$500 Craigslist rally car gunning for the Baja 1000/ w video

Dinesh

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Oct 13, 2006
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The Baja 1000 is one of the most grueling, demanding and torturous rally’s in the world. And Bill Caswell is going to take part in it with his $500 BMW E30 bought off Craigslist and put together in his mom’s garage and partially at the SEMA show before heading to the sand dunes of Mexico.

Caswell’s no stranger to competing in beat up machines and placing high on the finishing list. He made a name for himself when he took another E30 bought off, where else but Craigslist, and finished an astonishing third in his class at the WRC Rally Mexico.

That E30 won’t be the same one lining up for the Baja 1000 thought, the other E30 making the trip to Mexico was actually the parts donor to his Rally Mexico car.

“The silver-and-black hood from the original rally car came from this car, it's kind of strange, my autocross car has the engine from it. This was basically a parts car and after buying most of it he basically gave me the chassis for free,” said Caswell.



The bit about completing the car while on display at SEMA will prove to be one of the biggest challenges for Caswell as he promised his sponsor, Miller Electric Manufacturing, that he’ll complete welding the roll cage, suspension and a slew of other bits and pieces on the floor at SEMA. For that to happen, all the parts have to be pre-fabricated in his mom’s garage, where the car is currently being built, before being shipped off to SEMA.

“I've got ten days from the end of SEMA to make the start of the race, so I'm basically doing all the welding at SEMA and will do all the plumbing along the beach in San Diego. So far we don't have a shop down there, so unless someone has a shop we're doing it on a public beach,” explained Caswell on the impromptu work area.

While it’s still a work in progress, the final drawings give a clear picture on the outcome of this build. Tyres will be 33x10.5-inch pieces fitted under tubs almost as wide as the car itself. Power will come from a 3-liter straight six out of a 1995 M3 that will reach all four wheels through stronger driveshafts used on off-road buggies.



Things may sound like they’re all in place but there’s still plenty of work to be completed. At the end of it all, once everything is completed, Caswell still has to perform the final monumental task of driving it in the Baja 1000.

Caswell tips his hat to his friends for helping him with the build, piecing everything together in the garage.

So what’s next for the DIY racer? He’s got a fancy for a day at the Green Hell.

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Source: Jalopnik
 

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hey, im kindda new to car mods and stuff...im gettin a Wira year 94' 1.6....was wondering if anyone can gimme suggestions on what mods i shld do...i was thinkin of changin da engine...year 94 engine...1.6 summore...prob drink petrol like horse...open to suggestions...BUDGET RM6000.....
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