ok guys I have a bunch of ?s about auto cross because ive never done it and never really watched it, my step dad has a corvette club which I kinda was forced into because my grand mother has 2 vettes and they hineeded me to be a member to drive one, but now they have an auto cross even to where I can run my 02 z28. my ?s are what should I have done as far as suspension to my car for this? my car will be a street/strip car, I only planned on drag racing but willing to give anything a try. I don't want to make the suspension strictly for auto cross if that's even possible. also what all do I need to know about auto cross so I don't go out there and embarrass myself. my car as far as suspension is stock besides its lowered. any info on this would be great, im not afraid to dumb some money into because the suspension needs to be done anyway

 

You don't need anything, just go try it stock. I would fix whatever is worn, probably check front control arm bushings, ball joints, tie rod ends, and get a decent alignment, you can find recommended specs on here. Would be interesting to know what you're lowered on, just springs? Springs with decent shocks?

 

You don't need to do anything special to run an autox really. Just make sure nothing on your car is worn out, all your fluids are good, battery is secure, and you should be good to go. The best thing to get is seat time. An experienced driver with a stock car will generally be faster than an inexperienced driver in a modified car.

 

im pretty sure the its just springs for the lowering, the shocks are orange which I am told are factory. thanks guys for the info, how does it work just who ever has the fastest time through?

 

It typically gets broken down by classes, somewhat based on the stock performance ability of the car. Do you know the name of the organization you're running with? Here's an older list of SCCA's classes to give you an idea:
http://www.moutons.org/sccasolo/Lists/2011/stockc.html

Then depending on your mods (these are for SCCA again) you'll get bumped up into "street prepared" or "modified" classes depending. Other places will use a list of mods that add "points" and then once you reach a certain threshold you'll get pushed up a class.

Basically you'll show up, pay and sign in. Then you'll have your car "inspected" mainly to make sure the battery is tight and there are no loose items inside the car. After that you'll have some free time so go walk the course as many times as you can, you can't go fast if you're still trying to see which way you need to go next, you want to remember it and know what comes next. Then there will be a driver meeting. You'll usually have the day broken into heats, you'll run during your session, work a few while other classes run, and if you're lucky have one or two off to just hang out. They'll explain pretty much everything there, how hitting cones adds times and everything.

Just walk in knowing you're about to get wrecked by Miata's and there won't be many more surprises

 

You'll also want to bump up the air pressure at least in the front tires. I'd start somewhere around 36psi and check the shoulder after your first run. If it looks like is scrubbing hard on the shoulder bump up the pressure. When I ran street tires, I found 36F/30R a good combo for me. Depends on your tires.

 

I remember when i said that i was only going to do lapping and that i wanted to only setup my car accordingly...then i tried autox, man it was such a good time...i'm totally hooked. mind you that a car that is setup for lapping could be very comptent in autox and vice versa...but drag, not so much.

make the intention to have fun...this will relax you and improve your reaction time. look ahead and use your peripheral vision to situate yourself when on course...this will slow down the oncoming objects and give you time to complete your inputs.

do your best to be smooth...rolll on the throttle and squeeze the brake to keep the suspension settled and provide you with much needed traction. avoid stomping on pedals and harsh steering maneuvers...don't get me wrong, you can be smooth and drive ***** out...

you can check out SCCA autox videos to see what its like...

you don't really need to upgrade anything for autox...just make sure the maintenance is up to date as mentioned in the above posts. Get yourself a good tire pressure gauge and a decent pump...i run a cheater street tire (200 tread wear rating) and i found 36F/34R works well for me...

you can also chalk the edge of your tires to see if you're rolling onto the sidewalls. if that scenario does present itself, increase the air in the tire.

i know i know...lots of details but i just can't help it...

oh man...i love this ****.

 

Get in your car and drive it. Try to figure out what pressures your tires like. Have fun.

 

Also try and walk the course with an experienced person to help you find "the line" Generaly most couses have 75% more cones than you really need to pay attention to. Find out what the key cones are and try to remember the sequence as best you can.

 

thanks guys for all the help, the autox is for revolution corvette club out of York, PA my moms fiancé is the president of the club, I don't know exactly where this one will be, its November 3rd so I have sometime to go over everything and possibly upgrade all the suspension in my car since ive been wanting to, it sits to low I scrape on everything and literally about ripped the exhaust off. but anyway the last autox they had was at the Harley plant in York off of route 30 so if any isn't that far come down its open for any car not just vettes, as to why I will be running

 

in autox is power slides something you want to stay away from? is this more about keeping traction and getting the best time?

 

yes..

 

You just missed one at the Farm Show this past weekend.
Check here... http://www.scca-susq.com/
Everything you need to know is on this site for the Susquehanna region.
My son & I were there. Even the local news.
It was our second event. Couple weeks ago was Hershey Park. Most events seem to be at Hershey or Harrisburg. We're just getting in to it too.
Pretty cool.