How expensive is racing?

Back to back racing weekends? An endurance race at Laguna Seca with Lucky Dog followed by a sprint race at Thunderhill with the SCCA… Being able to race on world-class racetracks is not something I take for granted. I’m living a dream and I fully recognize it. It saddens me that not everyone has the chance to do these things. Auto racing is an expensive hobby. But exactly how expensive is it? Let’s investigate with my B-Spec Yaris as an example of a really cheap car to build and run.

Initial Build

The initial build cost me about $7000. I saved a lot of money getting the cage built by students at an Evil Genius Racing fabrication workshop. Sometimes I think $7k for a hobby is too much. But it’s also a completely legal street car that gets 45 mpg on the highway. So it does have some utility. Note that none of the costs below figure in my time. I spent and continue to spend many weekends working on the car.

• 2007 Toyota Yaris $3040 (used)
• Cage fabrication $1080
• Fire system $370
• Kill switch $40
• Interior net $90
• Window net & mount $90
• Driver seat $100 (used) & bracket $100
• Harness $140
• Seat brace $200
• Roll bar padding $60
• Steering wheel quick release $130 + adapter $70 + wheel $30
• Convex mirror $20
• Front tow hook $12
• Crash bolts $20 (for alignment)
• Hood pins $10
• Cold box $50 (cold therapy unit used from ebay)
• Exhaust pipe fabrication $20
• Wheels $400
• Cold air intake $300
• TRD suspension $520
• Fuel testing port $80
• Numbers $50

Operating Costs

In addition to the initial build, there’s the stuff that costs money on a regular basis. This includes alignment, motor oil, filter, diff oil, brake pads, brake rotors, brake fluid, and gasoline. Less regular, but still expected, are things like the engine, transmission, clutch, and body work. All of this amounts to about $65/hr. But we haven’t gotten to the big ticket items: event fees and tires. Endurance race fees are roughly $100/hr and 200 treadwear tires are about $25/hr ($500 per set and they last 20 hours). Sprint race event fees are about $300/hr and tire costs are $200/hr ($800 per set and they last 4 hours).

Endurance racing: $190 / hour

Sprint racing: $565 / hour

Other expenses

The build and operating costs do not include my personal safety equipment, cameras, radios, or telemetry. That stuff adds another $2500 or so. Those items are good for 10 years and can be carried from car to car. In addition, there are expenses for transportation, room, and board. I camp at the track and subsist on sandwiches, so those expenses are pretty low.