Oldest chassis

[Dhead60]

Getting into crate racing in the next year or two what is the oldest chassis that can be competitive running a 604 fastrack series

[Matt49]

Getting into crate racing in the next year or two what is the oldest chassis that can be competitive running a 604 fastrack series

Age isn't as important as how often it was raced. A used car that is 3 seasons old that a guy ran locally 20 times per year is going to be in much better shape than a 1 year old car raced 80 times.

But think safety before competitive. Older cars begin to rust from the inside out. Stick with something that is 5 years old or newer if possible.

[Dhead60]

Ok that makes since thanks

[mod88s]

Kind of had the same question. Thers alot of 06-09 cars out there for sale that have alot of new components on them that look pretty decent. My question is are the updates of most chassis manufacturers needed in order to be competitive or can an older car like an 08 or 09 be competitive?

[Krooser]

There are so many variables. best to find a chassis that hasn't had the crap beat out of it week after week. Look at the car and see how well it was maintained... does it look like a hammer and crescent wrench were the main tools used to do repairs?

Older cars can still win... one local guy here won a track championship in 2015 with an '04 Mastersbilt. Good car, driver and prep. We even have a couple guys around here who still build their own cars and engines... and win a bunch. It can be done...

[save the racers]

Keep an eye on how many pop rivet holes ,etc.. are drilled thru the pipe.These holes let moisture in that will weaken the pipe.I've cut some mb's apart that were over 10 years old and the pipe looked great on the inside.The trouble with older cars is they don't have the raised rack ,crossmember and framerail.

[Krooser]

Two things....

Those mods can be done to an existing chassis. And I would think that if you don't throw the latest radical setup in the car you won't need those mods. Of course you will need some fabrication ability to pull this off and,let's face it, in today's throw away world how many guys would take the time to update an older car that much when they can whip out some plastic and pay for a new car @ $300/month.

I will put my 'old car' theory to the test next season when I roll out my '95 MB after Its 15 year nap.

[A ron]

Krooser, Take this as a grain of sand because I'm a rookie, and by rookie, I mean never even sat in a race car until the end of last year. I'm running a 97 GRT in the crate class, and while I feel that I've improved, I'm still not even in the same ballpark with the other cars. But might be all driver.

[Krooser]

You need seat time... Same as me. I drove from '70 until '87 so I have a lot to learn again.

[PushinTheLimit]

I've been running an 06 blue front Rocket and this year made my 2nd full season on dirt. I run crate and I had a decent year where I got my first win at my local track and started to run a lot better and more consistent toward the end of this year. Still a lot of room for improvement in myself and I know the car isn't what's holding me back. Just need seat time. I'm going to update after this coming year as it has not been done at all on it. As long as it hasn't been run in a ton of races and still pretty straight, and older car can run good.