Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Autocross and Open Track Beginner Racer Wanting Tips

Hey guys,
I just bought my car with the idea that I wanted to race SCCA and I wanted to know if you had some advice for me as to driving schools, or mods about the cars, mine is 98 SVT. Thank you.
_evan

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I am also very serious about wanting to start racing and have been researching various things. If I read correctly, joining the SCCA is very hard. I'm not sure if it's SCCA or NASA, but for one of them you need to take two driver schools. I know that if you go to Bob Bondurant racing school for three days ($2400), they can test you for your SCCA liscence on the third day. Bob bondurant will also allow you to bring your own car, which is what I liked. NASA also has this other program called speedfreaks, in which you don't have to go to racing school or take a special liscence test. This is through NASA. I e-mailed them a couple of days ago with specific questions, but they have not responded yet. They also have cheap driving schools ($300).

I hope you have a ford extened warrany, as your car will probably break down if you use it on the track a lot. I only have an allstate warranty, and have a feeling that they are going to screw me. Hopefull David Z will respond to this as it appears that he knows a good amount about autocrossing. Check out his website, some good pics and sounds.

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-98 Silver Contour SVT
-Grizzly Clutch + Motor Mounts
-Sony MD deck
-Earthquake EQ
-2 sets of component speakers
-2 10' mtx woofers
-3 Amps
-P.A. system with animal noises!
-J_graham@pacbell.net

evan - To get a regional SCCA licence you'll have to take a racing course at an accredited race school (I would say bondurant cause they give SVT owners a good discount, 20% I think)

If you plan on attending regional events to practice, you wont be needing a licence, but you'll probably have to pay like $5 more to enter the event. Check out www.scca.org for details

If you want to hit the track in a road racing style, then you might want to take a peek at opentrack events in your area
www.open-track.com and www.speedtrialusa.com (sorry I only know CA tracks)

Its good to have an extended warrenty if you plan on trying a stock class, as you're probably aware, most mods will void it.

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David Zambrano
svt_mondeo at yahoo dot com
Silver E1 #4808 w/heavy dose of vitamin HP
http://4.41.5.82 - my public webserver
http://daplace.spedia.net

I talked to Bob Bondurant school and they basically told me that if you want the discount you have to have bought the car brand new no more that a year ago. If my math is correct that means that like me, you cannot get the discount. Some bullsh*t like that.

Just learning how to post pics: that's me in the middle, and the girl is my mistress (I wish).
[img]http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1494948&a=11275425&p=39559827&Sequence=0&res=high[/img]


Of course it's fake, but it only took me forty minutes, so piss off!

To set the record straight. There are two basic types of racing events that you might be interested in. The first, and easiest to get into, is autocross (SCCA SoloII). Autocross puts one car on a course setup with cones in a parking lot or other large paved area. Basically, any safe car can compete. The SCCA and NASA both sanction autocross events, as well as many other smaller clubs. Mostly, the only pre-requisite is a state drivers license.

The next type is wheel-to-wheel (WTW) road racing. If this is what you're looking to get into, there are hurdles but they're not that bad. The SCCA and NASA both have similar programs. I'm more familiar with SCCA so that's what I'll discuss. The SCCA requires you to complete two accredited driver's schools before you recieve your regional license. Bondurant is on the elite end of the scale and very pricey. The other end are regional schools that basically turn you loose on the track, and if you don't wad the car all day, you pass. These schools can be as cheap as $150. The difference is that the super schools (Bondurant, Daly, Panoz, etc.) give great, detailed instruction and you pay for it.

Speedfreaks, is an SCCA program for younger members (16-25 I think). It allows lower membership rates but will NOT allow you to WTW race without a license.

At any rate, if you're going to WTW race you will need a well prepped car with a six point cage, racing harness, and other safety equipment. Plan on spending a few thousand dollars for a very bare-bones effort and making you car very uncomfortable as daily commuter in the process.

There are on-track events that allow you to take basically stock cars on to road circuits and run solo (SCCA SoloI). The speeds are greater than autocross but it's still not WTW. These events can range from a few hundred dollars to $1000 or more.

Autocross is easy to get started in, very inexpensive to participate in (though you can still spend as much as you want), and should be the starting point to decide if you want to pursue racing a bit further. WTW is VERY expensive, and requires a huge commitment of time and resources.

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Chris
2000 SVT

thanks for all the responses...i think that i will stick to scca solo II becasue i am merely 17 and barely can support my great habit of just owning my 98 svt. This way i don't have to o through all that licensing and stuff... What mods do you think i should start with on the tour?
thanks
_evan

Get yourself a set of R compound tires, stick the battery in the trunk and get yourself a good tire pressure guage.

If you have the cash you could allways get a set of struts and springs, that would rid your car of nasty bodyroll. But if your in it for fun (like me), you could forget about the classes and run time only...

None to start with. Just go out and run and have fun. After you get a feel for your car, your competition and how much you want to spend you can add a few bits here and there.

Chris

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Chris
2000 SVT

For SCCA Solo2 racing I would agree that you should not worry about trying to do too much too soon in the way of modifications to your car. I've raced for about 7 years in Solo2 in a '90 VW Jetta GL and the last 3 years with a '95 Contour SE. I've done a lot of research and have gotten a lot of track time. The most important thing is just to start racing and get as much experience as possible. That will make you faster than any performance mod that you can put on your car. Well except maybe tires. A good set of performance rubber is the best thing you can do for your car. Some SCCA regions like Detriot have both street tire(ST) and race tire classes. If your racing in a region that has an ST class I would recomend racing in that class with your stock tires befor spending the money on expensive performance tires or on realy expensive DOT race tires. It normally takes a little time befor people start to get fast and real competative and you'll probably burn and scrub off a lot of tire rubber getting there. But that's half of the fun. The next best mod to do would be brakes. Next I would suggest a good set of shocks to handle the extreme weight transfer that occures. You can go with a stiffer front shock valving up front but for the rear I would suggest a stiffer compression stroke and a softer rebound stroke on the shocks. This valving in the rear helps keep the rear from squating and transfering to much weight away from the front tires under acceleration which is were you need the weight for traction and grip coming out of the corners. Keep in mind that some mods will put you into a more competative class but the one that I've listed will keep your car in a stock class. You can also use a K&N air filter and any cat.-back exhaust that meets noise ordinances in a stock class. Just have fun with it!