IT-level cars coming to a National near you? B Spec Race Cars

[Flyinglizard]

None of those cars are considered "B" cars.
The VW Polo is the best B car worldwide but we may never get it. It won the Chinese Touring car last year.

[Z3_GoCar]

None of those cars are considered "B" cars.
The VW Polo is the best B car worldwide but we may never get it. It won the Chinese Touring car last year.

????

I picked, the Honda Fit, Base Mini, Mazda 2, and Ford Fiesta, then Edmunds threw in the Cruse. So the base Mini is $2.5-3K more than the Fit or Fiesta. Hp/Torque wise the Mini and the Fiesta are a toss up.

As for the Polo:
http://www.edmunds.com/volkswagen/polo/2012/

[Greg Amy]

As for the Polo:

Sweet! I fell in love with the Polo when we visited Germany last year, and said I'd buy one if it ever came here (esp that 1.4L turbo one).

I've been half-looking at the "B Spec" market for a couple years; a Polo would get me off my butt to buy one...

[Andy Bettencourt]

So lets talk about these cars big-picture. They don't fit into SSC right now because they would be too slow. Those that don't want another class may have to suck it up if they like the concept because the only way these get off the ground is if there is a psudo-spec class for them.

Pick 6 of them, write the rules wo that they can cross over into ITB or ITC (however they fit) to make double-dipping attractive. They don't have to have EVERYTHING IT has, just don't allow something IT doesn't.

Maybe the target for this class could be ITB/ITC guys who want newer stuff and the close competitiveness of an almost-spec class. I could see it being successful, but not without giving them their own class.

[dickita15]

Except IT does not give them the National racing platform that the manufacturers probably want for them. SS does.

[Flyinglizard]

If SCCA just puts them in SSC and lets the current cars expire. That solves the class issues.
The only right way to keep them under spec is to do what the pros do. Roll them on a dyno at the track, seal the pieces and ECU. Have the owners sign a build sheet stating the actual prep level of the power train. If ever the car shows to be outside of the build sheet, eternal damnation.
Keeping these tall cars on low grip tires will reduce the need for monster springs. I doubt that any of these can run DOT zero without tipping over. (Only the Mini, whose chassis is clearly superior).
Coming up with a spec wheel rate for these cars is really easy. All are strut front. The required spring rate is just a few calculations.
If SCCA Pro had any nads they would spec them now and run them at some pro venues this year, adjusting the class as they go. Reward weight??
Alas , govern by commitee. erosion happens faster. IMHO,MM

[Andy Bettencourt]

If SCCA just puts them in SSC and lets the current cars expire. That solves the class issues.

And what the SCCA has never demonstrated in Club racing is the willingness to actually let something die.

Seal the motors, let Enterprises run it and watch it succeed. Otherwise it's just another flop.

[Andy Bettencourt]

Right, so you are going to have to create a class for them either way. It's either SSD or call it 'Spec B'. Keep it tight, not too many cars - maybe 6 different models. Spec classes are the most successful.

But if you keep the rules so that the cars can double dip in IT, you will have an advantage there.

[gran racing]

The key would be to make this truly a stock class. Realistically, how could what goes on in Showroom Stock be prevented? Getting engines sealed from the manufacturers is probably not going to happen. Is there another way to get the engines sealed?

What's involved in testing spring and shock rates? Is that something which is viable to be tested at the track?

[Knestis]

It can only be prevented by rules enforcement by someone with the time and stones to make it stick. But at the end of the day there is NOTHING to keep someone from spending all kinds of green even on little racing cars.

When we went to Monza in '87, we watched the Renault R5 GT Turbos run. There was a guy who had four of them painted up with identical numbers, loaded in the back of a transporter like cartridges in a magazine. One was wadded up in a fenced impound area, one was racing, and two were in reserve.

I'll believe that the Polo is here when I see one!

KK