I have been biting my tounge on that one but I will say X2. Out of the box these cars handle very well. Parts that wear out (balljoints and bushings) can be picked up localy for cheep. The investment cost is small and they have a good amount of headroom. I have owned several and I liked them all. I would avoid the E36 for the time being. The cost of racing one is 3 fold the cost of the E30. A budget of 3-5k will have you on the track in an E30 very soon.

I started racing my ITS class 944 on street suspension and a stock engine. Just put in the required safety gear to pass tech, and went to the track.

Great way to get started and try racing without spending oodles of cash.

I was thinking an older civic, either a CRX or a Del Sol. Possibly a prelude. Smething Vtec equipped and 5 speed. Parts are cheap Tmg belts last 80K or more , Clutches are easy (comparitively) and since they are relitively common you could find a rough body and interior with a bit of looking. Plus...Brake upgrades are fairly straight forward and LOTS of high perf parts avail. The balance is not perfect and, no, it is not a true racer like a porsche.

Get one equipped with airbag and please dont take out the airbag for a spiffy wheel.

When you race on a regular basis it is not if one crashes it is when. Ya know, you could easily get away with under 3K.
For a little more you could mayby get a cosmeticaly imperfect S 2000. (OK, BIG may B) those are great for racing.

Big mistake is driving too much car. Start small. It will take a while to get good enough that you really need a porsche on the track.

A 924 non-s could be a good entry level 2 litre class car. There are people who race them bone stock all the way up to full race prep. It could allow for cheap entry into learning the basics but provide a platform to upgrade. Maintenence seems to be slightly cheaper then a 924S or 944 class car and base price for a car is lower due to those models just not having the aprreciation they used to. You could get in a nice driver for $3K. Here are some websites to look at:

http://www.vaughanscott.com/
http://www.porscheracingdrivers.co.uk/
http://www.924Board.org/

Good idea, the 924 is a good dependable mill and the suspension and balance are good. Plus it is a porsche you can find for a reasonable price. When you can say with a straight face that you can handle more power...you can move up to a 2.5 litre.

If I remember correctly, the SCCA rules require any airbags to be disabled. You need an approved one piece racing shell and a six point harness, and of course, a proper roll cage.

The turn workers and safety crews do not want explosive devices in the car if they need to help somebody get out. The seat/harness/roll cage acts as a complete system, just as the air bag is part of the system with three point belts and stock seats.

Putting in a smaller diameter steering wheel in my car made for a very different driving experience. The car is much easier to drive on track. Both my 944 race car and 911 autocrosser have identical 350mm wheels. I do some autocross instructing, and whenever I get in a car with a stock wheel, I wonder how anybody can drive that way.

I think you would be even better off with a Miata if you want a cheap race car.

Dantilla-You are right, my bad, I was just thinking of a nasty street accident where a kid put on a flashy wheel minus the airbag and did not have a 4 point.
Techno- Miata is nice too..you would of course want a roll bar.
Celica/Supra...RX7....Lots of good choices out there. All a matter of taste and preference I suppose. Porsches are built to race so there is not as much inspection or mod needed before the track officials say OK. Since Dantilla has had good luck on the stock 944 route I am leaning that way. However, 3K is a little low.

The car since has had a suspension upgrade and the typical engine oiling upgrades. Should last now for quite a while.

But I wasn't about to build the car all the way to the class limits before hitting the track. Too much money for an experiment to see if I'm really hooked on racing.

I ran the car for over a year on what was basically a junkyard engine.

I bought the non-running car from a friend, and used the engine from a wrecked 944 I bought at an insurance auction. Then I sold a bunch of parts off the insurance car, further reducing my costs.

Overall, a good way to get started, relatively cheaply.

If you search the for sale forum here for "944 race cars" you should come across a guy who was selling a 944 spec car I think and a 924S DE car. The 924S had been converted to a 924S - "GT" with a 944 front end and a Carrera GT rear end, and it looks the business. It already had a full cage, two race seats, fire extinguisher, firm suspension... and road legal. The guy was looking to get arond 7500$ I think for it.. which is a pretty good deal IMO.

I have long wanted a CGT for a street/track DE car. a 2.5L version is just that much cooler too.

944 front end and Carrera GT rear end? you can DO that? Kewl..

Yea the guy's username is B.A.M. , did a search for 944 track cars.

He bumped the price of the "924SGT" down to 6,500. Paint has some chips.

The Carrera GT had basically the 944 fenders with a slightly different front bumper area. It's where the 944 got it's front flares from. The rear flares are different and look freaking sweet with the 944 front end, check it out: (this is the car)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1171567102.jpg