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Project Introduction - Dec 12, 2025: As I wrote in his other other build thread here, Paul is an old college buddy, good friend of mine who happens to be a long time autocrosser and an endurance road racer who lives literally around the corner from our shop. He is one of the bad influences that leads me down rabbit holes, looking for rules loopholes.
Lately he has been looking at SCCA Time Trial Max category classes, making spreadsheets of engines and transmissions that fit various classes. The base chassis kept coming back to an 86 or RX8. When I showed him a "free" 2004 RX8 chassis in October of 2025, he couldn't resist...
BENCH RACE BUILD
Bench Racing car builds like this is a fun hobby, but it can lead to expensive experiments! Paul and I have bench raced engine swaps for numerous cars going back many years, and we're actually engine swapping two Vorshlag shop race cars right now based on some of his wacky ideas - our 2013 FRS with a J37 Honda V6 and our 2002 E46 with an S65 4.0L V8 + DCT for Max4.
Swapping drivetrains - engines and transmissions - is how we achieve goals that OEM combinations cannot otherwise achieve. To meet a ridiculously low minimum weight, or to get an engine that makes great power with a lighter drivetrain but otherwise comes in a terrible car (the 3.7L V6 Honda we have in the FRS is from an SUV).
But make no mistake - drivetrain swaps are a complete pain in the ass, and 95% of the folks reading this would be better off sticking with the original engines and transmissions a given car comes with. To swap an engine successfully for a race car you have to not only mount the new engine and transmission into the donor chassis, you then have to plumb up the fuel system, cooling system, and wire in a new ECU and have the engine tuned.
You need to build a custom driveshaft, exhaust system, maybe even custom made exhaust headers. Sometimes you want to pair an engine with a transmission that needs crazy adapters to make them bolt up. Any single one of these tasks can be daunting, but Paul isn't afraid - as he has Vorshlag around the corner, and we're known for making new engine and car combinations.
If this all sounds extremely difficult - GOOD - that was my point! I've seen modest drivetrain swaps derail and end after a decade of frustration. Luckily, this is Paul's THIRD race car, as he has a running 1995 -Subaru Impreza L autocross car and a 2014 Subaru BRZ endurance race car. The bench racing just got a little out of hand, so he has this car stashed in his shop.
This RX8 is then 3rd priority for funds, time, and effort. The GC needs a bit of work and is ahead of the RX8 on the To Do List. So is the 2014 BRZ, which is co-owned by 2 other racers, and they have Endurance races scheduled for 2026 - and it is in pieces. Will the RX8 ever run? Who knows! I'm hoping that with a little help, and this forum build thread as motivation, he can make time in his busy schedule to attack this car. It needs to become a rolling chassis first, then weights can be taken and plans can be made.
FREE CARS ARE NEVER FREE
If you stick with car building long enough you will be offered free cars - and those are always the trickiest decisions. There's reasons why they are free. This one had no strings attached, as it was a running and driving car a friend bought just for the engine, wiring harness, and some spare parts for his W2W club raced RX8.
The RX8 chassis (2004-2011) is one of his "dream chassis" because it is fairly easy to swap with anything from a K24 to an LS V8. It starts out fairly light (2850 pounds), has pretty damned good stock suspension (SLA front and multi-link rear), good brakes / ABS, low aero cd, and can fit ~295mm tires under rolled / stock fenders. But the rotary engine was terrible from day one, and this car will NEVER have another spicy Dorito under the hood! The gutless and unreliable rotary is why these cars are so often swapped - because you can find "non running" but complete cars these days for under $2500...
This one was but a shell, and it needed some Forklift Certified assistance to load onto his flatbed trailer. He built a quick chassis dolly so that it could be rolled off the trailer and stored for a bit, while he gathered parts. Some 2x6" lumber and big 6" diameter casters were put together, then the shop that gave him the car loaded it onto the dolly on the trailer. We found the hood and trunk for this car in a container, and installed those on the spot - along with the rear bumper cover. After we captured 3 stray kittens (long story) we strapped down the chassis and it was ready to roll.
On October 18th, 2025, it was time to unload this tub. He agreed that leaving it outside under a tarp" was a sure way to ruin the wiring (rats) and interior, so he needed to go into the shop. After we moved a bunch of stuff to make room, it was time to get it in there. We kept the chassis strapped to the dolly, then backed his trailer almost into his shop, and laid down the ramps. If he had a winch on the trailer this next part would have been easy. Without that, he hooked up a tow strap to the car, I guided the dolly wheels and car down the ramps, while he held tension on the strap - wrapped around a pole outside his shop. Down it slid, and it rolled right into the shop. WHEW!
Now Paul did manage to buy a bunch of pieces that had been pulled off this car to use to put it right back together: All four doors, hood, trunk, both front and rear subframes, one front fender, most of the suspension uprights and control arms, all of the brake calipers, headlights and tail lights, and the dash + center console that were in it. So now he's into this free car for $1000, but its a good, straight, almost complete chassis that only sat outdoors for about 2 months - so it wasn't moldy and trashed. Uncovered, outdoor stored cars do not survive long with any of the interior intact - and for the series/class he is building for, it does need SOME of the interior.
That same day we loaded up the subframes and bumper beam - parts that might get re-used - and took them to a car wash in Mexico to clean them of 21 years of grime and crude. Those were then stored in his shop until we had time to tackle more of the work.
Paul is on a severely restricted time schedule due to a massively overdue kitchen remodel - where he is literally making his own cabinets. That is a huge undertaking, but all of his friends are supporting this and not letting him work on his 3 race cars until the kitchen is usable. So I would sneak over to his shop for 20-30 minutes at a time over the next 2 months and we'd install one door. The rears went on first, then the fronts. This happened over the course of two months, sneaking in time he didn't have.
In November I couldn't stand looking at the filthy engine bay, so I used a bit of WD40 to coat then clean the entire area. My trick is to spray it on liberally, let it soak for 15 minutes, then wipe it all down with a microfiber towel. That gets all of the dirt, grease, grime and gunk away and if there is any surface rust, it protects that also. Protects everything from water, of course. I did this while he worked on cabinets one Saturday.
In early December (last Saturday) I went by to help on the RX8 while Paul worked on cabinets. It was a slow day for me and I needed a break from entering invoices and reading emails on the weekend. I took the thoroughly packed interior and removed the dash, center console and other interior pieces. Then picked up the 100s of nuts and bolts sitting inside, from when it was disassembled. Sorted those into bits, and put the puzzle together that you see above right - the dash is complete enough for the class he's running, as is the center console.
Then I vacuumed out the entire interior, which was filthy but cleaned up well. I found all manner of parts hidden inside the car - the clutch pedal, DBW throttle pedal, shifter, and a few other things he didn't know were in the car. The next day Paul unpacked the very packed trunk and found more parts still. So it is close to being ready to reassemble as a roller, which will be a good place to stop and get an initial weight.
continued below
Lately he has been looking at SCCA Time Trial Max category classes, making spreadsheets of engines and transmissions that fit various classes. The base chassis kept coming back to an 86 or RX8. When I showed him a "free" 2004 RX8 chassis in October of 2025, he couldn't resist...
BENCH RACE BUILD
Bench Racing car builds like this is a fun hobby, but it can lead to expensive experiments! Paul and I have bench raced engine swaps for numerous cars going back many years, and we're actually engine swapping two Vorshlag shop race cars right now based on some of his wacky ideas - our 2013 FRS with a J37 Honda V6 and our 2002 E46 with an S65 4.0L V8 + DCT for Max4.
Swapping drivetrains - engines and transmissions - is how we achieve goals that OEM combinations cannot otherwise achieve. To meet a ridiculously low minimum weight, or to get an engine that makes great power with a lighter drivetrain but otherwise comes in a terrible car (the 3.7L V6 Honda we have in the FRS is from an SUV).
But make no mistake - drivetrain swaps are a complete pain in the ass, and 95% of the folks reading this would be better off sticking with the original engines and transmissions a given car comes with. To swap an engine successfully for a race car you have to not only mount the new engine and transmission into the donor chassis, you then have to plumb up the fuel system, cooling system, and wire in a new ECU and have the engine tuned.
You need to build a custom driveshaft, exhaust system, maybe even custom made exhaust headers. Sometimes you want to pair an engine with a transmission that needs crazy adapters to make them bolt up. Any single one of these tasks can be daunting, but Paul isn't afraid - as he has Vorshlag around the corner, and we're known for making new engine and car combinations.
If this all sounds extremely difficult - GOOD - that was my point! I've seen modest drivetrain swaps derail and end after a decade of frustration. Luckily, this is Paul's THIRD race car, as he has a running 1995 -Subaru Impreza L autocross car and a 2014 Subaru BRZ endurance race car. The bench racing just got a little out of hand, so he has this car stashed in his shop.
This RX8 is then 3rd priority for funds, time, and effort. The GC needs a bit of work and is ahead of the RX8 on the To Do List. So is the 2014 BRZ, which is co-owned by 2 other racers, and they have Endurance races scheduled for 2026 - and it is in pieces. Will the RX8 ever run? Who knows! I'm hoping that with a little help, and this forum build thread as motivation, he can make time in his busy schedule to attack this car. It needs to become a rolling chassis first, then weights can be taken and plans can be made.
FREE CARS ARE NEVER FREE
If you stick with car building long enough you will be offered free cars - and those are always the trickiest decisions. There's reasons why they are free. This one had no strings attached, as it was a running and driving car a friend bought just for the engine, wiring harness, and some spare parts for his W2W club raced RX8.
The RX8 chassis (2004-2011) is one of his "dream chassis" because it is fairly easy to swap with anything from a K24 to an LS V8. It starts out fairly light (2850 pounds), has pretty damned good stock suspension (SLA front and multi-link rear), good brakes / ABS, low aero cd, and can fit ~295mm tires under rolled / stock fenders. But the rotary engine was terrible from day one, and this car will NEVER have another spicy Dorito under the hood! The gutless and unreliable rotary is why these cars are so often swapped - because you can find "non running" but complete cars these days for under $2500...
This one was but a shell, and it needed some Forklift Certified assistance to load onto his flatbed trailer. He built a quick chassis dolly so that it could be rolled off the trailer and stored for a bit, while he gathered parts. Some 2x6" lumber and big 6" diameter casters were put together, then the shop that gave him the car loaded it onto the dolly on the trailer. We found the hood and trunk for this car in a container, and installed those on the spot - along with the rear bumper cover. After we captured 3 stray kittens (long story) we strapped down the chassis and it was ready to roll.
On October 18th, 2025, it was time to unload this tub. He agreed that leaving it outside under a tarp" was a sure way to ruin the wiring (rats) and interior, so he needed to go into the shop. After we moved a bunch of stuff to make room, it was time to get it in there. We kept the chassis strapped to the dolly, then backed his trailer almost into his shop, and laid down the ramps. If he had a winch on the trailer this next part would have been easy. Without that, he hooked up a tow strap to the car, I guided the dolly wheels and car down the ramps, while he held tension on the strap - wrapped around a pole outside his shop. Down it slid, and it rolled right into the shop. WHEW!
Now Paul did manage to buy a bunch of pieces that had been pulled off this car to use to put it right back together: All four doors, hood, trunk, both front and rear subframes, one front fender, most of the suspension uprights and control arms, all of the brake calipers, headlights and tail lights, and the dash + center console that were in it. So now he's into this free car for $1000, but its a good, straight, almost complete chassis that only sat outdoors for about 2 months - so it wasn't moldy and trashed. Uncovered, outdoor stored cars do not survive long with any of the interior intact - and for the series/class he is building for, it does need SOME of the interior.
That same day we loaded up the subframes and bumper beam - parts that might get re-used - and took them to a car wash in Mexico to clean them of 21 years of grime and crude. Those were then stored in his shop until we had time to tackle more of the work.
Paul is on a severely restricted time schedule due to a massively overdue kitchen remodel - where he is literally making his own cabinets. That is a huge undertaking, but all of his friends are supporting this and not letting him work on his 3 race cars until the kitchen is usable. So I would sneak over to his shop for 20-30 minutes at a time over the next 2 months and we'd install one door. The rears went on first, then the fronts. This happened over the course of two months, sneaking in time he didn't have.
In November I couldn't stand looking at the filthy engine bay, so I used a bit of WD40 to coat then clean the entire area. My trick is to spray it on liberally, let it soak for 15 minutes, then wipe it all down with a microfiber towel. That gets all of the dirt, grease, grime and gunk away and if there is any surface rust, it protects that also. Protects everything from water, of course. I did this while he worked on cabinets one Saturday.
In early December (last Saturday) I went by to help on the RX8 while Paul worked on cabinets. It was a slow day for me and I needed a break from entering invoices and reading emails on the weekend. I took the thoroughly packed interior and removed the dash, center console and other interior pieces. Then picked up the 100s of nuts and bolts sitting inside, from when it was disassembled. Sorted those into bits, and put the puzzle together that you see above right - the dash is complete enough for the class he's running, as is the center console.
Then I vacuumed out the entire interior, which was filthy but cleaned up well. I found all manner of parts hidden inside the car - the clutch pedal, DBW throttle pedal, shifter, and a few other things he didn't know were in the car. The next day Paul unpacked the very packed trunk and found more parts still. So it is close to being ready to reassemble as a roller, which will be a good place to stop and get an initial weight.
continued below
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