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j3rkstore posted:Strangely enough some clubs will let convertibles run as long as they pass the broom test, i.e. if a stick from the top of your windshield to the top of your factory roll protection doesn't touch your helmet. Personally I think its a terrible idea but I'm not the liable one. That only works for select cars with actual roll hoops that are visible all the time (no style bars or cars like the 911 cabriolets). Your helmet has to clear or be 1-2" underneath the stick depending on how anal the club is, and they measure dash to hoop unless the windshield can support the weight of the car (like an s2000). Unfortunately for me his means I can't run my S2000 without a rollbar, and the harness requires cutting up the interior. I need to find a new rwd dd I can track 
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Jun 14, 2012 14:13
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Seat Safety Switch posted:Isn't it only a few relatively small and easily replaceable interior panels that you have to cut up? Just buy replacements unless you have a super unique interior colour and swap them out when it comes time to sell. No, in order to have correct belt placement I'd need to run my harness bar through the center console, so I'd need to buy an entire new center section as well as not being able to use the only storage compartment in the cabin. c355n4 posted:Locally, I know of a miata rental, spec e30 rental, spec racer rental shop. All run by good guys. I've only seen one rental shop in the NE and they want $800 to use their cars, which is separate from the track entrance fee.
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Jun 14, 2012 15:13
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ultimateforce posted:I believe a low powered FWD is more fun than a low powered AWD car, due to drivetrain power loss. That's what I've heard anyway. Not really, the driving styles are pretty different. For rally-x, awd will be faster but not necessarily more fun.
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Jun 16, 2012 02:48
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Seat Safety Switch posted:The driving styles are really different. I guess it depends which way you go, the FWD driving experience translates pretty well to AWD but not so much the other way around. c355n4 posted:This is very, very good advice. Do not follow the car in front of you. You will often turn in early and apex early. This is a bad thing to do. The following video is a prime example. That's actually the correct line for the old corner before the repave; the camber and elevation change midway through entry so you needed to brake and apex early. Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 06:23 on Jun 16, 2012 |
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Jun 16, 2012 06:21
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That is why you don't follow the car infront of you, especially when it's driven by Zanadri.
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Jun 17, 2012 20:26
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kimbo305 posted:My C6 Z06 is maxed at the stock -1.5 in the front, but of the available -1.8 in the rear, my alignment guy, who does racing himself, only set it to -1.3. He said Vettes don't need as much camber in the rear. Most of my wear is at the insides of the rear tires, with the fronts being very evenly worn. I guess that's the effect of mostly street driving and not enough track driving? Probably, factory suspension settings tend to be closer to 0 camber front and some pretty good amount rear since it induces understeer in steady state cornering, as well as being good for hard braking. The vette also has steam roller tires, you don't need a ton of camber to keep a big patch in the rear. The Locator posted:This is also a great idea if you are buying an SA rated helmet for the first time as compared to an M rated helmet. They fit very differently. An SA rated "Medium" is not the same as an M rated "Medium". Just measure your head, if you say "I have a 28.5" circumference" they will usually have a inch range for the various sizes. Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 14:56 on Jun 20, 2012 |
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Jun 20, 2012 14:45
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Also aggressive compound tires like direzza stat specs rs3s shouldn't be allowed to go below 35f or they harden up.
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Jun 23, 2012 02:57
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Aurune posted:It's a HPDE day, not a race. Yes, you can shave a about a second off your lap time by being brave thru a corner known for creating body damage. Is that second worth not driving your car home? Pffft, everyone says west coast tracks are the best but you have to be pushing to wreck out there. Limerock uphill death corner 4 lyfe.
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Jul 2, 2012 13:28
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Admirable Gusto posted:I wonder if anyone who's familiar with Laguna Seca would please critique my lap: I can see a few spots you could gain time, but you'll also most likely have a rather serious crash if you gently caress up. In fact, one of them is exactly where that M3 hit and you will have that exact same crash. Crustashio posted:I had V12s out on one track day in my 328is and I wasn't really a fan. They squealed like hell even though I wasn't near the limit, and the treadblocks made the steering feel quite vague. Starspecs are more expensive but they feel a hell of a lot better on my 330i. I agree with this drove them at an auto-x in another AP1 S2000 back to back with my S2000 on DSS. They're actually rather fast and have good manners, they just don't feel that great. Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 03:38 on Jul 12, 2012 |
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Jul 12, 2012 03:33
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Admirable Gusto posted:Oh do tell please; I promise to keep the traction control on Ok, keep in mind: 1) I've never driven Laguna in real life, this is all just from my own racing experience and watching lots of races and other series at Laguna. 2) This stuff might not be applicable/work with your tires/skill/willingness to die. 1) Turn 2: You look like you're a bit shallow for the exit of the corner. You have a nice long straight after so you want to have a later apex and be on the power out of that corner as soon as possible. You'll want to start getting into the throttle by middle of the rumble strip and getting to WOT as fast as possible. Faster than that: The braking zone for 2 extends into probably at or a bit past the midpoint of the first rumble strip. You can get a bulk of the braking done in the straight and trail brake through the first rumble strip. 2) Turn 6: Again it's one of those nice long straight aferwards you want to maximize your speed down. It sounds like you're waiting a while to get back on throttle after the corner. I would suggest losing a bit of entry speed and turn in a bit later to try to get into full throttle by middle of rumble strip. Also don't spin and die. 3) Turn 11: Same as turn 6, sacrifice some cornering speed. Apex a bit later and go for early throttle, about midway through the rumblestrip. Also don't spin the car or you're hitting a concrete wall. And will die. Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 05:55 on Jul 12, 2012 |
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Jul 12, 2012 05:45
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eriddy posted:I just want to say that driving fast and well and on track is hard as gently caress - not just technically, but physically. I just got back from a long track event at Summit Point Raceway in west va and I was physically exhausted at the end of it. I now know why F1 drivers spend so much time at the gym. Do deadlifts, you brace a lot with your back and stronger muscles will make it less taxing. I started karting last year and races were 10 min with a 10 min break between heats. I would be exhausted by the 3rd heat and need to back off in the 4th when I first started. I had been running/cardio for a while at that point but doing back workouts had the most noticeable improvement on the ability to cope with the demands of driving, to the point where at the end of the season I did a 60minute continuous driving session at a flat out pace and felt like I could have stayed out for longer.
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Jul 13, 2012 01:12
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Dr JonboyG posted:Question about shoes: does anyone know if Puma Futurecats are wider than Sparco's boots? I've started finding my Sparcos quite uncomfortable after about an hour in the car, the left foot isn't wide enough, I think. No, future cats sole at their widest point are a little smaller than the width of you foot. I actually think theyre a bit too narrow, I heel toe with the side of my foot and can't reliably heel-toe in my S2000 with them unless I really turn my foot. They also have a very pronounced heel which is a bit uncomfortable after a long period of driving. If you can find them, I thought the drift cat width was just about perfect, the sole is as wide as your foot which makes them feel very natural.
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Jul 13, 2012 15:09
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Aurune posted:Agree, in the low end run groups it's basically who is willing to press that pedal on the right and let the tires scream a little. The downside of a low HP car is it has let me get away with mistakes I would not have gotten away with at much higher speed. I recently got to jump out of my MINI and into to a 911 and the results where stunning. I learned I'm turning in about three to five feet early every time. At 80 mph that's bad enough, at 100 it's loving terrifying. That being said, now I know and it gives me something to work on. The only mistake you are making is not adjusting your driving style for the car. If you think you can use the same marks in a 911 that you use for a Mini you have bigger problems than just the higher speed.
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Aug 22, 2012 06:32
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aventari posted:You don't necessarily need a sub belt. You can get a high quality 4 point belt like a Schroth. I run these Rallye 4's in my track E30 with omg no roll bar. Get a harness bar or dont run 4 points, that shoulder belt anchor placement is going to injure you.
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Aug 30, 2012 04:13
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Check around on convertible rules, a lot of clubs are super strict and require a roll bar AND five point harnesses for driver and passenger even if you're running a hard top. Also don't bother with suspension until you can actually drive the car, the stock spring/shock combo is better than or equal to anything below the $3000 range for suspensions. Most of the rear end being twitchy can be fixed with a larger front bar or softer rear.
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Feb 15, 2013 20:05
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For miatas I'm pretty sure all clubs require a 4 point rollbar and 5 point belts for driver and passenger as the roll hoops are considered "show bars" I think. They also do the broomtest to the dash in miatas iirc so you may need a lowering seat. Even with SCCA certification I don't know if I'd trust those hoopmaxx though, the 45 degree bends just give me the willies thinking about if the diagonal failed.
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Apr 25, 2013 15:55
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Autocross depends on the venue. I've done parking lot ones and didn't like it, the ones I currently run are at an airfield and a lot of fun and much higher speeds. It doesn't necessarily make you able to be a track monster on the first outing but it does give a nice base of car dynamics understanding to go from with a low risk factor which are necessary for 10/10ths driving at the track. Learning to maximize acceleration by rolling into throttle just enough where the rears start to slide a little is far less rear end clenching at 40mph in an open venue than at the limerock death corner.
Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 13:44 on Jun 7, 2013 |
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Jun 7, 2013 02:27
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Sab669 posted:I like how casual about it he was. Just briefly glances in the mirror and that's it He must play a lot of Forza.
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Jan 30, 2014 21:45
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FatCow posted:No one allows them at VIR or CMP either. 4 points are terrible ricer poo poo, end of story. 4 points are fine, the correct installation and use of them is so close to 5 points though it's pretty trivial just to require the 5th belt which gives a lot more safety leeway in the event of incorrect belt useage. Even 5 points can be dangerous if you leave a belt loose or tighten the shoulders first.
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Feb 15, 2014 02:31
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the poi posted:Pretty rad You need to work on your steering and throttle interactions a bit. The corner at :55 is a good example of it, you're rolling in before the apex and causing understeer, then not unwinding fully and using all the track. Post apex it's eating time because you're having to wait for the car to settle down before you can get into it fully.
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Mar 7, 2014 05:55
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Bumming Your Scene posted:Speed Ventures will have $75 skid pad practice, too pricey? Or invaluable limit of adhesion practice? Yea, definitely do it. Car control is one of those things you can read about all the right moves but you wont do it correctly when it's needed unless you practice practice practice.
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Mar 10, 2014 04:36
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SNiPER_Magnum posted:I say try the HPS out, see if you like them. They are better than OEM, they'll be fine if you are not having trouble with OEM. Just keep stepping up the aggressiveness when they wear out until you find something you like or need to go full track pad. That's what I did. HPS aren't good for the track, in my old S4 which was ~3800lbs I would have fade while bedding by the 4th 60-10mph braking and they would be pedal to the wall glazed on #8. I loved them on the street but they don't deal with high temps well.
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Apr 14, 2014 04:14
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aventari posted:Really? I generally set up my 225/45-15 RS3's at like 28 cold and then dont touch them all day. Saying "this tire likes xx psi" is only a general gauge, a 60 ratio tire is going to need way more psi to keep sidewall flex down vs. something with a 30 ratio. Using a pyrometer to gauge tire temps is a better way of determining ideal psi.
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May 1, 2014 05:54
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Bumming Your Scene posted:Dropped my personal best by 1.256 seconds at the roval. I think mostly due to higher speed in the oval portion, for some reason I was going too drat slow in the turns, shouldn't get below 40 and I was nearing 30. We'll see in August what some camber bolts do for me. Your steering is smooth and deliberate but a bit slow for tighter stuff. Tire grip vs. weight transfer plateaus at the edge of grip so you want to turn in a really tiny amount to get weight transfer started a fraction of a second before you would normally turn in. So basically it would be like giving a wee bit of turn in at ~1:09.5 in you lap and then doing full turn in at 1:10s instead of just turning in at 1:10. Long autocrosses (big stadiums/airfields) are a good place to learn about bossing the front around without upsetting the rear in the tighter stuff 
Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 02:27 on May 9, 2014 |
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May 9, 2014 02:06
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SpaceRangerJoe posted:Does anyone have some recommendations on gloves? I have a pair of sparcos that I like, but I have no idea what model they are. I want to get my brother a pair for his birthday, but I don't know much about that. Mine have the seams on the outside which is pretty nice, so I'd like to get something like that. I like my alpinestar tech 1-kx but they're not fireproof if that's a requirement.
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May 17, 2014 00:11
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Phone posted:Don't buy anything for your car that isn't maintenance. Especially don't buy KYB or Teins. This all the way, if you ever think you need xxxx part, let an instructor drive your car. In most cases their first hot lap will be several seconds faster than yours. If it's not, go ahead and buy. Humility is the key to speed.
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Jun 30, 2014 06:35
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animeliker posted:There are $300 dollar helmets? Aren't new ones between $600-$1000? My Bell M4 was like $350 and it's really good.
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Jul 9, 2014 05:18
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Octopus Magic posted:Also is anyone doing Thompson at the end of this month with COM? My miata is T70 prepare to get owned scrub
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Sep 14, 2014 21:17
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McMadCow posted:The moral of the story is, motorsport is dangerous, and even autocross can have insane moments that make no sense. I have no idea how that station could have been made any safer, because the car went off in a direction that was completely unexpected and had no relationship to the direction of travel. The corner workers were basically in the right place, yet there was still an accident that put them in the path of a Cayman at full chat. Stay safe out there. How did it get to a place completely unrelated to direction of travel? Did it pull a complete 180 and loop around to nail the station? If not, that's just bad course design or worker placement.
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Nov 17, 2015 06:40
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I did TNIA at Thompson two weeks ago in intermediate for my first track day and it was great. Self tech seems a bit sketchy but most cars are in good condition. Self classing also leads to a bit of mixed bag of skill in int; even after just heavily doing autox I think if I were to sign up again for the first time I'd do advanced. The nice part of intermediate was having point by passing on straights only, people tended to dial it back and keep a pretty good distance in braking zones and through corners even with trains, and I almost always got a point by at the next passing zone when I caught someone under braking or cornering. The downside was I was close to 5-10s/lap faster than almost everyone even at a somewhat relaxed pace, so I didn't really get any laps at full pace. Novice has instructors but they don't do it in car, I think they'll watch and tell you how to improve. Also Palmer looks terrifying from the paddock. Watching the cars come through that two car wide chute with the two concrete walls at the edge of the track right after T1 from the parking area made me not want to do Palmer for my first track event.
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Sep 12, 2016 05:05
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Gigi Galli posted:That was a great read Kimbo even with the not so great ending for you guys, thanks for posting. Thompson is a pretty challenging track. Did they let you guys on the banking by the oval or was it marked off limits? There are a lot of workable lines there. They coned off the banking. I drove the start of the race on sat which is supposedly the worst part of lemons so here are my thoughts: The driving isn't really that bad, but extremely intimidating. No one wants to make contact with you and get black flagged or damage their car, but it's a two way street. If you leave a door open someone will probably try to take it and then you'll have to contend with being door to door with them. The best way to drive is just be consistent, either yield or be assertive but don't flip flop mid turn, slamming a door in someones face will cause a wreck. There are also an unreal amount of cars on track at the beginning, Thompson is 1.7mi long and there were 110 cars. I did 4 full yellow laps before the cars all got on track. It took 10 minutes to get all the cars on track at race start. The race also doesn't officially start until all cars are out and then the green flag drops. On the first day we rushed to get the car into line and first into the staging area by 9am (Kimbo really did hustle for that sticker) but it doesn't actually matter when you go out as long as you're out when it's yellow. It's nice to get a bit to warm the car up but we moseyed the car out on Sunday rather than rushed it for the noon deadline. The green flag dropping is loving bananas. The race eventually settles into a nice flow of big open sections with fast/medium speed cars in a one/two wide car conga line and then one or two rolling masses of slow cars somewhere else. At the beginning everyone is mixed and everyone is trying to get position, so any space that there is enough room for 2 cars has 3 cars jammed in there. This is actually probably the most hilarious fun I have ever had in a car and least stressful part of driving during the race, it takes a lot of situational awareness but everyone is packed super tight so everyone dials it back a bit to give a safety net if needed. poo poo will go down, but I think the opening laps only really had some minor door to door bumps and a few cars exploding immediately for full course yellows. I had an audi blow a turbo and spew a smokescreen for most of a lap and then saw several cars sitting on the grass waiting for the wrecker to come bring them home. Comparatively, my second/third stints were far more aggressive in terms of driving and actual risk since everyone thinned out and it became more small pack battles. There was a large speed gradient in terms of driver skill and power/lap times. Our 280zx wasn't the slowest car out there but there were a couple far, far faster cars. The slow cars stuck with each other and had it out but would mostly let the mid-speed/fast cars get by. Fast cars didn't need your stupid midpack bullshit and would use you as a high speed slalom or you would appear at end of straights with 30mph more straight line speed and just hustle by. Most of them had pretty bright front ends so it would catch your eye when they were approaching and you knew to just let them by, but there were a couple of times where the car literally just appears at the last second. Everyone would give those cars an open line where possible so they could scoot by. I'd say the riskiest parts were having it out trying to pass a cars that were slower in the corners but had more power that didn't want to let you by since they would try and eke out that edge to keep up or keep in front. I chased some shitbird in a slower car through an entire lap, poking the car out to get around and let him know I was there, then having to tuck back in for traffic before finally getting a better exit on the inside for the main straight and passing him there. Since we have 14 hours of racing and I know I'm the faster car, I can wait a lap or two for a clean pass. He then decided to be a hero and try and late brake dive bomb to get position on the inside, except he hosed up, locked up, and almost put me into the grass when he overcooked the corner and couldn't maintain the line he wanted. This was the main danger later on in the race. I tried to battle some cars for position for fun, I got into a three way z battle with a 240z and 300zx for a lap or two and gave them a friendly wave when it was over, but if someone was going HAM on it I would back off and let them go to the black flag that was probably looming. Passing later in the race also was really fun. There were a couple of strategies I'd use to get through, the fast cars would punch a hole and you could just follow through with them if you tucked in on their tail. I don't think I've ever had a more satisfying experience in a car then watching the Porsche 928 approach the s curves behind me, everyone seeing him coming and starting to make room for him to pass on the left, then tucking in behind him with 2 or 3 other cars who all had the same idea and going through a 10-15 car block of traffic in a little 4 car train while listening to the unmuffled porsche v8 scream off infront of you. Cars also tended to slow down for the safety margin when they bunched up and got door to door, so a lot of passing could be done on really weird lines if you could get on the gas earlier than them and stay clear. My favorite passing spot was coming under the bridge behind a pack a bit slower than them, but getting a tight exit line and running up the the wall, hugging the cones blocking off the banking of the speed bowl, and hugging the other wall. You could pass huge packs fairly easily that way, even if they were three wide in the bowl. The only problem was if a slow car moseyed on the outside. Speaking of which, pit exit was essentially unrestricted so trying to drag someone down the straight and hoping the car exiting pit in front of you sees you in their mirrors and doesn't pull out in front of you is real and very unnerving. I spun the car in T3 and earned us our third black flag of the first day 10 minutes away from the end of my third and final stint, which really surprised me. The car didn't feel as surefooted in the third session, things I could do easily in the second stint felt a bit more risky in the third. I wasn't even going really hard, I think just a combo of slowly fading tires and exhaustion finally got to me. It happened really fast, and there wasn't much traffic around so I finished the loop into the grass and waited til it was clear to pull off. That spooked me a bit and had I driven on day 2 before the car exploded a hub, it would have been in my mind the entire time. Your brain definitely gets slow towards the end of an hour stint. Other thoughts: 1) The people there are really awesome. I grabbed a guy from another car to help kimbo sit on the hood for leverage and in about 2 minutes there were probably 10 random people attempting to help get the car back on the trailer. One dude was really insistent we use his new winch he just bought and wanted to try out. 2) Breaking stuff sucks but also is really satisfying to fix. Watching the car drive off towards the track after replacing the driveshaft, bleeding the brakes, etc made me feel proud of our team. 3) Driving that 36' RV was honestly the most nerve wracking part of the weekend, leagues worse than being 3 cars wide through any turn at Thompson. It's super wide, GPS takes you down dumb roads, and people are dicks. That being said that thing is awesome when it's set up. It's a mini-house. Despite receiving a 45 minute primer on how to use the TV, we barely had time to watch tv. Also it had a laundry hangar which meant you could hang wet nomex in the sun and it would dry off before the next stint. 4) Endurance racing sucks and is tiring the first time. It's really a game of tiny details to make life easier/less lovely. Having to carry fuel instead of having a fuel cart made my triceps look hella jacked and I could see all the miata boys taking a gander when I'd walk by but gently caress lugging those around again. 30 minute intervals for driving was more tiring on the crew than the driver. 5) Speaking of which there were almost 0 miatas. I was stunned. E30/36 are the track rats. 6) Speaking of which there were a bunch of turbo 5 audis and it ruled because they sounded like the group b/IMSA 5 cyl cars. 7) The cool shirt feels like someone is dumping a bucket of iced water on you when it runs. It's really, really, really nice. I'm glad I bought one.
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Aug 15, 2017 18:45
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Ether Frenzy posted:Good writeups, Kimbo & Muffinpox. Definitely enjoy reading stuff like that, it makes me want to get involved with someone who knows how to fix cars better than I do's LeMons team. Too bad you guys are east coast! Wrenching is good but I'd rather just be on a team with a reliable car. I got invited to drive for a team next year at New Jersey with an integra that pretty much runs like a clock so I'll probably go with them. I also must have been very impressive in the battle we had because that was the person I spun infront of after passing. The C class winner, which was in the top 40 overall, was the slowest car out there but it just never stopped. We went from 35th in bclass and 74th overall to 18th in class and 53rd before we had to bring the car in. We would have made up a bunch of places with shorter stints, we started at 30min and moved up to an hour but most teams were running close to 3 hour stints. At about 5min/stop we probably had the car sitting for an hour which is ~30laps, easily enough to put us in top 10 for class and top 30 overall on day 1. The one thing every team kept repeating was is that if you keep the car running, you'll be top 30. The attrition rate is enormous. We were pretty fortunate in terms of failures, a motor/tranny swap would have sucked hard. We checked the diff and it was almost out of fluid since the wobbling driveshaft had done a number on the front diff seal. We refilled and checked the leakage, it was seaping but not enough to worry for 3-4 hours left. Also some teams are real hardcore, there was a turbo 300zx that was plagued by motor problems. On saturday night there was a huge bonfire on the hill overlooking the track and they were working on a rebuild/swap when I went up at 9pm and still working when I came back at 1am. I found out at awards they warped a head in the first hour, swapped to their back up motor which then spun a bearing. They then spent all night taking parts out of motor 1 and putting it into motor 2, which then also exploded, so they found a new motor and jammed that in there too on day 2. Which I think also exploded. That's 4 motor swaps and 1 rebuild in 36 hours. The coolest car there was a chevette converted to MR with a subie flat-6 and huge fender flares that looked rad as gently caress but I think they did 2-3 engine rebuilds as well. I barely ever saw them running. I'm not sure how reliable the 928 was since they weren't staged near us but I remember seeing them a fair amount on track. Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 02:59 on Sep 9, 2017 |
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Sep 9, 2017 02:55
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That's a really bad habit even with lovely seats, use your left leg to brace not an appendage actually controlling the car. Your car almost catches you out a few times because you're one handing it.
Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 00:42 on Sep 12, 2017 |
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Sep 12, 2017 00:35
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Dave Inc. posted:So I could use some advice on weekend/track tires for my '82 911. I'm comfortable on track but focused on learning over lap times and with an old 911 I'd rather have predictable handling over high limits. I was looking at RE-71s and Ventus RS4s but honestly I feel like I don't need stone-grabbing levels of grip and I don't want to go nuts on road noise. I've had Yokohama S-Drives on the car for a while (so cheap) but they don't give me a lot of confidence (and can't handle trail-braking at all) so I'd like something more but not all the way. Any thoughts? A bunch of lemons teams were running RS4s and said they got 3 races out of them, maybe 4, so 45-60 hours of track time. The z1 star specs were leagues better than my s.drives and z1 star specs are complete poo poo compared to basically any extreme performance tire sold right now, so there's really no going wrong.
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Sep 14, 2017 06:18
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eriddy posted:How does autocross compare to doing trackdays? I've done a few dozen trackdays by now and never tried autocross. Is it hard to learn the course? What kinda skills/ability do really good autocross drivers have? It depends on the venue, I autox a ton and I'd never bother with tiny parking lots but bigger places like airfields or stadium parking lots are pretty quick and very good smaller track analogues. As for the differences: Pros: 1) Autocross is really about being able to navigate the g circle quickly and smoothly, it is slower in terms of absolute speed but much faster paced in terms of how much occurs. 1.7 miles at Thompson is 11 turns, 1.7 miles at devens is 40+ elements. A good autoxer will be good at track and vice versa. Smooth inputs are king. Watching a top pax nationals video is like watching your soul die because you'll never be able to hustle a car around a g circle that precisely. It's unreal. 2) You don't really "learn" the course so much as keep your eyes up and just follow the cones and memorize important bits. It translates well to track as you're really looking through the course. They have course walk through a but most people use them to memorize "gotcha" elements where the looking ahead line is incorrect. I don't care if a slalom is 3 cones or 20, I care about the entrance and exit. 3) The risk is a lot lower at autox so you can drive much closer to your limit without danger of something really bad happening. I can always tell when track guys show up because they do all the right moves but they leave a little bit on the table. The main benefit there is if you have an instructor and video, you can practice and improve in a low risk environment really driving the car to the limit at transitions which is really where that last 1-2 seconds that separates good from unreal drivers lies. The other benefit is you learn how to "filter" out thinking about the car after long enough and concentrating on what you're doing wrong and where you're slow. 4) Everyone loves competition (New England at least) and are super helpful. The fastest drivers in competitive classes have God tier driving abilities and will gladly drive your car or show you video or watch your video to help you get faster. I can keep pace with trophy level national drivers and there are still people who will drive my car, smoke my rear end by 2 seconds the first time driving and once I'm done crying, will show me how to be faster. Cons: 1) Not much seat time/high cost per run. One track session is more than an entire autox, easily. Hell, lemons was probably more seat time than my entire normal autox season. 2) Threshold braking/downshifting is much less practiced at autox. It does come into play but it's much less emphasized than at track. 3) Low absolute speeds. I'd never drive on track like I do at autox but track is wayyyy more fun even with lower limits. 4) Autox teaches ability to discern ideal lines, but lack of real straights generally means keeping the line that involves the least distance is usually the best which doesn't always jive with track. 5) Tracks tend to attract a lot of people so there is generally a lot of good knowledge and baselines to judge against. Club Motorsport opened in NH this year and I can probably spend 10 minutes googling to find the best line and baseline times. Autox *really really* depends on the clubs/venue for quality of competition and courses. Dave Inc. posted:Wow. The RS4s made all the difference in the world. I couldn't believe how much more predictable and stable they were at or beyond the limit than my old s-drives, and what a difference in made in how I could attack corners. I was easily able to trail-brake and slide into corners with great entry speed whereas before the same attempt would have ended with me showing off my pretty headlights to everyone behind me. And fast, too, drat fast! I had a long time PCA instructor tell me that he was massively impressed to see an old SC keeping pace with C7 Z06s in the same run group, and I couldn't believe that myself either. Very very happy. Glad you liked them! S.drives are good for street tires but real pieces of poo poo when it comes to transitioning from throttle/braking to turning at the limit. Muffinpox fucked around with this message at 05:37 on Oct 4, 2017 |
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Oct 4, 2017 05:20
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