I was asked if I would like to become partners in the building of a Nissan race truck. Naturally I was flattered but it is something I have never done before so I have questions for teams that may have gone the same route. The truck is currently 100% stock right now. I'd be working on weekends building and learning with help along the way. Basically I'd be buying half of the vehicle and contributing my knowledge to build it with the help of another established race team, I would co-own the vehicle which means I would be able to race it and not just sit on the sidelines. I was told that partnering up is a great way to get involved in the sport. For the people who have gone this route, what advice can you give me? What things should I watch out for? What documentation should I be looking for to protect myself? I think it's a neat idea even to co-own a race vehicle in general but am I being naive?

Before we go any further, what type of racing is this for and with what org.

Building a land speed D21.

Rev_D21 wrote:I was asked if I would like to become partners in the building of a Nissan race truck. Naturally I was flattered but it is something I have never done before so I have questions for teams that may have gone the same route. The truck is currently 100% stock right now. I'd be working on weekends building and learning with help along the way. Basically I'd be buying half of the vehicle and contributing my knowledge to build it with the help of another established race team, I would co-own the vehicle which means I would be able to race it and not just sit on the sidelines. I was told that partnering up is a great way to get involved in the sport. For the people who have gone this route, what advice can you give me? What things should I watch out for? What documentation should I be looking for to protect myself? I think it's a neat idea even to co-own a race vehicle in general but am I being naive?

It can be a great experience but not easy if you both want to drive equally. So much depends on the relationship you have with your partner. It's gotta be a very strong one. You both need to be 100% on the same page as far as driving time and crashes/repairs. I have a few friends who went into race car ownership as co driving partners, and in all cases, one ended up buying the other out. The only ones I've seen work were family relationships, typically dads with kids, where the dads shoulder most of the cost.

Splitting costs is not so easy. For example, what if your partner wears out tires and brakes twice as fast as you? Does he pay proportionately? How do you calculate it?. What if the partner is careless and crash prone? I'm sure he'd pay to repair, but what if ends up you can't get seat time as a result of his carelessness? This kinda stuff will certainly test a relationship and there's a lstuff like that to work out. It might be easier to each having a car, and partnering up in other areas, like a two car trailer, sharing hotel costs, etc. I'm not trying to talk you out of it, I think you need a strong, flexible relationship with your partner to make it work.

Thanks for the insight, those are important things to consider. Things are still up in the air but keep those thoughts coming, I'm as green as they come so the more things I have to think about the better prepared I will be.

Like salt flat stuff? Too niche, I'd not bother with it. Not enough opportunities during the season to really get out and enjoy racing.