geetar Posted August 3, 2013 Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 Gonna sit back and save my money up for a few months, but I thought I'd go ahead and ask. I'd like to have one to race at CTS, and I was looking around and thought I'd get some feedback from y'all. Thanks! Also, would a 2000 Chevy Cavalier be a competitive car? Looking at the specs I wouldn't think so, but you guys might know more than me, and I should be able to get one that I see parked in my work's parking lot pretty cheap when that inspection sticker is just about expired... Thanks again for any tips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiTech Posted August 3, 2013 Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 cavaliers are good cars .tough cars to boot .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fast18 Posted August 3, 2013 Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 Saturns are popular. If that Cavalier had the 2.4 instead of the 2.2 I think it would be better. Make sure you read the rules closely before buying a car. Also you should go through the pits and check some of the cars up close. (some may be for sell soon) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geetar Posted August 3, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 Saturns are popular. If that Cavalier had the 2.4 instead of the 2.2 I think it would be better. Make sure you read the rules closely before buying a car. Also you should go through the pits and check some of the cars up close. (some may be for sell soon) Yeah, I remember last year there was a Saturn that seemed to win every night I was there. I've been going through the pits every chance I get and I remember noticing there's also a few Sentras.. The reason I mention the cavalier is there's someone driving one to work with no front bumper and headlights hanging by the wires. The car is kinda beat up and I figure it won't pass inspection like that, so maybe I could get the car for under or around 500. Is there anything specific I should be trying to get? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fast18 Posted August 3, 2013 Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 The reason I mentioned the possibility of a mini being for sale is because you have to think about cost & time. You buy a car that runs you still need a cage, harness, window net. You have to spend time to install, cage, harness, window net, strip car. It may be easier & cheaper to get a car that is already built. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alloutpc17 Posted August 3, 2013 Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 Wes walker has a really nice mini stock race ready with spares. Its a ford escort 2 door. Great car and competitive. Its the black #2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallblock Posted August 3, 2013 Report Share Posted August 3, 2013 Call Jim Teague Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford27 Posted August 5, 2013 Report Share Posted August 5, 2013 ...would a 2000 Chevy Cavalier be a competitive car? Looking at the specs I wouldn't think so, but you guys might know more than me, and I should be able to get one that I see parked in my work's parking lot pretty cheap when that inspection sticker is just about expired... If the 2000 came with the 2.4lt dohc Ld9 engine then yes it could be competitive. It should have more horses than the saturn or the Zxs. Zx2's are 130 hp while Saturn are like 126 or something like that. But Caveliers are heavy so you'll need those extra horses. You''l probably have about 150 extra pounds than the zx2 and almost twice that than the saturns. Thats where the saturns when stock have an advantage, they are very light. Also depends on the engine condition. Our zx2 had over 150k on the car when we pulled it from the junk hard and has 2 or 3 seasons of racing on the motor so I'm sure it has lost alot of power since it was new, but it keeps on running so we keep on running it and it's only about a tenth or two of the saturns. But not bad for a $200 engine. I would say it's a good bet with that engine but any others might not be some of those have only about 85 horses. I would concentrate on weight.Theres not much you can save weight wise in a mini but if you strip everythin dash and all you might be able to get it close. Also I think the saturns have aluminum wheels while most other minis came factory with heavy a$$ steel wheels. That makes a huge difference as well. Steel has twice the rotateing weight. But rules say stock wheels so...I dont know if caviliers came with aluminum or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobbyChaffee Posted August 5, 2013 Report Share Posted August 5, 2013 ... I've been going through the pits every chance I get and I remember noticing there's also a few Sentras... The only Sentra that I remember running was the HIGH 5. It could hang with the Saturns. It had 130,000 miles on the odometer when it was built. I don't know how far off it actually was. We turn those cars at a high RPM so when they blow, they blow. Ours actually got hot. We looked at using a 200SX for the next build but didn't find one in reasonable shape at a reasonable price. We also looked and a late 90's Altima 4 cylinder but in the end that car was to heavy. The Saturns get all the performance advantages of an import but get all the rule breaks as a domestic. The one factor that a lot of people fail to remember is that all the cars in the mini stocks that have consistently run up front were all build by teams / individuals with experience building cars in upper divisions. To get a car to run fast, it has to have a solid foundation first. I have an idea on what car to build next and who I want to build it but I can't reveal all of the speed secrets on here. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geetar Posted August 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2013 I see what you mean about the saturns, and they're cheap too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
top_shelf_12 Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 One more thing to possibly consider I would think, Saturn is no longer being built so maybe do a little research on availability of parts should you need to replace. Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trbfan Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 There are two Ford Contours out there, I have one of them. They are decently quick cars, not quite on the same level as a Saturn though. My biggest issue this year is a rotating series of engine problems in every race so far. There is a Pontiac Sunfire that is pretty quick as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford27 Posted August 19, 2013 Report Share Posted August 19, 2013 I also have a Saturn sw1 station wagon for sale$1500 runs great and is ready to be turned into a race car. I would love to see a station wagon out there running around.-Sold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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