Help me build a racecar...sort of...maybe...

[Barrels]

Ok. So some friends and I are entering the 24 Hours of Lemons race at Columbia Motorsports Park in Columbia, SC in mid-September. For those of you unfamiliar with these events, it is a 24-hour endurance race pitting $500 cars against each other. You can buy any car you want and do whatever you want to it, but you can't spend more than $500 total (car, parts, and modifications).

I have found a 1986 MR2 that I can get for around $150. It needs a crapload of work, but if it could be done for less than $500 then I think I would have a pretty good racer on my hands. Labor and tools are not an issue, I have access to several shops with every tool anyone could possibly need.

So here are my questions:
1- Is the MR2 a good choice for this purpose?
2- What kind of issues should I look for when I check out this car?
3- What kind of dirt-cheap-but-effective performance mods could I do?
4- Where can I get a good set of cheap hubs?

Thanks for helping out a newbie!

[MR JAS]

hmmm main things i can think of are give it a good tune
do conservative mods (you dont want to run out of tyres after 1 hour)
get some good brakes (i would recommend just really good pads and fluid for the stock brakes possibly a spare set of pads for the day)

use it as a daily driver for like 1000 miles before the race this way any problems will show up on the road

[dirocyn]

On a $150 car, I'd do a compression test and expect to find a bad head gasket, also check for rust in the structural areas above the rear wheel arches, be aware that the undercoating can conceal major problems.

Main thing you need to be aware of, as a n00b to the MR2, is it's cooling system. Unlike most other cars, a bit of air in the coolant lines is a big problem, can cause overheating. If it overheats, it can blow out the head gasket. Get the BGB, follow proper procedure for getting the air out of the system. For this kind of race--I'd install all new coolant hoses, if you blow your cooling system the race is over. Definitely test drive a few hundred miles ahead of time.

On the 86, 5th gear pop-out is a real common problem. Of course, you can go plenty fast in 4, and you can always drive with your hand on the gearshift.

Best mod for power would be to add a supercharger, you might manage on your budget if you're good at scrounging.

[mr3]

Hubs are probably going to cost you a nice chunk of that $500. They might cost as much or more than you paid for the car. Your local parts supplier should be able to get them. I havent priced them so I cant give you a good number. Make sure the cooling system is bled out with new coolant. Check the engine for compression first. A new engine can be had for cheap but with that budget it would be hard to get everything. Wheels and tires are going to be necessary. Stock wheels are good but good tires will cost you. Tire rack has pretty good deals but still figure tires to cost around 200.

I'll just add this up for the sake of it.
$150 for the car
$200 for tires
$50 for fluids
thats $400 right there and you still have to find hubs. It's going to be hard working on a budget but it can be done.

[Barrels]

Unfortunately it isn't looking too good for the MR2. The car looks like it has been used as a parts car for someone else's project. The body is in really good shape, but that doesn't help me at all.

Thanks for the help.

[GrandpaGofast]

Can I get a rear passenger side qtr panel off that ? :-)

[Jackstand Queen]

For Chrisake's cheat! Cover the new parts in mud and oil. Spend money like its going out of style. Chop and cut stuff to reduce weight. Bring it to the race with faded paint and bird droppings all over it. Fake em out with a shabby appearance.

But fix that puppy up. If you know that the track is going to be one long left, or right hand turn . . . . tweak the alignment for better turning in that direction.

Every fool here knows a $500 car won't be able to withstand being raced for hours.

[David]

I'm pretty sure if you sell parts off it, that's taken as a credit for the $500. Not sure though. You can sell some parts that aren't necessary to race, and use that money to buy other things.

[muffinman]

Originally Posted by David48

I'm pretty sure if you sell parts off it, that's taken as a credit for the $500. Not sure though. You can sell some parts that aren't necessary to race, and use that money to buy other things.

+1

that's the way i thought it was also.

[dirocyn]

Originally Posted by mr3

I'll just add this up for the sake of it.
$150 for the car
$200 for tires
$50 for fluids
thats $400 right there and you still have to find hubs. It's going to be hard working on a budget but it can be done.

You're being too honest, sheesh. And you're thinking like you want to own the car after the race, which is not really the point.

Really, the whole point of this kind of race is how creative you can be in coming up with your car and parts on the cheap. The trick is to know people who don't need what you're after. And people who work around cars who are willing to help you out. If you've got a good friend working in a tire shop, you might score a set of nearly new tires for next to nothing.

For this kind of race, you don't run antifreeze, you run water. And how much is that old oil on the back shelf of your garage worth, anyway? $1 a gallon? Sounds good, but if you're out of budget--change the oil in your daily driver ahead of schedule. What's that used oil worth?

Tires--who needs new ones? There's a guy on my local Craigslist selling a set of 4 rims & tires (he says the tires are good) asking $50. Sure they came off a Honda, but they'd fit. Or, you go find an old Corolla that's headed for scrap, pay $60 for it and you get its wheels, tires, and probably wheel hubs that a machinist could make fit, plus another engine and transmission.

You don't need any new parts, everything you use should be somebody's cast-offs. But you need cast-offs that aren't likely to fail. Tires are a real high priority, and so are coolant hoses. It sounds like fun to me, and if you succeed in building a street-ready MR2, you will absolutely blow everything else away. The MR2's acceleration is excellent and the speedometer goes to 150 for a reason.

[328FTW]

It can be done if you use your head and talk to people. Your not going to be able to have new OEM parts on the car your going to have "whatever I could find for $20" parts on the car. My first mr2 I brought for $300 and its a trooper its had a few engines but the first one lasted a few years, I rolled it, crashed it, spun it, slid it, 3 wheeled it, got it a couple metres off the ground and it still came over the finish line most of the time.

You might want to look into the early twin cam hondas as well (yes I am going to the darkside here)those things can really haul and they don't break easy, you don't need a vteeeeeeeeeK!!!! just a fuel injected resonably good motor. We raced a DA1 integra at one point and we seriously could not kill that car it pulled 12k several times from noob gearchanges when we were using it as a lend a racecar. Honda or toyota are probably the way to go and if you can get a couple spare CV joints and things because if you break something like that it can ruin the "fun" (24 hours is a long time to constantly enjoy yourself)

[85silverna]

I have a passenger side hub, free if you pay shipping. its good as far as I know, i beat the s#@% out of my car and it held together. comes with a suspension arm too... located in Buffalo NY