How hard are you going to be pushing the car and does it need to double as your daily driver? If you are looking for a autocross toy you might just want to look for a used Viper or something along those lines. If you want a new car for a daily driver that you can also autocross then that is different.
I recall that Tim and I had multiple conversations on the subject while wrenching on his Valiant. In end we decided that it would've been easier and cheaper to just buy a used Vette or Viper to go racing in. Turning a Valiant into a Viper beater is a lot harder than just buying a Viper.
I agree. When I autocrossed back in the 80s and 90s I had a daily driver Chevy Monza Spyder. At first it doubled as a daily/weekend car. As the years progressed more and more went into the car to make it competitive. As all things go it snowballed to the point where it wasn’t pleasureable to drive but on weekends it gave the Vettes and Porsche’s a run for their money.
