MaxAttack! cars - my thoughts on how to win it

Welp, I've seen a fair bit deriding new cars, mainly for weight considerations.

You are right. New cars are heavier than old ones, in general.

Also, I would not consider doing a new car without some sort of corporate help financially. If you are a beginner, get an old car and think of it as disposable. And drive it that way.

Here are the advantages of approaching this thing with a business mind and going after sponsors to get thyself into a newer car:

Newer cars are more valuable to other, ancillary sponsors.

Parts are expensive, but if you get support, they may be free.

Cars themselves may be free.

No one is going to give you anything to showcase on your 86 Volvo...but if the car is up to date and looks good in the catalog it is worth something (Protege was in the Sachs Racing catalog in 2004...my old VW was...uhh...not).

It may lead to bigger and better things.

If manufacturer races in other venues, there is a database of good information available from the other guys for parts, sources, etc...might even get the parent company to pick up the tab.



Think about what you have to sell. If you are a total newb, you don't have much. Buy or build a cheap car and go crash a few times. If you have some regional championships or top standings nationally, you probably have something. Got a website? Can you write? Can you create a snazzy paint scheme on photoshop? Develop your skilz on the on the computer and on the phone as much as you develop your skilz behind the wheel.

Back to topic...I disagree with John somewhat in that I think ANYthing with 4 wheels can be made at least somewhat competitive, just depends on how much work you wanna put yerself thru.

SRT4, Ion Redline, CobaltSS, Scion tC, Civic, GTI, Mazda3, etc. all look pretty good with enough time, $, and work thrown at them. Just depends on your level of support and your skills and knowledge.

I'd consider sending a proposal for any of the above cars if I wasn't already in a very happy Mazda.

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Lurch
Eric Burmeister
The west coast...of Michigan

sauna rocks Wrote:
...is
> for them to realize that we aren't just tossing
> money out the window to reward people. We want
> this money to bring in competitors. We want a
> well subscribed marketable series with lots of
> entries and lots of action. Just think of it, WE
> are going to market YOU, the racer. When teams
> realize that the environement we have created is a
> fertile one for getting sponsorship they will see
> the opportunites.

I used to complain..."Not much value for my sponsors when there is so little coverage of 2wd." The response I got: "Not much 2wd action to cover." And they were right. Not sure what came first, chicken or egg, but it seemed to feed on itself. No value for the fast guys to get support so they went back to regional competition...which incidentally continued to get more expensive, too, ie "unsustainable."

MaxAttack! breaks the cycle. Dangle a carrot and we have a show. Will it get coverage? I'm told it will, but instead of waiting for some sanctioning body to shout it from the rooftops for us, we have our own 2wd-centric entity formed just for that purpose! We are absolutely ecstatic if they want to help us out (which it seems they do, thankfully), but if not, at least we have a channel to try to build value.


> It takes a leap of faith and a little savy on the
> part of a rally team. The wheels just started
> turning. As the MaxAttack! machine gets moving
> those who can see what's happening will be
> rewarded.


And that is a part of the plan that is yet to be revealed...we plan to HELP guys (who want help) learn how to become "savvy". How to write a proposal. How to stay positive in the presence of a wall full of FOADs. How to leverage one deal to help facilitate another. How to help potential sponsors find good value by working with other potential sponsors or working other angles.

I ain't no pro at it...completely self-taught, and I'm sure I do some things flat wrong. That's the beauty. I can learn something too.

Don't look at that $2000 first prize check as an end. Look at the whole event and the whole series as a beginning.

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Lurch
Eric Burmeister
The west coast...of Michigan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2007 11:27PM by Lurch.

Don't forget the Rally Spec Focus.

In the hands of a competant driver a Spec Focus can be very competitive.

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Cheers
M.Samli
Phoenix AZ
Gaylant VR4
EVO III GSR (Stolen)


Rallies are no place for traitors

Here's my history. I've been interested in rally for years...it wasn't until about 6 years ago that I started my first build. I would do things differently now, but I knew less, and the rules/state of rally were different also. I chose Open class DSM. At the time there were quite a few running on stage, WRX's were much less prevalent, EVO's even less. No restrictors...in short, with some experience it seemed possible to start getting some good results. Unfortunately being a Navy pilot means being gone alot. I missed most of several seasons, running only several rallies, never had the same co-driver more than twice, got married, moved to the Deep South...having a baby in 2 months etc. Life sets in...

So I spent the last six months sitting in the desert wondering what direction I needed to take my rally effort. Since I have the DSM it often seemed that an infusion of 6 or 7 grand would revitalize the car...but I kept coming back to the same place. No matter how much $$ I put in that car, and how many rallies and seat time I get...even if I have the talent... I'll never be able to compete with those well built and well driven Blue Hordes, and I can't afford to join them.

So I made the decision to go 2WD. It was a close call between an early SE-R and the XRATTY, but the XRATTY won out. Just by a coincidence of timing a few days later the MaxAttack! press release came out!

So where does this put me? Well, I think it puts me in a position to prove (or disprove) my driving skills in a 2WD environment that is bound to become more competitive. I certainly don't have the resume to approach a major manufacturer as sponsor, and I don't have the $$ or fabrication experience to build and engineer a newer car. I sincerely hope that some folks out there start building some modern 2wders. It will be good for the sport... but the more I look at it the more I see that 2wd is a great spot for a grass-roots guy on a budget to have a realistic chance at bettering much more expensive machines.

200hp Acura RSX? I'll raise you with a 250hp torque monster turbo. Dog box in your Mazda? I'll match that with a strong T-5 for 1/4 the cost.

It would be easy to pump well over 30grand into a new car (pick the make), but how competitive could a $15,000 Xratty or Volvo be? I'm not just espousing the JVL route either. That same $$ could get you a very strong SE-R (a little more might even get you a strong gear set and diff). Same with the Golfes etc.

Let's not argue about the best route. They are just different routes. We need people to engineer the newer cars...it will help to grow the sport, and it'll help us in some years down the road when the xratties and volvos etc are dried up (it's going to happen). I don't blame people for having more money than me, and I don't blame them for spending it on their rally cars...that's the nature of motor sports. Money is always an advantage, whether it's a 100 grand Subaru or multiple trips to TimO rally school, new tires at every service...whatever. I do think that big $$ and sponsors will be significantly less of an advantage in the 2wd field and I am excited to eventually have a competitive 2wd car for a budget that I can afford...the modern state of rally has priced me out of Open class, and I'm seeing this will be more FUN anyway!

Jason

We aren't arguing here we are having a good discussion on the advantages of certain cars and what it would take to build them into a competitive racer.

Why am I pushing this discussion? I want people to see that there are many solutions to the problem. Many cars can be made competitive. Some require more resources than others, some have more upside in terms of sponsorship than others. It's important that we evaluate each car honestly according to the areas I have been listing: chassis, tires, suspension, steering, brakes, diff, drivetrain, and engine. If you follow those criteria in your analysis it gives you a good idea what you will be up against in your build.

Yah, just a discussion. We need both camps. What makes 2wd so exciting is the variety. I'm not pro-shiny new cars, last entry list I was on was in a Datsun 510.

CommanderSalamander Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yah, just a discussion. We need both camps. What
> makes 2wd so exciting is the variety. I'm not
> pro-shiny new cars, last entry list I was on was
> in a Datsun 510.

Yeah it's precisely the variety of cars of all ages and configurations that tradionally has made rally interesting, especially when you have the big limiters of 2wd and loose surfaces.

Skill can overcome cubic Buttloads of dollars, and there has ALWAYS been the Davis and Goliath aspect and that's where some of the best stories come from, too.

My concern has alkways been that well driven cars, should they do good, that they should get the praise from the gathered multitudes, regardless of the age or spec of the car.

Let's keep this good discussion going.

And Jakkopi if you don't see any "din Satan's djavla bond-djavel" or Canaille!!!!!
then you know the conversation is still jsut folks advocating vigourously.

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John Vanlandingham
Sleezattle, WA, USA

Vive le Prole-le-ralliat

www.rallyrace.net/jvab
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