But... it's cheaper THIS way!!! (Page 1 of 3)

Cage, seat, harnesses, tires and brakes, plus some other safety items are not included in the price.

Cool, huh?

KT

huh?  i think you completely contradicted yourself here bro.  i almost think you did it twice.

buy a $600 street car, sell $200 worth of parts and get it running for the race.  read the rules.

if you show up with a $1200 car you are going to get hammered i believe.  search the forums for an explanation of prepared race cars.

spare motors generally will not get BS laps unless you swap it in after you go thru BS and prior to starting the race.

"huh?  i think you completely contradicted yourself here bro.  i almost think you did it twice.
buy a $600 street car, sell $200 worth of parts and get it running for the race.  read the rules.
if you show up with a $1200 car you are going to get hammered i believe.  search the forums for an explanation of prepared race cars."

HUH???  Where is the contradiction?  The term "contradiction" means "a logical inconsistancy." All I'm saying is that a previously raced car is cheaper than one that I prepare myself.  A $1200 car that has a cage, a racing seat, good rubber and good brakes might easily be viewed by a very reasonable person as a $500 car with $700 worth of safety gear.   My point is that a lowly $500 shitbox can, after purchase, VERY QUICKLY become a $2500 car just in the process of making it comply with the Le Mons safety requirements.  Is it really that important from a BS-judging standpoint whether the safety gear was installed before or after I purchased the car?

I'm glad you understand my point.  Could you please explain it to soldmystang?  He almost thinks I'm being completely inconsistant..., twice.

I'm at a loss here.

Bills of sale/pink slips mean nothing when you are being sweated by Da Judges.

Have fun!!

KT

Sure, they mean something. We like seeing paperwork. We might not believe your paperwork, but many otherwise doomed-to-massive-BS-laps teams have sold us on their budget with great documentation. We consider the whole package.

dpvog,

You are right and your point is valid and even logical.  Unfortunately, buying a cheap car and converting it into a LeMon is in the rules.  It's a sweat equity investment.  I've got way more than $2500 in my car and the labor is INSANE!!!

Circumventing the sweat equity may upset the Judges as well as the masses and earn you the Curse.

One other problem with buying a built car is that not all cages will pass tech.  So you better understand what you need in order to pass tech.  If it fails and you can't make it right in time for the race, you are out the cost of the car, entry fees and whatever else you spent.  So make sure what you buy fits your goals.

Most race cars have been stripped so you don;t have much to sell off to improve your budget.

Can you really get a race ready car for $1200?  It probably needs a motor or trans or something else if it's that cheap.

As far is built cars go, I bought a complete Celica with a cage and race seat for $200.  Maybe I can deduct a reasonable amount for the cage and seat and get the car in the negative.

I bought a rolling Pinto with a cage for $200 as well.

You are not likely to get Cursed with your approach but you are likely to get BS factor laps.  If you don't like it, buy a cheap crap can and turn it into a Lemons racer yourself. 

You can also buy a race prepped Spec Miata and go run SCCA or NASA.

Good luck.

maybe i misread the intent of the question.  my bad.

i would suggest you incorporate a very well thought out and over the top theme if you go this route.  and certainly don't try this with an E30 or a Miata. 

search "bribes" also.

I generally agree, even though the letter of the rules doesn't allow this.

However, lots of pre-built race cars will have tons of cheaty parts,  so that $1200 car that's no longer competitive in the class for which it was built, might be more like a $1000 car with $200 of safety stuff. The builder might have paid 10x for the car and parts over the years, so that $600 cage might represent only $60 of the $1200. I think that's why pre-built race cars are frowned on. That and the cluster of getting some ghetto cage to pass tech.

A $1200 pre-built race car may well get 0 BS laps, but the judges will be pulling out their miner's lights and speculum as you roll up. Take the BS laps as a badge of honor, if it happens.

dpvog.  I think it depends on what kind of "occasional used (and completely pre-dented) "race car"" you are talking about.

For example, If we were to sell our car it would be for $375.00 (the residual assigned to it by Jay after the last race) and you would have to also buy everything else attached to it for $xxx.xx.  We would give you two separate receipts detailing exactly what each check paid for.  I think this would fly with the judges and get you no more penality laps over and above the ones we may have gotten with the exact same car.

But, if your "occasional used (and completely pre-dented) "race car"" is an ex-NASCAR ride that your buddy, Jeff Gordon, sold you for a "mere" $1,200.  I doubt you could get away with saying $700.00 of that price is for the safety gear.

In God we trust.  All others pay in CASH!!!

I don't know what "U Car Class" is so you better look it over very closely to determine if it should pass tech. 

Remember, there are no refunds.

Just because it is "race ready" for their class does not mean that it passes safety for ours. If your serious about it then have them send you detailed pics pf the cage and verify that it fits within our guidelines. Bent coat hangers for a cage doesnt fly well.