Registration for the 2008 Redline Time Attack Season Opener at Buttonwillow March 29-30 is now open...

http://www.redlinetrackevents.com/cp...?idCategory=34

See you all there!

Side note: Firebird Raceway cancelled the date on NOPI/Redline so as of right now there will be no Redline Time Attack at Firebird Raceway mid-March.

 

Have you guys checked out the new rules yet?
Most of the changes have been to the street class.
I know some of you run in the street class and was wondering if any of you have any questions or concerns about any of the new rules for 2008.

For example, functional Catalytic Converter needs to be installed on all street class cars. Also, Street Class Rear Wheel Drive vehicles are limited to tires with a maximum width of 285.

Here is a link to the street class rules as they are now: http://redlinetimeattack.com/street_rules.htm

If you have any concerns please let me know soon. As of 60 days prior to the event, the rules will be written in stone. Until then we can take any suggestions for any problems that you may have.

Thanks, Chris

 

Thanks Chris!

Anything changed since the original release of the rules?

 

Yes, there have been some small changes that have been made.
The changes are only for convertible cars that allow competitors to remove soft tops, but no major changes. What you see now is 99% done. We're just trying to find out if anyone has any concerns that we should take a look at before we make them 100% done and final.

Now is your chance to let me know if you see something that would cause your car and class any major competition disadvantages that you think we may have overlooked.

 

Ok cool. As far as my car goes, we will only be running Modified and Unlimited this year with the Z and Street in the Evo. I think the rules are good as they are.

 

i think they should do a mid-ohio stop instead of the firebird stop...just my .02

 

Every Street Class vehicle must have a functional Catalytic Converter installed as part of the engine exhaust system. Replacement of the OEM Catalytic converter with an “aftermarket” converter is permitted. Catalytic converter does not need to be in OE location. Random inspections will be performed during tech inspection. The top three finishers in each Street Class will also be subject to an inspection of the catalytic converter. Owners will be asked to remove the catalytic converter and provide it to Redline Tech staff for inspection.


remove it!?!?!!? for a street class???? it would take me 3 hours to do that on the ground at the track



also noticed in the Modified class, a UTQG rating of 50 or below is not permitted. A BFG R1 of a 40 rating is allowed but say a Hoosier R6, with the same 40 UTQG rating is not... i don't understand the rule and its thought process. Those are both "R" compound tires

 

Don't worry about the cat inspection. We'll have other forms of testing to see if the cat is installed. The removal of the cat would be an extreme case and will be only if we can't tell with our other testing equipment. We'll update the rules to reflect that soon as well. We don't expect to have anyone remove the cats at the track, but it's still a slim possibility.

The tire rule for MOD class has always been a 50 tread wear or higher. The BFG R1 is the only rated tire under 50 that is allowed in MOD class. The R1 is comparable with all other R COMP DOT tires that are allowed in MOD class. We've done extensive testing on all these tires and the Hoosier is in fact a much faster tire then the BFG R1. The Hoosier is Unlimited class ONLY.

 

I don't particularly agree with the BFG R1 rule either. I think that if the BFG R1 is not as fast as the Hoosier R6, then run a Hoosier R6 if you want to be competitive. All I can see this rule doing is causing A LOT of drama in the Modified class.

 

The cat inspection would be simple with the use of a sniffer.

But I am still trying to wrap my head around this tire rule. I can certainly understand that the rule is in affect to try and keep a level playing field. That is a respectable decision. However, using the same thought process of a level playing field, how can forced induction mod to a car be allowed? I would think a additional 100hp+/- would be more beneficial then say 3 or 4 tenths of a second because of tire choice.

With that being said, if a level playing field isn't what the tire rule is all about, then please indulge us. Is BFG a sponsor this year?

 

The whole idea of the time attack is to prepare your car to the best of your ability and budget. For the street class, we have limited power mods somewhat. In the MOD and Unlimited class, you can add as much power as possible. The main restriction to power in time attack racing is traction. That's why you'll see a 500 HP twin turbo 350 loosing out to a 245HP S2000. What surprises me the most is that many drivers still think that power is the best way to go. Our time attacks have proven the exact opposite. While power is important, the ability to use that power comes at the expense of the class you choose to compete in. The time difference at ButtonWillow between the BFG and Hoosier is 2.5 and sometimes 3 seconds a lap. The BFG tire runs the same lap time as the NITTO NT-01. All the tires allowed in the MOD class are all pretty much equal.

BFG is not a sponsor at this time. The only reason why the R1 is allowed in MOD class is because that's were it belongs.

 

I am not arguing with you that the R1 is a slower tire than the Hoosier, but to me, that just means that its not competitive for its class. I just think its confusing to people who don't know the reason that its in the Mod class and it will only open the door for drama.

What data are you basing your results off of for the R1 being a slow tire anyway? The AMS Evo and Crawford STI ran them last year, and they didn't seem to be complaining. If the Hoosiers were so much faster, why didn't they run those?

 

That's true it might cause some confusion. AMS and Crawford were two teams we used data from to determine the laps time of the R1s vs NT-01s
Also, we did some independent tests too. With cars like the S2000, Civic Si, EVO and the 350Z.

AMS will most likely still us the BFG R1 tire as I think BFG sponsors the car. I'm not sure about Crawford, but I do know several teams use what they get sponsored with. We'll try the R1 in MOD and see how it goes. If it becomes a big problem, then we'll go back and rethink the rule.

We just want to give as many tire choices as possible in MOD class, and since the R1 fits in that class, we thought it better to give the competitors another option for that class.

 

as long as the tire is a DOT approved tire and not a NON-DOT slick why not allow it? Why even have the UTQG rating? The Kuhmo V710 isn't supposed to hold up to the Hoosier and it won't be allowed b/c of the 30 rating.

then you could put ANY tire in the UNLIMITED class.

 

That's a good suggestion, but the tire rules have worked out very well over the last two seasons. It's also the best way for us to separate the classes. Time Attack racing has to some what represent the performance auto industry as a whole. It's not supposed to be to far removed from what the average person could build with off the shelf parts. The Unlimited class starts to become more of a race car class, but it still has to have limitations or any company with an unlimited budget could build anything they wanted. Keeping the tires DOT have always been a Time Attack rule that we'll most likely keep in place. At some point we may do away with the UTQG rating rule and just provide a list of what's legal in what class. For now it works for all but one tire.

P.S. the Kuhmo comes very close to the Hoosier and sometimes it beats it over the course of three hot laps.

 

I'm only doing the trackday on Saturday.

Who else is signed up for this?

 

Out of the folks who attended, did anyone find this event extremely crowded? I counted over 40 cars in some sessions and it was impossible to get a clean lap in.
I usually go through two tanks of gas at most tracks and I went through less than a tank this time.

I had a good time, but I think they need to reconsider how may cars they let on track on a given day. A few people I talked to at the track were of the same opinion.

 

whos doin the redline attack at Nashville?

 

TIIME ATTACKS are not the best for open track time, that's true.
There's always going to be traffic at the time attack.

Check out www.redlinetrackevents.com for quality track time.
There you'll find no more then 20 cars per run group and tons of track time. In most events you'll get over 2.5 hours. In some events you end up with over 3 hours of track time.