What class to start with

I recently bought a 2003 bone stock civic si and I'd like to take it autocrossing next season. I've been looking at h stock and also one if the street tire classes. The main reason I would like to determine a class soon is because my rear tires are getting fairly low and I will need replacements. Plus I'd like to upgrade the wheels aswell, the stock wheels are fairly heavy and not much to look at. I've been going over the stock class rules and I'd also like to know if I could use the stock wheel size from the '04 Since it's 1" bigger and .5 wider or would I be called our on that even though they are identical cars save that and the lights?

Or do any of you know of any other classes where this car could be competitive one day after I gain some skill?

(going off my memory of SCCA soloII rules from a few years back... i've never been (not for lack of trying for a while) but hope to fix that this spring lol)

stock = stock size wheels with at most 1/4" offset change as I recall... doesn't mean you can't go with some alloys or something... there may be some loophole with updating/backdating the car to use the '04 civic wheels but honestly I don't know enough about the civic to say...

either way... unless you are running R rubbers you're not going to be "competitive" and if you where running R's you'd prob be slower then the same car running good summer tires driven by a good driver...

everything i've ever read says basically the same thing... make sure your car is in good condition and just go to have fun... you'll learn more with street tires... and you'll get better with time...

Go straight to MOD. Anything less stifles creativity. ;)

If you're just starting out and running in a Novice class, you definitely want to stay with ST tires (140 tw max) for a season or two. As long as you're within an inch or so of OE size, it's doubtful anyone will care what size wheels you're running. If you catch the bug after season or so (not everyone does with auto-x), then worry about mods and what class you really want to run in.

Start with low class, it'll make the biggest impression.

Ian F wrote: If you're just starting out and running in a Novice class, you definitely want to stay with ST tires (140 tw max) for a season or two. As long as you're within an inch or so of OE size, it's doubtful anyone will care what size wheels you're running. If you catch the bug after season or so (not everyone does with auto-x), then worry about mods and what class you really want to run in.

This. If you go to www.scca.com and check the Solo II rulebook for Stock class, it will tell you what's legal. Some of the rules are actually even understandable when you read them. But for a new guy, nobody's really going to care about a minor +1 change in wheel diameter. Just don't go wild in changing width or offset as that does make a big difference.

Stock class allows R-compound rubber, but I would stay away from that for a year or two. R-comps hide too many mistakes. Many regions have a "T" index for people running street tires in classes that allow R-comps, so your pax score (kind of like a golf handicap) is adjusted to account for the difference between street and race rubber. I suggest you go this route and get good street tires for the car. Then, if you still have the bug in a few years, you can get a dedicated set of stock-size wheels with R-comp tires and be fully legal.

Good luck, and remember it's all about fun first and competition second.

Cool, thanks! This is exactly the advice was looking for. Yea I have no intentions (or budget ) to make the jump to race rubber right out of the box. I've been reading over the stock ruleset a few times and this helps clear things up. I know this is probably a hugely asked and equally anoying question but does anyone have any sticky street tire recommendations for a 16x6.5" wheel on a 2700 lbs car? Or does anyone remember the issue of a good grm comparro?

I don't think there's any issues with running the stock 15's that the 7thgen came with and remaining in a stock class. They shouldn't be hard to find.

First season, don't change anything. Just have fun and see how you like it. If you have to get new tires for wear reasons, just get some nice summer tires (if you're not driving in < 35 degree temps) for now.

PaulY wrote: I know this is probably a hugely asked and equally anoying question but does anyone have any sticky street tire recommendations for a 16x6.5" wheel on a 2700 lbs car? Or does anyone remember the issue of a good grm comparro?

I'm sure what size the Civic uses, but I'm running 205/50-16 Dunlop Star Specs on 16x6.5" rims on one of our MINI's that I'll run in ST H-Stock once in awhile. If it understeers too much, it means I'm over-driving.

Dunlop Star Specs are one of the hot ticket street tires, they're not terribly expensive, and they seem to come in a good variety of sizes.