Racing on a budget - Toyota Yaris Forums

Captain_Rat · 07-22-2009, 12:25 PM

While I was surfing the web, I found a pretty interesting racing series. Chump Car looks like something that would be pretty easy on the budget to get into, at least compared to SCCA or something. They are running on a lot of cool tracks too. I’m going to try to put a team together for this! Check it out at www.chumpcar.com.

IllusionX · 07-22-2009, 01:03 PM

spam?

Loren · 07-22-2009, 01:27 PM

While it probably is "spam" (ban that bastard OP if you must), I'll vouch for it being extremely fun and cheap racing!

Chump Car is based on the 24 Hours of LeMons series, expanding the concept to cover more of the country. I've done 3 LeMons races, myself. Racing is NEVER cheap, but this is about the cheapest possible way to go wheel-to-wheel racing, and it has it's own unique flavor that is just plain fun.

Figure $3-4k split between 6 drivers plus weekend expenses, some personal safety equipment, a garage or two full of tools and spare parts, lots of sweat and a little blood. What could be more fun?

cali yaris · 07-22-2009, 02:42 PM

Boy those rules are just about 100% the same as LeMons.

TheRealEnth · 07-22-2009, 03:03 PM

sounds like loads of fun, especially cause they do it at my track

markitect · 07-22-2009, 03:53 PM

I've already wondered about these races, It seems to me like the safety equipment could easily exceed $500.
A lot of 5 point harnesses alone will eat half your budget.

Loren · 07-22-2009, 04:04 PM

If you'd take a moment to read the rules, or even the FAQ, you'd understand. ;)

The $500 budget only includes the car and it's running gear. Safety equipment is not included in the $500 budget, and things like the cage, seat, harness, wheels, tires, brakes, fuel system, etc are considered "safety equipment". Plan on spending $2500-3k to build a $500 race car.

Like I said, racing ain't cheap. But, the next step up from here is something like Spec Miata, and you'll easily spend $10k before you take the first turn in your first race there... and then it will be a 20-minute race. LeMons (and now Chump) is the best bang for the buck in racing these days.

jkuchta · 07-25-2009, 09:54 PM

The difference between this and LeMons is that in Chumpcar, when the organizers claim your car, you loose all of the safety equipment as well. That means that nice race seat and belts are taken as well...whereas in Lemons, you get to pull all of that stuff out before they take your car...

Sounds like Chumpcar is a bad deal to me on that point alone!

Loren · 07-25-2009, 10:10 PM

Keep reading... if they claim your car, you always have the option of buying it back.

And they're claiming it not for $500, but for $1500. Enough to cover a race seat and harness plus a few other things. Then they auction the car with a starting bid of $1750. Highly unlikely that anybody's gonna even bid on it... but even if they do, you've got $1500 in your pocket. So (assuming you want the car back), consider anything above that to be your penalty for cheating... cuz they're only gonna claim a blatantly cheating car!

Chump isn't like LeMons where a car is generally selected at each race to be destroyed. (yeah, you get to pull your safety gear out of it... big whoop) If nobody's going overboard with cheating, no car will get claimed at a Chump race.

But, hey... this kind of racing isn't for everyone. If you're not up for it, it's no big deal, plenty of others are.

(yeah, I spent another day working on our race car today... it runs!)

Zefoxe · 07-26-2009, 11:13 PM

SCCA still seems like a cheaper alternative to me

bearda · 07-27-2009, 04:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zefoxe

SCCA still seems like a cheaper alternative to me

Cheaper how?

Loren · 07-27-2009, 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zefoxe

SCCA still seems like a cheaper alternative to me

By "SCCA" do you mean "SCCA Solo II" or "autocross"? Hell yeah, that's cheaper. Also not at all the same thing.

If you're talking about SCCA road racing. No, it's not cheaper. You'll spend more money preparing a car to their more stringent standards, you'll pay more to attend their driver schools to get your racing license, you'll pay more to enter their races, and the typical race weekend will consist of a few 20-minute sprint races, or maybe a 2-hour enduro...

Nothing against SCCA or NASA or any of the other racing clubs... but this is way cheaper and it's quite a different experience.

RomGrr · 07-27-2009, 10:27 PM

I'd love to do LeMons. I've been spying a mid 90's Hyundai with no hood sitting around locally for the same thing. Dollar for dollar, there is absolutely nothing more thrilling than ringing the shit out of a beater. Especially when a crowd is involved.

Loren · 07-27-2009, 10:49 PM

LeMons is sort of like fighting your way through morning traffic, only there is no speed limit, no "lanes", and nobody gets upset if you scrape their car.

Not sure I'd trust a 90's vintage Hyundai to make it more than a few hours, though!

Zefoxe · 07-28-2009, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loren

By "SCCA" do you mean "SCCA Solo II" or "autocross"? Hell yeah, that's cheaper. Also not at all the same thing.

If you're talking about SCCA road racing. No, it's not cheaper. You'll spend more money preparing a car to their more stringent standards, you'll pay more to attend their driver schools to get your racing license, you'll pay more to enter their races, and the typical race weekend will consist of a few 20-minute sprint races, or maybe a 2-hour enduro...

Nothing against SCCA or NASA or any of the other racing clubs... but this is way cheaper and it's quite a different experience.

Sorry, yea I meant auto-x. I know its not the same but when someone is 'racing on a budget' i cant think of a better alternative. Id love hours of track time but costs these days just arent practical for a weekend warrior with nothing more then pocket change in their wallets :P

Loren · 07-28-2009, 01:09 AM

Trust me, I've been autocrossing since 1996, I know what you mean. It's lots of fun, it's cheap, and it is THE best way to learn car control skills.

But, it's not the same. There isn't that element of danger that comes from driving on a race track where a mistake do a lot more damage than a cone mark, and could even kill you. And there isn't the thrill of NOT being able to drive the perfect line like you can at an autocross... instead, you have to be able to pick a line on-the-fly and find a way to make it fast enough to get around the other guy.

So, yeah... if you've only got $30-50/mo to spend on motorsports, autocross is the way to go. But, if you can scrape together $500-1000 a couple times a year and want some wheel-to-wheel action on a road course, LeMons/Chump is where it's at.

echosqwat · 09-03-2009, 03:46 PM

I'm doing Lemons if my team is accepted

Tamago · 09-03-2009, 04:01 PM

fyi, dollar-per-minute prices of autocross are grossly higher than a typical club track day.. yes you'll pay more for the track day, but considering the seat time, it's a bargain, compared to autocross

07-22-2009, 12:25 PM	#1
Captain_Rat I've made a post! Drives: Fast Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Charlotte Posts: 1	Racing on a budget While I was surfing the web, I found a pretty interesting racing series. Chump Car looks like something that would be pretty easy on the budget to get into, at least compared to SCCA or something. They are running on a lot of cool tracks too. I’m going to try to put a team together for this! Check it out at www.chumpcar.com. __________________ Racing on a budget...

07-22-2009, 01:27 PM	#3
Loren What? Drives: 2007 Yaris LB Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Safety Harbor, FL Posts: 1,006	While it probably is "spam" (ban that bastard OP if you must), I'll vouch for it being extremely fun and cheap racing! Chump Car is based on the 24 Hours of LeMons series, expanding the concept to cover more of the country. I've done 3 LeMons races, myself. Racing is NEVER cheap, but this is about the cheapest possible way to go wheel-to-wheel racing, and it has it's own unique flavor that is just plain fun. Figure $3-4k split between 6 drivers plus weekend expenses, some personal safety equipment, a garage or two full of tools and spare parts, lots of sweat and a little blood. What could be more fun? __________________ ----------------------- Loren@InvisibleSun.org -----------------------

07-22-2009, 02:42 PM	#4
cali yaris ULTIMATE View User's Garage Drives: 07 Yaris Turbo Join Date: May 2007 Location: Canoga Park, CA Posts: 14,859	Boy those rules are just about 100% the same as LeMons. __________________ Micro Image forums, online store and shop are now closed. It was a great eight year run, but it was time to focus on other things. I'm still selling parts on eBay under micro*image seller ID and customers can still make requests for anything specific.

07-22-2009, 03:03 PM	#5
TheRealEnth Beast View User's Garage Drives: 2007 Blz Blu LB Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 1,365	sounds like loads of fun, especially cause they do it at my track __________________ One you've taken a yaris for a spin, there's no turning back. Its a Chao!!!

07-22-2009, 04:04 PM	#7
Loren What? Drives: 2007 Yaris LB Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Safety Harbor, FL Posts: 1,006	If you'd take a moment to read the rules, or even the FAQ, you'd understand. ;) The $500 budget only includes the car and it's running gear. Safety equipment is not included in the $500 budget, and things like the cage, seat, harness, wheels, tires, brakes, fuel system, etc are considered "safety equipment". Plan on spending $2500-3k to build a $500 race car. Like I said, racing ain't cheap. But, the next step up from here is something like Spec Miata, and you'll easily spend $10k before you take the first turn in your first race there... and then it will be a 20-minute race. LeMons (and now Chump) is the best bang for the buck in racing these days. __________________ ----------------------- Loren@InvisibleSun.org -----------------------

07-22-2009, 01:03 PM	#2
IllusionX It's the illusion you see View User's Garage Drives: 07 Yaris Sedan Aero Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Brossard, QC Posts: 3,888	spam?

07-22-2009, 03:53 PM	#6
markitect Drives: Yaris Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Michigan Posts: 199	I've already wondered about these races, It seems to me like the safety equipment could easily exceed $500. A lot of 5 point harnesses alone will eat half your budget.

07-25-2009, 09:54 PM	#8
jkuchta View User's Garage Drives: 2007 Yaris hatch (red) Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: L.A. Posts: 557	The difference between this and LeMons is that in Chumpcar, when the organizers claim your car, you loose all of the safety equipment as well. That means that nice race seat and belts are taken as well...whereas in Lemons, you get to pull all of that stuff out before they take your car... Sounds like Chumpcar is a bad deal to me on that point alone!

07-25-2009, 10:10 PM	#9
Loren What? Drives: 2007 Yaris LB Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Safety Harbor, FL Posts: 1,006	Keep reading... if they claim your car, you always have the option of buying it back. And they're claiming it not for $500, but for $1500. Enough to cover a race seat and harness plus a few other things. Then they auction the car with a starting bid of $1750. Highly unlikely that anybody's gonna even bid on it... but even if they do, you've got $1500 in your pocket. So (assuming you want the car back), consider anything above that to be your penalty for cheating... cuz they're only gonna claim a blatantly cheating car! Chump isn't like LeMons where a car is generally selected at each race to be destroyed. (yeah, you get to pull your safety gear out of it... big whoop) If nobody's going overboard with cheating, no car will get claimed at a Chump race. But, hey... this kind of racing isn't for everyone. If you're not up for it, it's no big deal, plenty of others are. (yeah, I spent another day working on our race car today... it runs!) __________________ ----------------------- Loren@InvisibleSun.org -----------------------

07-26-2009, 11:13 PM	#10
Zefoxe ¦µ¶Œ€♦åËÆ⌐š└╘○Å╝◙þ·▲ View User's Garage Drives: Scion xD Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: NY Posts: 450	SCCA still seems like a cheaper alternative to me __________________ Coming 2010: Toyota iSt CK edition (CooperKiller) stay tuned

07-27-2009, 10:27 PM	#13
RomGrr View User's Garage Drives: 2007 Yaris HB Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Parts Unknown Posts: 24	I'd love to do LeMons. I've been spying a mid 90's Hyundai with no hood sitting around locally for the same thing. Dollar for dollar, there is absolutely nothing more thrilling than ringing the shit out of a beater. Especially when a crowd is involved.

07-27-2009, 10:49 PM	#14
Loren What? Drives: 2007 Yaris LB Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Safety Harbor, FL Posts: 1,006	LeMons is sort of like fighting your way through morning traffic, only there is no speed limit, no "lanes", and nobody gets upset if you scrape their car. Not sure I'd trust a 90's vintage Hyundai to make it more than a few hours, though! __________________ ----------------------- Loren@InvisibleSun.org -----------------------

07-28-2009, 01:09 AM	#16
Loren What? Drives: 2007 Yaris LB Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Safety Harbor, FL Posts: 1,006	Trust me, I've been autocrossing since 1996, I know what you mean. It's lots of fun, it's cheap, and it is THE best way to learn car control skills. But, it's not the same. There isn't that element of danger that comes from driving on a race track where a mistake do a lot more damage than a cone mark, and could even kill you. And there isn't the thrill of NOT being able to drive the perfect line like you can at an autocross... instead, you have to be able to pick a line on-the-fly and find a way to make it fast enough to get around the other guy. So, yeah... if you've only got $30-50/mo to spend on motorsports, autocross is the way to go. But, if you can scrape together $500-1000 a couple times a year and want some wheel-to-wheel action on a road course, LeMons/Chump is where it's at. __________________ ----------------------- Loren@InvisibleSun.org -----------------------

09-03-2009, 03:46 PM	#17
echosqwat Drives: Porsche Boxster Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: California Posts: 21	I'm doing Lemons if my team is accepted

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