Hi i got my 03 6sp 350z (non brembo) last year,and tried out my small towns local Auto Slalom this year,ran 2 events so far outa 6 for the year.(2 classes,Street(>=300tread),Performance(<300 tread) tires). Been having an amazing time learning my car and improving my driving skill(new to. I know my biggest "upgrade" would be time behind the wheel. I was wondering what steps i should that would shave a few seconds off my time?

Current Mods:
z1 test pipes,ARK Grip v2 exhaust,Z1 plenum spacer,WeaponR intake,Hawk HPS pads,AP SS brake lines,BC racing coilovers, 20' vossen wheels(HORRIBLE for autoX i know,looking for set of light weight smaller wheels) wrapped in Sumitomo HTR Z III(300 tread,puts me barly in street class)
255/30/20 fronts,285/30/20 rears.
Future Plans:
Better wheels,Upgrade front/rear sway bars n end links,Vortech supercharger

 

I autox a much more powerful car and I can say that more power is not the answer for a lower time. I'd shelf the SC idea for much later. Anti-sway bars and proper wheels & tires help, but as you have said it, nothing beats improving driving skills.

The way I see it, you've autoxed twice and it's your first season. While I agree that your current wheels & tires are "improper", getting another set can get expensive quickly. Anti-sway bars are much cheaper and quite effective in optimizing grip and in adjusting suspension behavior. In short, if you could swing the budget for another set of wheels & tires, go ahead and get the anti-sway bars as well. Otherwise, the bars should be obtained first.

 

And scratch the idea of 255 front 285 rear tires if you are going to buy new ones. Go with a square set-up so you can rotate tires/wheels not to mention these cars under steer to begin with so going with a smaller tire up front is not helping the balance any. For example, I run 275/35R18 tires on 18x9 Enkei RP03 wheels, no spacers, light wheels (18.3 Lbs ea).

 

Thanks for the advise!

 

Wheels and tires with seat time is the answer

 

Tires will be the ticket to start.

There is a huge difference in performance between tires rated at 300 and those at 200. Look at the tires of the fast guys. You will only find them running Dunlop ZII, BFG rivals, or Hancook RS3.

The Dunlop's and BFG are better for cooler conditions. Down here in TX most people like the RS3 because they take the heat better.

I started out with a stock Z and ran 17X9 rim with a 255/40/17 RS3 on all four corners. That set up will go a long way as you start out.

Try and decide (its hard to figure out) how serious you want to be. If it just strat fun than mods and rims size aren't a big deal. But if you think you are more on the competitive side than start reading the rules for (SCCA SOLO). Rim size and tire size is different for the different classes. Also simple mods like test pipes and spacers will through you into high preped classes where you will have spend lots of money to be competitive.

It suck to spend money on mods and then realize that a slightly different product would have been a better choice.

Glad your having fun. Thats what it is all about.