I agree with most of the above... decide where you want to race, decide what you can TRULY afford... then plan on spending more. I don't personally care for the SXS route, but they are plenty fast these days, more so than many other limited classes. You can probably buy something for 30% to 50% less than you can build it for, and others have already solved a lot of issues. Start small. BORE is great, just limited in scope. Don't let other's tell you it can't be done and do NOT listen to a lot of smart-arses here on RDC. I'm a truck guy... take a good luck at class 2000 (like in SNORE). Leafs are a good way to get some miles under your belt and learn a lot. Offer to help another team at the races, pit for them, etc. The rental programs like Trophy Lite may sound very pricey... until you get out there and see what it takes to do it on your own. And oh, btw... if your lady doesn't like racing you are screwed. Either don't get one or get a different one. ;o)