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I suggest injury, medical expenses, and lost time from work is a budgetary consideration. The SRF is a very safe race car. Driver injuries are rare, and when they occur are relatively minor. Exhibit A is Elizabeth Miller's, a/k/a Porcupine, now famous upside down, backwards slide along the front straight at Summit Point. She drove the next day (in a different car).

Adam

Engines - I'm on my second engine in 10+years of racing. I lost the first one to a broken oil line, otherwise I'd still be racing it. That's without ever opening the engine up at all.

Transmissions. 1 rebuild in the entire 12 years.

BTW, my car was a MoDy rental before I bought it, so it already had some hard miles on it.

Ok, I gotta reply to this one...

I rented a SpecMiata for 1 1/2 seasons and rented an SRF for one season, just starting my second season in SRF. My experience after racing for two and half years both SCCA and NASA including the 25 Hours 3 times in the Miata and all SCCA in the SRF (of course):

Both classes are very competitive. You will almost always have a race instead of just driving around the track alone. Whether you are racing for 1st or 41st, racing is more fun.

You can race more with a Miata. Multiple classes and multiple organizations. That is now becoming true for SRF also, but barely.

Both cars are relatively reliable. Drive the hell out of them and they just keep going.

Miata proved more expensive for me. Both to rent ane especially to repair. Let's face it, dings happen. Miata metal body work costs more than SRF fiberglass. Miata's take longer to repair the guts because the mechanic (working at an hourly rate) has to dig into a production car chassis. On a purpose built tube frame chassis SRF, take off a body panel and everything is "right there". Hourly labor is cut in half! The rental costs up front are much less for the SRF, but that could be just the guys I rent from and the deals I made.

Cool factor. Statement..."I race a Miata". Answer..."Oh, my daughter has one of those. It's a cute car." OR Statement..."I race SRF" Answer..."What's that?" "It's an open cockpit, rear mid engine, sports racer" "Wow. Cool!"

The reasons I switched from Miata to SRF? 1. Money $$$$. SRF has proven less spendy. 2. I'm tall and simply do not fit in a Miata. The ergonomics in an SRF are great...very adjustable for all shapes and sizes of drivers. 3. Production car vs. purpose built race car "feel". A SRF was a race car at birth and you can feel the difference.

In the end, rent both, then decide. OR... Do arrive and drive programs in both!! Renting instead of buying IS an option!

Thanks to all, great info for one looking at joining the SRF Group.. I have come to some of the same conclusions so far! Still researching/learning

And then there is that driving a purposely built race car vs. a converted production car thing that put a smile on the face of ever production racer I let test in my SRF. Even more so in the ESR P2 car, but I don't lend that car out, I keep that fun all to myself.

Some will say that our (Enterprise model) leads to high parts costs. After racing just about everything in SCCA since 1984, I figure the time I save not searching for parts more than covers the costs. If you need a part you contact your CSR and it's usually delivered in a few days. In production it can take days to find a part, and week to get.

Replying to a SPAM post??? This thread is 6 year old...