mmporsche

If your friend has only DE'd for a year and he going to driving school this decision appears very premature. I have heard a number of stories about people who have gone down the road thinking they want to race. They spend all the time and money building a car, buying a trailer and then when it comes down to racing they don't like it or it is not the experience they thought it would be for them.

Being a fast DE guy and then coming out to race and finding yourself a back-marker seems to have something to do with the change in heart.

Your friend should continue to DE and improve his skills and then rent a racer as was suggested. Race a couple of weekends and determine if it is for him. He may love it and get hooked like most or it may freak him out.

Finally, NEVER build a car from scratch, especially today, when you can buy for pennies on the dollar.

Gary R.

Hmmmm... sounds like my car!

mmporsche

Yeah, I agree Gary, with the cobbled comment. I have 3 of my 6 P's and C's from other people's cars but I have never had more fun racing than in Stock class. I was just down in Texas and they went from 1 Spec Boxster last year to 12 this year. We may eventually have to trader our old beater 911's for the new Boxster cars as parts become more scarce and expensive.

F350Lawman

Well I am in Mass. with my daughter, and he just called and said he bought an inexpensive, semi-track built 95 M3 that our mechanic had built a few years ago for another customer. Guy hit the tire wall causing minor damage, fixed the dents and it has sat since then, that was 3 years ago. Same mechanic was with him, passed the car and the deal was made. Car has a full cage, 1 piece seats, harnesses, short shifter, some suspension work and a chip. I think he is gonna strip it, throw some bigger rims/tires on, some stiffer springs and enjoy it for the season and go from there.

Sounds like maybe a better platform and certainly a better cost basis for him to get his feet wet in. Another one of our friend has a mildly built M3 and it is a pretty nice car on the track that has seen tons of hours with little problem.

Now he will keep both cars as suggested by some and beat on the "track car". Thank you guys for all the good advice as always.

IcemanG17

Ken
After watching your Radical tear up thunderhill yesterday...I fully understand why you have one!!!

I'm sure SM's are fun..& I almost took one out yesterday that the race shop had for sale....but I'm just addicted to the "big" feel I get from the 928.....big engine, big brakes and big grip with big tires.... the sound isn't bad either

CornerCarver

Nice choice. Great chassis.

333pg333

I think he's done the right thing. I was going to suggest that he go no further in the C4 as it's just good money after bad. I've learned the hard way myself. You keep pumping money into a road car and get to the point or line in the sand where you have to decide to strip and cage it which then creates a bigger black hole. You will never get half of what you spent when you sell it. Think of all the go fast parts you bolt on from the beginning that get cast aside or sold at a big loss along the way. I'd love to turn the clock back.
Either start a track specific car from scratch or better, buy something that someone else has dumped their hard earned into. His loss = your gain. Sad but true.
From what I see those M3's are very cheap in the US and should be cheaper to repair as well. Good move on his part.

mooty

there's always exceptions, but 964, 911 3.0, 3.2 are much more popular for a reason.

ask him if he can start over again, would he be racing a 993?

pnorwood

Amen to that... I have a C4S that I am thankful that I only changed out suspension and brake pads for a few years and used it only as a track car. Bought a race car, which is a whole different thing. Put the old street suspension back in the C4S and love it again as a street car. Hated it with the stiffer suspension around town, so much that I prefered to just drive a Camry instead of the C4S.

I really don't think there is much "value" in street cars that have roll cages and all kinds of permanent safty gear in them. They are not attractive to the weekend driver and they are not very attractive beyond an intermediate track (not race) car. There is no such thing as a dual purpose car.. you get the worst of both worlds instead of the best of both worlds. Have two separte cars!

F350Lawman

Yes I agree, you need to build the car for what you want If you go half way, you end up with that jack of all trades, master of none" feeling. I am making my car a dedicated track car that is "technically" registered for street use. You are also right about the street drivability really suffering. luckily I happen to be very tolerant of a rough ride, non-existent interior comforts and straight pipes, but that's just me.

My only real street use consists of a weekly 20 minute round trip to a local car get together at a pizza joint and maybe a couple of hours worth of weekend stress relief driving to nowhere on the back roads during the warm season.

Really, I find getting enjoyment and being restrained in a modded 930 to be next to impossible on the street. Can't really see how anyone can really enjoy these cars to the fullest, responsibly on the public roads. I guess you can say my decision was made for me in a way.

TR6

E36 M3 is a great choice for a track car! Very capable cars with reasonable power (250hp) and relatively cheap operating costs. The S52 engine is fairly bullet proof too.

jaholmes

So are E36 M3's cheaper to run then a Porsche. Seems to be a premium on anything Porsche.

schwank

If he's not stuck on racing a rear-engine turtle...

I'd keep such an awesome C4S, and buy a ready to go 944 spec/Cup car. They routinely come up for under 10K and you get cheap, close racing with good fields across the entire country.

Probably the best way to have your cake and eat it too.

roketman

Buy MY 964 CUP CAR !!
SMILE AND DRIVE
A WONDERFUL CAR!

mooty

SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than just about any porsche. i had one and all the parts are cheaper.