drivemusicnow
15+ Year Contributor
- 1,444
- 30
- Nov 15, 2004
-
Germany,
Europe
I've told parts of the story at times in other threads, but I really want a place for me to put all of my thoughts, and for other people who may be thinking about doing the same type of thing. This is going to be a few very long posts, (I'm at work so they likely won't all be in a row either) I will be making "how-tos" with pictures for a lot of the things I talk about in this thread, but progress goes slowly, especially with my job requiring 60+ hours a week from me. So here goes.
My Dad purchased this Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX brand new back in 1993. He drove it for 10 years straight with very few problems. Clutch had to be replaced once, normal wear parts, and a timing belt broke. (He brought the car in and asked our mechanic about an oil leak coming from the timing belt area, the mechanic said it wasn't a problem, timing belt broke 2 weeks later... we don't use that mechanic anymore). My sister then got the car and beat the living crap out of it for 2 years while she was at college. (she only got into 2 minor accidents with the thing
) Then it was my turn. Ever since highschool I have wanted to take that car and build it to be a "race car". So, just under 3 years ago I convinced my parents to let me take the car (it was running kind of badly) and do with it what I wanted.
Original plans were some bolt ons, good tuning equip, a re-ring/re-hone, new brake pads, and lots of track time. Well, like all things, the engine was worse than I thought. My sister had run it low on oil, and for a short period of time the engine was starving for oil. It "crank walked" due to this oil shortage, and tore up the bearings. I had saved up about 2$K for this project, and was at a standstill because I didn't want to spend all of that on the motor. Essentially, I took some time to save up, buy parts as I found good deals on them, and have since changed my plans into an "all out streetable track car". Like Ludachris, I'm not going to be able to buy a tow vehicle and trailor, so I will have to drive to the track.
Most of the work in planning out a full car build is in determining a budget, figuring out which parts you can skimp on and which parts you cant. Being able to make a decision between different brands/models of a part to determine which will better suit your needs and budget is not easy. I made an Excel spreadsheet to help me figure out an overall planned budget, and then keep track of my spending (i.e. actual cost) It also helped me organize where I was going to purchase things from, and what I was still undecided on. I HIGHLY recommend organizing your thoughts and budget like this as it is invaluable later on. (although the number at the bottom can be a bit depressing)
When I had FIRST figured out what I wanted to do to the car for some open lapping/HPDE events my total budget was about $3000. After making some discoveries, (like the oil starved motor) and deciding that it is better to spend money in the first place, rather than having to purchase something multiple times, or pay for hospital bills because it failed spectacularly, and deciding to go all the way with the car etc. As of now (and has been for about 2 years) the end budget is just under $14,000. This includes everything from wiring to suspension to a helmet. (and license costs). By the end of the year, I should have the car running, with only a few large things left to purchase and install. (Had I not run into some financial issues late last year, Id be much further along than I am. As it is, Ive made extremely slow progress, but Im okay with that.
As you can tell, this has been a long and detailed process, and I still have a ways to go. In the next few posts Ill go over some of the part decisions (system by system) that Ive made, the stripping/prep of the chassis, and the labor intensive things that Ive done. Ill then discuss what I still have left to do, and post links to the How tos that I have/will be putting together.
Please feel free to comment, post questions, point out things Ive forgotten, and add your experiences to the things I am going to talk about. (dont be afraid to go off topic) I will probably be posting some questions here as well, as I may potentially run into some problems installing certain things.
My Dad purchased this Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX brand new back in 1993. He drove it for 10 years straight with very few problems. Clutch had to be replaced once, normal wear parts, and a timing belt broke. (He brought the car in and asked our mechanic about an oil leak coming from the timing belt area, the mechanic said it wasn't a problem, timing belt broke 2 weeks later... we don't use that mechanic anymore). My sister then got the car and beat the living crap out of it for 2 years while she was at college. (she only got into 2 minor accidents with the thing
) Then it was my turn. Ever since highschool I have wanted to take that car and build it to be a "race car". So, just under 3 years ago I convinced my parents to let me take the car (it was running kind of badly) and do with it what I wanted. Original plans were some bolt ons, good tuning equip, a re-ring/re-hone, new brake pads, and lots of track time. Well, like all things, the engine was worse than I thought. My sister had run it low on oil, and for a short period of time the engine was starving for oil. It "crank walked" due to this oil shortage, and tore up the bearings. I had saved up about 2$K for this project, and was at a standstill because I didn't want to spend all of that on the motor. Essentially, I took some time to save up, buy parts as I found good deals on them, and have since changed my plans into an "all out streetable track car". Like Ludachris, I'm not going to be able to buy a tow vehicle and trailor, so I will have to drive to the track.
Most of the work in planning out a full car build is in determining a budget, figuring out which parts you can skimp on and which parts you cant. Being able to make a decision between different brands/models of a part to determine which will better suit your needs and budget is not easy. I made an Excel spreadsheet to help me figure out an overall planned budget, and then keep track of my spending (i.e. actual cost) It also helped me organize where I was going to purchase things from, and what I was still undecided on. I HIGHLY recommend organizing your thoughts and budget like this as it is invaluable later on. (although the number at the bottom can be a bit depressing)
When I had FIRST figured out what I wanted to do to the car for some open lapping/HPDE events my total budget was about $3000. After making some discoveries, (like the oil starved motor) and deciding that it is better to spend money in the first place, rather than having to purchase something multiple times, or pay for hospital bills because it failed spectacularly, and deciding to go all the way with the car etc. As of now (and has been for about 2 years) the end budget is just under $14,000. This includes everything from wiring to suspension to a helmet. (and license costs). By the end of the year, I should have the car running, with only a few large things left to purchase and install. (Had I not run into some financial issues late last year, Id be much further along than I am. As it is, Ive made extremely slow progress, but Im okay with that.
As you can tell, this has been a long and detailed process, and I still have a ways to go. In the next few posts Ill go over some of the part decisions (system by system) that Ive made, the stripping/prep of the chassis, and the labor intensive things that Ive done. Ill then discuss what I still have left to do, and post links to the How tos that I have/will be putting together.
Please feel free to comment, post questions, point out things Ive forgotten, and add your experiences to the things I am going to talk about. (dont be afraid to go off topic) I will probably be posting some questions here as well, as I may potentially run into some problems installing certain things.
