I have been thinking of getting a newish car to play around with but want something different. I want to get into autocross but have never been to an event before. I see a lot of people getting big power car yet can't drive. What good is a 400+ hp Evo if you can't drive it? I believe the first mod should be driving skills. Which lead me into looking at a Suzuki SX4. I know, I know a Suzuki. The thought came to me since I wanted something different. It's awd and with some suspension mods and wheel/tires it could be fun to learn on. In a year or two I would just get rid of it and finally get the Evo. Maybe trade it in, sell it privately, or give it to the Mom. I also looked into the Subaru 2.5i but I have seen some articles on the SX4 and thought it would be different yet fun also. What do you think? Burn me if you want, I don't care. I wanted honest opinions anyways otherwise I wouldn't have posted this. Thanks for your time

 

learn in the evo

 

why not? learn to go fast in a slow car and you should be golden. also, if you should ever have a mishap, its not the evo getting hurt. also saves wear and tear on the evo while you learn.

my .02

 

yeah before i bought my EVO i had a Honda accord, Acura integra, and Civic Si. i used the Civic Si to work on my manual driving techniques (heel-toe downshifting in particular) so i'd be ready to run hard once i got the EVO. it worked out pretty well. the Accord is an auto, and i sold the integra before i could really do anything in it.

i don't think it's a horrible idea, just find something better than the suzuki. if it's gonna be a beater anyway, get something cheap. i'd take an older subi myself.

 

hmm......possibilities...

 

Thanks for the input. I was trying to find something different so that's were the Suzuki came into play. What are you ideas of other cars instead. I'm all ears. I'm a Marine with the possibility of being stationed in Okinawa. I have been hesitant to go there because I hear there are a lot of restriction on what I could do in free time over there but the possibility of car choices would be awesome. As far as jumping straight into the Evo it would be awesome but I don't wanna trash it learning. I've wanted this car forever and I see a lot of people getting them who shouldn't. I don't wanna be in that group, you know what I mean. Thanks for all your time

 

stock s15 240sx rwd or acura rsx fwd. or if you want a really cheap solution just to learn on, find a 91-94 nissan sentra se-r or nx2000. i had one of each and they were the best autocross cars i ever had. easily winners in the stock class with some practice and still competitive so you have a chance at a trophy eventually.

 

btw,
i like those suzukis and have been thinking about getting one as a winter car. if you do get one, give us some feedback.

 

Not quite on topic, but there's an autocross in OKC next Sunday (the 5th).

Come on out and give it a whirl! http://okscca.org

 

What do u do in Oklahoma as a marine i am a marine to. And yea japan sucks from what i know to many rules for us over there. I think its a great idea for autocross. Not sure but i drive a Honda Fit now as a DD. And they do really well in there class at autocross check them out to

 

RRM did some nice stuff to their zuk

 

I am from Oklahoma and in town until Monday but I live in Cali. Camp Pendleton to be exact. I am a bulk fuel specialist also.

 

I grew up on camp pendleton/Oceanside. Thats why I went navy instead. Who ever thought i would be in iraq, augmenting the army at that. theres 6 of us navy guys with an entire battalion of army reservists.. anyways, I like the Suzuki. Have you ever watched it perform in the WRC. Its actually quite good, and fast. Handles like a charm. But, I would have to say find a cheap *** miata to learn autocross in. I learned autocross in my evo, but should have started with something with less power and different class.

all you have to remember on the track though is "slow is smooth, smooth is fast" Once I toned down my evo just a tad bit, i was taking the slalom about 2 seconds faster and my cornering was pretty good also. Its better to learn in a 2wd car though to more understand oversteer/understeer. Also, most times you can ride with others in their cars and see how they drive. I did it quite often. You learn lots of things from everyone.

Well, good luck with your choice and I hope you do well.

 

Oh ok cool i was thinking i have never heard of a marine base there. But yea i was in miramar for 3 and a half years. Now i just got to pensacola FL. Yea sometimes i wounder why i am a marine. But i can't complain i like my job just hate iraq. Been there a couple of times

 

OT No there is no Marine base but we do have a huge air base (Tinker) and an Army base (Ft. Sill). I don't look forward to Iraq but I am willing to bet I'll end up in Afghanistan eventually. Back to the topic, I like the Ser idea and had also thought about a Miata. The thing with those is the Evo is awd so I thought "why not learn in an awd car?" Is the difference between my awd ideas to learn in and how an Evo would be so great its pointless? I understand the power difference but handling wise is where my thoughts were. I thought about getting a 240sx and a rebuild kit from AMS or something cheaper and going with one of those but that still leaves the awd idea out there. Any opinions are considered and appreciated. Thanks