Autocross STH Class thread!

[WOPSiWOT]

Well, first day went very well, finished 18/50 for raw time on a very slow and tight course and 12 pax. Only STH car there, but my results were fairly close to a stock GR Corolla so I'm happy. with my set-up the rear is still very happy to come out, especially since it was only 50F yesterday and cloudy so no heat was ever maintained by the tires. Cold RT660s don't like to grip much.
I ended up running 34psi front and 27 rear to have a semblance or rear traction. Lots of 3 wheeling, not too much sliding once I got used to it, but this car is very easy to catch when it starts sliding too. Either just floor it or counter steer and maintain throttle, depending on what you want the car to do. I would say for others thinking about sway bars, 22mm would be my max if I don't upgrade the front on my car. It's a little tail happy right now, I can't imagine what it would be with more sway bar or less rear tire.

Can confirm is uncontrollable with too much rear bar Nice work.

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[FC1Dawn]

Successful weekend!

Brought some friends to practice day, they loved it. Competition day was fantastic. Took 1st in class by 0.25 seconds. Competitor is a VERY good driver.

Finished 15/68 on PAX and 27/123 on raw time.

Ran with 34 psi fronts and 44 psi rears. Starting to learn how to push this thing on competition days, I had to spray the RE71RS's after each run as those things were HOT.

 

[Benster]

Successful weekend!

Brought some friends to practice day, they loved it. Competition day was fantastic. Took 1st in class by 0.25 seconds. Competitor is a VERY good driver.

Finished 15/68 on PAX and 27/123 on raw time.

Ran with 34 psi fronts and 44 psi rears. Starting to learn how to push this thing on competition days, I had to spray the RE71RS's after each run as those things were HOT.

Congrats on your finish man, great work!!!

Yeah I've had to do the same last year with my fronts, can't wait to do a track day with decently hot temps to see how the rear performs. On a side note, my BJs didn't move on my last event. I torqued them to 100ft-lbs, so far so good.

 

[FC1Dawn]

Congrats on your finish man, great work!!!

Yeah I've had to do the same last year with my fronts, can't wait to do a track day with decently hot temps to see how the rear performs. On a side note, my BJs didn't move on my last event. I torqued them to 100ft-lbs, so far so good.

Appreciate it a lot! Nice placements for your first event too This thread has been really helpful overall, so appreciate the lot of you.

 

[landstuhltaylor]

Interesting that this thread is actually active now...

I would only suggest 255s to people who actively want to give their competitors an advantage. Otherwise the 265s are the only tires to consider. Shifting isn't a big deal.

 

[Dom360]

Interesting that this thread is actually active now...

I would only suggest 255s to people who actively want to give their competitors an advantage. Otherwise the 265s are the only tires to consider. Shifting isn't a big deal.

Learned the hard way 245s and a 50% STH build will not fare well nationally
Still need to work on the driving mod most importantly but next year it’s looking like coilovers and 265s on an 18x9 is a must

 

[Benster]

Interesting that this thread is actually active now...

I would only suggest 255s to people who actively want to give their competitors an advantage. Otherwise the 265s are the only tires to consider. Shifting isn't a big deal.

Not everyone may want to have to spend 80$ more per tire for 18s. My pockets are far from full so the 17s were the best thing I could do and after fitting 255s on them, I wouldn't go wider at all on these wheels. I do agree that 265s probably have an edge over 255s, just not feasible money-wise for me. I also have a ton of money to put in the car to max the STH rules before I get to changing wheels.

Also, the national classing in Canada is far from being as competitive as the states and I'm not looking to win, just to have fun and be as fast as I can within my means. It's also my only car so that also limits some of the mods I can do.

 

[landstuhltaylor]

Not everyone may want to have to spend 80$ more per tire for 18s. My pockets are far from full so the 17s were the best thing I could do and after fitting 255s on them, I wouldn't go wider at all on these wheels. I do agree that 265s probably have an edge over 255s, just not feasible money-wise for me. I also have a ton of money to put in the car to max the STH rules before I get to changing wheels.

Also, the national classing in Canada is far from being as competitive as the states and I'm not looking to win, just to have fun and be as fast as I can within my means. It's also my only car so that also limits some of the mods I can do.

Understandable.

But specifically that was a response to earlier posts commenting that 255s would be more optimal on a 9" wheel, ignoring cost. They absolutely 100% are not.

 

[Benbunny]

Understandable.

But specifically that was a response to earlier posts commenting that 255s would be more optimal on a 9" wheel, ignoring cost. They absolutely 100% are not.

Now I know these wheels aren't legal in STH, but what tire size would be optimal for some 18x9.5+38mm rims? I'm moving into SMF so I can technically do Hoosiers but I don't want to upgrade my axles right now

 

[Benster]

Now I know these wheels aren't legal in STH, but what tire size would be optimal for some 18x9.5+38mm rims? I'm moving into SMF so I can technically do Hoosiers but I don't want to upgrade my axles right now

265s are probably your best bet, not sure that 275s fit our cars without fender mod.

landstuhltaylor
Also for the comment 265s fit 9" wheels better, just have a look at tire width comparisons tirerack did, they proved that too wide a tire on a wheel is detrimental to performance. It also depends on the tire as some tires run wider than others, the RT660s for example are very wide for their size compared to AD09s. You could probably run AD09s easily on a 9" wheel but my 255s are already quite a bit wider than the wheel, a 265 would not allow for a proper contact patch on the ground and would balloon way too much.

They may fit better on an 18" wheel, I can't say as I haven't tried.

 

[Benbunny]

265s are probably your best bet, not sure that 275s fit our cars without fender mod.

landstuhltaylor
Also for the comment 265s fit 9" wheels better, just have a look at tire width comparisons tirerack did, they proved that too wide a tire on a wheel is detrimental to performance. It also depends on the tire as some tires run wider than others, the RT660s for example are very wide for their size compared to AD09s. You could probably run AD09s easily on a 9" wheel but my 255s are already quite a bit wider than the wheel, a 265 would not allow for a proper contact patch on the ground and would balloon way too much.

They may fit better on an 18" wheel, I can't say as I haven't tried.

My current setup is the rims described above. The tires I have are these (https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tire...18&cameFrom=selectSize&partnum=535WR8RE71RSXL)

 

[landstuhltaylor]

I've seen the Tire Rack testing and really couldn't care less about it. They aren't using STH Civics on a national style course.

As for the 9.5s, don't know. We'll be on 295 A7s on an 15x11 up front. Lots of 3rd gear.

 

[Benbunny]

I've seen the Tire Rack testing and really couldn't care less about it. They aren't using STH Civics on a national style course.

As for the 9.5s, don't know. We'll be on 295 A7s on an 15x11 up front. Lots of 3rd gear.

By chance are you an american from landstuhl, germany?

 

[Benster]

I've seen the Tire Rack testing and really couldn't care less about it. They aren't using STH Civics on a national style course.

As for the 9.5s, don't know. We'll be on 295 A7s on an 15x11 up front. Lots of 3rd gear.

I get that they're not using civics, but the results speak for themselves. Tires running outside of recommended rim width will have more roll, letting steering feel vague and potentially reducing traction due to the ballooning of the tire regardless of what car it's on. You can adjust contact patch with tire pressure to a point and stiff sidewalls will counteract steering feel.

Anyways, let's not keep that going, I'm not going to change your opinion on this and neither will you. I understand wanting to run as much tire as you can and have seen STH Civics run 265s with success on 18s.

 

[landstuhltaylor]

This conversation is quite amusing. Generic rules of thumb are just that and not a substitute for testing. There's a reason everyone was fighting for participation trophies in 2022.

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