If you were to get a dedicated rallyx car (not rally car) under $1000 what would you get? Ideally, I would like to get a used high mileage 4spd/5spd - legacy AWD sedan or wagon - loyale AWD - brat AWD - impreza AWD - quattro audi which will clear 15" wheel/tires. I hear most rally teams use 15" tires. I would like to get a hold of some used rally tires as well. If I could get a FWD car I can easily get a decent car for 1k. I am dreaming at this point, but would like to take part in the SCCA-LOL rallyx events this year and I don't want to take my current cars to these events in fear of damaging them. I know some of you attend local rallyx on a regular basis. what is your current setup? Please share some details for this noob! :roll:
VW Golf. They're cheap, they're 2WD and there's a ton of stuff out there for them. There are plenty of guys running them locally. I'd wait on AWD until my skill levels came up to where I'd actually be competitive.
of the list you have posted I would have to go with legacy sedan/wagon as being the best candidate. Here are my reasons. Loyale/Brat: actually very good candidates except that there is a problem with them (same problem for both, which if overcame would put them towards the top of the list). They have a 4x140 bolt pattern. There is pretty much only one car that had 15" wheels in 4x140. Its some weird pugeot. As a result of this alot of the offroading subaru fans are hunting for them and they are becoming scarce. There are other exceptions to this but they arnt cheap. The current wheels on the Subaru WRC car are forged BBSs in 4x140 (look at a pic and you will see it). They switched to the bolt pattern for more strength over the 5x100/5x114 patterns. I have heard that someone contacted BBS about getting a set and they will NOT sell them to the public. You could convert to 6x140 (I did this to my brat and its not that hard) In which case you can use Toyota or Chevy truck wheels. A second issue you might have with this generation of car rust. There are very few 80's subarus I have seen that have not been compromised by rust. Thirdly power might be an issue, the 80's subarus ran on the EA engines which are built to last but only put out <100hp. Impreza AWD: Cost and condition. Although the 93 Ls are starting to get pretty low in price it could be tough to find a good shell with decent mechanicals for $1000. Its not impossible but is getting harder, especially if you dont want to travel out of state to pick one up (more $$$) Audi: Pretty much the same reasons as for the impreza. You would most likely be getting a 80, 90, 100 or coupe for the $1000 price range. From what I have gathered they are not the easiest to work on and parts, especially body parts, tend to be expensive. The one plus is that there are quite a few of these floating around U-Pull-R-Parts, so you might be able to find some used parts cheap. Although they might have already been picked over. So I would guess that you could get an early 90's legacy perhaps even a legacy turbo for around the $1000 price range and have it be in decent shape. You get a rally proven chassis, EJ power and reliability, and probably 15" wheels included. just my .02.
Thanks a lot for the posts guys! Much appreciated. I bet the short wheelbase helps with changing direction fast. I did a search and found a MKII GTI! But it's way to far or else would have checked it out. I didn't quite get why getting an AWD first would be a bad idea. Are you saying I wouldn't get enough experience in car control due to an AWD car sliding less? In that case RWD would be best, right? Really?? I used to have an NA miata. It had plenty of cowl shake on bumpy pavement. I bet a hardtop and a butterfly chassis brace would fix that. Ah! That's a MAzda MX6 in disguise. I hear the motor is not very reliable - something to do with distributor breaking often. Looked into getting one at one point. Good suggestion! Yeah, I saw pictures of your car in local RallyX events (yes you are famous). SE-Rs are hard to come by though. I am considering a regular sentra coupe as well. I like that those cars come with a timing chain. One less thing to worry about breaking. The motor on my 1.6L sentra always felt very strong. General comment: some of you mentioned cars that has little ground clearance. For example, the miata, probe, Isn't ground clearance an issue? For example, hitting oil pan?
First of all, thanks for taking the time to share the knowledge. I had no idea 4X140 rims existed! ^^I think I will stay away from the brat and the loyale. The lack of power will also be an issue on those. Even though, loyales can be found pretty cheap. I agree. I did notice that for slightly more money some high mileage imprezas can be found. I think someone on here is selling one currently. I would rather stay in budget and use the extra money for repairs as all these cars would need to be gone through for brakes, tires etc. Yeah, agree on this one as well. I did find a Audi 200 quattro (oh the lovely 20v turbo) but thats too big of a car for rallyx. Parts alone will be killing. So possibly audi is off the list as well. This sounds like the most attainable in my modest budget. I saw a few for sale (I am not ready for a purchase yet) which looked like would make good candidate. You said possibly legacy turbo can be had for 1k? May be I will get lucky. I also like that the ej22s have a non-interference engine. The less thing to break the more comfortable I feel. Once again, thanks for taking the time to share your suggestion.
lol...I happen to be selling one of those. Who wants it? 1997 with 90k miles. Needs clutch and tires. I have the stock 16" rims with nearly bald summer tires and a set of 15" steelies with blizzaks on them. The distributor issue was only a problem in 93-94.
Thanks for the link man. I am on craigslist like a hawk now. Everything read fine on that add, except that it's an auto.
XT-Turbo or 1G DSM The 1G would be my first choice, seeing as it would be much cheaper to prepare. Tires, injectors, boost controller, and a 2G MAF.
Anything cheap and in good mechanical condition. Don't worry about rally tires until after your first season. Need to learn the car with low grip first, rally tires can hide bad driving... much like R-comps on an autocross car. Same thing with AWD, honestly... and the AWD classes are packed, if you're the sort that cares about trophies. That being said... I'd get a EJ22 5mt subie of some sort, to keep the driving experience similar to the car I DD.
Thanks for chiming in guys. Here is a noob question: Did you hit your oil pan while rally crossing? If so, did you make your own skid plate? (not all cars have after market support as WRXs).
VW Golf. I got mine for 500 bucks, gutted it, cleaned up some rust and put some cheap parts on it mostly from the junk yard. Some of the guys on here could attest to how fast we used to be in the GTI. They are small, cheap, light, the 8 valve is a non-interference motor, fixes are cheap and very easy and there are lots of them in junk yards.
Yep, I saw that and wanted to second it. I wish I still had my car, my old garage space and enough free time to build a car.
The answer depends on the car and driver. For instance, I've been meaning to make a plate for my Sentra for years, but haven't. And I drive it as hard as anyone out there. OTOH, I've made skidplates for several of the members on here. If I was running a WRX or STi I would be for sure, just because any damage to the engine would cost more than if I totaled the SE-R. Generally, we try very hard to make sure the courses aren't carbreakers, but there is always an element of risk. The only cars I have seen bottom out with any regularity is the Audis, and that has to do with being big, heavy cars that sit low and are sprung somewhat soft (they are luxury cars after all). And the worst I've seen has been tearing off the factory plastic plate on those. Many of the people I made them for also do things like the Deer Loge event or stage rally support, where there is a greater chance of damage than RallyCross. So, the deal is that basically they're fairly cheap insurance compared to a new engine in a newer, more valuable car, but if the car itself is only worth $500, it might not make a lot of sense to bolt $100-200 worth of aluminum to the bottom.
The Golfs are nice for dirt/gravel, but in all seriousness, the only advantage they have over a Sentra is the availability of the Bilsteins. And i think that's offset by the lack of factory VLSD.
Any comments on Dodge Shadow/Plymouth Sundance as a candidate? Seems like they are dirt cheap and fairly light/reliable.
I thought about this today and I was thinking (keep in mind these would all be early 90's) Honda Civic 2 door, Mazda Protege, Ford Escort, Saturn SL2 ... I think I would choose one of those or similar.
If you can find a Sundance Duster (the V6 model) go for it! Not a lot of power, but very good torque. Light, easy to weld up the diff if you choose to go to PF or M2 and they handle the dirt surprisingly well. Suspension options are limited, but I think stick was able to come up with a frankenstein solution for the fronts. Reliable? Umm. Not so much.
Since I am being a newbie, I will continue being so for a little while. What sort of suspension is beneficial for RallyX? I am assuming stiff suspension is not preferable due to the bumpy surface. I doubt that suspension will be limiting factor for me (at least at the beginning). I will more likely run out of skills before hitting the limit of the suspension. Eventually, I do hope to jump to an AWD car.
If power is the only concern it can be remedied. For $100-$200 you can get an SJR adapter plate than with the proper wiring you can bolt ANY EJ series engine into your previously under powered car. Dropping in a EJ22E will net you 2x the TQ and HP as the stock motor and is non interference still. Or you could drop in a EJ257 and hope your transmission is built out of titanium ;-) To be honest the events up at Deer Lodge arnt too bad for oil pan worries. If there is something that poses a danger to your oil pan it probably wont matter if you have a skid plate or not. ie that huge ice chunk the first year, if you hit it either way your oil pan is toast. on another side I have noticed that a skid plate (I have the primitive racing one and love it) smooths out the underbody and can reduce the amount you get stuck in deep snow by preventing it from caking into the engine bay, and more or less allowing you to slide over the deep stuff. one thing to consider is that if you are going to run the same platform (ie imprezas, legacys, ect...) that you spend $100-$200 to make your car last longer, and when/if it does explode you can bolt it onto the next one, helping to make that one last longer.
So picked up this beater today to be my rallyX car. It's a 90 Legacy FWD. Motor is in great shape, but clutch slips a bit. Not the best choice but price was right. :kekekaugh: Interior will be stripped as much possible to loose weight. Anything in particular that needs attention in these cars? Here is a link to picasa album: http://picasaweb.google.com/greenwar/DropBox?authkey=wTPPoJNPJ7g&feat=directlink See you guys at the dirt tracks!
Great choice! Remember, gutting the interior will put you into M2 right off the bat. That being said, I'd do it cuz weight is evil. For tires, what do you run for winter on your DD wrx? If they're 15" winter tires, then you're set! Otherwise, just use what's on it this year. RallyCross in MN isn't very bad on the clutch either... We don't do drag race starts. We'll see you out there!! Brent
Thanks Brent. My DD has 16" winter tires. So I will be running the crappy off-brand all-seasons the legacy came with. The clutch does need to be replaced unfortunately. I thought adjusting the clutch cable will suffice, but that does not seem to be the case. Thanks! The PO had a very liberal political preference it seems. I am going to spray paint black over these stickers. Having a hard time removing these.
