Auto-X Results 2006 Season

[PurpleTurtle]

The PurpleTurtle and I had a good year autocrossing with THSCC in NC. I ran 6 autocrosses in a PAX'd Street Tire class (GS pax), and finished third in the season points (okay, the top 2 cars in TIR did not qualify for the season's point championship, but then over 17 cars ran in TIR sometime over the season, so I feel pretty good about it).

The final autocross did not count for points, and everyone had to run in standard (non-pax) classes. The Turtle and I actually won GS! It was a high speed open course (3rd gear at 2 places), so it was a matter of how much speed you could handle. You don't need a lot of torque on sweepers and high speed lane changes, right up the TI's alley. Even the M3 guys were giving us thumbs up afterwards!

The Turtle ran this year with: K&N air filter, Mobil One oil, Borbet Type R rims (slightly more offset, but within stock class specs), 205/50/15 Kumho 711s on front, 205/50/15 Falken Ziex 512s on back, Koni Yellow shocks (back set medium since they do not external adjust, and front near firm to full firm), about 1/4 tank of gas, 32 PSI front, 36 PSI back.

Before next season I hope to add a cat-back exhaust (but it cannot be too loud, I drive the Turtle at least 4 days a week), and some stickier tires (either street class or true auto-x tires for GS). If I stumble on some great deals for other used suspension parts (cross brace, sway bars, strut bars), I may actually switch to DSP (it is actually less competitive at THSCC, my son-in-law won the season in DSP in his 1990 VW Corrado, which he is trying to sell if anyone is interested).

How did everyone else do this year, and what configuration did you run?

[robcarync]

well as you know i ran one auto cross at greenville and did pretty well for my first one.

i also did one in greensboro which i DNF'ed all 4 runs because i got there right as registration was ending cause i got some bad directions (thanks google earth) and only got to walk (IE: sprint) the track once...ran about 80% of the track fine and one part screwed me up EVERY time...but then again there were also i think 34 DNF's in the first round or something in that one spot so i guess i dont feel too bad but it was a learning experience...the importance of knowing the track before you get ready to race!

[btschafer]

I won the Cincinnati Region SCCA GS class again this year. Unfortunately, I had to miss Nationals in 2006, but in the previous three years I put my ti in the top half of the GS field. It's been getting harder to do as the dominant Cooper S is really well sorted out, well driven, and 90+% of everyone in the class has one. I hate the Cooper S with a passion. :-) But, it's always kind of cool to show up with a car that no one knows anything about and place it well at the national level. Did I mention that I hate the Cooper S???

I run:
1995 tis, red, 145k miles
custom valved Koni SA shocks/struts, full stiff rear, 50% front
custom SuperTrapp cat-back exhaust (noisy but light)
15x7 Kosei K-1 Racing wheels
.5cm wheel spacers with studs
Hawk HP+ pads on front, HPS on rear, stock rotors
Eibach sway bar in front from a 318i, custom end links, full stiff
Zero degree toe
K&N drop in air filter
NGK plugs, Magnecor 7mm wires
Mobil 1 15W-50 or 10W-30 (for nationals)
Red Line D4 ATF in tranny
Red Line 75W-90 gear oil in diff
Hoosier 225x45x15 or Kumho 225x50x15 tires (whichever seems hotter in a given year)
Schroth Rallye 3 harnesses (aside from tires, the best auto-x upgrade IMO)

And then...I stand on it. It's amazing how durable the ti is. I've made many hundreds of auto-x runs and spend a significant amount of time on the track and in twelve years the car has never let me down.

Bryan

[PurpleTurtle]

Thanks Bryan!

Great GS info! You answered a lot of things that I was debating on for next year. Yes, the Cooper S is also my target. No one has beaten them in GS or TIR around here for a while, but I am getting close.

Certainly there were more than 3 TIs (you, Rob, and me) autocrossing last year. Anyone else?