For the street it might be the best mod, but for auto-x, your fantastic tune and power mods with no suspension will still get you spanked by a modestly sorted STU/X BMW with 190/160hp to the wheels. Actually, a well sorted STS Civic Si (probably like 90hp to the wheel) would probably put a hurting on you too. The suspension bits are going to make the biggest difference on your car for autox. Danny's car has good power but the suspension needs work; Corey's car has a cat-back but a more sorted suspension and he whipped my butt at the Pro.

 

He whipped a lot of us at the Pro.

 

corey needs some tuning... wink

cb

 

No, he really doesn't

 

maybe we will make an STU "eliminator" tune for corey...

dave, would that make you happy?!?!

 

i dunno, i've been pretty competitive with just a rear sway bar, rear end links, and rear strut tower brace.

i'm not saying it is the be all, end all. but i think with the exception of coilovers it is the single, most cost effective mod that would help the most in stu.

no worries though. springs are on the way, and camber plates and energy suspension bushing kit are waiting for the springs. that should tide me over till next season when i hope to make the move to BSP with wider stickier tires, coilovers, more boost, and some frame stiffness goodies.

 

I think you could skip the most of the bushings, rear end links, and rear strut brace. I had tested some springs before without much AX improvement, maybe the Works have a high spring rate? Next to coil-overs, tires also play a big role in STU.

What type of frame stiffness parts are going to use in BSP? Is there anything better than stock parts?

As Mike mentioned, even top level STS/STX Civics and WRXs can beat a higher powered set-up STU car. How much power are you getting out of your tune? Thanks.

 

I'm currently running a turbo back exhaust with no-tuning and I don't feel like I'm giving up that much relative to what coilovers and tires have done for me.

Although, if Dave crushes us on Saturday in Milwaukee I might change that statement.

 

well, the rear strut tower brace was a carry over from my last evo. the rear end links i got because i broke the ball joint on the stockers from changing my sway bar setting too many times. and the bushings i am hoping to help me with my body roll.

i am very happy with my tires. still running the stock yokos, and from what i understand the works springs are a nice relatively stiff spring rate with a small drop (for looks and hopefully a lower center of gravity)

the springs are more of a bandaid until i can get together the money for the coilovers i want.

as far as frame stiffness i am mainly interested in the H brace for the front subframe. my main purpose for it is so that i can get one that clears my downpipe with being shimmed with washers. i am sure the added stiffness will help a bit too, but mostly i just don't feel confident with 3 washers under each side of the front stock brace, and occasionally at idle it will rattle a bit if the car is positioned just so on a slant. the only reason i haven't done anything about it yet, is because i believe it would automatically bump me into bsp, and i don't want to make that move until i am prepared a bit better.

i should be right around 295 - 300 wheel with my tune. it was just an email flash, but the car they designed it for was making 295ish on their dyno, and the butt dyno is very happy with it. the part i like the best about it is increased responsiveness in the low and mid. before coming out of tight turns i had to wait a second or two for the boost to come on, now i have noticeably more power before full boost. it defintely showed on course.

and i know all about lower power wrx's beating me. haha. my buddy paul runs an stx wrx with coilovers, tune, and some other goodies and consistantly beats me. although he is a very good driver. i need to gain some more seat time above all to be faster.

 

Personally, I wouldn't waste my money on any springs, you will not see any advantage at an autoX.

The stock A-046's are good for local events but you're giving up a lot of contact patch compared to 245's. I ran A-046's last year and compared to the neovas, there's no question as to which is better. The only question is really how much better are the neovas and the answer is a lot!

There are two things that will help with body roll, really stiff springs on coilovers (like in the 600 to 700 lb. range) and sway bars. Bushings will not help with roll. There are benefits but they're not going to be make or break.

 

well when i burn off my 235's i am hoping to go with some 255's.

i know the stock tires aren't the ideal width, but they are still in good condition, so i am going to stick with them until i destroy them

i was thinking of going with bf goodrich kdw's after my yokos.

 

255's aren't legal and you should read through some of this and other threads regarding tire choices

 

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, there are no struts in the rear. The rear suspension is multilink. You probably know this already, but those damper top mounts don't take any lateral force under cornering, so a bar that mounts to them is just adding weight.

Hm..If that is the brace I'm thinking about (the cusco one), I don't think its legal for BSP or even SM. The problem is the additional longitudinal bracing.

Then you almost certainly have boost control, which is not legal for STU.

Sorry. I hate to be a killjoy...

d

 

no, the boost was not changed at all. the car the map was designed for is actually an STU evo. i want to keep it on the up and up for the autocross.

and not struts, you're right. shocks correct? it feels like it adds stiffness in the rear, i can feel a bit of a difference when i take it off. maybe it is just mental?

the cusco brace is the one i was looking at. that would kind of suck if it wasn't class legal because of the extra longitudinal bracing. it's probably not a big deal, because they always seem to remain tight, but it makes me a little nervous only having half the original length of those bolts threaded in.

and no worries bout being a killjoy. i am still pretty new to autocross, and find alot of the class restrictions a bit confusing at time so i appreciate any input from people with more experience.

 

"If a placebo causes side-effects, are they real?"

I'd take coil-overs over a tune any day of the week. I could actually get through the slalom without taking out cones with my rear doors. The alignment options and balance changes caused by the coil-overs created a distinct grip advantage. The increase from 245 Hankooks to 245 Falkens was huge as well. The OE Advans didn't do much for me, but they were pretty worn.

-Jon