Good Guys Autocross Challenge Thoughts....

[ScotI]

The car in question has the DSE treatment w/4-corner Wilwoods so you would expect it to turn/stop decent but that doesn't control the mechanical gremlins that were obvious on more than one other vehicle. Sputtering..... stalling . . .... loading-up in the turns? Perhaps others noticed this.

I'm not asking for an exact layout of the track. But a general scaling of turn radius to be expected (or common track layouts) could help get general tuning close enough for the vehicles to make it through the course w/minimal tuning drama if they have an idea on what to expect out of the vehicle.

[novanutcase]

Just wanted to add a small sidenote!

Chris? Were you able to get the stain off of the blazer seat?

John

[dodge]

OK...This may come across as a silly Question...But why was the course so short??Does a 20second run really constitute a car that can run?Or was this course based on the available space they had at this venue?

This isn't having a dig so to speak..Just trying to understand how things work at your shows since i am in Australia

cheers Joe

[jeff hanson]

I think it was pretty obvious that I loved the autocross. As far as the length, I wish it was a couple miles, but with the amount of cars looking for spots to park, it could only be so big. I also don't think they need to give us any more notice about the track than they did. It's only 1000 ft, how much time do you need to prepare for that. I was standing by my car when I realized they were all walking the track, so I didn't even get to walk the whole track before I went. That goes back to, how much time do you really need to get ready. I personally didn't really need any. They're not going to make it so hard that you can't do it. I actually relate it to snowmobiling, we pretty much go flying through the trails at 80-90mph and never know what the next corner looks like, you just have to be ready and confident in your machine. I can't wait to do it again!

[MtotheIKEo]

Originally Posted by ScotI

I'm not asking for an exact layout of the track. But a general scaling of turn radius to be expected (or common track layouts) could help get general tuning close enough for the vehicles to make it through the course w/minimal tuning drama if they have an idea on what to expect out of the vehicle.

I dont know how familiar you are with autocross but one of the key aspects of it is that the course is unknown until you are there and get a chance to walk it.

If it is something that interests you it wouldn't be a bad idea to look up your local SCCA region and see when and where they hold autocrosses. Running local events will give you more chances to tune your car, or more importantly, to become familiar with it's handling and improve on your driving ability. Being able to drive an autocross course quickly and smoothly takes a long time to learn.

[esscott]

MtotheIKEo is right, the best thing to do if you want to become comfortable with the course is to do more autocrossing. After you have run a few different courses it gets much easier to get comfortable with the layout.

Consider other things you did for the first few times and how much better you got after you had more experience

If possible, a course walk can also be a huge help.

While some SCCA autocross events can run the same course multiple events, It is almost impossible to have the same layout from one Good-Guys event to the next. In columbus the main factor for the lot we used was the condition of the asphalt. We used nearly every inch of the largest uninterrupted smooth spot we could find.

On a personal note, I thought all the cars looked great going through the cones - fast, slow, or otherwise. I would say great job to all the participants and thanks for putting on such cool show.

[ProdigyCustoms]

If you have a DSE car, you have a ace in the hole as DSE is at every autocross Goodguys and you can always ask Kyle and Stacy to help. I am sure they would drive you though the coarse in their car, or yours.

So assume the turns will be basically equal to the coarse you saw at Columbus and somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds total.

[ScotI]

I was thinking more along the lines of mechanical performance. Many of the big names were hampered by ill performing vehicles as they were thrown into & out of the corners.

My personal car isn't pre-72 so GG events are out for me. The cars that we brought from TX for the Columbus event were customer cars so they won't see the road course @ all after this particular event.

[Tony@AirRideTech]

The coarse will change for every event... there are a few reasons for that. Fisrt and foremost it is to keep things fresh. Second is also available space and obstacles like light poles, barriers, good pavlement and bad pavement. To answer the question about a 20 second run being long enough to be a qualifier?.....It was enough to put a hurting on some of the cars that were there as it were. Not only that but it is hard to hurt something or someone on a shorter autocross coarse, you keep the cycle times, and it works better for the spectators.....

As for my opinion on the SMOY participants being required to do it.... I think it is perfect. We are already inundated with indoor shows and AMBR type shows which their only focus is on fit and finish and the only mechanical requirement being that they drive in under their own power. For a VEHICLE to be crowned SMOY it better be bad ass... and not just fit and finish. To me the SMOY award should be the most coveted award for any builder who touts that they build serious drivers.

[BRIAN]

Not sure if I read all the posts but what is or was considered the fast time for that course. Did any say z06 or DSE prepped rides hit course and post better times?

I guess what i am looking for is what would be considered as fast or the fastest time besides the top 5 cars? Just trying to see how far off the so called show cars were to a real cone carver???

Setting a car up for an autocross is different than setting a car up for highway driving. I would assume more usable power and sticky race tires will be on next year.