My buddy just got an 04 EVO8, so he's been dying to find a parking lot and practice for autoX. We found one and made a course around it. The parking lot had three levels. It's a tiny course, but kind of tough. And it's all we could find. It wasn't just an oval though. The first turn was really sharp, and the 3rd and 4th turns were faily close together. I stayed in second gear the whole time (to give you an idea of how small it is). I have no autoX experience at all and I must say RWD is kind of tricky at first! Alot harder than AWD it seems. I've taken many spirited country drives in my Z, but they hardly compared to this (and this was comparitively MUCH slower). We did 5 laps around the small course and had one hotlap. I didn't take full advantage of the hotlap until later runs. I realized how crucial it was. We took two practice runs and two legitimate runs. My lap times really improved when I basically learned (on my third try) that I needed to drift my Z around turn 3 and 4! Below is our comparative runs:

350z---------EVO8
p: 1:26:21------1:18:26
p: 1:20:38------1:17:42
1: 1:18:50------1:16:13
2: 1:18:50---------*

My buddy's last run got stopped prematurely because someone pulled into the lot :P He was on par for a sub 1:16 run.

I think I improved alot. Like I said, I've never tried anything like this before. Right off the bat I noticed that my breaks were garbage. I have a performance so it's just like a track minus the brembo and the blows stereo. My memory is kind of foggy (because I was concentrating so much), but the lsd kicked in inconsistently. That or I just felt it more sometimes. Probably because of my inconsistent driving. Anyhow, my mini track experience has changed my mod list I think. Down the road I'm thinking of tires, breaks, suspension, lsd, etc, instead of a turbo or something like that. First and foremost it helped me realize that I should probably learn how to drive my car in stock form properly before I mod at all! So does anyone have advice? Should I upgrade now instead of later? Any tips before I go to autoX? Eventhough the course was small, it gave me a really good idea of how to control my car, proper breaking, inducing oversteer, and find proper racing lines around the course. Sorry this was so long, but I had to get it all out.

Thanks
Phile

 

I've been to quite a few AutoX, but I'm no expert and am still learning how to handle the Z (after almost two years and 40,000 miles of ownership).

So, take my advice with a grain of salt:
1. Know the course - this is the most critical aspect to making a good run, and something the least experienced racer can do well. Memorizing the course will allow you to focus more on the execution of your driving, rather than trying to plan and execute @ the same time.

2. I have a hard time kicking the rear around, and often understeer. This is because I am usually too aggressive and don't finish braking soon enough. Sometimes, you need to go slower on corner entry so you can get good bite with the front tires and use the throttle to kick the rear around. If you go in too hot, you won't be able to use that technique.

3. Ask questions. More experienced drivers have much to offer, expecially when discussing the racing line and driving technique. Don't be afraid to ask.

4. When you get a handle of the car in its stock form, I think a very good mod would be sway bars. If you really want to be competitive, then R-compound tires will make a huge difference. My bone stock Z will corner @ 1.3G with Kumho V700 racing tires. Hitting that level with street tires is probably impossible. Brakes shouldn't matter for AutoX since the speeds are low, but changing the brake feel by going with SST lines might help (although in many groups that will bump you out of a stock class, as will the sways to some extent).

Anyhow, have fun.

-D'oh!

 

Thanks for the advice Well in my little runs around the parking lot, that first run (where I got a 1:26) I was doing EXACTLY what you just mentioned! I didn't finish braking soon enough and I had alot of understeer. My second, third, and fourth runs I was starting to learn throttle induced oversteer. Matter of fact I was pretty much drifting my Z arond turns 3 and 4. I have to learn to be consistent though. For some reason, I don't always fully understand racing lines. I need to learn how to look at a course and pick the best racing lines and I don't think i'm very good at that.

Got a couple more questions though. I know sway bars improve handling, but what is the technical reason? How exactly does it keep the tires pressed to the ground more evenly? Also, you drive on street tires and only change to the R compounds during autoX right? 1.3 G's is insane! Lastly, once the Z is upgraded with sway bars and R compounds, how much different is the handling dynamic? Is throttle induced over steer still necessary, but at a higher speed with the new equipment? In other words, is it just the same car but with higher limits, or does it change the handling entirely?