AutoX Poll: GS or STX

[sgdfx30]

What class do you run and why? I know the SI will never be fully competitive in either class but im having a hard time deciding which way to go with the car.

I like that in GS the car can be more competitive at the local/regional as it can be somewhat frustrating in STX being blown out by much much faster cars. I like that it prevents me from dumping tons of money into the car for autox and would make me focus on just improving my terrible driving.

But at the same time there are little things that have really made this car more fun on a day to day basis that aren't aloud in GS like a short shifter, RBS, slightly stiffer springs, hell even the deleted resonator... and id hate to have to make my car less fun on the street just to be a tiny bit more competitive at autox.

So more enjoyable to drive all around or more competitive on the weekend?

[Berndonfat]

car can be competitive in either class if set up and driven right. what i have learned is that GS is for fast drivers and STX is for fast cars. If you want a slightly modded car then go for stx if you want to keep it stock and invest in some good tires purely for autox then go with gs. I started off in stx and will eventually go back but i want to run my car stock for now and fine the limits of it how it is that way and make my self a better driver before i try and make the car better.

[utilitarian]

Originally Posted by sgdfx30

I know the SI will never be fully competitive in either class ....

You're half right.

Scroll down to GS: http://www.scca.com/documents/result...20Results4.pdf

It's up to you whether or not you want to set it up as a GS car. It takes about $2500 to transform the Si into a fun GS car.

$1500 V710's, Konig Daylights and smaller lugnuts
$600 Koni OTS Yellows plus donor front struts
$150 ceramic pads
$150 FSB (the jury's out on this still IMO)

-Matt

[sgdfx30]

wow i didn't know people were actually winning at that level in the SI, that's pretty cool.

question: are front dampers really a necessity in the stock class? do you end up running much more rebound then stock up front? i really need to get the car to be more compliant because im now commuting 150+ miles a day and this stiff low noisy crap is getting old, but i still want to be able to have fun out at autox without spending too much money. like how much would you lose by not having them? (assuming my driving was very consistent, which it is not at all)

because i figure ~300 for koni rears, 150 for the fsb, and what like 50 bucks for crash bolts and just run on my cheap-o summer tires for now should leave me with a car that is decent fun, commutable, and leave my pockets not completely empty (and let me focus on driving better).

and would i really have to put my airbox resonator back and pull my SS to run GS at local SCCA stuff? im not even sure i know were that resonator is...

[gpb]

That brings me to ask.... if your only mod is a short shifter, what class does that put you in?

Can you run ST_ with a ss?

[sgdfx30]

well technically by the letter of the rules the only allowances in the stock classes are shocks, fsb, axle back exhaust, shift knob, stereo stuff, exterior look stuff, and wheels of the same size and +/- 3? on the offset. anything else puts you in either STX, DSP or beyond.

I was just wondering if local clubs follow that super strictly, as it seems silly to me to have to be in stx because i can't find my air box resonator (which literally does nothing)

[dirtybird222]

I highly doubt someone will contest you having a short shifter in a car at an event if you want to run GS; if they do, they are douchebags. I've been pretty damn competitive with my SI in GS have only lost one event with it so far. Spend time with it in GS and learn the limits of the car in stock trim and work on perfecting your driving. Shuffle steering, always looking ahead, be smooth, etc. One thing that has always helped me is to pretend there is an egg under the gas pedal that way you aren't always mashing it and creating your own understeer (in FWD).

I personally have stopped running my modified cars in autocrosses. I'm tired of the retarded rules, I had a 2006 Mustang GT with a dealer installed roush supercharger (covered under warranty) and no other mods what so ever. Instead of classing me in like super stock, or maybe B-stock like the GT500, I got thrown into SMST because it was a boosted V8....I was highly un-competitive despite my driving skills simply because the car just roasted the tires.

[sleeper_civic]

Originally Posted by sgdfx30

well technically by the letter of the rules the only allowances in the stock classes are shocks, fsb, axle back exhaust, shift knob, stereo stuff, exterior look stuff, and wheels of the same size and +/- 3? on the offset. anything else puts you in either STX, DSP or beyond.

I was just wondering if local clubs follow that super strictly, as it seems silly to me to have to be in stx because i can't find my air box resonator (which literally does nothing)

Some clubs will be okay with you running without a resonator as long as all competitors in the class or okay with it. Nationals won't allow it. You can run a cat back exhaust in stock class and are not limited to axle back.