I want to setup my car to be a little more competitive for next seasons Solo. what are some good places to start? right now I have a base 96 Sohc with a MTX that is pretty much stock other than some booger bushings, 16X7 MB Seven wheels & 205/50R-16 Hankook K106 tires, 95 Cam and ATX TB and a fart cannon. I'm not really shooting for a cirtian class but was thinking about getting my car closer to where a ACR would be.
Thanks for the help in advance.
Good setup for auto X/Solo
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vielecustoms
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Concentrate on the suspension instead of the engine. There are many things you can do to improve the performance of the suspension without spending a lot of money.
First thing you should look into is a good spring and strut combination. Don't bother to replace the springs if you are going to use stock struts.
For springs, you want something that wont lower the car more than an inch or just slightly over an inch. I would say 1.3 inches of drop is the absolute lowest you can use for competition. You also don't want anything too stiff. Contrary to popular belief, a stiffer spring does not always mean the car will handle better. You need a spring that is stiff enough to keep the suspension from bottoming in hard turns. Look for some Mopar high-rates or Eibach pro-kits. I wouldn't suggest X-high rates if you plan to drive on the street. Other springs will cause the suspension to bottom in a hard turn, causing the laden tire to take on most of the cars weight (bad).
As far as struts go, you only need enough firmness to control the velocity of the suspension. Koni's are preferred, but KYB GR-2's will do for light competition use. Be sure to get a strut that will allow for a camber adjustment.
Polyurethane suspension bushings will be one of the best upgrades you could do to the suspension. They will keep the cars alignment angles truer through a turn far better than the factory rubber bushings.
Sway bars are a top priority. These will improve handling dramatically. Even if you don't have the money for an after market set or a custom set, factory ACR or R/T bars will give you a noticeable increase in performance.
Alignment angles are more important than any bolt-on component. A car with thousands of dollars in suspension parts and a shitty alignment wouldn't be able to turn as good as a stock neon. If you are doing mixed competition and street driving, here are some good settings to start with:
Front Camber set to -1 to -1.5 degrees
Front Toe set slightly in
Rear Camber set to -0.5 to -0.75
Rear Toe set slightly in
Note that you can use a slight toe out setting in the front to increase turn in response, but stability will suffer some. Beginners usually like the feel of toe out because it tends to pull the car into the turn.
Lastly, a good set of strut tower braces can help. No ebay crap. Steel or titanium. Aluminum is too soft to make a good difference. Look at the Mopar SRT-4 brace for inspiration.
First thing you should look into is a good spring and strut combination. Don't bother to replace the springs if you are going to use stock struts.
For springs, you want something that wont lower the car more than an inch or just slightly over an inch. I would say 1.3 inches of drop is the absolute lowest you can use for competition. You also don't want anything too stiff. Contrary to popular belief, a stiffer spring does not always mean the car will handle better. You need a spring that is stiff enough to keep the suspension from bottoming in hard turns. Look for some Mopar high-rates or Eibach pro-kits. I wouldn't suggest X-high rates if you plan to drive on the street. Other springs will cause the suspension to bottom in a hard turn, causing the laden tire to take on most of the cars weight (bad).
As far as struts go, you only need enough firmness to control the velocity of the suspension. Koni's are preferred, but KYB GR-2's will do for light competition use. Be sure to get a strut that will allow for a camber adjustment.
Polyurethane suspension bushings will be one of the best upgrades you could do to the suspension. They will keep the cars alignment angles truer through a turn far better than the factory rubber bushings.
Sway bars are a top priority. These will improve handling dramatically. Even if you don't have the money for an after market set or a custom set, factory ACR or R/T bars will give you a noticeable increase in performance.
Alignment angles are more important than any bolt-on component. A car with thousands of dollars in suspension parts and a shitty alignment wouldn't be able to turn as good as a stock neon. If you are doing mixed competition and street driving, here are some good settings to start with:
Front Camber set to -1 to -1.5 degrees
Front Toe set slightly in
Rear Camber set to -0.5 to -0.75
Rear Toe set slightly in
Note that you can use a slight toe out setting in the front to increase turn in response, but stability will suffer some. Beginners usually like the feel of toe out because it tends to pull the car into the turn.
Lastly, a good set of strut tower braces can help. No ebay crap. Steel or titanium. Aluminum is too soft to make a good difference. Look at the Mopar SRT-4 brace for inspiration.
also when your racing solo you will be turning you wheel alot, get an R/T 16:1 steering rack or a Shadow 14:1 steering rack, and keep your power steering
also try putting a smaller grant steering wheel on
another tip, unless you have racing seats, and i do mean real racing seats not r/t or acr seats, you are gonna need a way to clamp yourself down to your seat, if you brace yourself with your knee's you will break your door panel the minute you pull a hard 1.XX G turn
take the center lap belt from the rear seat and bolt it to the rear mounting bolts of the drivers seat, when you tighten the belt make sure it runs across your hip bone and make it tight enough so thet you can't move
when you get to the race location adjust you seat so that it is in a upright position and and you have good reach of both the steering wheel and the shifter (no "pimp ricer" laid back look)
from your mods i'm pretty sure you will be put in the "D Street Prepared" class, be ready to race cars that are much faster than yours
also try putting a smaller grant steering wheel on
another tip, unless you have racing seats, and i do mean real racing seats not r/t or acr seats, you are gonna need a way to clamp yourself down to your seat, if you brace yourself with your knee's you will break your door panel the minute you pull a hard 1.XX G turn
take the center lap belt from the rear seat and bolt it to the rear mounting bolts of the drivers seat, when you tighten the belt make sure it runs across your hip bone and make it tight enough so thet you can't move
when you get to the race location adjust you seat so that it is in a upright position and and you have good reach of both the steering wheel and the shifter (no "pimp ricer" laid back look)
from your mods i'm pretty sure you will be put in the "D Street Prepared" class, be ready to race cars that are much faster than yours
PerformanceLLC sells koni/high rate combo for around 900 bux.
Grab those, bushings, and bigger sways and that should set you good for a while till you can build back your funds.
If you wanna go out and got the money to do it, then pretty much anything DOHCrt said is what you will need.
There are a few other things when you get to that point.
Grab those, bushings, and bigger sways and that should set you good for a while till you can build back your funds.
If you wanna go out and got the money to do it, then pretty much anything DOHCrt said is what you will need.
There are a few other things when you get to that point.
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vielecustoms
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Thanks for the Info! I was def planning on getting at least one seat and installing a roll bar so I can run a 5pt harness (my base seats suck and don't hold ya ass around a corner 
. after I work on the suspension. as for running with faster cars. there are not very many cars that run (40 tops) but there are a few STi's and EVO's and a viper (he got the slowest times of the day) but other than that most are old Bmws 240's and Honda's, so I don't think it'll be too bad...
I am going to read up on that class and try to get as prepared as I can for it I DL'd the 2007 rule book so time to study .
. after I work on the suspension. as for running with faster cars. there are not very many cars that run (40 tops) but there are a few STi's and EVO's and a viper (he got the slowest times of the day) but other than that most are old Bmws 240's and Honda's, so I don't think it'll be too bad...I am going to read up on that class and try to get as prepared as I can for it I DL'd the 2007 rule book so time to study
.
Stop telling anyone about the atx TBm and the '95 cam; those will move you into a faster class, and nobody will know otherwise (except a Neon specialist with calipers).
Stay in STS if you can.. spring for the Koni/Performance combo if you're able.
If you can get a lighter tire/wheel combo in a smaller rim size, you will also notice a difference; there are very few serious Neon autoXers running 16" .. it's all about unsprung weight.
Most important: get as much seat time as you can, and have a good time.
Stay in STS if you can.. spring for the Koni/Performance combo if you're able.
If you can get a lighter tire/wheel combo in a smaller rim size, you will also notice a difference; there are very few serious Neon autoXers running 16" .. it's all about unsprung weight.
Most important: get as much seat time as you can, and have a good time.
More Neons than sense.
STS Cams
I was told that the 95 cam was allowed in the Update/Backdate by several people running in STS. 
Otherwise 95's would have a reasonable advantage over the later years. Always best to read the rules thought!
Don't know for sure because I have not really paid attention to the STS rules in that much detail.
TB would be another story though.
Otherwise 95's would have a reasonable advantage over the later years. Always best to read the rules thought!Don't know for sure because I have not really paid attention to the STS rules in that much detail.
TB would be another story though.
Update/Backdate rules were tossed last year in STS, so if you're running a '95 cam in any other year car, you are illegal. The ATX TB is also a no-no in STS.
Don't get so wrapped up in what mods you can do to the car - the best mod is the driver. Get as much seat time as you can!
Don't get so wrapped up in what mods you can do to the car - the best mod is the driver. Get as much seat time as you can!
95 DOHC Sport Coupe
96 SOHC Coupe
95 SOHC ACR Sedan
96 SOHC Coupe
95 SOHC ACR Sedan
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civiceater96
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