Car prices

[sunskreens]

Wow really informative. Well as said before don't really intend to do 170kmh until I am confident I can handle it and even then only gonna be on the track. Looked at some CRX's but lol I might get some abuse for this but they are a bit ugly IMHO would prefer an EF9 but they are expensive. Oh and lol Demon, if I get the car and I find something nice after that I could give you first dibs on it hahahaha

[Leon]

Well as I run both a Civic and an AW11 (the red one at Todd Park the other week), I will stick my oar in too.

AW11 is a great car for the track, quite good for hillclimbs etc, and utter crap at an autocross. The track gives you room to loop the thing off into the scenery without dying (probably), while if you loop it at a hillclimb you're likely to clobber something. The autocross venues we have around Wellington are all small, which means low speed. Low speed in an MR2 means understeer. Also, it puts you effectively in the same class as all the FWD cars, and on a loose surface they're going to kick your arse big time. Trust me

Another thing to keep in mind is not all AW11's are the same. I had an 84, and that was razors edge handling, brakes that only worked for one lap, but was superb on a good day when you got it all right. The 88 supercharged feels like a limo compared to the 84, and I can chuck the 88 around a lot, without feeling like I am going to instantly die the second it goes wrong. Toyota played with the AW11 a lot through the build run, so research and drive to find out what you're looking at.

Autocrossing, and the odd track day with a budget of $1500, I'd repeat the suggestion that a ZC would fit that requirement. The ZC is a superb engine for autocrossing, and puts the power down in a way that suits the loose surface stuff like autocross events really well. A Civic might be less twitchy than a CRX, if you're new.

You only need power if you're doing sealed events around Wellington, in the unsealed autocross stuff you need traction not power. I've had a stock standard 1998 Corolla station wagon in the top ten, and a stock standard EE90 belonging to the girlfriend in the top 5 at an autocross. So, don't rule out anything that isn't dohc vtec. I've been beaten in a 4AGE Corolla with LSD by a D15B (I think? economy vtec 1500 anyway) Civic because they drove better than I did on the day

Couple of autocross events, and a track sprint this month. 14th Kapiti Car club running a gravel autocross at the paddock beside the Otaihanga Tip (go in tip driveway, pass hutt, turn left). 20th Hutt Valley Motorsport club Dual car sprint Manfeild. 28th Harbour Capital Car Club Donnelly park autocross www.hccc.org.nz

Buying a $1500 vtec ... www.te.co.nz and be prepared to weed out the total lemons by going to look at them. There are one lady owner cars still around, I just picked up my EF9 off a 60 year old lady who'd owned it since it arrived in NZ 12 years ago, but I paid plenty more than $1500 for it.

[sunskreens]

Hmm lol everyone says the car is going to kill me, my main question to that is, is it a fun car to drive? Not fussed on power as if its underpowered, I should technically stay alive for longer lol, that and it shouldn't be so edgy. If I have a few life and death experiences though I might be keen to sell it on but now I reckon it should be good. As said above, it's cheap, cheap parts and light weight so hopefully it lives up to my expectations. Anyone else who has experience, info, feedback, feel free to post up your opinions

[VTAKYO]

I'd recommend an EF3 or E-AT (with DOHC ZC) for a basic clubsport car. There are a few down here that seem to do well. Parts are pretty readily available too.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by sunskreens

Hmm lol everyone says the car is going to kill me, my main question to that is, is it a fun car to drive?

It might kill you if you drive like an idiot on the road, although you're more likely to kill the car using some part of the roadside scenery.

Oh god yes, the AW11 is a really fun car to drive, in supercharged, or naturally aspirated form. They're really not all that fast, but they are an absolute laugh. Plus, the naturally aspirated ones can be really good on gas when you drive them nicely.

Look for rust everywhere. Anything except the glass and tyres can and will rust.

Don't go anywhere near an auto, because they won't be anything like as much fun.

[sunskreens]

Oh if its fun that I'm sorted. Not really fussed about speed, should come with experience of which I'm lacking atm. Yeah will keep the old ZC's in mind.

[Baxter]

Originally Posted by sunskreens

my main question to that is, is it a fun car to drive? Not fussed on power as if its underpowered, I should technically stay alive for longer lol, that and it shouldn't be so edgy.

I wouldn't really call mine fun to drive specifically because it's gutless - and indeed it's that lack of grunt to catch a slide (assuming I was actually quick enough these days ) that emphasises the MR2's 'edgy' problem. The 4AGE doesn't have low torque like a ZC.