Sounds like you have some good experience under your belt. You've tried the Miata W2W racing and many other events. I would still give LotusCupUSA a chance...it is a largely growing series and the presence up north is quite strong. There is a great sponsor named Rob who owns Dietschwerks who is a whiz with Lotus cars. He even does arrive and drive with his rental Elises. There is actually a guy from Canada who flies out to our events and rents his Elise.

To get a fully race prepped NA Elise with roll cage and all safety, you're looking at around $30 to $35k. For supercharged cars maybe another $5 to $10k.

I agree with you that a lot of racing is about competition and camraderie. I raced with an SRF group in SCCA as well, and those guys were a lot of fun too but an older crowd. You have to find the right race group that fits. I love the LotusCup guys because they are all such great guys and I've developed great friendships amongst them. It's always good to hang out in the pits and shoot the ****....all part of the fun.
Let me know if you are interested in LotusCup and I can give you some great contacts.

 

An early 911 (68-72) ... tons of aftermarket support/parts and the PCA is the largest car club in the world (lots of track events too)... these cars are light and difficult to drive ... but once you learn what car control is, you can go very fast around any track. I started my track efforts w/ a '70 911 and built a 2.7 ltr. RS spec motor ... great car and beat a lot of new stuff at Road Atlanta, Sebring, Mosport, Roebling Road and any auto cross. Later moved to bigger HP.

 

My final thoughts on this topic. First I've raced everything from a 1988 320e in the Chumpcar series to a 997 Porsche Cup in the IMSA Patron Series as a support race for the Montreal F1 Grand Prix. One thing I can say for sure is that all track driving is a blast. I had as much fun in the old BMW as I did in the cup car. <-partial lie to make a point.

This is how I would look at picking a car.

1 - Is the car safe? There is a real risk that someday you will lose it going down the T2 hill or whatever that right hand sweeper at the end of the back straight is called (t9?) and that wall is going to hurt. Make sure you have a safe car with all the right equipment. Trust me on this, I've been it two really bad wrecks and it's violent.

2 - Is the car reliable? A broken car sucks. It ruins your weekend and empties your pocket book. And know your mechanical abilities. Some guys can get any car back on the track, others (like me) can't.

3 - As others have said, get a car you can economically and emotionally walk away from. Hopefully you won't need to but if you do it should only ruin your day, not your life.

4 - Get a car that matches your driving style, abilities, goals and the tracks you enjoy most. Mosport is hands down the best track in North America. I would, however, think of it as more of a GT3, Z06 track than a Lotus, S2000, Miata track but thats just me. I'm sure others would disagree.

Just my 2 cents worth. Have fun.
Jim

 

My track car is a Lotus Europa JPS, with a Cosworth BDG engine. Car weighs 1450lbs and puts out 240 hp. Not as sophisticated as an Elise, but a whole lot of fun for the money and easy to work on.

 

That sounds pretty damn fast in terms of power to weight ratio....must be a blast to drive on track!

 

Was playing the new Forza 4 and was thinking about potential inexpensive Japanese track cars. Any thoughts out there on the Mazda Miata (modded)? Honda S2000? Mitsubishi Evo? Subaru Impreza? Others?

 

I have zero experience tracking cars and am looking forward to taking my V8V out for a lite track day with the boys once or twice next summer but I do have a few friends who are avid track fiends.

One of them has a modded BMW 135 and he loves it. I've not asked him the specifics but I know you can pick up a used one dirt cheap and that there are a lot of mods out there for it.

No one here has mentioned that as an option. Any thoughts?

 

Thanks Jim. Agree with you on all points. Your point on Mosport is kind of where I am. While I think the Lotus would be a great car, I don't know if it is the best fit for Mosport. Because it is such a fast track, I wonder if the extra time I would get on the corners would be lost on the straights. I also wonder that as I hopefully get better, I can do better on the corners as well. I think for me I would lean towards a Z06 because of price and maybe put a cage in or something. Don't know if I could handle putting a GT3 off the wall! Thanks everyone for all the input. Really makes you think things through and from different view points.

 

Just a follow up since LotusCupUSA did a joint event with PCA at Buttonwillow this past weekend....fastest top times overall in the top 10 were 7 Lotus vs. 3 Porsches.
Here are the times if you know the 1 CW configuration at Buttonwillow:

http://results.pcasdr.org/event_stan...ate=2011-11-13

Granted that the top 3 were 211's, however, 4th best was a buddy of mine in an NA Exige that has only 190 hp!

 

Another car to consider is the Ariel Atom. Caterham also has a spectrum of Lotus 7 replicas that do not disappoint.

 

I'm in the exact same spot. I have tracked my Vantage twice and pulled very respectable numbers. But that's the problem, I'm really pushing the car. So what to do?

I have an S4 and I'm considering trading it in for the new TT RS. Check the specs before you laugh. 400+ hp when chipped. The idea is, I drive the little awd to work in the winter and track it in the summer (have a Range Rover for family duties).

I can't have just a track car, and as much as I respect and love Porsche, they are too obvious in my hood. The TT RS might be odd enough and rare enough to make things interesting, plus I can DD it all year.

I will miss the rwd dynamic though (had a boxster s for a bit this summer, awesome car too)

 

Used 997 is about the same price and hard to beat. I have friends who feel they are pretty good 'winter' cars if you live downtown.

 

Hmm. I have a feeling you would quickly tire of the TTRS on track. Stereotypical Audi, nose heavy, understeery car, if the reviews are anything to go by. It would feel safe and unflappable, but would be dull, with little option for on throttle or trailing throttle adjustability. In fact, I would suspect it would be a disappointment on track after your V8V!

Why not try a used 997 as suggested? Or maybe a BMW - 135, 1M or M3? Ultimately, though, your fun will be limited if you expect a car to be a daily winter driver and a track toy at the same time!

 

I know, the dual season car limits the possibilities. I just can't commit to having four cars. I need one for the family (my wife's car), I need the Aston, I need a dd for winter, and the addition of a track car is just too much.

The guys on the TT forum really have great things to say about that car after mods have been made.

Real life is always about compromises. Shame.

 

As of right now, I am leaning towards a Z06. I like the porsche but can't imagine putting it off a wall. You can pick up Z06's in the States for under 50K in the 07-08 range. I have time to think about it though as we got snow last week and they are saying more next week so I don't imagine I will be at the track anytime soon. Penguin, where do you track your car and with what group do you go with?