Rally car selection help:
 

Alright, I've been looking for a good rally car/daily driver for a while now, and I've narrowed it down to a couple choices:


A 2nd gen RX-7(TII if I can find one).
A 3rd gen Supra Turbo
or
a 1st gen Talon TSi AWD.

As much as I want an RX-7, The TSI's AWD calls me. And I love the supras power and interior, but it's heavy.

Help!...

Rally car? Rx7? I think your choice should be narrowed to FWD cars and AWD cars. If your talking about dirt rally.

1st and 2nd gen RX-7s have been campaigned and have successfully won rallies for over a decade now and are still in competition in the USA, Europe and Down Under... Search and youll see.

Supras have also been rallied and naturally AWD would be a better choice though, if the Diamond Star car bekons you then by all means go for it... its a matter of preference, Id still rally a 7!

Having campainged an all wheel drive car in SCCA Clubrally I would suggest a two wheel drive car. Front wheel drive or rear wheel drive would be fine. I say this because there is a lot less stuff to break with a 2wd car and the 2wd class aren't as crazy competitive as the awd classes where you have to have a $40K lancer or WRX to be competitive.

I would suggest something cheaper and tough... like a first or second gen RX7 or any other light weight japanese car. Don't just go for power as this won't make a ton of difference with 2wd. Get something reliable that is light weight, reliable and you can fix easily.

Do not rally a 3rd gen RX7 or a turbo supra. I can only begin to imagine the problems you'd have...

And if you use it as your daily driver and really do intend to rally it... make sure you have a back up daily driver for when you inevitable break or crash it.

-John

Cool, thanks for the info. Never thought you could rally a RWD car, but I guess you can. Thanks!

AWD - 1st gen DSM, or '98-'01 Subaru 2.5RS, or even an older 2.2L Impreza ('96+)
RWD - FB, 240 Volvo, or any other reliable car that they built millions of (for cheaper parts). ..older Toyota Celica (late 70's early 80's)
FWD - civic?... FWD = teh suck, IMO

Rally car AND Daily driver?
One of the first things I learned about Rally is that there are two kinds of rally drivers. Those who are new to the sport and those that have rolled their cars down a ravine.
Driving like hell down a dirt road lined with trees and rocks AND having a reliable car to get to work in are almost mutually exclusive.

Buy two or three first gen RX-7s. The race car, the parts car, and the driver.

CW

Yes, what he said! It's true.

Thanks for all the replies.

Really the only readon I wanted the DSM was the AWD.

The Rx was my first choice cause it seems better in a lot of ways (pwr-wght).

As for the Supra, it was what I was planning on getting before I learned all about FC's and FB's.(can't afford an FD).


And as for the Rally car/daily driver:

I'm not going full out right now, I'm gonna start off in Rally-X, to get the basics down..which means you can't go over 70Kph. And since there's no car-shredding action going on, I figure I can have my cake and ice creamy taste too. Make sense?

You can still roll a car over in Rally-X if you hit a rut the wrong way.

Yeah... you can roll car on an autocross course too... I've seen it done. But it's unlikely to happen at either an autocross or rallycross.

It has happened to someone I know of just recently (in a beater, so it wasn't a big deal) and I've seen incidents at autocrosses as well. I'm just trying to bring perspective, that while the odds are low, it can happen. One should keep that in mind that what you race on Sunday may not be able to get you to work on Monday and you should have a backup plan.

Thanks for the warning, i'll keep it in mind.

I've done a lot of thinking, and I've almost settled on an Rx, but one of my friends mentioned the 240sx...Considering they're about the same price...I'm not sure anymore. I really want rotary power...but after lurking for a long time and constantly hearing complaints about reliability, it bugs me. I WOULD like to be able to get in through the outside door handle...XD.

Would an Rx be worth the price? (2nd gen N/a- $4500-$5500[CDN!]). I can live with minor problems, as long as it runs...I can fix it, and then mod it..but it seems like every month people jack up the price even more :(