Most race car drivers relish the thrill of being first-past-the-post; Dion Dawson likes beating his cashed up competitors.

Dawson and his father, Brent, built themselves a striking Saker class car, which he has been putting through its paces at Teretonga Park raceway in Invercargill this season.

The car can reach speeds of up to 260kmh on the main straight at Teretonga.

It could hit 320kmh if there was more road, Dawson said.

Beating some of the cashed-up businessmen who had deep pockets was highly satisfying, Dawson said.

The recently qualified electrician is a shift worker at Tiwai, and had to knock-back offers of overtime work while he was working on the car.

Before committing to the project, he had been thinking about buying a house, but instead he invested in the car

The father and son committed about 2000 work hours on the project by Dawson's reckoning.

That equates to seven hours every night for nine months.

"There's not much change from a hundred grand," Dawson said.

The fibreglass shell had to be repeatedly manipulated and remarkably, all the work was done while the car sat on axel stands in his parent's garage.

The car runs at between 550-600 horsepower with some in reserve.

Dawson's eyes are set on breaking a 13-year-old track record.

Glen Brazier holds the time to beat as the record holder for the Southland Sports Car Club 2501cc and over category.

He would need to refine his unnamed crimson red speed machine if he were to beat Brazier's time, and but he's committed to fine-tuning his car to get there.