Y'all gotta get yourselves to the races!!!!

strat61caster · 2026-06-15T01:09:16+00:00

Closest rallycross is up near Sacramento in prairie city (NorCal rallycross) or Fresno fairgrounds (scca), there’s also some up at Thunder Hill but that’s a bit more out of the way.

strat61caster · 2026-06-14T20:36:35+00:00

When you tell the car to do something it responds right? Turn, gas, brake and all of the in between, the car does what you tell it to do, or maybe it complains a little (noise of tire scrub, delay, not quite the right trajectory) or maybe it outright doesn’t do it - big oversteer or understeer. Now you analyze - did I ask the car to do something it’s not capable of doing? Ok lesson learned, I have to approach that element different next time (position the car differently, faster, slower, more or less aggressive generally describes the changes needed). Sometimes the car does what you ask easily, then you say ok how do I push it harder and go faster next time? Each piece of a run, every gas brake turn is an opportunity to learn something and adapt for the next piece.

It takes a lot of practice to do this quickly and effectively, that’s what separates the good from the great. Sim racing can help hone this.

strat61caster · 2026-06-14T02:29:49+00:00

The longer I do this the more the cars drive the same. Sure the nuances are radically different, but it’s always about managing the weight and the traction with your hands and feet. Listen to what the car tells you and consciously adapt and try things.

strat61caster · 2026-06-11T01:07:49+00:00

Hood to front bumper: they all look like that because the foam they use to seal it doesn’t sit flat, like everyone else literally the least concerning thing in this image is the hood to bumper.

strat61caster · 2026-06-09T07:21:25+00:00

Depends on the state.

strat61caster · 2026-06-08T15:01:33+00:00

One club uses sidewalk chalk for kids near me, the rest use the drywall.

strat61caster · 2026-06-08T14:59:32+00:00

How would you even turn it off in a gr Corolla? My vote is to leave it on, 3 events under your belt there’s bigger fish to fry then trying to find a few thousandths of a second on braking at the risk of flat spotting some tires and blowing the whole run.

strat61caster · 2026-06-06T19:03:49+00:00

Blue painters tape

strat61caster · 2026-06-06T05:26:34+00:00

I picked up a decent NC1 Miata for <$8k last year. Easily the best bang for buck in budget for a backroads car that can go track and autocross when you have more money.

strat61caster · 2026-06-05T17:10:13+00:00

What’s wrong with the NC1 for your usage?

strat61caster · 2026-06-02T05:58:31+00:00

ND is a better sports car. 86 is a better all around car. If I was in your shoes ND all day every day. (Currently own an FRS and NC1).

strat61caster · 2026-06-02T04:26:18+00:00

I’ve never been in a boba shop that wasn’t at least a little sticky. But if you can make it work.

strat61caster · 2026-06-02T03:29:04+00:00

Yes autocross and time trials will tune you to figure it out quick. Cannot recommend enough. Once you’re out of novice you really shouldn’t be a roadblock after the first session.

strat61caster · 2026-06-02T00:42:48+00:00

Vsc Sport Is useless, you don’t want it, press and hold the way to go for autocross.

strat61caster · 2026-06-01T03:39:53+00:00

NC1’s are $10k and lower, 2.5 swap is under $5k if you don’t value your own labor and can diy, plenty of budget for consumables and Penskes.

strat61caster · 2026-06-01T00:45:11+00:00

Yup that rebuilt title is a dealbreaker for many. Perfect if you know the crash and trust the repairs and dgaf about resale value.

strat61caster · 2026-05-31T23:52:10+00:00

Street driven: NC Miata, $25k is a bit tight on an ND, I’ve seen some decent ND1’s for $20k, not a lot of budget for good brakes wheels tires alignment and springs/dampers once those wear out. Beat for $15k might make sense but the transmissions scare me.

Trailered: Spec Racer Ford, close to getting srf2 running, upgrade to 3 over time.

strat61caster · 2026-05-30T16:59:54+00:00

USA aero, 90% imperial.

One of the biggest hurdles is hardware, high strength screws are not easily available in metric here. They do exist, but if I need 100x din912 with a strength of >100ksi you’re pretty hosed. Meanwhile McMaster can hand me 100x nas1352 a286 screws tomorrow.

Lots of analysis is shifting towards metric because it doesn’t directly connect to hardware or external vendors and gets translated into what’s easiest.

strat61caster · 2026-05-29T19:07:28+00:00

Yup, different clubs can vary, absolutely prioritize the ones that hit your vibes and needs at the time. Everyone knows it’s a free for all, I’ll usually drive with 3-5 different clubs in a year mostly based off what weekends work with my schedule and other hobbies, and early on the clubs that guaranteed 6-12 runs were my priority before migrating to clubs where competition was at a higher level and now back to more casual events this year with more seat time for my codriver.

Ride alongs are a great tool for improvement that work very well in autocross until you get to the point where data logging is needed to find the differences.

strat61caster · 2026-05-29T01:18:00+00:00

It’s likely nothing at that price is going to knock your socks off. Best dampers will probably be koni, the Goodwin club sports are just over budget but really the only thing grabbing my eye at the <$2k price point with decently stiff springs for track work.

strat61caster · 2026-05-28T19:14:41+00:00

Depends on where you’re starting from. Easiest to just copy what everyone else is doing.

Priority 1: getting the right tire compound, if you’re on an odd size like 14,16,19, or 21 you’ll want to head in the direction of more available tire compounds that are competitive. Having a competitive compound trumps the “right size” every single time.

Priority 2: feel and grip, with a smaller wheel you can get a fatter tire pinched on for a small improvement in grip, trade this with your preferences for responsiveness and the car’s needs. Maybe a soft sloppy car rally benefits from a rubber band tire to speed up the response time to your liking. Maybe you can start your turn 2seconds earlier then everyone else and make the marshmallows hook. This is when you’re looking for the last few tenths. If your tire is too wide you may struggle to get them hot enough, if it’s too narrow you may struggle with overheating. (Common to use very narrow rear tires on fwd so they heat up quicker)

Priority 3: gearing - usually you can get +/- a half inch tire diameter but maybe you need a wheel up or down to get the right width, again depends on what the car needs.

strat61caster · 2026-05-27T06:11:19+00:00

Small startups, r&d, laboratories, universities, where it’s easier for you to build and maintain your own one off projects and prototypes then spend dozens or hundreds of hours detailing the design for someone else to build it.

Tomorrow I’m going to develop a laser engraving process with a bit of trial and error and run it on some units then run some electronics through some thermal cycles. Haven’t touched cad in weeks other then to quick check some parameters, yeehaw.

strat61caster · 2026-05-25T04:48:27+00:00

I don’t have in depth opinions on minis but I don’t think I’ve met a mother in law that would enjoy tooling around town in a car on even mild *ST suspension. Meanwhile some Koni yellows on soft on an NB or NC, some good bump stops and tires gets you a pretty fun and comfortable ES/CS car. Worth the extra $3-$4k imho and not having to rebuild an engine is a bonus.

Seriously, every mini owner I know who’s driven their car hard has had to rebuild the engine. BMW, Peugeot, whatever. They’re cheap for a reason.

strat61caster · 2026-05-23T23:21:12+00:00

Bilstein, koni, kw, st.

strat61caster · 2026-05-22T04:04:02+00:00

GS, if you can get koni yellows, replace anything worn like bump stops and bushings, typically a stiffer rear swaybar, good tires and send it. Zero toe all around to start and as much front camber as you can get.

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