mini challenge or dunlop sport maxx which one

[nicfred]

hi
i already have my 2010 national b license, first year of racing so im on a very tight budget.
do i buy a mini cooper and race in the mini challenge club class,worst part is the entry fee is £7500 and all needs paying upfront?
OR
do i buy a cooper s works and race the sport maxx series,this cost £4500 to enter and can be paid in 3 installments?

as its my first year i cant get my head around spending more on the entries in the mini challenge than i do on the car,so i thought if i do the sport maxx i get to spend roughly the same ammount but get a lot more car(if you follow,i get the cooper works s rather than the copper) and the sport maxx runs at the same meetings as the mini challenge,obviously the cooper works s is more than the cooper,but the end figure for both end up about the same for entries and car.
if i do the sport maxx this year in the works s i can then if things go well do the mini challenge in it next year when i am a little more experienced,or i guess i could buy the club class cooper and run that in the sport maxx c class,which will save even more money,next year things will be different as i dont have to budget for the car but this year things will be tight(unless i can get some sponsors which in my first year and having never raced cars b4 is not really going to happen),so which way should i go?
any help would be great as i need to make my mind up and buy a car so i can do a few track days first
thanks

[ado]

I would say get a club class or S class MINI and do sport maxx. Cheaper purchase cost than a works.

Do you have your heart set on MINI? If not then there are lots of other series with just as much fun.

[nicfred]

Originally Posted by ado

I would say get a club class or S class MINI and do sport maxx. Cheaper purchase cost than a works.

Do you have your heart set on MINI? If not then there are lots of other series with just as much fun.

thanks for the reply,yeh i really wanted a mini,i liked the idea of it being a one make series,and ive always liked mini's,obviously i know the sport maxx is not a one make series but it runs at the same meetings as the mini challenge???
my girlfriends brother racers a caterham and keeps saying to get one of them as its cheaper entries,tyres everything is cheaper,but my heart is set on a mini?
i really wanted to take part in a one make series so its a level playing field for me having not as much budget as the bigger teams.
i really want to race a tin top car,mini is my first choice but dont like the idea of the high entry costs
any other ideas you have with other series would be great.

[ado]

Did you used to be on the RS forum? I recognise your username from somewhere.

Have you looked at tin tops or stock hatch? Not one make but quite good. I would be in Ma5da this year so should be able to answer your questions about that. We run on a budget of 7-8k per year with a Mk1 MX5 at £5k or Mk3 at £12k.

[czar]

Which ever make series/class you decide on, have you also looked into your racing running costs too!
EG; fuel,tyres,wheels,brakes,clutch,oil/fluids,panel damage/replacement,component damage/replacement,accommodation,transport for your race car,etc etc.
All this said, good luck in your chosen make series/class.

[nicfred]

Originally Posted by czar

Which ever make series/class you decide on, have you also looked into your racing running costs too!
EG; fuel,tyres,wheels,brakes,clutch,oil/fluids,panel damage/replacement,component damage/replacement,accommodation,transport for your race car,etc etc.
All this said, good luck in your chosen make series/class.

yep got them covered,i'm not going to crash so that wont be a problem, but yeh its sort of already in the very tight budget
i just keep going back to the entry fee,£7500 is a lot for a first time racer but i guess if i want to do that series ive got to lump it

[czar]

Originally Posted by nicfred

yep got them covered,i'm not going to crash so that wont be a problem,

Non of us intend to crash, it's just one of those things, swapping paint knocking bumpers and door mirrors off is common!

[Feenaldo]

Could always try time attack? Much cheaper to run in that. Head over and chat to the MINI Torque gang as they run a car in that.

[scraggles]

Originally Posted by nicfred

hi
i already have my 2010 national b license, first year of racing so im on a very tight budget.
do i buy a mini cooper and race in the mini challenge club class,worst part is the entry fee is £7500 and all needs paying upfront?
OR
do i buy a cooper s works and race the sport maxx series,this cost £4500 to enter and can be paid in 3 installments?

There's a car for sale up in Bury that has alrady had all te conversion work done which might be of interest to you?
racecarsdirect.com (Race Cars For Sale) BMW MINI COOPER S R56 (NEW SHAPE) DUNLOP SPORT MAXX / CHALLENGE CAR

Originally Posted by Feenaldo

Could always try time attack? Much cheaper to run in that. Head over and chat to the MINI Torque gang as they run a car in that.

Not exactly racing though is it. IMHO, an individual time trial doesn't compare. Not that TA isn't really good but it's like comparing GP qualifying versus the GP itself.

[Feenaldo]

Originally Posted by nicfred

first year of racing so I'm on a very tight budget.

Originally Posted by scraggles

Not exactly racing though is it. IMHO, an individual time trial doesn't compare. Not that TA isn't really good but it's like comparing GP qualifying versus the GP itself.

Would be a good start tho as its the chaps first year and budget wise don't you think? Otherwise it might be like going from formula Ford straight to F1... well ok probably not quite so extreme but it certainly isn't easy

Your still looking at 50K allowing for damage repairs etc, then you got the car on top of that... it's getting close to 80K just to turn up on the grid.