Quote Originally Posted by JS154 View Post
...is there anything stopping someone from dropping a 3.2L S54 into an E36 M3 right now, overboring and bumping compression 0.5?
Yes, the class does not currently allow 3.2L engines, except as per that table. And, as per the opening philosophy, you cannot take an engine from that table and install it into any other chassis.

However, the class displacement limit will be bumped to 3.2 in 2012 (assuming BoD approval, which I wholly expect) so it will be legal for next year. And if someone does it, jesu kristy I'd love to watch that!

Nothing stopping anyone from putting a built S50 (3.0L USDM engine) into an E30 bmw and going nutzo with cams and upping compression and such...that will be 290 at the wheels easy in that case.
Correct. See above "jesu kristy".

If this isn't class creeep I don't know what is.
It isn't creep. It's the exact philosophy and intent of the class, the kind of thinking and engineering we're encouraging for STU.

This is STU. See post above.

...it would be wise then to also do something along the lines like make STL a National class...
Ah, a man with own heart. Help promote it, send emails to your reps, encourage people to double-dip in STL to get its numbers up.

... and bump the displacment limit to under 2500cc...
Nope, sorry. STL was created for two basic purposes: one, because there was no way to get sub-2L car light enough to make them competitive in STU; and two, to have a lesser prep version a la the current World Challenge Touring.

If it's your contention that 2L-2.5L cars are in the same boat as STL, where they can't get light enough or be allowed enough mods to compete with 3.2L full-tilt-boogie cars, then that's another matter entirely. The resolution for that may be another class, though given STL's difficulties with getting National status I'd not hold out hope for that. But if you can demonstrate that a full-tilt-boogie (ftB) 2.5L car cannot EVER put out as much power-per-cc as a ftB 3.2L car, no matter how much money is tossed at it, then you'd have a leg to stand on. But I've not seen anyone try, so it's hard to gage.

Or perhaps just leave the class alone for a little while.
That's where we are now. We spent a lot of time on the class this year trying to figure in how we were going to merge in WC cars, and how to handle forced induction, and to get a general philosophy hashed out and published so that we have a strong foundation for going forward. I'd like to think we're there (if you think differently, speak up; we're listening). There are NO (none, zip, zero, nada) major changes in the works for STx, the only thing we expect to see going forward are classification and allowance requests.

Increasing the class displacement limit to 3.2L is solving what problem that presently exists?
To discontinue the consistent requests for 3.2L cars as specific allowances, cars that we think fit within the performance goals of the class. The S54 fits within that expectation and is weighted at the same 1.1#/cc as all the other cars.

Quote Originally Posted by JS154 View Post
SpecE36 (BMW CR)...a field filler for STU
I concur. Do not read in those allowances as expectations of competitiveness. They are, for the most part, responses to specific requests for inclusion. "Sure, come play in the pool, but don't expect to win." Same goes for IT cars, Spec Miatas, TDI Cup cars, etc.

GA