[/b]
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If only they would properly class the car, then I would show them ALL!!!

BWAAAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!

:D

-bill, who now owns the chassis that Hoop was going to originally buy but was too smart to.
 
i ll throw my 2 centa in since i have raced both of those cars , not a rx7 as per say acually ice raced a datsun 510 with a 12a in it , kinda of a rx7? anyways my 1 st real IT car was a 84 scirocco, you have to understand i am a die hard vw guy at heart , but the amount of fixing that dumb car took ,was unreal , 2 motors , variuos elec problems , ect ect , i sold last year for 1300 i had close to 6000 in it , i road raced it and got laped all the time , i ice raced it and barely finished a race , i also tried to find a pre built car , i think its much better idea, but i couldnt find what i wanted, i last year bought a 1995 acura integra , and i have only had one dnf due to a failed clutch , won the ice race championship, and have been road racing all summer , long story short , GO AND BUY A HONDA!
 
I completely agree w/ the "go buy a pre-built car". In fact, i like Dave's idea of getting a tweener. You want something that is cheap, safe, and reliable. Something to get thru the classes, and let you get some seat time to decide if you like racing. Makes a lot more sense monetarily. You can get such a car for around 3-4k. 3 weekends w/ a rental could easily cost as much or more, and w/ the cheap race car you might have something to sell after those 3 weekends, if you decide you don't like it.

HTHs.
 
Very true. Another suggestion is if you are o.k. running mid-pack (and there are advantages to that including $$$$$$), it's not a bad idea to buy a car that could never run up-front no matter what you do to it. In this case, get a decently prepped tweener car and you won't be tempted to invest money on go-fast parts. The other thing is these cars can typically be bought for less money (a well prepped tweener car = a much less prepped car that could be competitive with go-fast parts). Unless of course you get the car moved to a lower class then move onto a higher budget. :blink:
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Dave-

Your a no good ITB invader... If these darn ITA cars and ITA money keep invading ITB I might just have to go build a Honda myself :bash_1_:

lol... If you want a tweener I still vote for the MR2!!! Good reliable and fun car to drive IMO.

Raymond "What is the difference between a Honda and a Toyota anyway???" Blethen
 
If you don't want to rent,buy what you want and can afford!!!Put the go fast parts on it as you can afford to and after you have been driving the car to it's max.

After all we all do this for the fun of racing.Onlt you can make what you want to make of it.


I paid a geand for my car and as i got better with it i added the go fast parts.I won back to back races last weekend in my ITC rabbit.


Tim

Just remember to have fun racing!!!!
 
Having just gone through this thought process a couple of years ago, I'll add my two cents.

My initial plan was to convert my weekend/stock class autocross Miata to SM or ITA specs. When I sat down and itemized everything I would need to buy, and the time it would take to complete (occasional nights, mainly weekends), I quickly realized it would be much quicker and cheaper to buy a built car. And I wanted to get on the track sooner rather than later. Building an IT car is more work than it may appear at first. Sit down and list everything you will need to buy to build a semi-competitive car, and you will probably find that your realistic cost is about double what your first estimate was.

I found a decent car at a really good price not too far from where I live, and I bought it instead. Okay, so its an ITC car, not as fast as a SM or ITA car, but its a blast to drive, fairly competitive and has been pretty darn reliable.

Also, the importance of having a sorted, reliable car at your driver's school can't be over-emphasised. I did a double school at St. Louis, and I never even had time to put fuel in the car. Car problems can ruin your school.

My last bit of advice would be to pick a class that is strong in your area. The one downside to my car is that ITC fields are pretty slim at the tracks I usually run. I'll probably move up to ITA or perhaps ITS in the next year or so.
 
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