• Registered: 2018-03-24
  • Posts: 5

Topic: QC Outlaws - New Team

Hello all!  New team from the quad cities in Illinois.
We are looking to enter the race in October at Gingerman.
We are in process of setting up our 1995 trashcan mustang for this run.

Currently it is getting prepped for a roll cage, interior is all gone, and the brakes are being over hauled.

Looking for advice on things to avoid, tips to make the car lighter, and options for great race great at pennies on the dollar. As the great Daniel Tosh said... " I'm a baller on a budget...."

Still need a seat, fire extinguisher or suppression, and harness.

And advice as well for first timers is fully welcomed.
Thanks!

  • Registered: 2017-01-13
  • Posts: 24

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

Welcome to Lemons racing!
We are in Kankakee Illinois, about 2 1/2 hours away from you. I would encourage you to go to the summer Gingerman race and hang out for a day. Unfortunately we won’t be there (we are racing in Colorado 3 weeks prior).

We have a 2000 V6 Mustang that we have raced 3 times with Lemons. Some of the other teams aren’t real thrilled with all the Mustangs that are showing up now.

Is your car a V6 or V8?

Bob Johnson

  • From: Cleveland, OH
  • Registered: 2011-09-03
  • Posts: 2,227

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

Big thing to avoid #1:
Don’t worry about making the car lighter right now. Once you gut it the fox/sn95 is fairly light. Your bigger concerns are reliability, and driveability.

We will be at the summer gingerman so come down and have a look around.

Mistake By The Lake Racing (MBTL)
88 Thunderbird "THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO!", Ex Astris, Rubigo / Semper Fracti
A&D: 2014 Sebrings at Sebring (NSF), 2014 NJMP2 Jurassic Park (SpeedyCop), 2012 Summit Point J30 (PiNuts)
2018 Route Sucky-Suck Rally Miata, 2019 World Tour Of Texas 64 Newport

Guildenstern's Website

  • Spank
  • Utter Madman
  • Offline
  • From: Escondido, CA
  • Registered: 2009-06-10
  • Posts: 5,863

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

Step 1: make it pass tech: Cage, Seat, Kill Switch

Step 2:  Maintenance items

Step 3: "Racecar" stuff. This will likely be after your first event. This includes changing suspension geometry, upgrading marginal parts with performance-ish parts, lightening, etc. Everyone WANTS to start with this. But this is probably the #1 mistake newbies make. If this is all what you want to do, buy someone's hand-me-down and improve on their car that's already passed tech once before.

Experience shows that you will run out of time as the race gets closer. If/When this happens, you can (and SHOULD) show up anyway to the track with all of your parts in tow that you "just didn't get to yet."

There will be 50 people at the track who can put brake pads on your hooptie, 60 who can put in a new thermostat, radiator and hoses, and 100 who can paint numbers on your doors for you (ok, maybe only about 3 of those). Even 15-20 who can help you put in a new engine or transmission. But there will only be MAYBE 3-4 people there who can weld up a cage AND maybe only 1 or 2 who have a welder AND who aren't already committed to some other cause.

Cage takes dozens of hours. Mounting a race seat takes a good day. Installing a kill switch takes about half a day. All of those are considered "Fabrication", more or less. You want to avoid doing Fab Work at the track.


Welcome-- we ALL want to see you out there.

Spank's Website

  • From: Pearland, TX
  • Registered: 2016-11-14
  • Posts: 192

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

What Spank said was right about the cage because we were the team that showed up with our cage 66% complete.  Luckily, I had been in contact with another local team with a welder.  A bottle of welding gas and a smoked 14lb brisket later, our cage was complete and we raced.  This was also the same race Spank showed up in a LeBaron 4 door that he drove cross country and then sold it after the race.

Skip "Mongo" L.
Team DadBod
  • Registered: 2014-11-04
  • Posts: 274

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

Avoid walls and not having a seat, harness, or fire suppression yet. Get it done early. Really early. Everything will take longer than you think but, if you can, I highly recommend getting a track day or at least some street time done on the build before a race.

Owner of the Knights Templar Neon
A&D of middling proportions
  • Registered: 2018-03-24
  • Posts: 5

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

racer49 wrote:

Welcome to Lemons racing!
We are in Kankakee Illinois, about 2 1/2 hours away from you. I would encourage you to go to the summer Gingerman race and hang out for a day. Unfortunately we won’t be there (we are racing in Colorado 3 weeks prior).

We have a 2000 V6 Mustang that we have raced 3 times with Lemons. Some of the other teams aren’t real thrilled with all the Mustangs that are showing up now.

Is your car a V6 or V8?

Bob Johnson

Hey Bob!

The mustang is currently a V6 but the trailer park we got this from was proof enough this girl was heavily abused. Kid drove it with a bad water pump and it leaked Petty good while we checked it over. Currently shopping a replacment motor for it.

Have a lead for an old v8 to put in. Fortunately was able to sell off a hug amount of the inventory to cover the cost of purchasing the car.
Engine comes out this coming weekend and then it's getting trailered to a shop for the cage.

  • Registered: 2018-03-24
  • Posts: 5

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

Spank wrote:

Step 1: make it pass tech: Cage, Seat, Kill Switch

Step 2:  Maintenance items

Step 3: "Racecar" stuff. This will likely be after your first event. This includes changing suspension geometry, upgrading marginal parts with performance-ish parts, lightening, etc. Everyone WANTS to start with this. But this is probably the #1 mistake newbies make. If this is all what you want to do, buy someone's hand-me-down and improve on their car that's already passed tech once before.

Experience shows that you will run out of time as the race gets closer. If/When this happens, you can (and SHOULD) show up anyway to the track with all of your parts in tow that you "just didn't get to yet."

There will be 50 people at the track who can put brake pads on your hooptie, 60 who can put in a new thermostat, radiator and hoses, and 100 who can paint numbers on your doors for you (ok, maybe only about 3 of those). Even 15-20 who can help you put in a new engine or transmission. But there will only be MAYBE 3-4 people there who can weld up a cage AND maybe only 1 or 2 who have a welder AND who aren't already committed to some other cause.

Cage takes dozens of hours. Mounting a race seat takes a good day. Installing a kill switch takes about half a day. All of those are considered "Fabrication", more or less. You want to avoid doing Fab Work at the track.


Welcome-- we ALL want to see you out there.

Hey spank!

I don't think we will play much in step 3 this run around yet. Just want to get it caged and drivable. Kill switch we already have and will wire it up when it's caged. Need to get a steering wheel and seat.

Goal is to get it to a few track days before the race. We shall see though.

  • From: Tustin, CA
  • Registered: 2010-12-30
  • Posts: 3,275

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

^Seat should be installed before its caged.

1990 RX7 "Mazdarita"  1964 Sunbeam Imp (IOE 2013 Sears Pointless) 2002 Jaguar x-type (Winner C-Class 2021 Sears Pointless)
Gone bye-bye
1994 Jaguar XJ12 (Winner C-Class 2013 Sears Pointless)  1980 Rover SD1 (I Got Screwed 2014 Return of Lemonites)
  • From: Iowa
  • Registered: 2010-04-20
  • Posts: 2,660

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

We’re based in the Quad Cities also.  Mostly Bettendorf and Geneseo.  You need something... let us know.


Chris

LemonAid - Changing kids lives one lap at a time.
  • Registered: 2018-03-24
  • Posts: 5

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

TeamLemon-aid wrote:

We’re based in the Quad Cities also.  Mostly Bettendorf and Geneseo.  You need something... let us know.


Chris

Hey Chris,

I believe I may have talked with you or a team member by hone a few months back. We do you guys recommend for a cage?

Recommendations on good seats for bargain price help to. Trying to keep this cost down so wife does not murder me to much.

  • From: Iowa
  • Registered: 2010-04-20
  • Posts: 2,660

Re: QC Outlaws - New Team

Robert Southwick with Southwick fabrication built our E30 cage about 7 years ago for about $2K.  Not sure if he is still willing to do cages.  I have his info if you want it.   We have used Fall Line in Joliet for our non-Lemons E46 cage.  But that was $6K.

We have some kirkey seats we might be able to get you for a decent price.   They are not containment seats and not super comfy, but served us fine for a few years.

Message me through the forum if you want more info.

Chris

LemonAid - Changing kids lives one lap at a time.