Ok rookie AutoX questions...

wildbilly32

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History: 2019 CTR stock except Falken FK510 with 35 sidewall installed after first AutoX last month. The previous Conti all seasons sucked at AutoX! This is NOT SCCA, but a local British car club that does AutoX once per month in a high school parking lot. There are no classes just run what you brung. No awards just a group of mostly "mature" drivers like me with their tiny British cars who get together, create a course and enjoy driving. However they let anybody run if you join their club and your engine is under 3 liters. So cars are from Bug eye Sprites(one is supercharged), MG Midgets, Miatas, Winfield, MGBs, MR2, WRX STI and my lonely CTR. Some cars are modified and running competition tires.

I plan to keep my car as is with the 20" OEM wheels plus no other modifications. I ran some respectable times yesterday as the course as more open and fast with less super tight corners which kills a turbo four door car and I was more comfortable with the deal. The course are not as big/open as the SCCA courses I've been out to observe(I live in Lincoln, NE).

Last car I raced was 360 Sprint Cars on dirt ovals in the late 80's early 90's.

My questions are:
#1: I ran in Sport mode with the "VSA two second button push" off. Is this a good plan?
#2: Based on advice from tech dude last month I put 40psi in the front tires. Is this reasonable or stupid?
#3: Do guys do left foot braking into tight corners to keep the right foot busy with the throttle?
#4: Any other suggestions? Remember I prefer to keep car as is.

Or should I just go out, drive it some more, learn and have fun. I realize the car is much more capable than what I have asked of it so far. I also realize my running up front days have passed me by, but I would just like to run respectable laps.
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JO3L

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Just put those tires on my stock Si wheels for daily use and the occasional canyon run. If you want to be more competitive you will want to switch over to the Falken RT660 or whatever other hot 200 treadwear tire flavor you like.

Search the forums or YouTube for 10th Gen Civic “pedal dance”. This will fully disable VSA. Pressing the button only makes it slightly less intrusive.

40 psi is crazy high in my opinion but you will also find some people on here saying it is necessary to prevent tire rollover. I try going out around 30 psi cold and aim for around 35psi hot but again every tire is different and I’m still learning these FK510.

Left foot braking is an extremely useful skill in helping with weight transfer. If you can practice it and effectively put it to use in competition I say go for it.

Otherwise just drive the car and get more comfortable with it. The Type R is an amazing machine straight from Honda. It can be improved to be even better when you are ready for it. The last thing to keep an eye on is the cooling system. These cars really overheat and go into limp mode after only a few laps.
 

jrow3

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I wouldn't bother doing the whole peddle dance thing. With the CTR put it in R mode, and then hold the VSA button for 10 seconds. That turns off every nanny except for the "agile handling assist" which adds rear brake to help the car turn. That's usually the best setting unless your in the top 1% of aliens who can actually feel that messing with you and you want to go back to the peddle dance (both our top drivers here in CA don't bother with the peddle dance since you lose the R suspension stiffness, and the AHA isn't that bad, but ymmv).

40 PSI seems CRAZY high. I would echo Jo3l and say start closer to the low 30's.

That's totally up to your driving style. I don't, but am also used to driving turbo cars and getting on the gas way early to get the turbo spooled up. Really just comes down to how you like to drive.

The "competitive setup" for SCCA Stock class you're missing is wheels, swaybar, camber adjustment. You're really not missing anything major if you're already doing the tires. I wouldn't worry about any other car setup issues, the car is really well setup from the factory, and you should have a blast!
 

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Just an extra note - I'm not familiar with the FK510 specifically, but looks like they're not really a high performance tire, at least not compared to what most of us in this section of the forum are used to. 40psi may be necessary depending on the sidewall construction, plus the surface you run on and driving style.

Us AX people are pretty used to stiff sidewall tires and the lower pressures they can support. 40psi - or even more - isn't out of the realm of possibility on a tire like that.
 

AlphaDigital

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I echo the sentiments above that putting it in R mode is all you really need with the VSA fully off.

If your sidewalls are softer you might need 40psi. Bring some chalk with you and mark the sidewalls on your tires and see where you might be able to add or subtract pressure.
 


jrow3

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For tire pressure you can use this site to calculate what the change from the OEM tire/pressure is to what your new tire pressure should be (I'm seeing 30 psi). From there I would probably add 3-5 PSI for autocross (when cold) which by my estimates puts you in the 33-35 range, but plug in the actual number and see.

https://tiresize.com/pressure-calculator/
Honda Civic 10th gen Ok rookie AutoX questions... 1627408829360
 
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wildbilly32

wildbilly32

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Thanks I'll try your suggestions.
I wouldn't bother doing the whole peddle dance thing. With the CTR put it in R mode, and then hold the VSA button for 10 seconds.

40 PSI seems CRAZY high. I would echo Jo3l and say start closer to the low 30's.

That's totally up to your driving style. I don't, but am also used to driving turbo cars and getting on the gas way early to get the turbo spooled up. Really just comes down to how you like to drive.

The "competitive setup" for SCCA Stock class you're missing is wheels, swaybar, camber adjustment. You're really not missing anything major if you're already doing the tires. I wouldn't worry about any other car setup issues, the car is really well setup from the factory, and you should have a blast!
I have scanned through the entire SCCA thread so I get where you guys are coming from. All I know about the Falkens is they are stickier than the previous all seasons(Duh!). That and the tire installer said he had to work on getting the tires to seat as the sidewalls were stiffer than normal. After running four laps there wasn't any visible wear to the sides of the shoulders and one of the experienced dudes drove by and said your tires are looking good and not rolling over. So I plan to go down in pressure next month. Thanks for your thoughts and info.
Just an extra note - I'm not familiar with the FK510 specifically, but looks like they're not really a high performance tire, at least not compared to what most of us in this section of the forum are used to. 40psi may be necessary depending on the sidewall construction, plus the surface you run on and driving style.

Us AX people are pretty used to stiff sidewall tires and the lower pressures they can support. 40psi - or even more - isn't out of the realm of possibility on a tire like that.
Got it. I tried the Sport and 2 second VSA button based on what I read in one part of the SCCA thread. I'll do the R+ and 10 second VSA next month.
Thanks
I echo the sentiments above that putting it in R mode is all you really need with the VSA fully off.

If your sidewalls are softer you might need 40psi. Bring some chalk with you and mark the sidewalls on your tires and see where you might be able to add or subtract pressure.
Awesome! Appreciate the link. I'll definitely check that out. Thanks!
For tire pressure you can use this site to calculate what the change from the OEM tire/pressure is to what your new tire pressure should be (I'm seeing 30 psi). From there I would probably add 3-5 PSI for autocross (when cold) which by my estimates puts you in the 33-35 range, but plug in the actual number and see.

https://tiresize.com/pressure-calculator/
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Methane Herder

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If you want a Falken daily driver SUMMER tire for AutoX,
AZENIS RT615K+
Honda Civic 10th gen Ok rookie AutoX questions... 1634347035577

The RT 660 would be better for AutoX but maybe not as a daily driven summer tire.
None of the tires are acceptable for winter use.

MH
 

Methane Herder

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I'm currently using Toyo R1R's because I got a deal on them. I would go to the 615K+ in heart beat if I could not get the same deal for new R1R's.
The Falken 615k+ are a bit better on the highway in the rain. The R1Rs are better on a wet AutoX course.

MH
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