jhg41977

I went to the Lemons race a few weeks ago here in NH and have managed to talk a few friends into it. Any suggestions on a car? How strict are they about the $500 rule? I saw several cars there that had to be worth more than $500, so I figure there is some flexibility there.

Jim

paradisenb

Cars are suppose to have a $500.00 value. Safety equipment if free. You must be prepared to sell the car for $500.00 so think about how much you really want to invest.

Check out Chump Car as an alternative.

jhg41977

The website claims they have only purchased two cars since inception. It seems like they have a different value in practice than in the rules. I did notice that safety equipment is not counted towards the total.

I'll check out chump car. Thanks!

Horus2000

Here's a great thread discussing the differences of the series:

https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ferrerid=84372

Our team runs ChumpCar, but a lot of people really enjoy the "fun first" aspect of Lemons. There are a lot of PCA racers out there in Chump. General consensus is that BMW is the preferred car. Not only are they fast, they tend to be reliable and parts are cheap. Miata's are competitive in Texas, as well. We are one of the few 944's running in the central region (7th at the regional championship - every other car in top 10 was a BMW - seriously).

Podium or not, it's a blast!

GuyIncognito

E30 BMWs seem to be the weapons of choice.

the cars that win are *not* $500 cars.

certz

I think you need to decide whether you are there to try and win or whether you are just looking for the experience and fun. If you are trying to win, then you need a BMW, Neon, or Honda and then expect to get a lot of crap about how your car is not a $500 car (because it won't be) - I am not saying cheat, but let's be realistic. Documentation is your friend and a good theme can get you out of a lot of stuff.

I hope you have a mechanic on your also because you are going to need one or more. It helps to buy a car you know and can work on as well. The team I am on bought a 944 because one of the guys knows them inside and out and could just about build a car from the spares he had from his own cars.

That said, our goal was and is to just have fun. It is a blast even if you are not doing that well.

IcemanG17

After building a lemons 928 and campaiging it 3 times on the west coast (toughest region) here is my thoughts:

1: 944 is a solid car when built properly....
2: E30's are far too common and the judges are very critical (but porsches attract negative attention too)\
3: Miata is another great choice, but are underpowered....typically the only ones that win are boosted...

On the west coast a standard miata can't win....E30's have in the past but not recently.....

Figure a 1st race budget or near $5k if you don't have safety equipment lying around...

Horus2000

That's a good guide. It can be done for less, which is cool if you're just there to try it out and have fun. But, the budget will start creeping up as you search for speed and reliability. Good thing is that it's a shared budget.

Also, highly recommend doing an arrive-and-drive in a race or two. Usually for well under $1k you can drive and get a good understanding of what it's like before making the plunge (albeit in a non-competitive car).

Decent write up here on getting started in Chump:
http://forum.chumpcar.com/index.php?...to-be-a-chump/

Plavan

I beg to differ on the E30's. Ours was a legitimate $500 car on the West Coast. We bought it with 220K miles, with a hole in the trans. We went to a junkyard and pulled another trans (What a pain in the ***! Lying on the ground with a 3 foot extension and torx crap). We rolled the dice hoping it would work. We also changed the timing belt and other preventive measures. So far it has lasted in a 14hr (3rd place), a 9 hour (1st place) and 6 Hour (6th place- including the 10 "MOV" laps awarded to us from winning the previous race) without any problems. After the first race we replaced the stock susp with OEM Bilstien shocks/struts which you are allowed to do, as long as they are stock units.
You can find an E30 for $500 bucks, but you will be rolling the dice. Everything is stock on our car.

We qualified for the Western Region Chumpionships this December at Infineon. I actually gave up a seat in the NASA 25hr (Call me crazy- I also didn't like the contract I was given) so I could race that same weekend in Infineon in the Chumpionships with my buddies.

Regardless of car- Chumpcar is way more fun than Lemons for us because it is more racing- Not based on silliness. Don't get me wrong- We did 7 Lemon races and had fun, but it gets old really quick with constant yellows and 175+ cars on the track.

I think I have more fun racing Chumpcar than I do my vintage 911 (I don't have to worry about denting a fender- And it is a disposable race car)

certz

I could not agree more with this statement. It is what lead me and my buddies to Lemons.

analogmike

The exhaust bracket on my Grand-Am car cost over $500

justaguy

Buddies of mine just won Portland Chump Car in a 94 Honda prelude. We finished midpack in a civic. Comes down to drivers really. The winning prelude had 4 hot shoe drivers. We had 2 experienced guys and 2 newbies. 4 hot shoes would be top 5 even in a civic. Cheap fun $ 500 car

dgmark

Preperation is key, If you think it's gonna break it will If you don't think it will break it will. Pick a car you are familiar with and thats easy to get parts for. If I were to pick a car after competing in 6 Lemons races, I would go with a Dodge Neon. Our team runs a 944 and we have become very competitive with top 10 finishes in our last three races, but we have hit a platue due to the horsepower advantage of the Bmw's and Neons. The 500.00 limit is just a guide, if you don't get to cheaty the judges will give you a pass, especialy in the fastest run class.

justaguy

Excellent advice.

dgmark

Fuel consumption is also a big factor, the top teams are going 2.5to 3 hours between driver changes and refueling, no more than 2 stops per day. Any more than that and you have no chance if winning overall is your goal. To win overall you must have fast drivers, good handeling and 150-200 HP, 100-150 HP will not cut it.