how to build a track car...

[Tidy Max]

well, so there i am stood admiring the vaux's behind my house with my mum banging on to me about getting rid of the nova and it just occurs to me...

i have a 1.2spi, sat on my drive, and ive got my astra van as my daily driver, i started out with the intention of flogging the nova, but, well, i cant bring my self to do it!

especially since my gf said i can keep it up at her house, WOAH!

the only thing im lacking now, is money, knowledge, and the skill of welding :)

so please, i want 3 easy steps (pref bullet points) on how to turn the rust 1.2spi into a porsche beating nurnberg racing beast :)

or more realisticly, possibly point me to some fine reading material on engines/cars :) thanks chaps

[General Lee]

Money!
Knowledge!
Welding skills!

[Tidy Max]

lol lol lol!!

good one :) haha

made me chuckle that one mate

[ianglanister]

ha ha if you ever decide you dont want to do it and do end up selling the nova give me a shout im looking for a cheap project doesnt need tax or mot etc etc cheers on the other hand take a look at these websites
http://www.potn.co.uk/blog/2008/07/09/how-to-build-a-budget-track-car/
http://www.autocrossing.com/civic/racing/hatch/index.html
http://www.motorsportvision.co.uk/

please note the middle one is an american site.
also the last one i found very helpful when i was building my toyota corolla gti twin cam!!

[Tidy Max]

cheers mate, just what i was after, anyway i better get to site, traffic will have died down now!

thanks for the links,

any more advice is greatly appreciated!

[AlexW]

Fix rust.
Fat bust the car.
Fit 2.0.

[Sloth]

why fit one 2.0? hell go for 2 2.8 vxr v6's..... add 30k in random alloy crap, add helmet. (for head or your penis)

job done


seriously. id pull the 1.2, fit a healthy 1.6 8v strip it to foook and have a giggle. cheap 2.0 brakes and some springs and shocks will see you ok. its meant to be a giggle mate, dont run before walking.

[wwmnw]

so please, i want 3 easy steps (pref bullet points) on how to turn the rust 1.2spi into a porsche beating nurnberg racing beast :)

Nurnberg? Is this like Nuremburgring lol Nürburgring ;) (Correctly pronounced Nyrburgring or so a German tells me)

[gunny]

Read a few 'track car' project threads lad, theres some good ones on here and you will find out pretty much anything you need to know

[Tidy Max]

sorry wuumnumnumnunm i guess some names are just easier to speel and pronounce than others lol lol

cheers lads, yeah i never thought about proper looking through the project threads to get a proper idea!! good thinking!!

yeah a 1.6 is what i would go for, carbs rather than injection :)

i mean, its all just nuts and bolts at the end of the day.... isn't it?

[General Lee]

The best one i have read and looked through and keep going back to is funnily enough track day nova's thread.

http://www.pngclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=85108

[Ernie]

And the engine now lives with me lol.
http://www.pngclub.com/forum/showthread.php?t=104912

[bmw156]

money money money

is the best 3 bullet points you can have

money can do anything

on a more serious note, weight saving everywhere, a quick engine, and a good driver lol

[The Simps]

First tip would be that if you value the car DO NOT leave it at your girlfriends house. When she catches you shagging her sister/mother/friend she'll be straight outside with a baseball bat!

[goldengraham]

First tip would be that if you value the car DO NOT leave it at your girlfriends house. When she catches you shagging her sister/mother/friend she'll be straight outside with a baseball bat!

Beat me to it lol, She can hold it ransome!!!!
on a serious note i would go

Strip to fook
Cure rust/weld etc..
engine 1.4sr-1.6etc..
decent tread
and last but not least have fun!!

[The Simps]

- shed weight
- better engine
- decent tyres, brakes & suspension

[Dar]

Buy a better, faster car to start with ;) A Saxo for example :thumb:

[Spudly]

Well that definately rules a paxo out then dont it dar lol

[Dar]

No, They are great cars. Light weight 1.6 16v and running a great chassis. I've seen some lovely examples. 100 times better than a Nova for a base car :D

People in glass houses ;)

[goldengraham]

it would have to be a pug 106gti for me, my god do they handle well

[Dar]

it would have to be a pug 106gti for me, my god do they handle well
Good man, basically the same car as the Saxo:thumb:

[Spudly]

106GTi i will agree with but paxo's are made of chocolate and wee, just look at the gearboxes lol

[Rich]

Mind the language peoples!! lol

1600 gte/gsi engine, or even 1600 corsa gsi engine (16 valve)

Decent suspension, brakes, wheels/tyres and have fun. Cheap seats and harnesses and strip everything out. I wouldnt go too mad incase you dont like it! Though im sure you will

[gunny]

309 GTI. Under-estimated truely awesome piece of kit, i bought mine as ive always had a soft spot for them, only to find i can spank saxo's, 205's etc round bends, they're just shy of a ton and due to the slightly longer and wider wheel base and being a hatchback its as if they are on rails AND when the back end does let go its SOOOO easy to correct! 5 door models are exactly the same length and width and pretty much the same weight at a lesser price :thumb:

[Tidy Max]

yeaha i think ill stick with the nova if anything,

i have been driving the poor 1.2 like ive stolen it for 3 years now, and even making engine noises when i go round corners pretending ive got a bigger engine haha,

the nova bug bit me long ago so if im going to even attempt a track car, my 1st attempt will be a nova!

although i do like pug GTIs, cool as f imo (cafimo?) lol

im excited now haha, when i get back from working away this week i might go to town on it!

[Count Vaux Alot]

Buy a better, faster car to start with ;) A Saxo for example :thumb:

I would have to agree with you there Dar any one of the more modern variants clio, 106, saxo etc

[Tidy Max]

i have a nova ready for me to get stuck into, saves having to buy another car lol

[mowgli]

just track day it as it is..... you'd be amazed just how fast 50hp will get you round a track...... i know a bloke who had a 2cv racer with all of 29.5bhp & he overtook a 928 on a track..........

[Tidy Max]

haha are you joking?

[mowgli]

haha are you joking?

have you actually tried driving a 1.2 nova ridiculously hard, ie. fast enough to get it 4 wheel drifting???? it can actually be a lot of fun.

the whole point of a trackday car is to have fun. you aren't actually supposed to be racing.

I'm serious. get a set of 165 tyres & wheels from a scrapper & go & give it hell. you will learn much more about driving a nova fast than you will by sticking a huge motor in it & trying to work out what to do with all the understeer you'll get.

i am serious about the skinny tyres too. too many people fall into the trap of sticking huge lo-pro tyres on.

a std 1.2 nova on std suspension, astra mk3 vented discs & calipers(236mm) 5"steel wheels and a set of antiroll bars will be hilarious. then as you progress, get it lowered a bit & buy some decent damping. then you can think about progressing on to more power, bigger brakes & bigger wheels.

[Tidy Max]

4 wheel drifting lol the thing would roll, its already like i am on a trampoline,

do cars have to be mot'd to go on track?

[mowgli]

4 wheel drifting lol the thing would roll, its already like i am on a trampoline,

do cars have to be mot'd to go on track?

not sure about the mot thing, but I can assure you that if you only put skinny tyres on, it will drift. I used to get my first one (on 145's) into some ridiculous angles

[Tidy Max]

lol i can imagine that being v.good fun!

working away this week but when i get back i think i will empty the garage, (nova and calibra interiors everywhere lol) and a dash board not to mention the finest collection of plastic plant pots,

bang some shelving up and get the nova in there, maybe ill finally learn something about engines!

[Ash]

mowgli speaks a lot of sence. Just track it as it is and find the weak points as you go. Start upgrading when the car is holding you back, rather than jumping in feet first with a fully spec'd thing and then trying to control it.

Hell i've seen mondeo TD estates on a trackday before lol

Start with the free stuff like stripping it and making the shell solid (ok that may not be free...) and go from there.

[mowgli]

mowgli speaks a lot of sence. Just track it as it is and find the weak points as you go. Start upgrading when the car is holding you back, rather than jumping in feet first with a fully spec'd thing and then trying to control it.

Hell i've seen mondeo TD estates on a trackday before lol

Start with the free stuff like stripping it and making the shell solid (ok that may not be free...) and go from there.

when i had an omega 16v estate, a friend who was running a track day was desperate to get me to take it as he'd seen one before on a track & thought it went well. needless to say, i didn't go

[Tidy Max]

do you not recon i would just piss everyone on the track off though? i bet you dont see that many 1.2s on track lol

[mowgli]

do you not recon i would just piss everyone on the track off though? i bet you dont see that many 1.2s on track lol

as long as you are having fun & not breaking any rules, why are you worried about the other track users???????

[Tidy Max]

fair enough!

not being one to disturb the peace and all lol, but thats a fair point!

[MK999]

tbh they're not gonna be behind you long enough to get annoyed are they?

[Tidy Max]

haha thats true, im away at the moment but i can wait to get home and crack on :) after reading the project threads ive decided im going to get a nice clear area to work in for thd car, and maybe look at getting the engine out and cleaning/strengthening the bay and then painting up the engine! First things first im going to get a jet wash, air compressor and a cheap arc welder :)

[Jack]

especially since my gf said i can keep it up at her house, WOAH!
Been there done that, turned out to be an annoyance when I wanted to ditch her but couldn't as the Nova was in a barn on her dad's farm lol

Never be in a position where you can't cut and run in the time it takes for her to have a shower :D

[Tidy Max]

yayy RJ, where have you been?? And it is a fair point, been together 3 years now though, i wont be doing a runner mega quick haha