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Most of us have had the privilege of attending a handful of vintage racing events in our lives so far, whether they be the Mt. Olympus-types like the Goodwood Members’ Meeting or the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, a simple down-to-earth VARA weekend, or even just a handful of E30s banging doors at your local circuit. There are plenty of reasons to attend both sides of that spectrum, for no matter how fast the cars go and how far the lap times fall in modern motorsport, the allure of historic competitors—downright archaic as some may be—is simply, special. It’s a live look into the past, and while it’s rare to see somebody flogging these cars like the drivers in period, it’s far from accurate to say they’re just doing parade laps (okay, some “races” are like this, but you get the point).
I’d so much rather attend a vintage racing event with “mid-tier” cars actually on track than walk around a bunch of static million-dollar-plus machines doing nothing, and when I inevitably have to drive back home from a day spent leaning on the fences and not wearing earplugs when I really should be, I always play the dangerous game of rationalizing the purchases necessary to build my own proper track car out of something born before the year 2000. I have far too many hypothetical builds in my head, but there’s no point in being close-minded, so I’ll turn it over to you guys: which classic car would you turn the dials up to 11 on? As you can see by the photos, I’ve tried to keep things a bit more on the realistic side, but feel free to spill the beans on your 917 fantasies too!
I do admit I am an Alfa Romeo fanatic and the Giulia Coupe is my greatest love, but frankly, I really respect and love all the cars listed here. The more populated the track is with a variety of toys, the better the quality of the competition. And the sweeter the sights and sounds! so, YOU decide what you want! 😀
I was always impressed by how Lotus cars seemed to “punch above their weight”, lapping faster than many larger cars. Finally in 2001, I found a 1967 Elan that had some “race prep”.
After 4 years of weekends/evenings, this was the result. First picture is at the 2016 Clifton hill climb, where we placed 1st in Vintage.Second is at Inde Motorsports Ranch in Wilcox, AZ
If I still owned it, my ’77 Triumph Spitfire 1500. All the people saying Mustang, or, 911 have no imagination. Where’s the challenge in taking an already fast car, installing a roll cage, and, calling it a “track toy”? The fun is starting with nothing, and, making it something, through your own blood, sweat, and, tears!
Considering what do I have in my garage or in my backyard now. I want to do a track oriented build with a 84′ mk2 vw scirocco or a 76′ mini 1000. But I’m more drawn to scirocco as the parts to service this car are more obtainable at local parts stores. And car had a minor fender bender in the back and it was bodged togeher so it would fit the racing style
Without doubt, one of the best cars for vintage racing is the Alfa Romeo 105 Giulia GT. very successful track cars in their day and very tuneable. Parts availability through specialist such as Classic Alfa, Alfaholics and Paul Spruell is very good with loads of performance options to chose from.
I like all the emphasis on Alfa’s. I can justify taking any relatively high production, slightly rusted favorite (no SS or Zagato) and focusing the restoration on track fun rather than show quality. As long as you save all the original parts and try to maximize bolted-on instead of welded-in modifications, you are bringing the car out of the rusty ravages of neglect and enjoying it mightily. Keep those old parts for the next restoration, in case you ever get too old for the track.
I always fancy a DeTomaso Pantera Group 5 replica. Maybe put a modern Roush engine and updated KW Suspension.
But my dream is to create a Super Saloon style replica. Maybe Aston Vantage with wide arches, extreme aerodynamic like Marsh Plant Aston Martin and V12 twin supercharged from newer Vantage 600.
I was going to suggest something similar. While it’s awesome that Mazda still runs its old Le Mans racers at events globally, pre-RX-7 cars are under represented. Since vintage events restrict engine options, RX-4 would be a good choice because it came with a 13B and there are still plenty of parts available compared to the 10A and 12A.
Hypothetical builds stuck in your heads drawing board or not – get them down on paper, then find it, and then get that down payment down on paper!
Me? I’m keeping it somewhat cheap and simple and going for the cheapest type of rusted out 105series Alfa and building what others build on the coupes!