Hi Folks,

I have a question for those autocrossing your fd's. I've been building mine with the goal in mind of increasing reliability/ replacing stock components that aren't up to the job, but what I suppose I didn't consider carefully is what these modifications are doing to my category for scca.

If I'm not mistaken, any 7 running a PFC on sequential twins with some fuel system upgrades (bigger primaries/ new pump) and modified intake/ exhaust/ inter cooler and some coilovers is immediately in ST or SP.

Being a novice to the sport; I wanted to ask those with experience if these classes are generally still fun and competitive (Philly/ Susquehanna regions) and whether it is best to hold off on some of the modifications that will move me from one class to the next.

Thanks,
Deniz

 

The FD RX-7 does not currently fit in any Street Touring Class.

If you write in to petition for it to be allowed in the highest Street Touring Unlimited (STU) I am fairly sure they will accept as its closest competitor for years (the C5 Corvette base) was just just put in STU.

You probably don't want to be in STU anyways as you must retain-

Stock intercooler
Stock steering wheel
stock ECU case
Stock factory boost control (just kill me now)

I believe a competitive FD could be made for STU as it fits the max tire width allowed (285) and is a little lighter and narrower than the C5- but, it is NOT the FD you want to drive on the street as it retains all of the FD's weaknesses.

--------------------------------

The FD is in A Street Prepared

This is a good class for the FD where it could be competitive if there were still any FDs in that class. I race my FD in ASP and place well, pax well, set records at local events.

Things to look out for in Street Prepared

You cannot port wastegate
No side skirts/wings/diffusers
only stock internal engine (balanced ok) and stock turbos

You can do all the other reliability/driveability mods to the FDs with some reading the rules and fore thought (example, no V-mount as only direct fit aftermarket radiators are allowed, but big SMIC with duct ok).

Rules found here-
The Sports Car Club of America - Solo

You can also PM me if you have specific questions.

 

I run my FD in SSM (RHD cars get defaulted to a modifed class by ASN /WCMA rules) i think a 100% stock car actually runs A-stock.

also worth noting i run a 97 type RZ, vs the cars that where sold in north america,
my car has a 250lbs weight loss (from mazda),
an upgraded ECU (16 bit vs 8 bit)
upgraded turbos (the famous 99 spec turbos are actually on the S7 cars)
14" brakes on all 4 points
belstine coilovers
a regeared transmission & a 4.1 final drive

mods ive personally done include
vaccum hose upgrades to silicon
cracked my intake box so switched to PR CAI w/ air pump delete
AC delete
swapped the cat for a resonating pipe.
hawk HP pads

i run 265/18R45 front and 285/18R30 rear direzza ZII's

with the following alignment specs
front tow 1/16" in
front camber -1.5 deg
caster +6
rear tow 0
rear camber -1.1 deg

I consistantly run top of the pack in SSM autox events (in western canada) i even taught a friend to autox last year coming into the sport with zero race exp finished top of the pack in SSM driving my car as well.

one thing i will note about FD autox is that i rarely need to actually brake usually a light lift of the throttle is enough to rotate the car around for *most* elements of the autox

 

Ditto everything...except the part about placing and setting best times. Sadly, I sucked...but still had fun. ASP locally was a tough class, PAX or not. But I was the limiting factor, not the car.

 

I compete in ASP on a local level... I can get FTD but end up around 7th or 8th in PAX. The most competition within ASP comes from Evos normally.

 

Regardless of the class you choose, making an FD competitive in any available class is not an easy or cheap proposition.
There are too many newer cars with equal or better performance, and sufficient handling to navigate a course well.
I've recently begun to think a stock RX-8 can easily beat a stock RX-7 in an autox in the hands of most folks. The RX-8 is much easier to drive than the FD.

 

Touché, agreed. Just had my first experience (in the fd) this past weekend at Hershey Giant Stadium lot and while it was amazing, I don't see myself being competitive in the near future. Just having fun at this point while trying to get more seat time.

In all honestly (a newbie speaking) the car was plenty quick for me (stock except for intake, ast, vacuum hoses and tires). The bottle neck is me for sure.

I'm likely building towards ASP at this point. Thanks for all who've contributed, I think, given the timing, this is a good discussion to be having for anyone interested in autocrossing their FD.

For any who are worried about the car holding up in (near) stock format; don't be too worried. I didn't see my temps rise past acceptable and the course was a hefty ~55 seconds long. Boy was that fun!

I will try to be at the philly event the weekend of the 18/19 if anyone is interested in coming out.