>My basic impression is
>that I will not be very competitive next year within the non-novice class
tires are the big divider. if you dont have r-tires in a non-street tire
class you have to have something seriously weird with the class to be
competitive.
i never understood the rotating tires business... you replace in pairs
anyway right? the one thing that can be helpful on stock suspensions with
inadequate camber or roll control is to swap them so the "fresh" edge that
was to the inside of the wheel is now on the outside
-james "wears the inside edge first" creasy
----- Original Message -----
From: "Matthew Rehrer" <mrehrer@rehrer.com>
To: "Bay_Area_Autocross_List" <ba-autox@autox.team.net>
Sent: Friday, August 09, 2002 4:26 PM
Subject: Unsolicited Newbie Commentary and Questions
> Disclaimer: Even Katie might think this is a little long but it is full of
> autoX content.
>
> As a someone new to this sport I am fascinated with everything about it
> including the current conversations about classification, modifications,
and
> new member attraction/retention.
>
> I believe that I might have some interesting input having just run this
> season (my first) in the D Stock / Novice 6 class. My basic impression is
> that I will not be very competitive next year within the non-novice class
> (not just because I will finally face the veteran talent) but rather
because
> I have yet to find a class that matches well with what I want to do with
my
> car. Though it may be a radical concept to some here I may actually want
to
> perform modifications to my car that are not solely autoX motivated.
>
> First I have some thoughts about cost containment that I have not seen
> mentioned here. I drive my car daily (21k in 9 Months is what I call True
> Street) and intend to do so for the foreseeable future. My car shipped
with
> "performance" tires with a 220ish treadwear rating. These tires have worn
> pretty quickly (within 21k miles) and in a way that is heavily influenced
by
> the 30 miles (being generous) that they have seen autocrossing. I would be
> hesitant to take them for a spin (literally?) in heavy rain at this point.
> The tire wear that I have seen combined with the poor wet weather handling
> characteristics of the stock tires has led me to believe that having a
> second set of wheels is the only way for me to really contain costs and
> achieve optimal performance during two very different types of driving.
> This is a problem, I am guessing, for most everyone who drives their autoX
> car daily rain or shine.
>
> I also have another problem which is less common. My stock front and rear
> wheel widths are different. Couple that with uneven tire wear and the
> result is a recipe for buying rubber I can't use due to inability to
rotate.
>
> I hope to buy Michelin Pilot Sport A/S rubber (4 tires =~ $1100 treadwear
> 440) for my street usage and for now will try out a very cheap set of 4
half
> used Hoosiers (~$150) for autoX. Any commentary on the above choices is
> very welcome.
>
> There are modifications to my car that I would like to make that I believe
> are simple and reasonable that would put me into a class where I would
> certainly be out of the competitive range. Herein lies perhaps the most
> generally interesting portion of this diatribe. The types of folks who
are
> likely to be interested in autoX are likely to do things to their cars
> before the first event they attend that will put them into a prepared
class
> where they will likely be intimidated and out classed. Of course this
> should not come as a surprise to these folks but I think it does surprise
> them and I am guessing that a lot of attrition happens here.
>
> In case it is of interest the ordered list of things I would like to do to
> my car is as follows:
>
> 1. 18" wheels and tires for for day to day use. Mainly for looks and same
> width front and back so I can rotate them. I would pick the widest set
that
> would fit front and rear which is 8-8.5". This mod most would agree would
> net me a performance disadvantage. However it looks like on a rainy race
> day I could not elect to run these wheels with my all season tires in a
> stock class.
>
> 2. 17" stock (or stock sized) wheels for AutoX. Unfortunately stock on my
> car is already too wide in the back for STS/X. I would like to run the
> widest wheels I can but at this point I feel stuck between a choice of
stock
> or narrower than stock wheels.
>
> 3. Front and rear anti-sway bars. I have been told that this is a very
> rewarding modification for aggressive driving.
>
> 4. Height etc. adjustable coilovers.
>
> For the most part I think that the reasoning for the above is generically
to
> put together a car that can be quickly and easily set-up for use on 880,
in
> the lot at Candlestick, or (when I know what I am doing and can afford it)
> at Thunderhill.
>
> Finally a question:
>
> If someday I decide to run my car (2001 BMW 330i) in SP what class would
it
> fall in? It is not specifically listed so my guess is CP by virtue of the
> "All sedans over 1.7L and under 3.0L not otherwise classified" catch-all.
>
> Thanks for reading and thanks for any feedback
>
> Matthew
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