First attempt at CS last weekend

[EMguy]

Gearing was a non issue on these courses. We didn't get into third at all, but I found the course to be slightly slower than a typical nationals style course. I think Tim got into the limiter on the Saturday course, whereas I was only seeing the shift light.

[Sam Strano]

I've seen 60 right when I whacked the limiter.... If 65 is sufficient for a Shelby GT or 5.0 Mustang and 71 for a C5 Z06, this probably isn't so bad because these things certainly will not gather speed as readily as those cars. MHO

[Sccabrz192]

Fancy seeing you here Sam i wasnt questioning the mx-5 or normal 2.4 solstice i was questioning if it was necessary to bump the zok/msrs or not. I dont plan to write a letter to the seb on the matter without actually going against one with a capable driver a few times which wont be until next year...

[Sam Strano]

Well, I think it'll be a done deal, but that is really up to the SEB now. I think most are happy to see this happen, and it was done in large part to try and make sure these things had a good place to play without killing other classes. Not to mention that a Z0K has been running pretty much BS times over the last few years anyway. And oh, HI TIM.

[Sccabrz192]

Originally Posted by EMguy

Gearing was a non issue on these courses. We didn't get into third at all, but I found the course to be slightly slower than a typical nationals style course. I think Tim got into the limiter on the Saturday course, whereas I was only seeing the shift light.

I got my best run into the streight on my 4th and the limiter really killed me. If i would have had a 5th run, probably would have made an attempt to short shift to 3rd. The limiter bogs it too much.

[Sccabrz192]

Originally Posted by Sam Strano

Well, I think it'll be a done deal, but that is really up to the SEB now. I think most are happy to see this happen, and it was done in large part to try and make sure these things had a good place to play without killing other classes. Not to mention that a Z0K has been running pretty much BS times over the last few years anyway. And oh, HI TIM.

Fair enough, it opens the class to more parody which will be good for attendance.

[xwd]

Was going to ask about tire size but you covered that, I also feel like 245/40/17 is the right tire for the car. What wheels were you running on?

As far as the 370Z I did some bench racing last week with a friend who has been successful in CS, and he said they are very camber challenged in the front and eat through front tires. With the tire sizes they run it seems like an expensive proposition to campaign one but the car could definitely be successful, especially on the right course.

I've heard from a couple of sources the rev limiter is a run-killer in this car, can't just bounce off it like some other cars.

[Gearhd79]

so what is the solution? a friend of mine ran his FRS last week and had the same problem with hitting the rev limiter in 2nd

[MTeator]

Get good at 2-3-2 or hold back. Taller tires could help, course dependent.

2nd goes a lot further on this car than my MR2, so not complaining too much.

[Sccabrz192]

For stock class... Decide whether you are willing to ride it out or there is any benifit to shift, otherwise switch to st or sp where rev limiter can be altered.

Aka, what he said

[EMguy]

Originally Posted by dwx

Was going to ask about tire size but you covered that, I also feel like 245/40/17 is the right tire for the car. What wheels were you running on?

Wheels are Motegi Traklites. 17x7, +42, 14.5 lbs.

[des]

Sunday we ran 235/45/17 Dunlops on a wide-open course that included a 120-foot slalom, hitting the limiter at the second cone. It was hard to keep the car planted the next few cones without some way to keep the rear end in line.

It's like driving on cruise control.

Last run shifted to third twice and cut a second off previous best time. Results weren't bad -- four seconds off the top STR car (Kevin Dietz's S2K) on an 80-second course.

I think the 235/40 would have forced us to go to third on the very first run and certainly helped pull out of the slower spots better.

[Kido1986]

Can you more experienced guys chime in please. I am buying wheels and tires for CS (but Im using street tire for a few reasons, not here to debate tire model choice). But I will also be doing track days (Sebring, Daytona, PBIR). On a 17x7, will there be any downside on a 245/40/17 R-S3? An experienced S2k guy I know worried they'd pinch too bad and roll and I could see the reasoning behind that.

What about on a roadcourse? Will this work well, hold up heat wise?

Edit: Actually, possibly a 235/45/17 for taller gearing. Either way, these options vs stock size R-S3

[Sam Strano]

Of course Hankook says that tire should be on a minimum 8" wheel. However, there would be no issue on a 7". On 8's that size is not all all bulging, I'm surprised looking at it they don't give a 7.5" minimum actually. You know that we autocrossers stuff bigger tires on smaller wheels all the time. I think you can go too far, but this isn't it. Worst case is that the tire is not as stiff feeling since the sidewalls aren't are vertical on a 7" vs. an 8".

The 235 is still out of rim spec anyway, and it's awfully tall. Yeah it's "help" gearing when you run out of 2nd.. but the car is a turd on torque (trust me knowing you have a small-block Chevy that's the biggest issue). The gearing here needs to be thought of that way too. I'd say it's either the 245/40 or a 225/45 to shoot yourself in the foot out of corners which is a much bigger issue than the odd time you might run out of 2nd.