Had my first Auto-X on sunday and im not too happy..

[fast_ryda]

well I'll get more practice....too bad the season is over. Im trying to find a place where I can just practice on my own.

I didnt feel like i was underpowered....I was in high RPMs felt like i had plenty of power. Thanks for all your input guys.

About the tire still....whats a good autoX street tire?

[OandAWOW]

Falken Azenis RT-615 hands down is the best. Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star Spec is good.

[Auto-X-ZTS]

Originally Posted by OandAWOW

Falken Azenis RT-615 hands down is the best. Dunlop Direzza Z1 Star Spec is good.

With all ude respect, the Z1 is without question a faster tire than the Falken...look at Nationals results. Its also been quantified elsewhere (see sccaforums.com). So is the RE01R, and so is the R1R...the Falken is a good local/regional tire that is "cheap"...but they are not tire to have at the more serious levels.

[WUGcatsvt]

Originally Posted by OandAWOW

Put your back seats back in or get boost and a diff otherwise the vettes, elises, and Z4Ms will continue to hand you your ass.

HHUUUMM... I kill vettes... They are slow on autox courses. I have a CF hood and a HFC thats why Im in SM.. But since Im in SM I do delete my Rear seats.. LOL Im not concerned with competing in my class. I just wanna get a good time and have fun.

[Zewerr]

Originally Posted by Auto-X-ZTS

With all ude respect, the Z1 is without question a faster tire than the Falken...look at Nationals results. Its also been quantified elsewhere (see sccaforums.com). So is the RE01R, and so is the R1R...the Falken is a good local/regional tire that is "cheap"...but they are not tire to have at the more serious levels.

I agree with this statement. 615's are a good "budget" autocross tire. I ran on them this last year. Though they were good, they could have been much stickier as a street tire. I'm hearing the Z1's are alot better and will be trying this as my next set of street/autox tires. But I'm not sure I'll be autocrossing on them alot, as I plan on having R-compounds for next year.

Your KDW's are also fairly decent tires. Also not the greatest, they should still be a good street/autox tire. I'd wear those things out before worrying about them.

The secret to autocrossing is to basically make the track as straight as you can. Then you can carry the greatest amount of speed through all the elements. Your tires should screach, but should not howl. If they're howling, your pushing too hard, or turning the wheel too much.

The best way I know of of practicing during the winter is either racing in your local slush series, or dishing out a few hundred bucks and buy this and this.

Two really good ways to help make you faster, is have someone with experience drive your car through the course with you as passenger, or registering for a local autocross school, if one's available. Aside from simple experience, these are the best ways to hone your skills.

[wrc_fan]

Originally Posted by WUGcatsvt

HHUUUMM... I kill vettes... They are slow on autox courses.

You must have some slow 'vettes in your region then :P

[WUGcatsvt]

^^Not really.. Z06 Langinfelter (upgraded brakes and suspension) that was driven by one of the drivers that competes heavily in SCCA championships. Whipped him by a second. He also Drove a couple more of the vettes and I still had a better time. Vettes are better for Road Courses.

[wrc_fan]

Originally Posted by WUGcatsvt

^^Not really.. Z06 Langinfelter (upgraded brakes and suspension) that was driven by one of the drivers that competes heavily in SCCA championships. Whipped him by a second. He also Drove a couple more of the vettes and I still had a better time. Vettes are better for Road Courses.

You should come up to SCR SCCA some time LOL, there are a couple of 'vettes that run very, very, fast. I'm not going to disagree with you that tight autox courses will be quite a handful for a corvette. Though there is a C5 Z06 that is wicked fast that runs SM2, but sometimes the car is just a bit too wide;). Though there is a C4 vette that runs AS up in Charlotte that will take FTD sometimes. The driver is very good:)

Though that is a fun thing about autocross, you can always point at "faster" cars that you beat for the day. In fact, at our big event at Michelin proving grounds in september, I was a second faster than a 2nd gen Viper

He was whining thoughout the day, , something about not being able to get heat into his 325??(maybe bigger) Hoosiers

[WUGcatsvt]

^^Thats why I love AutoCross.. ;) Bragging rights.. Stickin it to the V8s..

[Blurvfocus]

Originally Posted by Zewerr

Two really good ways to help make you faster, is have someone with experience drive your car through the course with you as passenger, or registering for a local autocross school, if one's available. Aside from simple experience, these are the best ways to hone your skills.

^^That's exactly right. You'll be amazed at what YOUR car is capable of, what it's supposed to feel like, and sound like. It is a humbling experience we all had to go thru. Especially if you think it's your car holding you back, let a pro drive it for you.

Once you understand what you're trying to accomplish, then you're ready to have an instructor ride with you. Some will just point out where the course goes. Forget about him- you want the guy who's going to find fault with your driving and who is going to make you do it right. I had an instructor (he was actually just another compettitor, but a good one) who acted like I was 16 and he was my old man- he really gave me hell, but I needed it and I'd say I took 2 full seconds off my time that day by listening to what he was saying. By the time it was over, I came within a half second of beating him, and I got 2nd place sts. We were both thrilled!