Our initial build was about $5000 for the car which included a spare set of tires and brake pads. The spares were probably $800+ and we did not use them.
Some guys recommend using the $50 plastic POS drag buckets. They are crap! I've got a pair. I may put them in a car for DEs until I can find a deal on a pair of better seats. Realistically, the plastic buckets are not a very good seat for comfort and probably safety. The harnesses pulled us down in a seat a bit more than they should have.
We replaced the buckets with a pair of used Kirkey Pro Drags. The Kirkeys plus cam lock upgrades were like $600 for both seats. I got a deal on the cam locks too or it would have been closer to $800.
Yes, we have a passenger seat. It costs money but it's a good thing to have. The car can be used with an instructor or in DEs.
We don't run crap brakes or tires.
We have radios now and a cool shirt set-up.
All these things cost money but you will have a safer and more enjoyable event.
Any future cars we built, need to have NASA/SCCA spec cages. Like someone else pointed out, we have the safety gear most organizations require.
So a good cage may allow you to run your LeMon in NASA.
When your $2500 car dies a few hours into the event. Think of how much farther you may have gone had you cut less corners.
Troy
#35 LRE
1973 Datsun 240Z