2018 FS / STP build. What should I do?

[DickR]

Correct on the slotting and adjusting as needed for about zero toe. Some toe out is considered to be more responsive by the top guys but I drive too many highway miles to do this. It is impossible to estimate street mileage on RE71-R's or on Rivals due to far too many variables. One major variable is how little tread depth you are willing to drive on in regard to hydroplaning resistance if rain is ever an issue in Las Vegas. RE-71R's are better than Rivals in rain. You MIGHT get 5K or more before getting to 3/32's but it REALLY depends on runs, surface, driving style, etc., etc., etc., etc. That said I have no idea how the PS4S will hold up either.

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[Static_LV]

Nice! If your membership has gone through reach out to Gerin or Kam for permanent numbers.

 

[SteveW]

I re-read the rules for what seems like the 50th time, and have a couple questions. I do see where the rear toe links & vertical links cannot be changed.

It looks like I can change the diff bushings, as long as I don't add more metal, so the BMR would be within the rules right (without sleeved inserts), and the poly lockout kits should be legal as well?

So what happens with these is while true that you aren't adding more metal with the bushing insert you have to change the bolt out to attach them and that is where the gray area is with ST. In the rules is a statement along the lines of "no other changes permitted". Changing a bolt to gain a performance advantage with this mod is not written into the rules.

On the rear camber arms, don't the stock PP arms use a bearing on the inboard side, and not a bushing? If so, wouldn't the non-adjustable from Steeda or BMR be allowed?

It is a rubber bushing on my 15 GTPP. Otherwise, yeah I would say it would be legal.

I see the subframe lockout kit being illegal due to the added metal, but what makes the alignment kit illegal, as they are delrin, which would just be added bushing material?

With this one the sleeve is going in between the bolt and the bushing to take up the slack, not in the original location of the bushing so, yeah, fml with these silly rules.

I don't see anything regarding the bump steer kit. Is there a way to contact SCCA for clarification on some of these items so I don't buy parts I cant use?

The way the rules work in ST is if it doesn't say you can do it, then you can't. The only thing you can do is call for a clarification and/or submit for the allowance to be added while making a good case for it.

I ran STP the first year it was available and got very stressed out and frustrated at trying to setup the car within the strict rules. Maybe I got too wrapped up in doing a bunch of mods that weren't really necessary to go fast, IDK, but I decided to go into CAMC where I don't have to worry about that anymore.

Since you have a new '18 GT PP (which I missed right off the bat) I would strongly recommend running it in FS for at least two seasons. It will be competitive there during that time and staying there for a while gives you a chance to learn the car and the sport enough to make a more informed decision on where to take the car down the road with classing. Good luck either way and welcome! :ford:

 

[NightmareMoon]

If lowering is important to you then obviously FS won't work.

FYI the amount of negative camber you can get in FS won't be a wear issue if you keep toe close to 0. Been there done that for many thousands of miles in my 2015. What chews up the tires is autocross.

FS Camber Woes

I run between 1.9 and 2.3 degrees in the front and a bit less in the rear. IMHO its clearly not enough for autox (FS wheels) to even out tire wear and its a bit too much cor the street. Im loosing street tires to inside edge wear and autox tires to outside shoulder wear. Granted, I did get 19k out of my street tires and mostly the RE71Rs do ok if I dismount and flip them before I burn completely through the shoulders.

OP: you can do a tune in STP so your competition will be running a bit more hp than you. All those suspension nitpicks listed above are ammo just to go straight to CAM

 

[NightmareMoon]

Also, FWIW, I love running stock springs (with stiff shocks). In the wet, or on a bumpy site, I can eat the STP cars lunch. Nearly took out the 2nd place Pro Solo and Nationals STU car last weekend on PAX because the site was bumpy.

Plus, around town Im not bottoming out. My streeet wheels are pushed out flush with the fenders and sure it would look better lowered, but the stiffer shocks give me transition capabilities without going to low stiff springs.

 

[svtsnake]

It seems that most are changing out the rear sway bar for FS. Which company seems to work the best? Also, would a 1/4" wheel spacer be beneficial?

 

[Static_LV]

I have not swapped bars in mine. I would but I can't figure out which one would be beneficial to swap. With the damper setup and alignment I am running, everything is very balanced and the car doesn't seem to have any bad habits. Corner entry is great provided I do my part, mid corner is stable and while the car rolls a bit more than I would like it is not terrible, it puts power down well on corner exit. It could be better and I could use a lot of spring rate front and back to cure the tendency to lift and dive under acceleration and braking but it seems to be very balanced and composed. I have had a number of people co-drive with me and I have asked each of them which bar to change, so far no one has a definitive answer.

 

[kz]

That's the plan. I will run 4-5 more events in FS. I just don't think I can adjust the camber back and forth myself before & after events for FS. I drive it quite a bit, so chewing up tires would be an issue for me.
I want to lower it, so that will take it out of FS. While I have the suspension apart to do the springs, I'll do the rest at the same time. I probably wont do anything until summertime. Drag race season starts March 17th. I drive someone else's altered & my own dragster, which keeps me busy. The dragstrip takes a summer break here, since it get so hot. That's when I plan to do everything. I just want to start gathering parts.

I second Dick's opinion. Invest in driver development, don't even worry about negative FS legal camber - I was driving entire last year on -2 degrees and all my tires are absolutely fine.

 

[Norm Peterson]

Corner entry is great provided I do my part, mid corner is stable and while the car rolls a bit more than I would like it is not terrible, it puts power down well on corner exit. It could be better and I could use a lot of spring rate front and back to cure the tendency to lift and dive under acceleration and braking but it seems to be very balanced and composed. I have had a number of people co-drive with me and I have asked each of them which bar to change, so far no one has a definitive answer.

As long as it feels balanced and composed, don't worry too much about the amounts it moves on its suspension.


Norm

 

[Static_LV]

Yeah, I pretty much gave up trying to overthink it and just drive.
It seems to be working pretty well with the glaring exception of Jeff Wong royally kicking my ass. My only consolation is that he appears to have a non-discriminatory policy about it.

 

[DickR]

It seems that most are changing out the rear sway bar for FS. Which company seems to work the best? Also, would a 1/4" wheel spacer be beneficial?

Actually there are fast people with either front or rear bar changes. What works with MagneRide is TBD. I'm going to start with oem.

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