2013 Car Classes

[DanDarcy]

Pete ; My car is in T70, Mick said his car is in T70. I don't know what mods his car has, only he knows. If we are both in T70 , I don't see how he is in a faster class.

[Mick]

My car came in at 83.4 points (iirc) with V710s, which is how I've been running it for the past 5-6 years. If I switch to RA-1s it drops to 80.4. I was toying with the idea of detuning it to get under 80 points and run in T70 on the cheaper tire.

[eastcoastbumps]

Dan, I misread what you wrote earlier. I thought you were in T60 on R6's, as you ran last year. How many points do you have on R6's?

My car comes in at 80.4 points with NT-01's. I'd love to be able to drop down into T70 and run on the cheap with NT/RA-1's. Who else is running in T70?

Mick runs V710s and set most of his fast laps on them. V710s put him square into T80.

[Chrispy]

Let me see if I can ask this correctly and not piss anyone off.... If I modify our cars to fit the current rules for 2013 and we are then precived to be too fast does that mean we will be reclassified for 2014??? Even if cars meet the points totals of T90... with our tires and expected mods...... what do I do then take stuff off... cause I dont want to show up with cars that don't meet or are damn near the limit of the rules for the class????
Hell we bought these cars to run in COM under the SSU rules now I am getting the feeling that we are going to be shooting at a moving target.
Bob Cairns

Bob a vehicle wont be reclassified because it is fast and well driven, however it is possible that at the end of the season when the rule changes are submitted to the board that someone will submit a rule change that changes the number of points for a given modification. There was a lot of deliberation by the board over how many points for each modification and not everyone was always in agreement, however I think everyone was fairly satisfied in the end. I think the board will need to seriously consider the ramifications of increasing point values for certain items, it's not the end-of-the-world but it has the potential to affect a lot of competitors. Reducing point value for certain items is less of an issue.

[paultg]

Chris, will you also be able to present a rule change to modify the "Showroom Assessment" for a particular vehicle?

[blindsidefive0]

Chris, will you also be able to present a rule change to modify the "Showroom Assessment" for a particular vehicle?

Paul, good question...2 parts to the answer, and then some commentary below...

1) If something is "incorrect" with the base car listing weight or power, that can always be updated, and I would fully expect that Tom & our scrutineer friends would allow for a correction in real time.

2) Besides power/weight, the other piece of car classification is the Performance Assessment. I would fully expect there to be proposals to tweak these every year. Of course each would need to be voted on individually by the BOD during the rule change period.

Let's use Dan D'Arcy as an example. When putting together the car list, the original listed base weight for his Lotus was something like 1984lb. After checking other sources after being prompted by Dan to check it out, we corrected it to be 2006. If this were to happen during the year, if Dan could produce data showing that the base weight listing was wrong, I would think we can update that immediately.

Separately, Dan has outlined why he feels the Lotus performance assessment is too high at 8.3 points. This was derived from CASC's system to remove subjectivity by the authors, but it is not perfect. Dan has cited auto magazine comparison tests involving the Lotus and similarly classed cars to show that the 8.3 points is too heavy, in his opinion. At the end of the season I would expect Dan to submit a suggestion to lower the assessment on the lotus from 8.3 points to...whatever he sees fit. He would present his rationale, and the BOD will vote... If he suggests going from 8.3 to 0 points, it will probably get 0 votes. However, I think something around 6 or 7 points would be reasonable - this may allow Dan to run down a class or run a more competitive tire/add go-fast parts, giving him a slightly better edge in his class.

Conversely, if Bob Cairns (or Laura!) kills it again like he did this year and handily takes down T90, no one is going to automatically bump up his car from 92 base points (10 point performance assessment). If a sore loser tries to re-class the c5z, they will need to make a case to the BOD for the bump, likely having to justify their proposed performance assessment against similarly classed cars like 911's and Audi R10's. However, if a proposal to change the c5z does pass, for example re-classing it as 95 points instead of 92, this may bump some folks into another class. It does not mean, necessarily, that they will need to spend more money to stay in their class, but instead may need to run a lesser tire, put the back seat back in, or swap back some stock parts.

[blindsidefive0]

...and as for the OP, I will be running in T60 this year. I can say this now that I have a car with a working motor (I cannot thank Pete & Paddy enough for this)...and 2 junked cores.

Conservative estimate
62.5 base for 1997 M3
-3 for weight
-2 for tire width
+8+1 for BFG R1-S/Hoosier Wet
+1 for single adjustable shocks
+1 for camber adjustment (swapped factory strut hats)
+1 for poly RTABs

I may end up running BFG R1 instead of R1-S and/or Continental Wets to save a point. I might be able to make -4 on weight. If that's the case, I can steal the convertible x-brace from my dad's car.

"Ideal" setup would be squeak out 3 more points to run AST single adjustable coilovers by getting to -4 on weight and running R1s, then get real camber adjustment plates...MAYBE -5 on weight (I'm only 150-155lb, so possibly run the spare tire and over 1/2 tank of gas) and get some sway bars.

[savage217]

As of now I am maxed out in t80 on street tires. Who else is running t80?

[dradernh]

"Ideal" setup would be...MAYBE -5 on weight (I'm only 150-155lb, so possibly run the spare tire and over 1/2 tank of gas)

A lead-filled rear subframe would add 50# - might be an option, although it looks like it would cost you a point & put the weight further back than would eight gallons of fuel.

[Dtangard]

Are there any more competitors in T50 besides Troy, Dave, and I?

[jeffw]

I should be in T50

[Dtangard]

I should be in T50

Awesome. Hopefully we get a few more.

[wizzman]

Tom Cannon should be in T50.

[dtlemoine]

Are there any more competitors in T50 besides Troy, Dave, and I?

I'm currently deciding between T50 and T60. Will be either a near-stock E36 M3 on street tires, or something comparable to Nick F.'s setup.

[Dtangard]

Are there any more competitors in T50 besides Troy, Dave, and I?

I'm currently deciding between T50 and T60. Will be either a near-stock E36 M3 on street tires, or something comparable to Nick F.'s setup.

A non-miata ! I hope you choose T50. The more the merrier.