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      04-23-2013, 03:47 PM   #1
FVM3
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Track car

I come from e92 m3 to e93 and do pretty much track days. As all you know e93 is a lot heavier and obviously not going to track it. Now Im planning to get a s2000 and is it a nice track car? The car will be used at track only, no daily driving. Hows the handling and everything?
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      04-23-2013, 05:27 PM   #2
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You'll want to put a cage in it but I would probably look elsewhere for a dedicated track toy. A few that come to mind would be Lotus Exige, E36 M3, Spec Miata (most practical by a mile), and Z06. The Z06 is one of the most capable track cars I've ever seen. Just a beast on the track.
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      04-23-2013, 08:01 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FVM3 View Post
I come from e92 m3 to e93 and do pretty much track days. As all you know e93 is a lot heavier and obviously not going to track it. Now Im planning to get a s2000 and is it a nice track car? The car will be used at track only, no daily driving. Hows the handling and everything?
S2000 is a great track car in very experienced hands once the safety needs have been taken car of, but for everyone else they are hairy beasts. Even with a small amount of horsepower they get out of shape very easy, kinda like a modern day AC car with a little less power.

Good news if you can drive it fast, you can probably drive anything fast.

Bad news you might kill yourself trying to drive it fast.

From a cost standpoint you could turbo-charge or supercharge a miata for less and have an easier car to sort out. The aftermarket is endless and inexpensive for Miata's. Cheaper tires, brakes, safety equipment, etc.

Hey and if you still want a hairy car you could always do an ls swap into a miata.

E36's are great fun too and if you want a bit newer the 350/370z platform has solid racing potential as well.
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      04-24-2013, 12:11 AM   #4
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might I also add Evo 8 or 9 or an STi. if you want a car with minimum maintenance and easy to work on and bulletproof, get the 2003 Evo 8 with the viscous coupler center diff. You may want to pop in a helical front LSD.
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      04-24-2013, 05:08 AM   #5
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I wanna stay with NA , miata or s2000 may be a good choice
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      04-24-2013, 04:01 PM   #6
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You can pick up an older D-Sports Racer for reasonable money. Way more fun than a street car.

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      04-24-2013, 04:08 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by Silver-Bolt View Post
You can pick up an older D-Sports Racer for reasonable money. Way more fun than a street car.

Love this! If I had a truck and trailer this is the way to go.

BTW if you want a car that is already sorted out try looking in grassrootsmotorsports magazine or sportscar magazine classifieds. They always seem to have a big selection of dedicated track cars and race cars in their classifieds with most of the work already done.
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      04-24-2013, 06:47 PM   #8
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Radical.
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      04-24-2013, 07:33 PM   #9
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I want a car that i can drive to the track which is about 150 miles away from my place. Some say s2000 is hard to drive it fast and the turning is really sharp.
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      04-24-2013, 11:10 PM   #10
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I want an S2000 soooo badly, however I just cant find a good driving position because on NO steering wheel adjustment. Am I wrong or overlooking something? It just feels like the wheel is in my lap. There is no way to really shuffle steer. I can't straight arm the wheel during spirited driving. Anyone else have this concern?
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      04-24-2013, 11:16 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by miiipilot View Post
I want an S2000 soooo badly, however I just cant find a good driving position because on NO steering wheel adjustment. Am I wrong or overlooking something? It just feels like the wheel is in my lap. There is no way to really shuffle steer. I can't straight arm the wheel during spirited driving. Anyone else have this concern?
Me. I found this out too
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      04-24-2013, 11:38 PM   #12
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have you considered staying with BMW? 2006 -2008 Mcoupe, lots of guys track these.
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      04-24-2013, 11:46 PM   #13
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buy mine !!!
http://montreal.kijiji.ca/c-cars-veh...AdIdZ461330582
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      04-25-2013, 08:21 AM   #14
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C5 Z06 is probably the best you can buy for an affordable dedicated track car...the 350/370Z's are also great handling cars, which can run tires as wide as the z06. Like others said an m coupe would do the job, but it is more expensive, and more expensive to maintain.

I would personally stay away from verts although the miata and s2k are both great...the safety is a bit of a headache and it won't be as rigid as the aforementioned coupes
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      04-25-2013, 01:09 PM   #15
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Lotus, 996 Porsche GT3 or C6 Z06.
Maybe the BRZ/FRS...
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      04-25-2013, 02:24 PM   #16
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I'd pick up a C5 Hardtop or C5 Z06 before a C6 Z06 if I were tracking just because of cost reasons.

The LS6 is tougher than the LS7 as well.

A bolton C5Z with decent suspension and slicks will still kill almost anything you're going to see out there save the odd GT3 and GT-R.

Miata, E36 M3, S2000, Evo are all pretty good too.

IMO you want a car with a lot of aftermarket track support and all of those have it in spades.
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      04-25-2013, 02:35 PM   #17
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I've come to find that Miatas are by far the most rewarding cars to drive fast, even if you aren't at the top of the time sheets. The low weight and center of gravity (and open top) make you feel so connected and it takes a lot more effort. And with how cheap you can buy them, you can put more money into it later as you see fit like doing an engine swap like an SR20DET - it's been done, aftermarket support is there, easily holds up to 400whp on stock internals (which is more than you'll probably ever need in a Miata).

Why people find it necessary to shell out ridiculous money on a track-only car before any modifications is beyond me.
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      04-25-2013, 02:44 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TK-421 View Post
I've come to find that Miatas are by far the most rewarding cars to drive fast, even if you aren't at the top of the time sheets. The low weight and center of gravity (and open top) make you feel so connected and it takes a lot more effort. And with how cheap you can buy them, you can put more money into it later as you see fit like doing an engine swap like an SR20DET - it's been done, aftermarket support is there, easily holds up to 400whp on stock internals (which is more than you'll probably ever need in a Miata).

Why people find it necessary to shell out ridiculous money on a track-only car before any modifications is beyond me.
I agree, plus if you want to race in a huge class, Spec Miata has huge groups and parts you can buy at your local Mazda parts counter.
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      04-25-2013, 11:26 PM   #19
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not planning to go for Euros or C5,C6 ZO6
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      08-17-2014, 01:03 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KingOfJericho View Post
A few that come to mind would be Lotus Exige, .

I would second that....the Exige is the one
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      08-18-2014, 09:57 AM   #21
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I can't believe no one has said get an e36 m3. I highly disagree with anyone who said any corvette is the best most affordable car to get. The tires are huge=expensive, good pads aren't cheap, the car has a lot of power which entails using more fuel.

Coming from many track cars I have driven in the past, your best bet is any e36 but preferably an e36 M3, if you have a little more to spend you can even go e46 M3. I like the s2000 as well, never driven one on a track but I have heard all the same devils that other people have stated about them getting bent out of shape really fast. I have also heard once you learn how to tame them they are wicked fast.

I also agree with others, a nicely set up miata would be a lot of fun. I always think making a slower, lower horsepower car go as fast as it possibly can is more fun than trying to control a high horsepower car. Plus all the corvette guys get pretty agitated when you pass them in an old little e36.

Edit: I was doing just a little digging to see what type of D-sports racers were for sale and I came across this. Thought the OP might like to see it.

http://www.racingjunk.com/Sports-Rac...Track-car.html
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Last edited by Bakeme521; 08-18-2014 at 10:07 AM..
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      08-18-2014, 10:21 AM   #22
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I can't believe no one has said get an e36 m3.
See first reply in the thread...
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