JD_AMG

Ah, my mistake.
Progressive springs is another no-no with these cars.

Are you referring to rear LCA's, relocation brackets and an adjustable PHB? Not even close to what the wattslink does for these cars.

Great coilovers. Pricey, and I don't think they have a warrenty. However for auto-x these seem to be overkill considering Sam drove his car with Koni SA's to win multiple national champions, and the new owner of the car is doing the same without changing the setup.

jrwilliams95z28

what he said haha, stiffer spring provide a quicker load transfer but also limit the load transferred and then you loose grip. tires need weight to push em to the road. so no, stiff setups are not ideal.

ChiTownTBone

Lots of good advice but I am really surprised no one has mentioned what I consider to be "THE" most important consideration....

BRAKES, BRAKES, BRAKES!!!!!

IMHO never go on a road course without the minimum of Dot 4 fluid, Stainless Steel brake lines and Track brake Pads.

There is nothing worse than having your brakes fail because you did not have the proper equipment. There is also nothing more dangerous for you and the others on the track.

Please, if you are going to be on a Road Course, upgrade to at least the minimum of...

Dot 4 Fluid
Stainless Steel Brake Lines
Track Pads


Most of the HPDE companies I track with all of this is a requirement in their Tech Sheets. They also make sure that the brake fluid is fresh.

If you are not going to do this please at least let me know so I can stay the hell away from you.

T.

PS. 1981TA, I see your car up at Road America almost every time I am up there. You can really get that thing moving when it is dialed in. It sounds sweet doing it too.

.boB

iTrader: (1)

I think you're right. Chassis and brakes are more important than engine power. I shaved 2-3 seconds per lap right away by upgrading my brakes from stock to Wilwood. In road racing, 2-3 seconds is a huge improvement.

BUT, the OP is talking about his first autocross event. For the very first event I wouldn't change much of anything. Jut make sure the car is in good condition and ready to race.

As you get more seat time and get faster, then you can start making more changes and make it a better car. Gotta work on the loose nut behind the wheel first, though.

jrwilliams95z28

absolutely power isent as important! but id be careful how crazy you go on brakes, especially for autocross it can work against you at a point.

jrwilliams95z28

properly maintained brakes its absolutely a must, i couldn't agree more!

B Stead

No, it's only a lowered car that has less load transfer (or more outward wheel offset since a wider track works against the center of gravity height). Then it's obvious that the car with the lower center of gravity will go through a curve faster. But the explanation of vehicle dynamics is that the lowered car, with less load transfer, is then using more of the inside tires than before. That's like four tires working instead of only the outside tires working. But then, the car going through the curve faster tends to replace the previous amount of peak load transfer. In other words, most of the previous amount of peak load transfer now just happens at higher G-forces. Well, that's racing technique, if the car can go through the curve faster then it is run through the curve faster.

The bottom line is that a car does ultimately and fundamentally work by loading the outside tires
.

jstrime

Okay you say 17X11's with a 315 tire, but what series? 30, 35.....? Thanks.

JD_AMG

35 series.

jcsperson

You might want to start out with a NASA Hyperdrive. It's one session for $50. They'll even loan you a helmet. The next one is at VIR March 22nd.

1981TA

iTrader: (7)

Amen, brother!

The first time my car was at Road America, the rear brakes were barely up to snuff. Had they been in good repair, we would have spent much less time monkeying with the car and more time watching the others run. Silly things popped up that weren't immediately obvious at tech-in:

1. a rear axle bearing was worn enough to cause a seal to fail when the car was driven hard. On the street? no problems. Track? ha! This cascaded to a driver side rear brake failure.
2. A caliper slider pin seized, causing the passenger rear caliper to overheat and then fail. This is a crap design that 4th gen WS6 owners thankfully don't have to deal with.

Those probably accounted for a lot of the dialing in work you saw two years ago. After that weekend, the posi unit died, likely due to the low oil. The new setup is way better, but still frequently inspected.

After the second run at Road America, both front calipers seized once the car cooled down in my garage. So, bigger calipers and cooling ducts got installed. Brakes are definitely a major weak point on a 2nd gen f-body. The car performed like a beast at Gingerman last fall - nothing needed to be fixed or adjusted. The main lesson learned here is to simply make sure your stuff is in good repair and can handle the abuse of the track.

boltvette

If you don't want to slide across your seat every time you take a corner, look into Angel Pads by Angelwings Tech. A LOT less expensive than a racing seat and a great option if you use the car for more than the track.

Midnight02

iTrader: (8)

^^^^Great way to get a taste of what's to come! Cost effective entry into this awesome world!

I asked these same questions the first time I went out to Road Atlanta. Got a myriad of different responses and based on my experience I would offer the following:

1. You are the single greatest limitation of what the car does on the track. Just show up well-rested, well-hydrated and in a "learning" frame of mind. You're not going to win anything during a HPDE....you are driving for the purpose of becoming a better driver. My first couple laps on the track I got absolutely walked by a Mini Cooper. You read that correctly, I had 440 rwhp going to the pavement and was nowhere close to hanging with an instructor driving what appeared to be a bone stock Mini.

2. In view of that, there isn't much need to upgrade for the sake of additional performance. Hence, any upgrades should be more safety oriented. All you really need it to make sure the car is well maintained, tires are in great shape, no leaks, fresh oil change, etc. On top of that, you might want to pop a better brake pad on and go with fresh DOT-4 fluids. Brakes are pretty important at high speeds and the stock pads don't hold up well to the heat.

3. I did a lot more before my first trip out there and in hindsight, I wish I got the benefit of learning more when the car was less capable.

beach cruiser

iTrader: (1)

I'll be at VIR March 21-23 with NASA, if you car isn't ready just come hang out and talk to different people and watch. One of the most intimidating things can be just showing up and have no clue what to expect or do. A Hyperdrive is the best way to dip your toes in the water for your first time. If your car is not up to snuff, you'll find out in that 20 min session and know how to prepare for the next time. I gaurentee there will be a next time. But the basics that all the people above have mentioned need to be taken care of first. Good Brake pads, good tires, fresh oil, flushed brake fluid and a general overal inspection of the car. Come out, talk to people, get the lay of the land and have fun, The car will speak to you from that point on.

jrwilliams95z28

well i hear what your saying, but lowering a car dosent matter if the spring rates stay the same. the spring rate is whats going to determine how much load gets transferred, along with sway bars but they operate laterally. shock absorbers will change the rate at which the load travels but at the end of the day, springs rates change how much the cars weight moves front to rear.

jrwilliams95z28

which is why im considering ordering strano springs, but the eibachs are really close, so close its not worth the time and effort. right now anyway.

jrwilliams95z28

sorry, center of gravity will change the amount of load transferred but spring rates will change how much goes where. that makes more sense then the way i worded it earlier

B Stead

Yeah, "roll couple" says that a stiffer suspension at the front will increase weight transfer at the front while decreasing weight transfer at the rear. Or a stiffer suspension at the rear will increase weight transfer at the rear while decreasing weight transfer at the front
.