89 crx si newbie

Quote:

Originally Posted by dklahn

hey guys, my buddy and I just picked up a 89 crx si, we're looking to build an ITA car for my daughter, goal is being on track in 2 years. Is there a rule book specific to this class somewhere? or just what the scca has out there?
My biggest question for now is, the floor boards are pretty rusted out, is there any spec on the floor, or can we form up some pieces and weld them in?Does the exhaust have to exit in the stock location? Would appreciate any info any of you may have, best places for parts ect, thanks in advance!!

The GCR describes the rules for the car. The general section has the details about the safety equipment, roll cage, etc. The improved touring section details what you can do to an IT car.

I believe I have seen diamond plate welded in on the floor board to cover the foot well holes. The race seat does need somewhere to mount though so I am not sure how extensive the rust is in that area.

No the exhaust exit can be moved. Make sure you stay under 103 db though. That is SCCA limit. Some tracks require even more such as Waterford hills which requires 80 db. For a CRX its popular to terminate the exhaust at the end of the transmission tunnel with a bullet style muffler with a down turn. I run 2 1/4" pipe three feet back into a 3" Dynomax bullet with a shaved down turn at the end of the muffler. Only reason the down turn is shaved is so it doesn't catch the ground.

For the first few seasons buy smart. Generally the first season is spent learning and dropping a few grand into performance parts will be less beneficial (possible hindrance) then having her learn how to race first. That also being said if she is fighting the car constantly its hard to learn.

Get the car down to the 5" height mark with coil over shocks and that should give you around 2 1/2° camber which is what you need for most racing tires. Speaking of tires - I highly recommend Nitto NT01's for a beginner. The tires are not as grippy (100 tread wear) but if you spin they won't cord right away. I bought six last year and ran 6 double weekends with them along with a few test nights before I finally consumed two of them.

Balancing the corners of the car will go farther then most shock tweaks. Find someone with scales to work with and balance the car around her weight in the drivers seat. Generally around 60/40 front to rear weight balance if possible.

Buy a brake bias for the rear end. The rear end of the CRX is there to keep the gas tank off the ground. If you can't turn down the rear brake force the rear end will begin locking up on hard braking spots making the car edgy and difficult to control.

There is a lot of performance capability in the CRX. I am in my second season with mine and am still learning more and more about the car every weekend. I am confident I am not eclipsing the performance level of my car yet and am still leaving time out there. My first visit to Mid O last year I ran 1:54's on the club circuit. Made it down to 1:52's by the end of a double weekend. This past weekend I ran a few mid to low 1:49's and after watching some in car video I can see where I have some more.

NOTE: I am a second year newbie. I might (probably am) way wrong in some points. But this so far is what I have learned/done.