Good platform for a bracket car?
 

I'm tossing around the idea of buying a car this winter(when prices are in the buyer's favor) with the intentions on it being a bracket car that will be driven to the track. I've been thinking about either a 3rd or 4th gen f-body with an automatic trans, or possibly a foxbody mustang, again with an auto. I'll probably be looking to spend between 3-5k for the car and a pair of tires.I don't want to do a purpose-built race car, but rather something i can race as is and then as time goes on add parts here and there. I want something consistent that will handle a decent amount of abuse, and again, will be driven to the dragstrip.

Any thoughts on using the ideas mentioned? Any other ideas on a different car to think about?

A 79-80 Malibu 2-door would probably make a great bracket car. They are pretty light and share a lot of common GM parts that are readily available. I'm sure you can find one of those fairly cheap too. That'll allow you to purchase a good motor & trans for it with the supporting mods.

The 78, 81, and 82 Malibu's are the same (minus a few grille differences), why count them out? Basic parts on those are cheap, but there are some things that are through the roof, since there are a relatively small number of them around. Try finding a set of rust-free doors with no internal damage. You're looking at at least $400 each.

j0n, you should see if you can score a late 80's Formula 350 - go back to your roots!

- Justin

on your suggestion, justin, i did a quick search on ebay and came up with this: :shock: :shock: :shock: 1 of 17 '89 formula 350 convertibles :drool:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1989-...QQcmdZViewItem

With too much money to know what to do with, Mr. Myzie begins coming up with various plans haha.

You think he would mount the coolant overflow correctly and fix the sagging underhood insulation if he was trying to get $7,500 for a 3rd gen (regardless of the rarity). Doesn't he know that most people will just go - "Eh, it's just a 3rd gen 'vert".

Stick with a hardtop/t-top car.....you can go way faster without a bar (at places other than Atco....)

- Justin

theres a monte for sale by my house for 1500, you could probably get it for 1000 though. the trans is a lil messed up, but its got a 350 and its auto. theres also a 94 4th gen bird for 1000 here. but its v6

There's a 2nd gen formula for sale near Louka's Diner on Rt22 in Bridgewater :D

yea i'll be going with a hardtop car...i was just pointing out the sexy *** convertible.

I'm not a big fan of 2nd gens but thanks...monte carlo i might go for ...they look really heavy though

this has nothing to do with the money that i may or may not get...i just need something quicker than a neon to play around with

the best, low cost, way to get into brackt racing is prolly a thirdgen. there are a million early thidgen z28's, t/a's, and other V8 models all over the place.
hardtop vs t-top, not that important unless you plan on going really really fast some time soon. since t-top cars are much more common, there would be no real reason to go hunting around specifically for a hardtop car that won't have any helpful performance advantage.
jsut look for a car in good shape that is a factory V8 + automatic car. the less converting you have to do to get what you want the better, so if you plan to build a stronger carb'ed motor, save some money and get an 87 or earlier model that already has a carb. if you get a later car, it is jsut more work on top of the extra $$$$ you spend on the pruchase.

4 gens cut the air best out of all of them - very low in the front from what we see its the most consitant - no t tops no verts no ta ground affects - lt 1 with a powerglide and a 12 bolt great 12 second street race platform and its easy to drive and wont break stuff -- jz

there's 2 for sale in the classifieds now

I think any of the early 80's full frame GM cars would make a good candidate. Monte Carlo, Regal (or GN), Grand Prix, Cutlass supreme and I may be missing one.

full frame GM = tank.
many of those cars weigh 3700+lbs dry. it takes a lot of work to get them down to the 3200ish of a thirdgen or even the 3350-3400ish of an average 4th gen.

notch
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Running brackets is about consistency. It really doesn't matter what type of car you run as long as it is consistent and you spend the time running it learning what affects its performance (and yours). I never really raced a TPI car in competition, but the LT1 cars do run consistent and a 12-13 second F-body would be a good bracket car for cheap.

When you say bracket car what are you thinking about? If your looking to run something more competitive look at running Summit points in trophy or better yet street class. The rules limit you to no electronics, no quicker then 11.50 and a DOT tire. This means you can get into some very competitive racing for low cost and still have the chance to even make a few bucks along the way. This is a great way to improve your racing skills and learn allot about dialing in the car and being consistent.

As an example I've run street and the toughest guy to beat runs a 66 nova with a little 327 CI motor. Car runs 14.x all day long. He knows what the car will run just by keeping an eye on the engine temp and gauges ET by the tach keps him near his dial-in and about impossible to push him to break out, combine that with good lights and you have what pure bracket racing is all about. Ask anyone that runs Street or Pro/heavy at Maplegrove, Island or Numidia about Tom Harhart and his "Golden Retriever" 66 Nova! He's terrorized all the other racers at those tracks!

John that's exactly what im looking to do. Just run Street or Trophy class, most likely at island, and be able to just buy a car, slap some tires on it, go racing, and be consistent. I think I'm going to look into either an lt1 z28 or formula when it comes time to buy.

they actualy make horrible bracket cars unless you have sunk many many thousands of dollars into them.

Man, there was a Z28 that would have made the PERFECT platform that someone sold a little while back. Has a bunch of mods, and was pretty quick!

yea well that was when i was playing with bikes :-P

and look where that got ya :-) What about a tubbed Abody?

meh...too much work...im lazy and still a bit broken

edit: plus ive ripped apart an lt1 f-body before so i can go into it with some knowledge instead of flying blind

If you go to a points race you see an endless list of combos'. Pick what you like. Fox mustang or a Lt1 are good. LS1 is also good but more bucks to buy. Auto is a must. Its cheaper to buy something already done than to do a build up. The more "bracket" the car is means less streetable. Bracket racing is not about how fast. Fast is very adictive and you really don't want to make the car faster during the season. 99% of the post on the internet are about how fast. Running a point series pounds the living crap out of the car. The car is a tool for racing and you need to match what everyone else has to be competiteve. Bring a knife to a gunfight thing. Again not how fast but how dialable and reliable. No flames but the competition in an Fbody event is totally different when running the summit series. Island and Numedia do have a few hitters in street. Atco, Cecil, and Maple have like 20 hitters in street. Running better competition does make you a better racer. Maple does have a true entry class (Trophy) which is an "easier" level. The Trophy class at Island isn't for beginners. I had a lot of fun with a 95 Formula convertable. I put in LT1 edit, 160 stat, and drag radials. With 2.73 gears I reprogrammed the rev limiter up a bit, moved the 1-2 shift up 1 mph (50 vs 49) and was able to cross the finish line in second gear. High 14's but more consistant than shifting into 3rd 100' in front of the stripe. But it was hard to put the car exactly on the numbers in later rounds when the competition was always dead on. My real bracket car is a 95 Formula stroked lt1, turbo 400, 12 bolt spool rear. Took a while ($$$$) but the car is a killer on the track but not driven on the street. Give me a yell if you end up with a LT1 or LS1. I'll save you some time, money, and sweat on what not to do.

John, just to point out Tom's golder retriever is driven to the track but make no mistake it's a very well prepared bracket car. Tom usually cuts consertivate lights (.020) and is able to run the number by watching his tack and adjusting on the top end. Tom's isn't watching the other car. When I go against him I set my car for a .020 light hold .05 on my dial. I either try to take strip by .01x or dump hard 60' in front of the stripe. Key point is that I run Tom just like any other racer. Tom gets a lot of red light wins because of his rep. Just keep to your program. Sorry kinda got off topic.