[Imp]

Took my SS (6MT) to the local autox today. Haven't autoxed in 6-7 years, and the rust in my head was prevalent. :lol: (Past national champion).

First three runs were just me trying the different modes, Performance, Track with Stabilitrack on and then Track with it off. With it off, the car simply did what I told it, and the 1st time with it all off, it was all bad. Sideways at a whim and with more right foot, couldn't even play catch and release because the tires weren't that grippy at the limit.

The afternoon runs were just working on finding the balance on the car with everything off and, wow.... so rewarding when you get it right. It's ready to bite, but it's also so very ready to reward. It feels so much lighter than it is, but could use some help with front end grip. A square setup with more and gripper meat in the front and maybe a bigger front sway bar would help with the understeer at the limit.

Just don't try to steer much with the right foot with everything off, it will come around.

Needs sticky tires, square setup with more front end grip, and front swaybar. It won't be a match for a well driven Camaro SS, but it will be a blast.

--kC

 

[bthed19]

For the weight and size of these cars, that's actually good to hear. I would bet the rather substantial difference in front and rear tire sizes is responsible for a good bit of the push, but of course you top level AXers really want all the front end grip you can get.

 

[utekineir]

Was a fun time yesterday.

Every time i take the ss out it makes me want to bring it out more regularly. Like we talked about, it shouldn't be this fun, but it is.

Its really far more competent and fun than anyone assumes it would be given the size and weight. The mag ride I think deserves a lot of the praise. It really became clear to me on saturday when the course for whatever reason went through some of the concrete near the hanger where there was a significant contour change (off an edge basically). The ss went through it more like my miata on penskes would in terms of keeping the car composed, the other vehicles absolutely lost some composure there.

I had picked up a set of free hoosier a6 takeoffs in 285 a month or two back, now that these tires are formally cooked the a6 are going on. Its going to be hilarious on that car for the couple events they last for.

The car properly setup for a class and driven right could absolutely be a surprise. Imo its better than a 5th gen camaro ss (thanks to mag ride), though it should get smoked by a 6th gen equivalently setup and driven.


Thanks for signing up, str points be dammed, seeing another ss signed up for the event made what car to drive on sunday pretty clear.

 

[Imp]

And yours was only the 2nd SS I've ever seen in the wild, and great that it was at an autox.

Vid from my dashcam from my last run. The yahoo was from me nailing one of a couple transitions I'd had a problem with...

http:\\www.youtube.com\watch?v=I0ium2VyGzU



--kC

 

[JJay03]

A bigger front sway bar most of the time would actually make the understeer worse. You could check the alignment as well and maybe add some neg camber in the front.

 

[bthed19]

http:\\www.youtube.com\watch?v=DI0ium2VyGzU

--kC

Link is dead for me. YouTube says "video unavailable."

 

[Imp]

fixed

 

[Imp]

A bigger front sway bar most of the time would actually make the understeer worse. You could check the alignment as well and maybe add some neg camber in the front.

It's a wives tale that "it makes it understeer more". Yes, going TOO big, it will. Being hamfisted with the steering wheel, it will. Trying to exceed the friction circle of the tires in a turn, it will. This car, to be fast, it will help. The question is, what's too big? What's too much? The one on the car needs to be bigger though, and, I'm not doing many events to make it worthwhile to try.

A properly sized swaybar for the front will help a) transfer front weight to the outside wheel for fast transitions b) reduce roll (a very good thing in this car) and c) will allow the rear to have more grip relative to the front. (And if you're trying to drive the front wheels in a RWD or AWD car, you're doing it wrong, it will bite you).

A properly sized bar in "street" will not necessarily slow the car down and can help reduce the understeer when you give the rear more grip. I've never met a RWD or AWD "street" classed car that didn't get better with a slightly bigger bar. S2000, RX8, WRX, Camaro, Mustang, Corvette, BMW M3, etc... a big bar simply works for stock/street autox classing.

In a sweeper where the car is resting on it's bumpstops, you may be right (you won't go any faster in a big sweeper, but you won't go any slower than if you had a stock bar if you know how to drive), but with the magride, I would think one wouldn't be on their bumpstops with any frequency. I certainly didn't feel like my car was this weekend, but I didn't do any testing to see either.

--kC

 

[bthed19]

In a sweeper where the car is resting on it's bumpstops, you may be right (you won't go any faster in a big sweeper, but you won't go any slower than if you had a stock bar if you know how to drive), but with the magride, I would think one wouldn't be on their bumpstops with any frequency. I certainly didn't feel like my car was this weekend, but I didn't do any testing to see either.
--kC

Not disagreeing with anything about the sway bar, but if the car is on the bump stops in a long sweeper, that's a spring rate issue, not a shock issue. I would imagine you'd probably need R-comps to really put the car on the bump stop and hold it there, though... unless the stock springs are softer than I thought (I've only test-driven a '14 SS... still waiting on this **** stop sale to buy a '16).

 

[JJay03]

The bigger bar would transfer the weight faster which would find the limit of those front tires faster. Different depending on the car though and how much you are rolling which affects camber curves and all that fun stuff. Try it out and tell me what you think.

 

[Imp]

What constitutes a long sweeper in an autox is magnatudes shorter (and therefore less of an issue) than on a track - where the understeer would really be felt.

Track guys would generally not be running a big front bar with the same frequency autoxers do. A small loss in a sweeper from a bigger FSB will be made up in spades through the 40+ other fast transitions on the rest of the autox course.

--kC

 

[utekineir]

This scientific bumpstop testing revealed no issues.

Fully Agree that autox wise a bigger front bar is the way to go in most rwd situations.

On this car given my infrequent autox use of it i wont be changing any bars. I love how the car performs keeping in mind what it is and how it is not a primary autotivity vehicle.