2016 Nebraska

  Loaded up with all the crap I would need for 10 days away from home, I drove the STF car to Lincoln for the SCCA Pro Solo Finale and Solo Nationals.  New 225/45-15 Kumho tires were mounted and scrubbed in at a local autox the prior week.  Having to abort my last driving trip to Nationals in my 99 STR Miata due to a mechanical breakdown, I was a bit nervous about the long distance journey but good old Honda reliability motored me effortlessly to my destination.  Combined fuel mileage averaged about 32 mpg on the 3188 mile trip.

 A late-summer failure of the ABS module left me without anti-lock and I expected brake bias or other problems but to my surprise the brake feel and feedback was excellent; much easier to drive at the limit - no more ice mode or kickback.  I bought a replacement module and had time to replace it before Nationals but decided to let it be.  Once I do replace the module, I will disable the ABS for autox which is easy as disconnecting the harness or pulling the fuse.

Pro Solo Finale:  Nothing to see here; I drove fine and the courses were fast, flowing, and fun, but I finished fourth in class.  The RSX was working well but I never quite put together a perfect run or I coned away my fastest times.  All dry runs.  Finished second in the STF overall Pro Solo year-end points.

And as a reminder, here is the setup I used for both the Pro and Nationals.

Springs:  750F 1300R
Swaybar:  06/08
Tires: 225/45-15 Kumho V720, 32psiF, 36 psiR
Rake:  1/4" reverse

Solo Nationals:   I was pleasantly surprised to land in first place after day one on the East course, but second and third were right behind me on the same tenth.  The East course had elements that I was more familiar with and suited my car setup and driving style whereas the West course was sweeper intensive with two pinchy corner exits. I was more comfortable and confident on the East and it shows in my times.  The West drove faster than it walked and my car was working better than I imagined, but I was fourth fastest on day two for an overall third place finish.  All dry runs.

Below is the East video - other videos can be found on my YouTube page.




BTW, the car is still for sale.

Update June 2016

  No luck finding a buyer yet for the Acura so I have continued to autox it locally with a few minor setup changes.

Playing around with front springs I went up from 650 to 750.  I don't think the strut valving is happy and the ride is not pleasant on rough roads, but for a front heavy autox vehicle I think this is the right direction.

  Big handling improvements came when I lowered the rear of the car.  I am now at a reverse rake (again), or approximately 1/4" lower than the front when measured at the pinchweld.  All told, I came down 6 turns at the shock; one full turn lower than my previous low.

  I have been toying with ride height since late last year when the 1300 springs were originally installed.  At first the balance was good but with varying grip surfaces and multiple tire choices I kept upping the rear height little by little trying to get more oversteer.  Didn't work, so I researched my notes and dumped the rear back down and the car came alive again.

 Not really sure why the lower rear creates oversteer but there are several potential contributing factors including roll center and roll axis, bushing bind, dynamic bushing changes, RUCA interference, bumpstops, and alignment.  The static alignment actually leans toward understeer at the lowest height with more camber and slight toe in.  All the other factors may have an effect, good or bad, but ultimately we think that it is simply because there is less weigh jacking to the front wheels.  Tripod action was easily lifting the rear wheel 4 inches or more and now is reduced to almost nothing.

Next is to tweak the rear alignment and play with staggered tires.

Also - with help from a 4" grinder, I removed some material from the front brake calipers to eliminate any interference with the 15" Rotas.

As for the RUCA interference, we decided to leave it alone and see what happens.  They should self clearance on their own or I may just grind down the top edge of the jam nut or adjust the center link next time I have the rear apart.  Offset bushings can fix this too.

For Sale

Time to sell the RSX.

$6500

2002 Acura RSX Type-S
181114 miles
K20A2 engine with 6-Speed manual transmission
Desert Silver (beige) exterior color with tan leather interior.
Bilstein struts / ASN shocks / custom caster plates / Swift helpers
Hyperco & Eibach springs
Hotchkis rear swaybar / JBR mounts
SPC rear UCA
New front bushings/ball joints.  New motor mounts.
OBX 4-2-1 header, Ciro Design cat, Yonaka exhaust
Hondata Kpro V4 ECU
AEM V2 intake
Odyssey PC680 battery / Password JDM bracket
Momo Start seat / BuddyClub rails
Rota Slipstream 15x7.5

$6500