giRl rAceR

Hey Guys,
I've looked around in this section for ideas about mods for my car. I've been occasionally running auto-x for about 2 years with my ralliart. Now that I have the evo I am ready to start getting serious. I know the number one answer for auto-x mod is tires, but besides that, what did you guys find that helped the most? Currently the car is completely stock. For the ralliart I had exhaust, tires, and a rear sway bar when I use to run. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
-Melissa

RJones

iTrader: (5)

It's dependent on what class you want to run. Any idea of that yet? Once you start getting serious, you have to look at the rules for the class you want to be in and use them as a guideline.

giRl rAceR

Well I know right now I'll be in STU, I'd kind of like to stay in that class until I get more practice.

Z Madness

Welcome to STU!
Coilovers and sways are a good start. But mostly seat time will be the most benefit!

Not many X MR's running (our cars are heavy) but still a fun platform. You probably want to look at the ZII Star Specs for tires. How are you placing in your class at your events?

RJones

iTrader: (5)

Vorshlag did a 10 MR build for STU a few years back. There might be some ideas you can steal from their build. https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/mo...b-one-lap.html

Like Z Madness said, a good starting point in STU is coilovers (with appropriate spring rates) and good street tires. From there I would suggest seat time so you can figure out where the car is lacking and improve upon it.

Autoxevo

iTrader: (6)

How much you looking to spend right away?
You could just start with rear sway, 9" wide light weight wheels and some good high spring rate lowering springs, especially if it's still daily driven.

Good coilovers will be the biggest improvement - good ones! Like $3k-$5k range if your really serious. They will allow you to run much much higher spring rates. But I'd run the rear bar, wheels and springs for now and get use to the car and putting the car on the proper line through the corners. Power should be the last thing to worry about. Lots of peeps up the power first and then skimp on the susp. Stock hp w/susp will be faster than high hp and no susp (same car, autox course).

JDMS60R

iTrader: (9)

Just to concur with Geoff, I helped a buddy last weekend. He has a new MR X, we did a new brake pads, ss lines, and lowering springs. Pads were stop tech, and I think the springs were Robispec. He had installed a whiteline 26ish mm rear sway earlier this year. It really transformed the car, without destroying the d.d. out of it.
Have Fun

giRl rAceR

I haven't ran the evo yet, I was thinking of tires and coilovers, and wasn't sure about a rear sway bar. I guess I really need to focus on suspension and not power mods... I will def look into the post about the build. I guess just looking where to start. Thanks guys for the input, I appreciate it.

giRl rAceR

Cool, I'm thinking about maybe $3.5k for coilovers, just gotta see what people's thoughts are on what brand.

ratt_finkel

AST's are well within your range. The 4150 is what I recommend. I can't think of a better single adjustable coilover. Especially in that range.

If you already have your mind set on STU, then don't be afraid to mod your car to the extent of the rules. Lots of people will advise you to mod the car slowly. And while that will allow you to feel how each change effects the car. The sooner you get the car equation sorted, the sooner you can focus on improving your driving to the top level.

Butt Dyno

iTrader: (10)

See if Rexaplagi's setup is sold yet, but if it's not, Ohlins DFV is a good choice, especially if you are street driving the car.

BriK

iTrader: (11)

I bought them (the AST's) a couple weeks ago, but I think that's moot anyway since the OP has a 10.

Butt Dyno

iTrader: (10)

I sometimes forget that people with X's do motorsports

giRl rAceR

Why is that?

Construct

iTrader: (4)

Definitely drive it at a few events first to establish a baseline and determine where you need the most improvement.

Tires are a necessity. ZII Star Specs are the tire to have in STU. 245 width max.

After that, you are correct that suspension would be the next place to look for improvement. If you're eager to spend money, you can certainly head straight for the high dollar coilovers. I'm not familiar with the X, as most of us prefer the lighter VIII & IX, but I would imagine you would do well with some quality springs on the stock struts as a starting point if you're not aiming to be competitive at the top level.

Also, I'd suggest buying a GoPro to record your runs. You can learn a lot by reviewing video of yourself after the fact.