Several months ago I decided that I'd like to start rally driving as a hobby, after seeing an episode of British Top Gear where the hosts did rallycross for the price of taking up golf. So I did some research, and found texasrallysport.com, which is a community of amateur rally drivers that hold races at several tracks here in Texas with very low cost entry fees and requirements. So then I began looking for a car to use. I considered at first using my wife's car, but she quickly dismissed that, and my 02 Land Rover Discovery is anything but a sporty racing car, so I determined that I'd have to buy another purely for rallying.
So I worked out my budget, around $600, and started watching Craigslist, looking for something that would work. I looked for 3 months, and didn't really find anything. Then my brother offered to sell me his wife's old car, a 1992 Dodge Daytona base model, which he'd had sitting in his yard for nearly 10 years, for $300. I jumped at the chance, then decided to write a weekly blog as I return the car to working order, prep it for racing, and finally race it.
So, week one: The car is still in my brother's yard. He tells me that he originally parked it because the transmission started slipping and he couldn't afford to fix it. There is a decent sized oil leak somewhere in the engine bay. The ignition lock cylinder is frozen and won't turn at all with the key. The transmission won't go into neutral with the key unable to turn. All four tires are flat. And finally, the door requires an odd pull/kick/lift motion to open from the outside.
We did get the key to turn with application of a drill and some PB Blaster (I'm gonna replace the lock cylinder anyway) and the transmission into neutral, then dragged it up the street from my brother's house to my mechanic/friend's shop, where he and I will be working on it.
So I worked out my budget, around $600, and started watching Craigslist, looking for something that would work. I looked for 3 months, and didn't really find anything. Then my brother offered to sell me his wife's old car, a 1992 Dodge Daytona base model, which he'd had sitting in his yard for nearly 10 years, for $300. I jumped at the chance, then decided to write a weekly blog as I return the car to working order, prep it for racing, and finally race it.
So, week one: The car is still in my brother's yard. He tells me that he originally parked it because the transmission started slipping and he couldn't afford to fix it. There is a decent sized oil leak somewhere in the engine bay. The ignition lock cylinder is frozen and won't turn at all with the key. The transmission won't go into neutral with the key unable to turn. All four tires are flat. And finally, the door requires an odd pull/kick/lift motion to open from the outside.
We did get the key to turn with application of a drill and some PB Blaster (I'm gonna replace the lock cylinder anyway) and the transmission into neutral, then dragged it up the street from my brother's house to my mechanic/friend's shop, where he and I will be working on it.
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