Hey guys, tomorrow I’ll be running my SCCA SM class B20vtec DA with 275/45/R16 Hoosier R3S04’s with +0 offset 16x8 Sportmax002. I’ve had to cut the fenders, increase the front spring rates, increase the ride height, and grind off sections of the wheel wells to get clearance. (More or less, I’ve placed tire width and compound above all else.) Anyhow, I’ve gotten the wheels and tires to clear, although at the expense of a high center of gravity and less negative camber. To remedy this, the only ideas that I’ve come up with, is to build custom fenders from either sheet metal or fiberglass, cut out sections of the box frame (directly above the upper wishbone’s ball-joint), and then weld-in a concave plate in it’s place.
Also, I know there are a good number of g2 autocrossers here that run R-comps in Solo II, and I’d like to know what driving style changes you’ve made due to the transition to R-comps, considering the characteristics of the of a DA. (I.e., limits of power on understeer, lift throttle oversteer, etc.)
Anyhow, I’ll have a co-driver with me so we’ll have about 8 runs, plus in-car video (if I can get the webcam to work right), to figure out how the car responds. My wife will be taking pictures, so I’ll try to get those posted after the event.
great to see that u are willing to go to the extreme for success – i hope u have documented previous runs on other set-ups for comparo purposes (perhaps on a wide 15" wheel), just to make sure that all the reduced camber and higher C-of-G is worth it for bigger wheels.
let us know
The event was alot of fun, regardless of the fact that I couldn’t get enough temperature in the tires. Everyone had a good laugh at how high up the car was, and how massive the tires were. It was nicknamed “monster-truck” on mud-boggers or super-swampers. I’ll be sure to post up pics. (I’m sure alot of people would have a good laugh.) My co-driver ran better times than me, and that was very embarrassing considering I own the car! The results are posted at http://brr-scca.org/
(We were bumped to XP for the day because of the gutted interior, but I plan on putting “most” of the interior back, so I can run in SM.)
It was 42 degrees and windy, and despite the 275 width, the rubber just did not hook up. Everyone was having temperature troubles yesterday. The the rear tires were especially cold, and I noticed there were lateral cuts and slices across the tires from tons of oversteer. Also, I don’t think the loss of negative camber is worth it at the moment, since the car sits at almost zero degrees at static ride height. I’m thinking about using elliptical LCA bushings, or replacing the LCA to body pivot bushing with an offset spherical bushings, although I’m wondering if there will be any negative effects with the CV joint yoke. (As in the CV joint might pop-out, if the hub is relocated too far outward as I increase negative camber.)
I’m thinking of using 14" slicks in the rear on OEM steelies, perhaps in the 195 to 205 sizes, since I simply cannot get temperature in the rear, on 60 second runs. And there’s no way I can heat-up 275’s on the rear. This way, I can drop the rear down as far as possible. Next, I’ve got to stop pussy-footing around, and just hack-up the front fenders and front box frame sections, thus letting me drop the front closer to the ground, and gain more negative camber. (Although, if I lower it too much, I may need to bolt on an aluminium or sheet metal skid-plate to protect the oil pan, header and fuel tank from smacking the ground.)
Thanks for your interest, and I’ll try to get pics posted soon!
-Andrew