Satcar Cost Comparison

PERFORMANCE DRIVING

- FROM STREET TO TRACK

YOU CAN RACE FOR LESS, AND WIN, WITH SATCAR

A COST COMPARISON BETWEEN CLUB RACING AND SATCAR RACING SHOWED THAT SATCAR COSTS ABOUT 1/3 THE COST PER RACE AND ABOUT 1/7 THE COST PER HOUR OF TRACK TIME!!

AND WINNING WITH SATCAR DOES NOT REQUIRE THAT YOU INVEST LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY IN THE RACE CAR!!

When told the projected entry fees for SATCAR races, some drivers have questioned why they are higher than entry fees for some other events they have attended. There are several factors that influence the entry fee structure for SATCAR as compared to other organizations. The following information is being offered to help you understand the factors that affect SATCAR entry fees, to show that entry fees are only a portion of the total costs of racing, and to also show that SATCAR IS still EXCELLENT VALUE when compared to club racing in other organizations.

SATCAR racing and club racing are slightly different in their content so the experience for the driver is also slightly different. They are similar in that they offer the driver the opportunity to enjoy driving his/her car on a road racing track at whatever speeds are desired and comfortable. They also both offer the thrill of competition and the opportunity to show that you drove best on that day during that event, and taking home an award for your efforts. In both, meeting and talking with other individuals with similar interests and cars offers the chance to gain new friends and new knowledge.

Some of the factors that influence SATCAR entry fees include:
	For safety, SATCAR limits the number of cars in a group to 10 cars per mile of track length (SCCA allows 20 cars per mile).
	SATCAR will have paid staff operating the races - many other organizations are clubs and depend upon volunteer workers to staff the races.
	SATCAR is a business that has been created to bring road racing to a large group of drivers who would not otherwise be able to participate - most clubs are non-profit organizations.
	SATCAR must make a profit to be able to continue to offer these events to you, the drivers.

The following cost comparison shows some typical costs to participate in club racing versus SATCAR racing. This comparison uses information from SCCA racing as it is the largest club racing group in the country. Other club racing groups, such as BMW CCA, NASA, PCA, and Professional Autosports may have slightly different cost structures but in almost all cases, a dedicated race car is required to race competitively and many of the listed costs will be similar.

For this comparison, the club racing costs were chosen to typify a driver racing on a budget in a class that required a modest investment in the race car and support vehicles. Depending upon the choice of race car and support equipment, the costs in either type of racing can quickly escalate.

Any costs that would be similar between the two types of racing, such as meals, motels, and some car consumables, are not included in this comparison. The tow vehicle purchase is assumed to be necessary but the vehicle will probably also be used for other purposes, so the operating, maintenance, and insurance costs will not be charged against the race program. There are other minor differences, such as membership and licensing costs, which are also factors, but are not great in magnitude, so are not included.

REQUIREMENT TO PARTICIPATE:
SCCA - Two Driving Schools (6 Hr. On Track) - Estimated entry costs	- $ 350
- Four races annually required to maintain license
BMW CCA - Eight Driving Schools - Estimated entry costs	- $ 3,200

FIXED COSTS:
Race car purchase & preparation	- $ 5,000 to 10,000
Trailer purchase	- $ 500 (Used Open) to 7,000 (New Closed)
Tow vehicle purchase	- $ 5,000 to 10,000 (Used)
Driver safety items (Helmet, suit, gloves, socks, shoes)	- $ 600 to 800

TOTAL FIXED COSTS (Using mid-point values) - This is the payout required before driving the first mile on the track	- $ 19,450
Amortized over ten years @ five races/year	- $ 389/Race

VARIABLE COSTS:
Entry Fee	- $ 200
Travel Fuel (500 Miles Round Trip @ 10 MPG @ 3.00/Gal.)	- $ 150
Tires (One set per weekend)	- $ 450
Racing Fuel (15 Gal. @ 8.00/Gal.)	- $ 120
Trailer Insurance (Assume $ 400/Yr. & 5 Races/Yr.)	- $ 80
Engine Rebuild Every Ten Races @ $ 2,000	- $ 200
Crash Damage	- $ 200

TOTAL VARIABLE COSTS	- $ 1,400/Race

TOTAL COSTS (FIXED AND VARIABLE) PER RACE	- $ 1,789
ANNUAL COSTS FOR FIVE RACES	- $ 8,945

These numbers compare closely with the experience of Dick Cole, who raced a Geo Prizm in SCCA Improved Touring for 10 years. He estimated that his annual costs were about $ 8,000.

A typical SCCA race provides about 1 1/2 hour of on-track time during a two day event. Using the above cost per event, the track time costs $ 1,193 per hour.

SATCAR RACING
REQUIREMENT TO PARTICIPATE
A Single Two Day Driving School - Estimated entry cost	- $ 470

FIXED COSTS:
No vehicle purchase is required since drivers can race the car they drive every day.	- $ - 0 -
Driver safety items (Helmet only)	- $ 250 to $ 400
AMB Transponder	- $ 395

TOTAL FIXED COSTS (Using mid-point values)	- $ 720
Amortizing over ten years @ five races/year	- $ 14/Race

VARIABLE COSTS
Entry Fee	- $ 475
Travel Fuel (500 Mile Round Trip @ 20 MPG @ 3.00/Gal)	- $75
Tires (One Set/Season @ $ 400/Set)	- $80
Track Fuel (30 Gal @ 3.00/Gal)	- $90
TOTAL VARIABLE COSTS	- $ 720/Race
TOTAL COSTS (FIXED AND VARIABLE) PER RACE	- $ 734
ANNUAL COSTS FOR FIVE RACES	- $ 3,670

This comparison shows that SATCAR racing costs slightly more than 1/3 (41.5%) per event of what it costs to participate in SCCA club racing. When converted into an hourly cost it becomes more favorable. A typical SATCAR two day event will provide each driver about four hours of driving time for a cost of $ 184 per hour. This is about 1/7 (15.4%) of the cost per hour of SCCA club racing.

Another factor that could be considered in this analysis is the opportunity cost of the investment in the race car and associated equipment for club racing. If the $ 18,730 fixed cost differential were invested somewhere else and earned a 5% rate of return, the gain would be $ 937 per year. This would pay for the cost to participate in about 1 1/3 SATCAR race weekends. Spread over the projected five race per year schedule, this amount would help to defray $ 187 of the cost per race. This would drop the SATCAR per race cost to $ 547, or less than 1/3 (30.6%) of the cost per event, and $ 137 per hour, or about 1/9 (11.5%) of the cost per hour of track time.

Another difference between the typical club racing car and a car that can be used in SATCAR races will be the amount of time required for maintenance to keep the car safe. If the owner is working on the car for fun, this factor may not be quite as important. However, most drivers would probably prefer to spend their time improving the car rather than having to maintain it. If his/her time is critical, or if the maintenance has to be done by a shop and paid for by the car owner, this is an additional area where SATCAR racing is less costly.

Again, drawing upon the experience of Dick Cole, he indicated that he would typically spend two hours in maintenance for each hour spent on the track. Cars that are more complicated or highly developed, such as formula or sports racing cars, will require considerably more time and usually also require additional help in the form of pit crew members, at additional cost. Using Dick's experience and the weekend driving time of 1.5 hours, maintenance time for our budget racer for a typical SCCA weekend could be estimated at three hours. This maintenance would be primarily preventive, in the form of checking all systems, changing brakes and tires, and going over the car to check all fasteners. Any serious mechanical problems or damages due to incidents would add to the amount of required time.

A typical car that could be used in SATCAR races will not require as much maintenance because it will not require the soft, sticky tires that generate high wheel bearing loads, suspension side forces, and drive train shock loads. It will not have to be extremely low and stiffly sprung, which creates high loadings into the spring and damper attachment points, leading to possible cracking of the body or frame in those areas. Tires and brakes will probably last longer and require less frequent replacement. Typical continuing maintenance items will probably be limited to brake pad/shoe replacements, periodic brake fluid changes, and tire replacements.

The driver can choose to operate the car in a way that minimizes the wear and stress on the car and still win in SATCAR races. Therefore, he/she can maintain some control over the maintenance costs, in both time and money, required to keep driving the car in these events. Drawing upon experience of running at driving schools with typical street cars. the maintenance time was approximately one hour for every 4 - 6 hours of driving time, and consisted primarily of changing brake pads and/or shoes. Periodic safety inspections of the car are still required but do not add large amounts of time to the maintenance schedule.

Current cars are built very well and are quite reliable, even when used on a road racing track.

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