my first Autocross results
 

Thought I'd post the results of myself (a newbie) at my first Autocross event. It was March 7th, 2004 in Knoxville TN. The results posted are with 38 psi all around. Strange though, the best time was with 38 psi all around and after being told my tires weren't getting enough roll, the times went down after they lowered my psi to 36 front, 34 rear. comments anyone?? Thanks :)



Driver Car Model Time Factor Pax Tm Lag Tm From 1st

Donna King Mazda RX8 53.804 *0.826 = 44.442 0.314 7.812

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sorry, corrected the post now....oops!!

OEM PSI is 32 on all four corners. With a good alignment I found the car needed only 34 PSI in front and you could keep the rear at 32.

If you enjoyed autocrossing then the first thing I would recommend is a good (not dealer) alignment. Search the threads for more info regarding this issue.
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GLASS PIPE PICTURES

does getting a good autox alignment mean the tires will wear more quickly on the street?

I have an alignment refined specifically with national autocrossing in mind, and it is BARELY out of Mazda spec for the RX-8 (only front camber, and only by .25 degrees).

I have 11,000 miles on the original tires, and expect to get 4-5K more before replacing them (they still have 5/32 tread depth).

Now, if you ALSO used the street tires for autocross, all bets are off!

hey, that's awesome news! since I suck at autox anyway (but I love to do it!) that means I don't even have to fiddle with an alignment. :)

I'll be running the stock street tires till they die. (both street & autox) then I'll replace them with some other street tires, probably whatever comes most highly recommended on this forum. :)

my prior car was a 99 mustang GT, I autoxed it for 5 years. I'm really looking forward to seeing how much different the rx-8 will be on the track.

I just bought my rx, I pick it up this afternoon (once I'm done reading rx8forum, er I mean working).

there's an autox this saturday, but I can't make it, my wife and I are holding a garage sale this saturday for grocery money after buying the rx-8 (no joke, I had to clean out my savings account). so I'll be autoxing this car in May.

btw, tpryor, I got a yellow one also. (touring package, appearance package, 6sp). I didn't really want the appearance package, but couldn't find a touring model without it.

have you had your rx-8 corner-weighed yet? our local club has a weigh-day on may 1. i'm hoping those darn side skirts aren't too heavy.

I've read that autoxing with less than 1/4 tank of gas is bad, do you go with a full tank or try to keep it around 1/2? i plan to be corner-weighed with a full tank as the worst case and go from there.

I have not corner weighted the car, but I have weighed it (2940 w/half tank). And, the side skirts only weigh a couple of pounds.

I have heard those same things about the fuel level, so I have been shy about getting it too low, but over the last few events we have been letting it get lower and lower. At the National Tour this weekend, Sunday's runs were made with the guage BARELY (maybe a needle width) above 1/4, and it was NO issue (fast course, long side loads).

I wouldn't worry too much about it, but I wouldn't run it below the "E" like we used to do with the 10AE Miata.....:)

You will want to get your car aligned. As it comes from the factory the alignment can be horribly off.

I got 15k miles on OEM tires before changing them. Used a more aggressive alignment (do a search for stats) and went through maybe 10 events with two drivers. Even then it hadn't quite reached the wear indicators but I was getting antsy to replace them with S-02's. :)

Getting a good alignment done (regardless of settings actually used) and rotating tires frequently is key.
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MICHIGAN DISPENSARY

how do I find a good alignment shop? if I'm just looking to make sure it's within factory specs, will any old sears do? (i'd guess not but alignments always make me nervous since all they do is hand you a print out with some numbers on it, you have to trust them)

Word of mouth is really the only way I'm afraid. Your local Sears might be excellent for all I know but then again it might be crud. I once went to an aftermarket alignment specialist for an S2000. Factory spec was 1 degree camber and I wanted 1.5 degrees. Their machine couldn't go that far so they arbitrarily decided I must have meant 0.75 degrees on each side. I was pretty pissed about that one.

One definition of "good" is "consistent" meaning the camber/caster/toe on one wheel is identical with its opposite. As it came from the factory mine was not consistent at all.
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LovelyWendie

I'll ask around on the weigh-in day, surely someone will know. Once I find a shop, I'll probably have them check the alignment first, maybe I'll get lucky and it will be close to correct.

Find a place that will align it to YOUR specs with you sitting in the car. There's not much point in it being aligned while empty, is there?????

You want the alignment right with the drivers weight. You'll be surprised how much better it will feel.

I hadn't even thought of that.

Went to autocross school this past weekend, and have learned a lot!! The best $50 I ever spent. Donna

I'm going to the rev it up school, and I hope to learn a lot. I missed the local regional scca school. At my first and only autox, I got three DNFs. There were two other 8's there and they both had DNF's for their first two runs (they also were novices).

There was a LOT to learn for me at school. The 3/9 hand position on the wheel, learning NOT to get too hot going into the circles, ride the inside cones, looking ahead, shuffling the wheel........etc..... the list goes on and on. I recommend going to school very much. I bettered my time by almost 5 seconds by the end of the 2 day school. Donna

About driving schools?
 

I live in Phx AZ and have considered going to a weekend driving school since getting my 8. Donna you said you paid $50 for the whole weekend...really was that all it cost?

And for everyone here please I'd appreciate your input. Also about what you drive...you drive your own car right? So learning to navigate around cones etc...I'm a little concerned about smackin into cones and damaging the body. Can you tell me your experience and your thoughts on that?

Much appreciated!

Poolside: The autocross (solo2) cones will not damage your car. I took the scca autocross school in my region for $50. I took 5 sec. off my time by the second day of the school. Here's the link to your region's site. www.azsolo2.com/ Check the schedules link to see the autoscross school in Dec. But go ahead and do an event or two before the school, that way you'll kinda be used to what is supposed to happen. Also, the instructors in the scool will ride with you in your car and you will ride with them while they drive your car. Go for it!! Email me if you have anymore questions! Donna

I hit several cones including one I didn't even know about until I watched the video my daughter shot. No damage, just black marks that easily wiped off.

poolsidenaz: I too live in phoenix. I just picked up my rx-8 last night. I have autocrossed other cars here in phoenix for years though. I can tell you the phoenix chapter is a good bunch of people!

there is an event this saturday! go to azsolo2.com, you can pre-register online. then it will cost only $20.

I'm pretty sure the rx-8 runs in the BS class.

I can't make it this week but I'll definitely be there for the may 8 event. also, on may 1 they are holding a weigh-in day in the east valley (near pecos and cooper I think) where you can get your car corner-weighed to see how much the car weighs and the difference in weight between the front and the back. I'm definitely going to that ($5)

Yep, he's in BS class. Go Poolside!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hey great thread.. lots of great info..

i am going to my first autocross tom lets see how i do. im worried about the slalom portion the most. im not use to driving like that even though u wud think i am since i am avoid pot holes al the time

driving school - Phoenix
 

poolside, we should talk on sun, we seem to have alot of interest in autox and the great opportunities here in AZ! I'm interested, we have some posters on this thread with experience that perhaps can help us n00bs, jesse expressed interested, timH takes his FD, and of course, our very own vividracing (who btw informed us sells racegas :))