NEPOC - 24 hours of lemons?

chuyler1 said:
The yahoo group members mentioned upgrading the radiator as well.

Yeah, turbo might not be good in the reliability dept, but it would be fun while it lasts.

RX-7 would definitely be a "project" as I'm sure apex seals require a complete rebuild. I know I don't have the expertise but since I found it, I figured I'd post it. The 88 is a convertible, not sure how people feel about that. He says it runs, so that leads me to believe there is no mechanical front end damage, just body work.

ANy thoughts on the 626 w/ knocking noise? The symptom was "has no power".

Not sure what to think of the 626 vs Protege. The 626swe're finding are gonna have the 110HP 2.2L while the proteges will have the 103HP 1.8L or possibly (if it is an LX) 125HP. More torque on the 626 but also more weight.
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I think the protege is preferable vs the 626...and if we go with the 626 I seem to have found a lot of those in the region in the "few hundred dollar" range so I think we should be able ot find one without a knocking issue....probably with tons of cosmetic problems which is right up our alley.

Oleg has the right idea with just trying to finish the race....i saw these 2 comments yesterday on the yahoo message board and thought they set a good tone:

quote 1 said:
"This is not a race for Race Cars. It's a race for Idiots"
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quote 2 said:
"If you are scamming to get your ex-SCCA IT car or NASA wannabe racer into a Lemons race then your clearly missed the point.

If you are bolting on trick shocks and sticky tires. You missed the point.

If you want to go fast, or have a car that handles, or you must pass every car on the track or else your manhood will be in question then go REAL racing; ie; SCCA, NASA, Off Road, Shifter carts, etc.

This is Lemons racing. Bring your junk car. Run it. Have fun!"
Click to expand...
 
I talked with a shop owner who did this race last year... he emphesized the following points:

1. you will be hit
2. you will be hit a lot
3. your car will most likely be totalled from said hits
4. a nascar style 3 bars is highly recommended for the drivers door as that seems to be the area that gets hit the most
5. there are plently of 'jerks' that will actually try and take you out
 
If we go Non-mazda, there is no hope finding a mazda-related sponsor. Anyone think about contacting Mazda directly for a mini-sponsorship? And of course there are local dealers to contact.

I got a private email from one of the yahoo posters. He had some good things to say but mentioned we need to budget at least $1200 for the cage, and about $800 for tires/wheels. I'll draw up some new estimates.

He also said we'll need to have a welder, and someone who knows how to use it. Anyone?
 
i know ive posted in this thread multiple times... im a certified welder... and have access to a mig

and a cage WONT cost 1200.... thats for a custom bent, tig welded cage.... a prebent cage ranges from 250 - 500 and i can weld it in for free
 
http://nh.craigslist.org/cto/1009626969.html

This is a '92.
026.JPG
 
I drove in the Lemons South race at CMP last year. If you guys have any questions let me know. The first thing we learned about the 24 is that almost no one brings a true $500 car. Cheating on the cost of the car is the norm and it's really about bribing the judges at the value inspection to not dock too many laps. Seriously...we took a 4 cylinder Mustang and the judges laughed at us. 2 cars behind us was a 5.0L Mustang and he only got docked 8 laps due to the case of beer he gave the judges. There were several Lt1 powered cars there and they weren't in bad shape.

Whatever you do, don't bring an automatic. The few automatic cars that finished were usually running in only one gear for the final couple of hours. Use as light a car as possible to reduce wear on tires and brakes. Bring a spare radiator. Drive clean. They do assess penalties for aggressive driving and will put you in the penalty box. The key to doing well in any endurance race is to keep making laps. Time spent in the pits or the penalty area is what hurts more people than anything else. Our car was nowhere near as fast as most of the other cars on track, but our only time not on track was for a 3 hour pitstop to change a blown headgasket. We could have finished in the top 5 easily had that not happened.

If you guys pickup a 1st Gen Protege and need anything let me know. I have 2 spare radiators and some other random stock stuff. I would also love to come drive if you guys need an extra team member.
 
thanks for the tips! Did you guys shell out 400+ per driver for the protective gear or did you already have it or find a way to get it cheaper?
 
slug420 said:
thanks for the tips! Did you guys shell out 400+ per driver for the protective gear or did you already have it or find a way to get it cheaper?
Click to expand...

We split the costs on the stuff we needed for the car. Using a Mustang made it pretty cheap since we could get a cage from Jeggs. Every driver was responsible for his own suit, helmet, gloves, shoes. I bought a suit, shoes, gloves off Ebay for dirt cheap. I borrowed a helmet.
 
reading up it sounds like "cheating" and getting away with it is a way of lemon life. You might start with a $400 pile of rubble but by the end, it should be a race car. We might want to consider upgrading the brakes to something from a late model protege.
 
Ok, new spreadsheet. Includes additional budget for brakes, more realistic estimate for tires, a very small budget for spare parts, and 1,000 for the roll cage (DOM). If you know of a cheaper way to get a roll cage than back it up with a link.

The team commitment for each driver will be $645+/- a few hundred. That is on top of paying $100 to enter, $50 for a license, and as much as $415 for a suit and helmet. We might save money on some things here, but we'll just end up spending it on spare parts. if we get a cage for $500 and come across tires on the cheap, we're still looking at $500 team commitment per driver.

<table x:str="" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 249pt;" width="331" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><col style="width: 98pt;" width="131"> <col style="width: 48pt;" width="64"> <col style="width: 53pt;" width="70"> <col style="width: 50pt;" width="66"> <tbody><tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt; width: 98pt;" width="131" height="17">TEAM EXPENSES</td> <td style="width: 48pt;" width="64">
</td> <td style="width: 53pt;" width="70">
</td> <td style="width: 50pt;" width="66">
</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Vehicle</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">500.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B2:C2)" align="right">500.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Vehicle Sales Tax</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">25.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B3:C3)" align="right">25.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Team Entry Fee</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" u1:num="" align="right">500.00</td> <td x:num="" u1:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B4:C4)" u1:num="" u1:fmla="=PRODUCT(B2:C2)" align="right">500.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" u1:num="" height="17">Tires</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" u1:num="3205" u1:fmla="=SUM(D2<img src=" http:="" static.mazdas247.com="" smilies="" biggrin.gif="" border="0" alt="" align="right">100.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">8</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B5:C5)" align="right">800.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Wheels</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">50.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">4</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B6:C6)" align="right">200.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Brakes</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">200.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B7:C7)" align="right">200.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Rollcage</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="1000" align="right">1,000.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="1000" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B8:C8)" align="right">1,000.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Racing Seat</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">200.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B9:C9)" align="right">200.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">5-point harness</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">75.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B10:C10)" align="right">75.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Fire Extinguisher</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">20.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B11:C11)" align="right">20.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Neck Brace</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">45.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">2</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B12:C12)" align="right">90.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Exhaust Parts</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">0.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">0</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B13:C13)" align="right">0.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Kill Switch</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">15.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B14:C14)" align="right">15.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Spare Parts</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">100.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B15:C15)" align="right">100.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Fluids</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" align="right">150.00</td> <td x:num="" align="right">1</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="" x:fmla="=PRODUCT(B16:C16)" align="right">150.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td class="xl22">
</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">
</td> <td u1:num="534.16666666666663" u1:fmla="=D18/6">
</td> <td u1:num="">Total:</td> <td class="xl22" x:num="3875" x:fmla="=SUM(D2:D16)" u1:num="534.16666666666663" u1:fmla="=PRODUCT(B22:C22)" align="right">3,875.00</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" u1:num="" height="17">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">
</td> <td>
</td> <td># of Drivers:</td> <td x:num="" u1:num="999.16666666666663" u1:fmla="=SUM(D22<img src=" http:="" static.mazdas247.com="" smilies="" biggrin.gif="" border="0" alt="" align="right">6</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">DRIVER EXPENSES</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Team Commitment</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td x:num="645.83333333333337" x:fmla="=D18/D20" align="right">645.8333</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Driver Entry Fee</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td x:num="" align="right">100</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Lemon License</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td x:num="" align="right">50</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">Helmet & Race suit</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td x:num="" align="right">415</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17"> <td style="height: 12.75pt;" height="17">
</td> <td>
</td> <td>Total:</td> <td x:num="1060.8333333333335" x:fmla="=SUM(D23,D26)" align="right">1060.833</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
 
I think you may be overestimating the tire cost. If we go with stock 13" wheels for the Protege DX, and do the 175/70-13 size, we can get summer tires for like $41 each. For the 14" size, we are probably talking $80 max. But I guess it's good to be conservative!
 
You think we'll be fine with 175s? I was thinking we should try to stuff 195s bare minimum under there. Err, nevermind, don't think they make affordable 195/55/14, so 185/60/14 is probably our target. Whatever the case, wider=better as long as we don't go with too low of a profile. I'll update the cost to $400 for 2 sets, and we'll have whatever is on the car as a backup 3rd set. Can anyone get tires mounted/balanced for free?


People need a realistic estimate of what it 'could cost' to do this. Veterans are saying to expect $5-6K (not including driver suits/helmets and license). Sure we can cut corners, but it will only hurt us in the end. Last year about 10 cars (out of 25) didn't even make it through the first hour.

DOM tubing might be overkill for the speeds we're going but given the amateur status of us and the people around us, the cage is what'll keep the car together the whole event...especially after repeated hits near the driver's door. I dunno. It's your call. i'm just going with what was recommended to me.

...but if we estimate too high, so what...we'll just get money back in the end. However, we need a commitment from people based on the possibility that it could cost more. Otherwise we'll have a $500 car and no money left to bring it to the track.
 
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