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JackandOlly

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We have just joined this forum with the intention of buying a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 SXI, we both have an average background knowledge to transform our car into a track day car. This is our first build as we both had the same idea to buy a cheap car, and transform it into a monster. We, both are dedicated and are willing to do many hours of research and browsing the internet to make our understanding of this build larger.

So, our objective is to get a cheap standard car, and turn it into a track car. Where do we start?

Thank you
 
Well given you're starting out with little power and getting any big power from such an engine is going to require either an engine swap or huge amounts of money... I think personally your best focus is going to be making it quick on a track through handling mods, weight saving, brakes (etc) as apposed to having outright power...
 
Hi Rob

Thanks for your advice, we will deffintly take what you have said into consideration, we have read else where that there is not alot you can do with a 1.2 E.G Turbo, we did not plan on fitting boost to this car. We may at some point get a complete engine swap but if i am right in saying this means we have to upgrade several other parts to handle the new engine. What sort of handling mods do you suggest?
 
Decent tack tyres and well setup suspension (not just a cheap set of coilovers) would be my starting point.
 
Hello and welcome, nice to have you along. You'll enjoy it on here there are some really friendly helpful people around.
 
The best mods for a car engine are as follows.

Look at coilovers to uprate the suspension, these are generally more suited to performance cars.

Internal work yields the biggest gains, head work like porting polishing and 3 angle valve jobs will maximise the airflow and raise the power.

If you want to go to the max then cryo treat the block, get it rebored and look into blueprinting and balancing as well. You'll also need stronger internal parts if you are looking at a big power hike so forged rods etc.. are the order of the day.

Bigger valves are an obvious add on but not all engines are suitable as it depends how close together the OEM valves are.

A fast road cam will yield good power gains, especially in the top end of the rev range. Don't go mad though a profile of up to 270 degrees will give the best gains without the engine becoming cammy (lumpy tickover at low RPM).

The most popular power mods are induction kits (which are questionable as power mods but they can sound nice if that is your sort of thing) and sports exhausts with sports catalysts or decats.

To keep the car legal I'd recommend a sports catalyst rather than a decat.

The last mod should always be a remap as this will allow you to fully realise the power gains on offer from your mods. Turbo cars respond very well to remaps.

It's worth having a read of the articles on www.torquecars.com/tuning/ for more information on these mods and what the terms mean.
 
Hi and welcome.

Don't try running before you have even managed to crawl!

Strip unnessary weight and fit a a harder set of brake pads, a roll cage and race harnesses. Then sign up to a track driving school. Once you have learnt how to drive your existing car as fast as possible then is the time to consider further mods. This way you will be able to better assess which mods work the best.
 
old-git said:
Hi and welcome.

Don't try running before you have even managed to crawl!

Strip unnessary weight and fit a a harder set of brake pads, a roll cage and race harnesses. Then sign up to a track driving school. Once you have learnt how to drive your existing car as fast as possible then is the time to consider further mods. This way you will be able to better assess which mods work the best.
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Good sound advice there OG! :D
 
Each to his own. Always found Porcshe body designs out of proportion and just painful to look at. Mechanically they are fine it is just those awful bodies.
 
old-git said:
Each to his own. Always found Porcshe body designs out of proportion and just painful to look at. Mechanically they are fine it is just those awful bodies.
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Booo Where's the dislike button \B

944s make excellent track car's. Perfect 50/50 weight distribution and a big following. Even the basic lux model with its 165hp engine was pretty good. Bear in mind though, all 944s will be well over 23 years old so will require a good inspection for rot, belts etc and a lot of work especially when delving into the budget end. Price wise as a guide a excellent 944 lux will fetch £6000+ now and a turbo is going over the £13000 mark now. Enthusiasts know the value of their cars so anything priced lower, I.e EBay, Gumtree etc, be very wary and inspect every panel especially sills, very expensive fix (ask me how I know).
Give me shout if you want more info on 944s I owned one for 4 years.
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I think they do a pretty good job, the 911 looks amazing but hasn't changed much over the years but the classic look works well.

The 944 is not great looking but I certainly wouldn't object to owning one. It's probably the most accessible and affordable Porsche out there to run.
 
Porsche do my nut in. You need a degree in rocket science to understand all their models and variants of the same damn car.
 
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