[Wichita-SCCA] Street Prepared on the street

[James Harrison]

Brain wrote; "I honestly think it's time for the SP classes to go away."
If that happens I'll have a Corvette to sell cheap. Or I could go to SM put 
in a $15,000 motor and a big wing.
Jim


>From: "Brian Meyer" <brian at fiberdynamics.net>
>Reply-To: "Wichita Region SCCA." <wichita-scca at wichitascca.org>
>To: "Wichita Region SCCA." <wichita-scca at wichitascca.org>
>Subject: Re: [Wichita-SCCA] Street Prepared on the street
>Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2006 08:27:52 -0600
>
>As a long-time CSP competitor I feel compelled to comment.  I drove my
>black CSP CRX on the street for about six years until I wrecked it.  It
>could easily hold 4 of the munchkin sized Hoosiers and all the gear
>required to survive an autox or even a 2-day event, and a passenger too.
>While it was a street car it had a nice stereo (removable sub box and
>amp) and air conditioning.  At the same time I was about 400 lbs heavier
>than the CRX I have now, and typically much slower than the rest of the
>class.  Still had fun but knew that if I wanted to be competitive I'd
>have to loose that weight.
>
>Now the CRX (different chassis) weighs about 1800 lbs and at least the
>car is competitive (took 3rd this year with Ron Williams driving it) but
>it's not a street car anymore.  Why?  Well, it does have lights and
>mirrors and wipers and such, but the problem is it's got expensive
>shocks on it that I'd rather not subject to things like railroad tracks
>and potholes.  Second, I sold my street wheels with the rest of my
>previous CRX so I don't have any durable wheels and streetable tires to
>run it on.  Sorry, I'm not willing to subject my race wheels to the
>potholes and tracks either.  Third, the HF chassis has no front or rear
>bumper to speak of.  The metal behind the fascia is only there to
>support the plastic and there is no steel "bumper" bar there at all.
>Good for saving weight, not so good at stopping anything on it's way to
>damaging very expensive engine parts.  I suppose that's not really much
>of a risk since the car is so low the bumper will go under anything that
>it runs into, but I don't know HOW Honda managed to get that one by the
>feds (they "fixed" it in '90-'91).
>
>I agree that the SP class has developed into something way beyond what
>the original rules makers had intended.  The update-backdate rule was
>introduced as a cost-savings idea to allow bolt-on changes between
>various models of the same car so you could enjoy performance
>improvements without having to get the most expensive model.  This was
>back before there was much of an aftermarket for sports cars so usually
>the only place to get that bigger swaybar or fuel injection system was
>from the "sport" model of the car.  I'm sure they didn't intend for us
>to have to build Frankenstein cars in order to maximize weight savings
>and torque advantages.
>
>Now days we have SP cars that take years to develop (I've got 10 years
>in mine so far), have huge rear spoilers that would embarrass a NASCAR,
>and have been updated/backdated so much you'd have to buy 2-3 cars to
>duplicate one.  I'd say they are more like Prepared cars than Street
>cars.
>
>I honestly think it's time for the SP classes to go away.  I didn't like
>it when the ST classes were introduced because I thought we already had
>too many classes.  I still think we have way too many classes, but the
>ST classes and the SM classes have a better progression from stock to
>Prepared than the SP class does.  It's just really hard to figure out a
>sunset plan for SP.  The STS and STS2 classes have been a success, just
>look at the incredible numbers at the big events.  It's great that you
>can buy one relatively cheap car, modify it with off-the-shelf
>aftermarket parts and be nationally competitive and have a fun street
>car at the same time.  However, look at how much faster the SP classes
>are.  I will admit that I am addicted to the grip level of the DOT-R
>tires and wouldn't go back to ST tires or an open diff no matter what,
>so it looks like the only way for me to go would be Prepared or Street
>Mod2 (or a different car).
>
>-Brian Meyer
>CSP since '96
>
>
>Greg Laws wrote:
> > Hi all,
> > On Friday and now again today and maybe tomorrow I've been driving the
>
> > Phrog to work. This because my daughter's car suffered broken fingers
> > in its clutch pressure plate and so she took my van to drive. This
> > left me with no other means of transportation except the Phrog until I
>
> > manage to get the clutch changed in her car because Carolyn takes the
> > family Vibe to her work.
> > It has been a jarring experience -- stiff springs and shocks make a
> > lumber wagon's ride seem soft & comfy while the toe-out makes the car
> > follow every crack & seam. Hoosiers last used in 2005 don't do much to
>
> > help either. Then there are the puzzled looks from the public when
> > they see a strange little car dressed up like a real race car with
> > decals and numbers. The car is street legal, licensed, and insured but
>
> > I gotta say that "Street Prepared" is not the same as "Street
> > Comfortable"!
> > Enjoy,
> > Greg Laws
> > ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> > --
>
>
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