Jack and Casey's mx5 track rat.

[jzilla]

Usually this is for people but the review is for their car. Jack let me drive the car around the track for a couple of laps and I have to say, for the money they spent on it, it's a fantastic car! The suspension is set up well and the 1.6 is very peppy. The reduced weight and the alignment made the car perform unbelievably well.

For someone that has only been on one track day and then get hooked, build a solid car for under 2 grand for the next event is spectacular because the car is a blast to drive.

Well played guys!

[Beastinthebushes]

I second this! Jack and Casey let me drive it for about 6 or 7 laps, and that car was a blast! I could not believe how quick it was and how fun it was for under 2 grand! Mad props! Also, as a passenger, you have nothing to hold on to except your seatbelt! That was scary!

[friday]

I had no idea it was up and running. Pictures!

also, Lemons team?

[jzilla]

I think this car can be really great for the lemons race. cheap turbo will really set this car off.

[FE3tMX5]

And that's "2 grand" divided by 2! :D

[friday]

well, like any good lemons car it will need to juke the stats.

[Dr.Drew]

Have you guys determined the rental rates? I wouldn't mind renting it at the next event and saving the wear and tear on the DD.

[metalman]

I think this car can be really great for the lemons race. cheap turbo will really set this car off.

I didnt know they had a Lemons race with a 2-3k limit. :lol:

[jzilla]

im sorry, i meant grm car.

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

Thanks for the kind words guys, we need to get some new pictures of it moving now.

:lol: I think it's more of a GRM car than a lemons James!

Have you guys determined the rental rates? I wouldn't mind renting it at the next event and saving the wear and tear on the DD.

I think it's going to vary quite a bit on tyres and how we figure that out. We wore down our set of used 710's to the cords on one tyre. But that might also be because we put too much chemical softener on it for too long... and drove the **** out of it for 50 laps or so. :lol:

How much you think? We're pretty open to suggestions right now. My current thinking was a couple hundred bucks and then it depends on a few variables.

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

I think this car can be really great for the lemons race. cheap turbo will really set this car off.

Cheap turbo is what we're thinking but goodness, the stock reliability is nice to beat on.

[jzilla]

$2.50 then i can leave my car at home.

[Dr.Drew]

Couple hundred for a day would be reasonable. Or you could even do a per-mile or per lap option as well. $5-$10 a lap wouldn't be bad.

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

That'd be hard to track and could leave us pretty deep out of pocket money/time wise if they only do a handful and we've prepped it for 'em! It's a shame r-comps ain't cheap!!

[Beastinthebushes]

I would have to say a few hundred bucks would be best, you guys would have to have some money to afford new brakes, tires, etc after each event. This thing can take a beating, but you don't want to be in the hole after someone beats the **** out of it and you have to replace a bunch of stuff. Then of course there are always the what if situations. If its wrecked, is two hundred gonna cover costs of whatever is broken? I dunno, it seems difficult to decide what a good price would be without it being too much.

$300 to cover gas, tires, brakes, and fun? And whoever rents it pays for the trailer it needs to be towed on (uhaul)?

Im pissed because my gopro battery died out there and I was gonna get video of this thing in action.

All I managed to get was two 15 minutes videos of my car with two different angles. I need to buy a backup battery for things such as that.

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

I think that sounds like a good price there Daniel. There would be some paper work along on the lines of if you break something through your own action, you pay for it etc.

[Beastinthebushes]

paper work is a must, god forbid someone drive it off a track and into a wall or something solid and then leave you guys with the repair costs.

You need to make some profit so you can throw racing seats and a harness in there eventually. That's really all its missing in my eyes, oh, and some type of bar or something for the passenger to hang on to, the seat belt grab worked, but also sucked at the same time.

[friday]

You would need some kind of deposit, or possibly offer insurance. If they pay the insurance then they dont get the money back, but if they pay the larger deposit, they can get that back.

When it comes to tires I would say shy away from 710's and Hoosiers. They dont last very long. Try to get some decent take offs from a spec miata guy. A lightly used RA-1 will still have a lot of track time left.

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

Yeah I think the plan is to get the rollbar sold, get a new bigger one in with a harness bar and then sort out the seat. A grip won't be too hard to figure out for the passenger side.

[Beastinthebushes]

You could probably weld a t bar to the bar already in there. Simple and cheap.

Or duct tape bicycle handle bars in that *****, it would fit nicely with the theme of the car, haha

[caseyfoster]

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/12388817/Miata/resized0014.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/12388817/Miata/resized0016.jpg

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

You could probably weld a t bar to the bar already in there. Simple and cheap.

I'm not sure if it sits wide enough for that unfortunately.

[caseyfoster]

Thanks for the kind words. The car really surprised us with how awesome it was.

I just couldn't believe how much grip it had.

[Jack-MX5ATLanta.com]

You would need some kind of deposit, or possibly offer insurance. If they pay the insurance then they dont get the money back, but if they pay the larger deposit, they can get that back.

When it comes to tires I would say shy away from 710's and Hoosiers. They dont last very long. Try to get some decent take offs from a spec miata guy. A lightly used RA-1 will still have a lot of track time left.

Good info. Getting into insurance will involve all sorts of legal aspects and things we can't offer. It's not going to be rented to everybody and anybody. Only people we know we can chase up if anything goes awry.

[metalman]

It's not going to be rented to everybody and anybody. Only people we know we can chase up if anything goes awry.

Well dont rent it to any of the dooshers here on this forum then! :lol: :lol: ;) ;)


j/k....

[nickt93]

Congrats guys - excited to hear that the car delivered! Which tires did you run? The ones that were on the wheels I sold you? If so I'm glad to hear it - they were pretty well worn, but it sounds like this car did quite a few laps with a few different drivers, and TGPR can be pretty brutal on the right side tires.


All I managed to get was two 15 minutes videos of my car with two different angles. I need to buy a backup battery for things such as that.

GoPros eat batteries! I have 6-8 rechargeables that I take to every track day - I usually change them after every 2 sessions (or every session if I end up sitting on grid for a while or forget to turn it off after a run). Get a handful of batteries and memory cards so you never run out!

Cheap turbo is what we're thinking but goodness, the stock reliability is nice to beat on.

My vote would be keep it as is. For a rental you are going to want the ultimate reliability - the turbo will jeopardize that. In stock form you should be able to beat on it all day with multiple drivers.

You would need some kind of deposit, or possibly offer insurance. If they pay the insurance then they dont get the money back, but if they pay the larger deposit, they can get that back.

When it comes to tires I would say shy away from 710's and Hoosiers. They dont last very long. A lightly used RA-1 will still have a lot of track time left.

+1. The RA1s are the best compromise of grip and longevity that I've found.

[Dr.Drew]

I actually agree on keeping it N/A. The boost might be fun for all the added power but that added power is what gets people in trouble.

Add enough lightness and it will be just as fun with less **** to break or worry about.

[Beastinthebushes]

Yeah, I'll be buying a few back up batteries for sure. I'm also gonna buy a wall charger so I won't have to lug my laptop around.

I say keep it stock, it's fun as is, and it's just a fun track rat right now, not a race car.

[Dr.Drew]

Does it charge through USB?

If so get one of these:
http://tapatalk.com/mu/a6890cc6-31a2-d17e.jpg

Useful little bugger.

[caseyfoster]

Congrats guys - excited to hear that the car delivered! Which tires did you run? The ones that were on the wheels I sold you? If so I'm glad to hear it - they were pretty well worn, but it sounds like this car did quite a few laps with a few different drivers, and TGPR can be pretty brutal on the right side tires.



GoPros eat batteries! I have 6-8 rechargeables that I take to every track day - I usually change them after every 2 sessions (or every session if I end up sitting on grid for a while or forget to turn it off after a run). Get a handful of batteries and memory cards so you never run out!



My vote would be keep it as is. For a rental you are going to want the ultimate reliability - the turbo will jeopardize that. In stock form you should be able to beat on it all day with multiple drivers.



+1. The RA1s are the best compromise of grip and longevity that I've found.
Yeah we used the tires that were on the wheels you sold us, they were awesome! So much grip!

But I think we left the tire prep on it too long as we wore the front right tire down to the cords. I ended up just making some home brew tire prep from that site that Ben posted.

I think we need to keep it stock for now and just perfect the car as it is now not sinking too much more money into it.

[Beastinthebushes]

Does it charge through USB?

If so get one of these:
http://tapatalk.com/mu/a6890cc6-31a2-d17e.jpg

Useful little bugger.

It does, I should get one of those.

[friday]

Skip the FI, it puts so much more stress on a track car that it is hardly worth it.

Car seems pretty much perfect for a cheap track car. The plan to upgrade the roll bar and seat is definitely a good plan. Those few safety items are pretty important. Only other things I would be on the lookout for are a used set of wider wheels and some better suspension, but those are pretty much optional.

[jzilla]

seat, brakes and bar.. you are good to go.

[caseyfoster]

seat, brakes and bar.. you are good to go.
Confirmed

Maybe not the seat part as we need to be able to accommodate a lot of different sized people.

[Beastinthebushes]

Corbeau a4 seats work really well for big sized people. Not too pricey either. Just search craigslist off and on for racing seats. For example, there are a few pairs on there for 300 obo, low ball 200? A seat will seriously do wonders for driving confidence, I highly recommend one.