dj pyrotechnics

Well as some of you know I totalled my civic a month ago today. I am still looking for another car but dont exactly have the cash (or the good credit) to go get a brand new one right now. I have been thinking of gettin another civic, 04 this time, since it was such a good car to me for the price. I wanted to just do suspension mods to make it good for auto-x. If that is not possible, I was looking at other options, like an 02 civic like i had before. If THAT doesnt work, then I need another car in mind for my plan b. What I want is what the name of this thread says... a good late model auto-x car. I wish I could get my self a Subaru but I dont know if thas such a good idea... any one have some input on CHEAP (i.e. <$14000) late model cars that can be made to handle (and look good too) ?

DC5@EM2

Its all about the AE86.

sCoTtEh

^ ehh...how would you go about getting one

Jaykuai

iTrader: (2)

same thoughts..

i want one so bad.. and here where i live there are like 3 (what i have seen) and i must think the owners dont know what piece they have so they would likely sell them for cheap..

Boilermaker1

iTrader: (16)

A Civic Hatch. Run stock, do the suspension up for STS, or Swap it and go Street Mod... you can do any one.
B13 Sentra SE-R - El-Cheapo race car
A 1st gen Miata- Once again... El cheapo Race car
A GSR will do ok, just watch which ITR parts you put on or you'll find yourself in CSP or SM
e30 M3 or 325is... the M3 IS a race car, then 325 will get you close.

If you want newer...
a GC8 (94-01 Impreza)
A Protege MP3 (the Racing Beat Suspension)
99-00 Si
the new MR-S (I dunno how cheap they go for used yet)
a 99 Miata with the Sports pack

Basically, you're looking for balance rather than raw power. You're also looking for cars with LESS than 200 HP. The other thing is to know that if you get a car that has LSD, you'll be running STX... with WRXs.... so make sure you can hang with Turbo AWD. Also make sure the stock cat is there... thats another ST rule.
The real problem is most late 90's cars sucked... so you gotta go older, or pretty new. And if you go pretty new, the price isn't always right.

gotti

iTrader: (6)

http://www.7thgencivic.com/forums/sh...hreadid=119275

Yukonart

iTrader: (1)

I'm with Boilermaker on this one.

Civic hatches are VERY easy to beef-up suspension on make excellent autocross platforms. Also the 1st gen Miatas tend to rip the courses up too.

AE86s are WAYYY overrated. Put simply, they're just a cheap RWD car that there are more mods out for now than there used to be. People are buying them up for drifting . . which has raised the demand for them, and the price. And watch out if you do buy one. . . if it's been drifted a lot, it's had the crap beat out of it.

I also (still have) a 2002 coupe. With the right suspension mods, (see my profile for a full lineup) you'll be able to easily hang with some of the other competitors. Even with a decent 250 lbs of dead weight (sound system and other show mods) I turned out the 3rd best time my very first time out. . . running even against my friend with a 1996 Civic hatch who's pretty damn good on the autox course. (Beat him out by 2/10ths of a second on our last runs)

Anyway. . . if you're really in love with the 7th gens, and you want to run it with great suspension, take my lead and go for it. You won't be disappointed.

DC5@EM2

Wouldnt a early gen N/A mr2 be good for autocross and cheap too?

Yukonart

iTrader: (1)

Indeed. . . all MR2s = virtually 50/50 weight distribution and low centers of gravity.

DC5@EM2

Question for yah Yukonart,

Im thinking about getting an evo iv imported for this same reason. I can get one fully legal with title, shipped to my door for less than 10k with less than 50k km on them. Would you think this would be a good choice for autocross or no?

sadboy916

just buy a m3 and your done lol

Boilermaker1

iTrader: (16)

It would work, but with no listing in the SCCA books (its a non-US model), you'll be instantly bumped into either a Modified or Prepared class. I don't really know if thats a place you want to be...
The Non-Turbo MR2s do well in autoX, the turbo ones tend to put out more than they can handle... to keep the turbo spooled, you need to keep your foot on the gas.... this tends to point the car in the wrong direction.

sadboy916

i bet if our cars were rwd and had a k20 swap with some suspension mods we would do pretty well in auto cross.

Boilermaker1

iTrader: (16)

They do well with just a D17 and a decient suspension. The problem is the decient suspension... since the tie rods are linked to the struts, it counts as a mounting point. In the rules, no mounting point can be moved or altered... which makes installation of RSX suspensions illegal, and since some of the kits move the steering arm to reduce the bump steer, they're illegal. The only sure fire way to be legal is Konis, but theres buckets of problems with those, and most of the available springs aren't very stiff.

dragoon

iTrader: (2)

what a clever observation

player

iTrader: (8)

Dood, auto X is all about RWD, u can do so much better with an AWD, an mr2 will be great for that

clownprince

iTrader: (5)

All of the mentioned cars are good at autox. Personally I would go with another civic.

Here's one for sale
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...tem=2436515489

Bidding is closed but email the seller to see if it's still avaliable. This car is in great condition.

player

iTrader: (8)

: Automatic

nookiemonster

hey DC5 I took that test and I got Bunta hahaha

Yukonart

iTrader: (1)

Indeed. . . I did a full Koni setup with H&R Sports. Just enough drop to lower center of gravity, and just about enough springrate (although a bit more would have been ideal) to keep the tires on the ground. I was actually shocked at how well the car handled (with the addition of full Neuspeed bracing) through the entire course. Still had mad understeer, but I worked through it. The most fun I had was whipping the *** end around in the slaloms. From what I was told, I was one of the most aggressive FWD cars through the course. . . the only thing I lacked was sufficient power to weight ratio. Hundreds of extra pounds + D17 SOCH fury != fast.

I am convinced, however, that with some decent planning, and added weight at a minimum, the 7th Gen Civic can be a force to reckon with on the autox courses. Having to slow down less in the corners means having to accellerate less coming out of them. That was my theory going into the event, and by God it held true.

Oh, one BIG recommendation. . . . RACING SEATS. Without my Torinos in there I would never have been able to confidently toss the car about the course. Only other thing I could really suggest would be a decent brake upgrade, too. I noticed significant brake fade about 1/2 way through my third run. I'm sure a big brake kit from AEM or Wilwood could have made a big difference there.

Damn. . . I can't wait to see how the STi handles next spring.

Meeklo2k2

iTrader: (2)

i would get a mr-s and put in a gts motor.

Zzyzx

all depends on what class you want to run.......... Stock is probably one of the most compeditive classes you can run. STS, what me boilermaker and a few others run is very compeditive too and allows for a quite a bit of modification, then you jump in to the Street Prepaired classes witch are even more preped, then the Modifieds then the Prepaireds...... so where do you want to race and how much $$$$ do you want to put in to it to be compeditive???

Top stock cars in their classes.

H-Stock (What Our civic non Sis run in) Subaru impressa(non 2.5 RS/WRX) and Mini coopers.
G-Stock Toyota Celica GT's CRXs, and Mini cooper S
F-Stock Camaros, Mustangs ect ect ect.....
E-Stock Toyota MR2s all the way.... Earliy 90s
D-Stock (Where the WRX plays) Integra Type-Rs and Bmw 330s. Supprisingly WRX's arnt that compeditive in their stock class......
C-Stock Late model Miatas or a mr-2 Spyder
B-stock Honda S2000s or Porsche Boxsters
A-Stock Corvettes, Maybe a Boxster S if your good enough.
S-Stock (SUPER STOCK) Corrvette ZO6.

Once you go in to Prepaired, Modified or Street prepaired things change due to prep levels.....

Incedently the top car for STS right now is is an 88-89 civic Si......

alienmeatsack

Miatas are excellent autox cars and can be had for a very good price. And I also agree that the vic hatch is also a good choice.