solo scca motorcross with zo6

[billyz06-2003]

i was wondering if any body has raced there zo6 in a solo autocross, if so what mods if any did you do to make her go better, this will be my first attempt at autocross so i wil be in a novice group. am doing this sun. 29th some get me some answers quick if you can. thanks Billy

 

[DRTH VTR]

I have about 75 runs under my belt. I increase the tire pressure to about 40# all the way around. Get anything loose out of the car (they will make you do that anyway). This is the one time that I turn the stability control completely off. If I want to be able to rotate the car with the throttle, I don't want to fight the active handling. The key is to be smooth. Tire noise is slow. I found that it is easy to enter corners too fast and end up with a push situation. The Z06 has so much torque that I usually run almost the entire course in second gear, unless the course is fast enough or tight enough that 1st or 3rd are required. The Z06 is a very capable solo car right out of the box. If you are serious, it could be lowered, and sticky tires installed.

 

[DRTH VTR]

I would also suggest that you ride along with an experienced driver for a couple of his/her runs. I have found the other drivers to be very helpful. Then get in a few runs yourself, and have an experienced driver ride with you. They can provide help with hand position etc. Be sure to walk the course beforehand, also with an experienced driver. That will help with what line to take. Good luck! It is lots of fun.

 

[TAC]

I increase the tire pressure to about 40# all the way around.

Just curious. Why do you increase to 40#? I've done a fair amount of autocrossing and found that 30# of pressure gets my scrub line right to the top of the diamonds on the tire. It seems to me 40# would give you less traction.

 

[DRTH VTR]

Just curious. Why do you increase to 40#? I've done a fair amount of autocrossing and found that 30# of pressure gets my scrub line right to the top of the diamonds on the tire. It seems to me 40# would give you less traction.

I did those posts in a hurry in the dark of night. I was told to increase pressure by other drivers. I suspect that 36# is closer to what I have run. The experienced Z06 drivers have showed me where to look for scrub marks on the tire and mid 30's seems to be good.

 

[Gorgon]

I've never competed in any solo races (yet) but I've read a lot and DRTH has some great info. The idea behind increasing the pressure is that when you press hard into the corners the tires will roll a bit and you'll actually be driving on the sidewall. Some chalk the side walls during their run so that they can see how far up the side wall they are scrubbing and adjust pressure accordingly. Increasing pressure keeps the the tires from rolling and maintaining more of the tire in contact with the pavement.

Leon

 

[TAC]

I've never competed in any solo races (yet) but I've read a lot and DRTH has some great info. The idea behind increasing the pressure is that when you press hard into the corners the tires will roll a bit and you'll actually be driving on the sidewall. Some chalk the side walls during their run so that they can see how far up the side wall they are scrubbing and adjust pressure accordingly. Increasing pressure keeps the the tires from rolling and maintaining more of the tire in contact with the pavement.

Leon

But this is what I'm getting at. The diamonds I refer to are the pointers on the sides of high performance tires that show where optimal tire scrubbing should be occuring. When I set my tires at 30" I can see the wear pattern--scrub line--is coming right to that diamond. If I were rolling over the sidewall I would be scrubbing that diamond off just like those that scrub off the chalk. I dunno what to think...I just keep hearing different things.

 

[Gorgon]

I bet this applies more to people running cars with normal street tires than those with high end tires. At the end of the day I think the tires in a Civic or Miata are going to roll more than those on a typical Vette. It may also depend on the tire on the vette as well. The sidewall in a runflat is much stiffer than that of the Goodyear SC on the Z06, or even the sidewall of the Potenzas I run.

 

[motorman]

if you find the front end "plowing" in the turns disconect the front bar. it will turn in so fast it will scare you. do this only on slower autoXs. this applies to all corvettes not just ZO-6s