Most liked posts in thread: SCCA 2012 DSP - R56 JCW Class Prep and Results

Wheels and Tires for the R56 in SCCA DSP

Well, I did it. I ordered Kosei K1 TS's, 17x7, in light grey and Hoosier A6's in 225x40x17's.

Right now I run Kosei K1 TS's, 17x7, in silver with R-S3's, 215x45x17, for daily driving and track. When these R-S3's wear out I'll be looking for a different street tire for DDing and track...I'll explain more about that in a post on the "Targa Newfoundland Dream."

 

You're right. The ScangaugeII is a cool product...less real estate and a fourth the cost. But, I keep going back to my early days (late 60's for goodness sake!) and dreaming about the monster car I never had with door to door gauges. One day I'm looking at the Scangauge and the next day it's the Marshall's.

I do like the way the Craven set up is designed to look OEM as well. The Alta gauges have more flash, though. I already have an AccessPort so many of the additional functions of the scangauge are duplicative with that.

 

Craven Marshall Gauges and The "Lenz"

Here's a couple of pics. One of the new gauge set up. Install by k-huevo. As I've said before, the man is meticulous.

Second pic is of the "Lenz." This is an available design from the Whalen Shift Ball collection. I was going to design the Lenz for a custom job but Whalen already had this design in his inventory and I thought it fit the theme of the GreyLenz perfectly.

 

Last Event Over

Ok, the last SASCA event was Sunday. I came in second out of six entrants. The MazdaSpeed3 I've been fighting all year took me by 0.3 s. I'm bummed because I thought I was driving good and the car seems to be doing great. He out drove me. Drats.

But, I won the year with 56 points over 48 points. It was a fun year since we were neck and neck for most events.

NEXT:

Going into next year I only have to do a few things to GreyLenz.

1. Clean the carbon off the valves. As soon as I get the nozzle, on back order from ECS, k-huevo is going to help me put together a rig and clean mine and then maybe set up to do others in the neighborhood.

2. Corner weight and new alignment. What the particulars will be will depend on when and/or whether I get a second daily driver. I started another thread on using that daily driver in STF on occasion. I've solicited some input but I guess no one else out there is looking to do an STF class run next year. Still, if I do get another DD I'll likely get more aggressive on the alignment for autox on the Lenz since I won't have to drive it on the street so often.

3. May need to get a rebuild on my used AST's in the rear. Need k-huevo to look at it first. The problem may not be as bad as I thought.

4. I need to put thicker wheel spacers on the front because of continued rubbing on the inside of the tires. Have 5mm spacers now...need 10 to 12. But, I put the 5's on in the wrong holes and can't get them off...may need to cut them off. Won't do that till I get some longer studs. I should have listened to k-huevo the first time...again.

I don't plan any other mods for 2013 except my driving skills. They definitely need improvement. But, I've learned a great deal this year.

 

Excellent! Thanks a bunch. I don't know why I didn't find these before. Looks like either one will work great. I'll try to get that done in January.

 

DSP Major Mod Differences with STX

The following is a rough list of modification differences between DSP and STX prioritized somewhat by importance to performance on the autox field. I'll likely address each one at some point in the thread.

1. Wheels and Tires. DSP has no limitation on wheels or tires and STX does. Potentially a big difference here because in DSP you can flare the wheel wells and in STX you can't.

2. Engine performance and weight. In DSP you can run any tune (this is a biggie...in STX you can't change boost levels!), super charger pulley's are free in DSP (an issue that kicks many R53's into DSP), intercoolers can be upgraded in DSP but not STX, any clutch and flywheel is allowed in DSP but STX has to remain stock, air conditioning systems can be removed in DSP but not STX, front seats in STX have to be minimum weight of 25 lbs but no weight minimum for DSP, no air bag in steering wheel needed in DSP. There are some differences in exhaust allowances as well, I think.

Most all other allowances are essentially the same in the two classes. I'll address all of these at some point. The limitations of the R56 become more important for some of the allowances in DSP than in STX so I'll discuss those as well.

DSP is often said to be a slippery slope of mods that leads to a harsh daily driver. I'm going to try to find a compromise that still renders a pretty competitive car at the local and divisional level that is still a fun DD'er.

 

I agree...I think I can get pretty competitive in DSP and still have a fun DD'er.

Yep, you're right...slicks aren't allowed in DSP.

I think I've decided on Hoosier A6's. I'd like to have the set up before mid March so I can use them at the National Tour at College Station. I'll post more on that soon.

What's your status...you still headed to Austin?

 

Brian,

It was great to finally meet you! Welcome to both of you to the eastern edge of Comanche Territory otherwise known as the Hill Country.

It was a good day yesterday. I'll post a little detail soon on some lessons learned from my first real DSP event (because I ran the A6's for the first time).

 

We've held two events since my last post. I took first place in DSP class by 0.1s in April and first place in May by 0.4s. In Raw Times I placed 36th out of 138 drivers in April and 24th out of 119 drivers in May.

My main in-class competitor is a MazdaSpeed3 which is essentially stock but he runs R6 Hoosiers, which do very well in the Texas heat even in autox. I'm confident my main competitor is still out driving me because I have quite an edge on technology upgrades and I'm just barely beating him. He's quite smooth out there and does really well. But, I can tell I'm learning more with each event so I think I have a strong position for the rest of the year.

The main reason I pushed ahead in the last two events was the Hoosier A6's. As good as the RS3's are the A6's change the game. Doing the change of wheels during the day hasn't been all that bad in the spring heat. But, summer heat will make the wheel change at the end of the day a bit of a pain. I have to say I'm having fun seeing what my maximum is in this car. I can push it much harder than I have so far with these tires...it will take a while to learn how to really use them.

I have yet to upgrade the intercooler but I'm running the Stage 1 tune with the linear throttle in the event now and it does make it more fun. The additional torque and hp helps on more open courses but less on a slower more technical course. But, it is definitely fun running the Cobb Tune on the course like I do on the street...no change up in approach needed.

 

Quick update. I took 1st place for the June and July events. In June I won it on the last of four runs by only 14/1000 s. Whew! In July I won by about 0.8s...much better.

I just registered for the SCCA National Championships at Lincoln, NE, 4-7 September. I'm going to finish out most of the DSP allowed mods which will include the intercooler and a stronger rear anti-sway bar. I won't do any of the weight reduction stuff or flare wheel wells. I'll do an update on those mods and a couple of other upgrades during the next post. I'll also use this thread to post a bit of the nationals experience if anyone is interested.

In 2011 there were over 15 entrants and they were fast. I have no hopes of doing much but it should be a blast. I'm a member of SASCA and Spokes clubs so I'll be in the Texas row at the back of the pits...I'm told there is BBQ all week.

There is already another MINI JCW registered so I'm going to try to track him down before the event and touch base. But most of the field is BMW 3 series based.

 

August Event and Prep for Nationals

I took first place out of four DSP entrants this month. The others were running in MazdaSpeed3's. My fastest time was 44.145 and the second place timed at 45.108 so I finished with a good margin. I think I'll be able to maintain that edge for the rest of the year. I placed 29th out of 119 drivers.

I've installed two mods since the last event...a 22mm rear sway bar by NM Engineering and some 6mm spacers that someone gave me at the event. The combination definitely improved the handling. I'm running the sway bar on the first set of holes and will experiment with the stronger settings soon. I really like where the Lenz is at right now and will tune it all a bit in the next couple of weeks for the nationals as well as get a wheel alignment done. And, I've scheduled to "Test n Tune" hour sessions at the Nationals on that Monday. I don't run till Thursday and Friday so I'll have time for additional test n practice time on Tues and Wed if needed.

The DSP class at the nationals is known at the "BimmerFest"...out of 22 entrants they are all older BMW 3 series except two MINI JCW's, two Impreza's and a 1970's Alfa. The other MINI is a new JCW Coupe that has a particular mod that has pushed him into DSP but he seems to have little else upgraded. But, he's game. I look forward to meeting him.

Obviously, most of the Bimmers in DSP are fully configured for the class and most of the drivers have been there before. So, I have no illusions about prospects...I'm sure it will be most humbling...but a great deal of fun.

Most of the other MINI's at the nationals are are Coopers running in H-Stock..which is essentially dominated by MINI. There are a few Cooper-S's in D-Stock. The JCW's would fit into C-Stock but they just couldn't keep up because of suspension disadvantages and there are none entered there yet. JCW's also fit in the STX class but they are at a real disadvantage there as well so there are none signed up there yet either. STX has 53 entries...mostly newer BMW 3 series, RX-8's and some WRX's. STX is a tough class for JCW's.

Essentially, though I love my JCW and will drive it till I die, it is not much of a player at the national autox level in any class. The cooper still dominates H-Stock but that's it.

In DSP a big factor is the size and width of wheels and tires...lots of rubber meets the road in DSP. I haven't flared the wheel wells so I'm limited to 225-40-17 Hoosier A-6's while most of the bimmer's run 265's+++. The limitations of the narrow wheel wells also holds MINI's back in the other classes.

I'm doing basic prep this weekend...fluids, bleeding brakes, etc. The new NM Engineering slotted disks in front work great and look great so that has been fun.

 

Best Laid Plans...

As I posted in the other thread about the Nationals I've had to withdraw my entry for work reasons. Totally bummed. But, in prep I have the Lenz in great shape and will post some info on the final mods and alignment specs.

K-huevo has been helping me resolve a number of issues.