How I Turned Grandma’s Buick Into An Everyday Track Hero

My interest in the automotive world began when I was born, in Sonora, Mexico in the 1990s. My name is Jesus David Serrano, but you might know me by my moniker: BigBootyRacing. I use the name when I participate in your casual weekend HPDE time attacks in my naturally aspirated 2003 Buick Regal LS.

I assume my interest in cars is something baked into my DNA because my mother says I started recognizing and naming the brands of automobiles that would pass by around the time I learned to talk. When other kids would be focused on learning and deploying important words like “gimme” and “tummy” and “more” I, instead, used what few words I could form on “Honda” and “Ford.”

Eventually, my curiosity began being fueled by the same sources that inspired most kids in the ’90s. In particular, the boom of Hot Wheels led me to collect 1:64-scale diecast cars that expanded my passion for anything with wheels. Fast forward in time, fresh out of high school I had a ’90s Chevrolet pickup truck that provided some unforgettable (and possibly unprintable) memories that I had to drop due to the terrible fuel economy.

I decided to replace the truck with a 2001 Buick Regal LS. The car was your standard American sedan from the early 2000s with no performance credibility unless you got the supercharged variant, and even that was still very much under the radar. But, probably like you, I knew this car had some potential. Under the hood of this General Motors golden chariot was the 3.8 Liter L67 Naturally aspirated 3800, an engine known for its reliability, punchy torque, and surprisingly decent fuel economy on the highway.

It wasn’t as boring as it seemed, although my friends at the time were all following the JDM craze (Mazda Miatas, Honda Fits, all your Honda Civic variations) or buying your usual domestic muscle cars. Those are the cars you buy if you have money, which I did not, which is how you end up with an old Buick Regal. It didn’t bother me, though, as I would casually attend canyon runs and quickly realized that I could keep up with most cars and motorcycles I’d run into.

I would explain to my friends that the car had some serious potential and they would, unsurprisingly, laugh at me. It is a Buick, after all. Fast-forward in time, again, I purchased a ’90s Nissan Sentra for $800 to get me going again after moving back to the West Coast from New York. An old friend later on convinced me to sell the Nissan and look for something a little safer.

The Birth Of Big Booty Racing

While looking for something that was both safe and satisfied my itch as an enthusiast, I happened to find another 2003 Buick Regal LS for sale. This example only had 52k miles on the clock and was donated by an elderly lady (who else?) to a rehab center out of Culver City. After a quick perusal of the car, I knew I had to have it–especially after the new owner cut me some slack and said I could have it for $1,750.

With that, the spark ignited my passion for Buicks all over again. The difference was that this time I was a bit more mature and I had more engineering-educated friends. I evidently bugged them enough with my crazy ideas to convince them to help me modify the Buick and, through some old forums, we found solutions for a few of the Buick’s shortcomings as a track car. A huge thanks to my friends and the old forum posters who helped engineer solutions to my problems.

Braking, obviously, was a concern. The Buick has about 190 wheel horsepower and can get out of its own way, but what it can’t do is stop. The aftermarket brakes were mostly a bolt-on mix of parts from other, more performance-oriented cars. That means 2007 Cadillac CTS-V calipers with 2007 Ford Mustang GT500 rotors up front, and 2007 Pontiac Grand Prix 5.3L V8 rotors and calipers out back. The main part needed to make them work were some extended stainless steel brake lines.

In terms of other modifications, the Buick has a rather simple and straightforward build. There are stiffer anti-roll bars front and rear, revised strut bars, and a more track-oriented alignment (shout out to Monrovia Alignment) with some new camber bolts The Buick currently rides on stock struts in combination with lowering springs. I’m overdue for coilovers, but those are out of my budget for the moment.

In terms of powertrain, the engine is “tuned” with an intake. The four-speed automatic is, no surprise, the biggest weak point of this platform. An aftermarket cooler helps there, at least a little. The Buick also features a Pypes Turbo Pro muffler to keep the car as quiet as it is slow while increasing the airflow. I also added 2.5-inch exhaust tubing from the catalytic converter and back, up from the stock 2.2 inches.

I got the wing off an ’03 Chevrolet Impala that was the same color, and a friend added an aluminum lip to the car. The wheels are Circuit Performance 18X9.5 5X114.3 +25 usually wrapped in whatever 200TW I can find on sale at the time. The interior is now graced with a Cleetus McFarland steering wheel that’s fitted with an NRG hub and quick release. I added the Buick logo to give it the perfect look.

Finally, I named my Instagram page and my personal motorsports program “Big Booty Racing” because this car, indeed, has a big thang hanging out the rear. Also, I think it’s important we normalize a better picture of body positivity from a male perspective; not all men need to look like models, we can be thick, too!

What It’s Like To Track A Bush-Era Buick Regal

Driving a Buick Regal luxury sedan from the early 2000s on track involves some heavy commitment, literally. The car has flaws like most street cars do and it’s rather easy to drive around those limitations. For example, the biggest downside is probably the stock LAZ-E-Boys leather seats–imagine ’60s racing on bench seats.

As you approach your first corner and hit a peak of 1.4Gs, you realize quickly that you’re dancing with a 3400-pound FWD Buick. This feeling is only enhanced by your own body floating in the air, with only the door and the steering wheel preventing you from being chucked out the door. Imagine being hustled side to side holding onto for dear life, while your left foot does its best to keep you planted as you brace yourself for each corner.

The steering wheel is your dance partner, hand in hand corner to corner, the Buick isn’t fast although once you get momentum the torquey 3800 V6 will carry that momentum wherever you’re brave enough to go.

While the car’s inhabitants get tossed around like shrimp at a Benihana, the Buick handles unnaturally well for what it is. You have to really commit to corner entry to maximize the low power disadvantage for corner exit, otherwise, you’re just cruising at what feels like highway speeds most of the time in a hot-rodded Buick while unsuspecting people on track check their rear-view mirror and notice something unnatural getting closer and closer with each approaching corner

Don’t Let Your Car Stop You From Getting To The Track

Overall, I know I’m not going to set any track records. I just want to prove a point that you shouldn’t let your car stop you from getting yourself out there on a track day if that’s what you want to do.

So many people in this hobby get mired in self-loathsome excuses about their car needing this or that when, in reality, all you have to do is run it as is and you can have a great time. Trust me, this is as low budget as you get in terms of performance and you’ll gain the priceless experience of teaching yourself the importance of driving dynamics. In the end, I hope I’m an example you don’t need your stereotypical automotive vehicle (a Corvette or a Miata) to go out to a track day and have some of the most thrilling experiences of your life.

You’ll also learn that not everything goes to plan: cars break, crashes happen, and wheels bend. I’m just saying, that you don’t need the hottest car to show up to a track day to show other people how it’s done.

In a world full of hard-to-obtain Porsches, with the Internet trying to convince you that you need massive horsepower figures, just know that there are car enthusiasts out there who take what they got–like Grandma’s Buick–and make it work at world-class racetracks as Laguna Seca.

You know there’s always that one guy who enjoys his Alfa Romeo no matter how often it breaks? Be that guy!

Top photo: Feels Fast Photography