Sports Car Club of America - Thrills Cheap - Feature

Proper vehicle maintenance is important, including the changing of fluids. Sliding side to side could cause oil starvation if you're a couple quarts low; but the brakes, tires, and power steering are your primary concern, since they are in constant use and abuse during autocross competition.

Pack a lunch and a few other goodies you can't live without-like sunscreen, sunglasses, water, a floor jack, a lug wrench, tools, a tire pressure gauge, and a portable air compressor. Quite often, autocross takes place at a random parking lot with no place to fill up the tires or grab a bite to eat. Shoe polish or tape (or magnetic numbers and letters) will be necessary for numbering your car and marking the class.

Don't be late! Once registration is closed, it's closed. Often, you can't even get in the gate after a certain time. You are better off showing up early and giving your car another once-over....

...Make sure all of the lug nuts are tight, the tire pressure is just right, and that you're registered, teched-in, and have the numbers on your windows or door.

Fill up on gas before you get to the event. Most likely, you will not have time to fill up between heats, and most of the time you won't be able to come back after you've left the grounds, due to safety reasons.

A good set of tires is crucial, as the class rules will pigeonhole you with a certain treadwear and tire size. For the LT1 Formula project car, we went with a set of Nitto 450s. We found them to be a great tire for a daily driver, providing both excellent dry- and wet-weather riding. These tires would allow the Formula to stay in one of the Street Prepared classes, if not for a few suspension and driveline mods. Unlike R-compound tires, regular compounds actually get more slick with heat, so a lot of autocrossers will use a water mister on their rubber in between runs. Generally, the tires don't get too hot, though, compared to road racing-which is partly why tire pressure should be kept near 37 to 40 psi in the front tires, and 30 to 32 psi in the rear (depending on sidewall stiffness). Additionally, autocross is more violent and harder on the tires than road racing, and this causes extra tire flex.

Good seating position is critical, since you are going to be making rapid steering maneuvers. To keep your butt glued to the seat, the CG Lock is an economical and quick solution. It simply locks the lapbelt into place to keep you in the seat. Thankfully, F-body and Vette seats are more supportive than some, so racing seats aren't necessarily needed.

Don't ask too much of your car. The harder you are braking, the less you can turn, and vice versa.

Brake hard! Remember: you're not on the street-this is a race. Go as fast as you can for as long as you can, then get on the brakes hard and turn. Fortunately, an autocross course isn't very long, so brake fade shouldn't even be an issue.

Fast is slow, and slow is fast. Chances are, the more you feel that you are fighting the car and squealing the tires, the slower you are going. The key is to make all inputs as smooth as possible, though decisive and quick at times as well. The smoother your inputs, the less you upset the balance of the car and the more speed you can carry around the course. This includes use of the throttle and clutch, so powershifting is not advisable.

Walk the course and study it carefully. Usually, those with the best times are those who know the course best. Experienced drivers are typically more than happy to give you a few pointers, and are even available for ride-alongs.

Have fun! That's the reason you're there. It might be a competition, but you are really only competing against yourself. Stay relaxed, and enjoy.

Shuffle steering is a common technique employed by autocrossers. While in road racing, your hands should never leave the nine- and three-o'clock positions on the wheel, the tight confines of autocross courses often require the driver to bring the wheel to full lock. This necessitates taking both hands off the wheel in order to shuffle them along the circumference.