Rexracer77

Hey all.

Just wanted to introduce myself here, as my priority with my Vette is racing. History, raced circle track, wanted to race road course, so started doing Chumpcar with Escort ZX2, and Camaro.

I wanted to start this thread so I don't keep jacking other peoples topics with my own questions/thoughts.

I just joined the Corvette club a few weeks ago by purchasing...
a 1992 C4, with ZF6 speed....180k miles....that had been driven COMPLETELY under a chain link fence. The hood is cracked, the wheel was bent, the rear toe rod was bent, it hadn't been cleaned since..ever? FX-3 suspension, doesn't seem to work at all.

So you can imagine this is NOT a pretty car, but everything works, and it actually runs really well, AC even works!

You may wonder, why would I start with such a car? Well it cost me 3k... and in the Pacific Northwest, that's cheap for one of these. My other option was a Miata, but since I race 4cyl currently, I wanted to work on high HP driving, instead of sustained momentum like a Miata.

Background. Obviously I am on a budget. I have $4200 to spend on this project. So far i Have gotten the car $3k, re-couped $2.86 in change while cleaning car, $200 for new hood/headlight assembly, $186 license/title/plates, $170 full Poly kit (180k figured everything had to be worn out by now), $68 in parts to build aluminum rear toe link setup as stock was bent, $125 for good set of C5 wheels (for track tires), $48 in tune up parts, $19 DRM Bias spring (waste? Seemed cheap to balance brakes out), $68 full redline fluids, and some odds/ends.

Total budget so far, ~$3922.

Planning to find some used track-able tires to mount up to the C5 wheels. And a track dedicated brake/rotor setup. I need a better seat, simply because the stock one is so torn up. I plan to build my own belt cross bar, and open top support bar (never seen one, seems like a good idea to strengthen car, while providing helmet clearance). I did a Auto-X a few weeks ago, worked great, was faster then most of the stock C5/6/and the 7.

So what say you, the racing community, what should I be working on? Hopefully if you have read this far, you know suggesting spending $3500 on a brake setup is a stupid thing to say. Is there any interest in racing on a budget here? Where should I be pointing my precious few dollars? Shocks are one of my biggest concerns.

jaa1992

On the DRM bias spring - good call. Helps to keep the car more balanced.

So things to watch for
Rear hubs tend to not last long at all
If your race series allows it - replace every single bushing before getting on track.
I did mine so long ago I can't remember how much the kit and the sway bar bushings cost.

If you cage the car you will not need any of the other support bars. Mine tightened up with just a roll bar install.

I know you are on a budget, but as soon as you can - accusump AND a road race oil pan. Or be prepared to swap the engine out if you have lots of right hand sweepers.

As far as the seat goes - any road race seat will be fine.

Almost forgot - if you have the 12" dia rotors up front then just get some good racing pads. My stock stuff with carbotech xp12/xp10 combo and the DRM spring can haul my 3500lb 92 from 125/130 to 60 lap after lap (Road Atl back straight top speed, slowing for 10A)

Rexracer77

Thanks for the input. I plan is Auto-X and HPDE days.

Rear hubs, maybe that's the rotating squeaking I was hearing after the Auto-X...
I have full Poly set to be installed this winter.
I could cage it, but I want to keep it 100% streetable, and don't see a way to do forward bars without gutting the doors or dash. Is this do-able?
I was worried about he accu-sump/pan. I thought I read somewhere that the stock one was fine for HPDE days.

I was thinking of getting some R6's, but would that put a lot of additional stress on the car?

jaa1992

Do the roll bar and a good seat for streetable. Full cage will require gutting the doors and modifying the dash.
So my full stock motor lived a long time with the stock pan - if you have no long right hand sweepers it will live for a while (look at the sweeper at CMP to see what I mean)

The R6s will add more stress to the suspension and hubs.

First thing to check is the axle nut torque on the rear - its an ungodly number.
After making sure its torqued correctly jack up one corner and try to push/pull at 12 &6 then 3 &9 if the wheel moves at all at 3&9 - you need a new hub on that side. If it moves at 12&6 check the tie rods for play, no tie rod play = need a hub.

Check the oil level after EACH run/session - keep it full.

For the FX3 - take the motors off the shocks and see if they are broken. If not you can sell them to someone that needs them. Look in the C4 tech section and find what adjustable shocks folks are using. Get good shocks.

If you have to replace the hubs - go ahead and replace the U joints (2 per side). There is also a teflon washer that should be replaced as well.

Rexracer77

Perfect thanks, this is exactly the type of advise I am looking for!

FAUEE

My '92 is basically the same deal (though I suspect mine might be a bit prettier than yours - it ended up cleaning up surprisingly well).

IMO, if you're doing AX and HPDE, don't bother with race tires. I've got Bridgestone RE760s on my stock 17s, and the 275s all the way around provide a good mix of grip and learning. Running a super sticky tire will mask mistakes that you're making, and so you won't get as much out of each session. I'll probably stick with the Bridgestones (they're ~$500 shipped a set) though I have considered going with the super cheap Sumitomos to make for even lower limits and thus even more need to drive skillfully.

I'd check to see if the car is only FX3, or if it is also a Z07 car. Z07 will have stiffer springs and swaybars, and if you don't have a Z07, I would look into upgrading those. I have upgraded springs and bars on mine and it handles great.

With a car like that, the best money you can spend right now IMO is reliability. Flush all the fluids (especially the brake fluid... trust me on this one), change the brake lines (I used stainless steel braided lines), and replace the power steering line with the DRM one (the stock one has a bad habit of breaking during track use - you can imagine things go poorly from there).

A bar, seats, and belts are definitely a great way to spend money, but it ends up being pretty expensive and while it's on my list of things to do, it's not the top priority. Nor is the Accusump/race oil pain, my instructor (as well as a few other instructors with NASA SE) run C4s with stock engines and haven't had any troubles.

I've got J55 brakes on my car now, and they're much better than the basic brakes, but eventually I'll still switch to C5 brakes for the fronts. That is unfortunately a bit more expensive project as the brackets to mount the calipers are over $100 alone, then the calipers tend to be $200-300, and you need rotors and pads, and I would need wheels. All in, that's like $700 for performance that is only moderately better than the J55s. So the short of it is, if you don't want to spend a bunch for C5 fronts, I do consider the J55s to be a worthwhile upgrade (though if you have C5 wheels already a large part of the cost is dealt with already).

I have Koni yellow shocks. They came on the car (mine was originally an FX3 car as well). They work, I haven't messed with them really though.

Post some pictures of the little track thing

jcsperson

PM Richard Newton (rfn026). He's very knowledgeable about C4s. Also check out the thread entitled, "C5 Track Car \ HPDE Conversion: What I have learned!" It's mostly about C5s, but there is a lot of info on general HPDE stuff in there. It's a tome, though.

Good luck!

mikeCsix

Left hand sweepers at the Ridge and PR.

froggy47

Not sure what you mean here? There is no poly in rear HUBS. You mean rear bushings?

Rexracer77

Sorry wasn't real clear.

Separate statements. I may need hubs, as I was hearing a rotating squeaking after the Auto-X.

Also to answer someone else statement, I already purchased a full poly kit to install over the winter.

On that subject. It looks like I do need at least new front hubs. I know the good hubs are the Timkins (from what I have seen so far). But are the cheap ones really that bad? At 1/10th the cost I could replace them twice a year, and still be when i move on from the car in 2-5 years.

Also, what is a good bang/buck shock setup?

Rexracer77

Thanks for the input.

Where do you get the Bridgestones for $500 a set?

I have the FE7 "heavy duty suspension" not sure how that compares to the Z07

I have Redline trans/rear end fluid coming, and a brake fluid flush when I get some speedy bleeders. I didn't know the power steering line was prone to failure, ill have to order one up.

The stock seat is junk, basically no foam left, so instead of putting money into fixing it, ill go with a race seat of some sort. Bar i will build myself (free'ish) and belts etc we have laying around. Accusump/pan will come if I decided to ring/bearing the motor this winter.

I have the J55 brakes, so will just do pads to start.

need input on good value shock setup.

Thanks again for feedback!

Rexracer77

Sorry i combined to thoughts into 1 sentence.

Rear hubs may need replacing.

also

I got a full poly set to be installed.

63Corvette

I recommend Forum vendor GT Racing tires (search). They offer scrub slicks and R-Comp tires for very little money (from $50 to $200/tire, but most around $100/tire. Some of their tires have ony been mounted and still have the sticker, but most have some laps on them I bought cheapest at $50/tire, cause I only track my car 2 of 3 times a year and they have lasted (so far) 4 years. Yes, they are hard as nails and need 3 laps to warm up, but so what? They stick well after warm up , and the ONLY reason I run them is to keep from using up my expensive street tires PS 18" wheels have most tire options.

FAUEE

Ebay had the Bridgestones from discount tire direct, however they're sold out already. They're still running $100 off orders $400 or more until the end of the day though.