Hi,

i'd like to welcome myself to the forum.

I'm probably gonna start running my 95 Civic in HS pretty soon and was wondering what you guys recommend for improving handling and acceleration while still staying in the HS class. I've talked to a few people who know cars but don't autocross and they say to go with strut bars and stiffer shocks, maybe lower the ride height. I guess that will be ok for handling, but what about acceleration? What engine mods are available? I'm not familiar with Hondas on a performance level, so please forgive me.

Any help would be appreciated

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jimbalaya &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hi,

i'd like to welcome myself to the forum.
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welcome! now down to business....

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jimbalaya &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'm probably gonna start running my 95 Civic in HS pretty soon and was wondering what you guys recommend for improving handling and acceleration while still staying in the HS class.
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in a nutshell, in the stock class you can only do minimal mods such as cat back exhaust, aftermarket shocks, R compunds on stock sized wheels, air filter, plugs, wires, and front swaybar.
if you have never autocrossed before, short of upping tire pressure, leave the car alone till your skillset improves, then modify accordingly (i suggest staying in the stock class as long as possible). the upper classes will start to get uber expensive, so my next project will be a stock class car (although most likely SS ) good luck.

 

I would suggest the first purchase from your $3,000 be a rule book. Then check the forum FAQ and let the search be your guide.

 

Driving school.
#1 way to make your car faster, and the way that makes the biggest difference in your times.

 

Here are some places to start. Your best way to improve is, as stated above, to improve yourself as a driver. The evolution autocross school is the best thing going right now. The link is below.

Once you do that, you can start with the car. I attached an article from Grassroots Motorsports Mag about preparing a stock class car. This article kind of assumes you already have R compund tires which are the biggest improvement you can make to a car.

http://www.autocross.com/evolution/
http://www.grmotorsports.com/stock%20tips.html

 

I saw an article a while back where a guy asked this question, and the magazine cut his car down to a motor and a seat to reduce weight. Dropped his 1.4 mile times by 2 whole seconds!!! You could try that.

Seriously, go to school, replace the wear items on your car with new if you just gotta spend the cash, and have fun with it.

 

What everybody else said (rulebook, novice day/school, seat-time).

In addition:
1. A good set of summer tires (Azenis) on stock wheels. Not the fastest option in stock class, but you can drive them to/from events and not worry about a 2nd set of wheels.

2. A good tune-up. Plugs, wires, filters, fluids, check ball joints, cv joints, tie rods.

3. Brake job. Flush fluid and replace with ATE SuperBlue or similar. Good street brake pads (do a search in this forum for suggestions).

Stock class doesn't allow you much beyond shocks, catback, and tires (on stock size wheels).

 

thanks to all for the replies. I've run about 10 events so far, but in a different car w/ rear wheel drive. I'm familiar with SCCA rules, but was interested in what civic drivers actually have found to work. Got some good answers on this thread.

Off to research some vendors to buy mods from now...

 

Check out the Evolution schools. I've done Phase 1 a couple times and Phase 2. Personal instruction and about 5-8 autocross' worth of runs (seat time is key!).

http://autocross.com/evolution/

 

I actually signed up for this a few months back. They are coming to va beach on the 27th and 28th this month.

-jim