Cirrusdriver

Long time HPDE guy making the transition into racing. I recently purchased a Radical SR3 to race and it’s an amazing car but the series entry is $4500/weekend plus a few sets of slicks which adds up quickly. I planned on getting racing experience more affordably in SCCA but unfortunately the Radical is not competitive in P2 which is the only class it slots in.

I noticed PCA also has very affordable entry fees. What car/class would you recommend that has a decent amount of entries? It would be a big bonus if there was a car that is competitive in an SCCA class as well. Budget wise I would prefer to keep it under 100k because I can’t afford to write off a totaled car that’s worth more than that. I would love a factory built 981 CS but those are still above 100k and I also believe they don’t have a class in SCCA. I would consider an older cup car or any of the slower options too(Boxster/cayman). I don’t enjoy maintenance and car prep although I’m capable so I would prefer to have something fairly reliable.

jdistefa

SPB IMHO

raspritz

There are quite a few words in your post that have meaning in the HPDE world but do not belong in any post having to do with wheel-to-wheel racing any type of Porsche:

Just sayin'.

Cirrusdriver

Those look like fun and well represented. They appear to run in T3 for SCCA. I don’t believe they would be competitive at all in SCCA but certainly a great option for PCA.

I am very busy with my job and family life during the summer so it’s hard to travel cross country for a race weekend. My home track is Road America and I could make most of the races within a reasonable drive. This is my reasoning for trying to run both PCA and SCCA.

Cirrusdriver

Hah fair enough. Perhaps I should go back and edit the post to “ideally would cost less than my aviation hobby”

This idea all started when I noticed that a Cup car slots great in both organizations, it just doesn’t slot well into my net worth class

LuigiVampa

Test to become a Cup car driver:

Is it my corner?

A. Yes
B. No

If you answer A you are qualified.

jdistefa

^ for the win

(I mean overall thread win, RL annual post win, and of course T1 first lap win.)

mobius911

If you want a car that can run in two race org's, then Spec Miata. Run it in SCCA and NASA. That will give you the most shots on goal for race weekends, and it fits most of your other preferences.

RennPart

SPB, largest car turnout in a newer, easy to find cheap parts car.

If PCA Club Racing can allow for the later (00-04) 2.7L Boxster's to run in the same class this would make it even more affordable. If Spec Miata can do it then I don't understand why PCA can't find a way to BOP the 2.7l cars.

Jeff951NJ

Another non-Porsche class to look at is Spec E46. They have huge car counts and the car slates into a class nicely in all sanctioning bodies.

M13S

I would run a cup car in SCCA (GT2) and GTC4/5/6 in PCA, IGT 3.6, 3.8, 4.0 and GT or SGT class in TransAm. In SCCA Club you may also double-dip and run ITEZ as well but I would have to read the rulebook depending on the cup car. Those are the classes that I run in with my 997.1 (Sans ITEZ) You would add weight in GT2 to meet the min class requirements in GT2 and TransAM depending on the make 997.1/2 991.1/ 991.2. The GT2 rules in SCCA are compatible with TA to allow for cars to go from SCCA Club to SCCA Pro racing with minimal changes. Out of all the series time on track per weekend with the most to least time based on running in one class for the weekend.

PCA
TransAM
SCCA (If you run 2 classes in SCCA Club time would be under PCA)
IGT

If you need more info send me a DM.

Coming from a radical I think a cup car would feel pretty good to you. HPDE to W2W racing you will have to change some HPDE habits.

I would not build a race car ever again and after having a cup car it's the only way to go. IMHO. The Cup car, if properly maintained, stays on track racing. It has been the best race car I have ever raced.

Frank 993 C4S

First off, rather than focusing on the purchase price of the car you need to ask yourself how much you are prepared to budget for a race weekend. Frankly, the price to buy the car and the entry fees are usually the least expensive part of racing. Assuming your weekend includes, car prep/maintenance, transport, entry fees, shop race support, gas, tires, consumables, post race nut and bolt, how much are you willing to spend? $5k, $10k, 15K, $20k+ per race weekend? Are you planning to pay for damage insurance? Also, how competitive do you want to be? If you are going to shoot for the pointy end of the grid, will you be working with a coach, an engineer, remote data analysis? The associated cost can add significantly to the expenses of a race weekend. How important is it to run in a big class (like SPB) at the tracks that you are planning to go to? Keep in mind that you will be racing against 40 - 50 other cars anyway as PCA is mixed class racing.

For a Porsche race car, reliability is closely correlated with a proactive maintenance program and a good damage history for the car. It's good to stay away from "home built" race cars and buy one that has been built and maintained by a reputable shop.

Frank 993 C4S

Sorry - double post.

Gear Rower

Cup cars are likely the best "race car" of the field, but the operating costs are beyond what most mortals can manage, especially if you want to be competitive.
Letter Cars allow you to build a car to your own preferred specs, but the field can be tiny, with often only one or two cars in your class at an event.
​​​​​​Can't beat the operating costs and size of field in SPB. Tranny is a weak-point and no rear LSD, so driving characteristics won't be for everyone. You'll be mixing it up with SP2 944s, too.
I've settled on SPC, which offers a relatively affordable weekend with a car that can keep pace with the bottom 1/3rd of the GTB1 field. It's a growing class, too. Very supportive group and I'm a big fan of a spec class format to prevent the arms race.

FredC

911Cup. nuff said.