Auto crossing 94 ST So here is a video of my first autocross event with my pretty much stock 1994 celica ST. The only thing that I've done in terms of modifications are lowering springs and new struts, other than that it's bone stock-I had a great time, definitely a new hobby!

That's pretty sweet.

Do they let you learn the course at all before you auto cross?

Looks fun as hell!!

After I upgrade my brakes and install sway bars, I'm probably getting in on some Auto X action.

in my opinion keep your car stock hp wise. I went from being a 7a to having a 3s and i was actually slower with the 3s the first time out.

I loved having the 7a just being able to have it full throttle all the time.

stambo, you need coilovers and a good corner balancing, the handling of my car went to crap when I swapped, I'm now in the middle of getting all the tools / parts to corner balance my car.

I have access to a full proffesional setup ( rented ) but may need a few members to tag along to make it affordable.

coilovers have nothing to do with it really as far as what i'm talking about. Car handles great its the fact that its a night n day difference with power and takes a lot of getting used to when your actually auto crossing.

good vid!
seemed like a simple course till the later 3rd of it. i gasped when you where gunning for that set of cones haha. hope you had fun! I know I did my first time.

that looks awesomee haha I want to start getting into it once my car is all set and done for the time being!
I'm not sure if it's just me, but you seem a little tight on the steering wheel, try to loosen the grip up and flow through the corners!

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Yes they do, they let you walk the course to try and map out the route you'll take, however we were a little late and my first time learning was the parade lap lol!

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Yea it was a blast! I went with a friend of mine that has done a few of them so I caught on pretty quick, went with an instructor and he gave me some tips. Great day of fun I highly recomend this to anyone that has an urge to race

I'll definitely be doing this soon. Just need to find an event.

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May14 (Saturday) there will be one in St. Petersburg, I think with the same club as in the video. I'll be going to that one. If you want I can get you more info on it and maybe I won't be the only celica

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I agree with this... keep the car as stock as possible (power wise) while you spend as much time as possible upgrading the driver. Those 108 very tired ponies will force you to learn how to drive properly, i.e. taking the right lines, conserving speed in the turns, et all... Also your mistakes will be far less catastrophic and most errors in judgement should be recoverable.



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Cupl, I don't disagree with the benefits of coil overs for serious suspension tuning.... I would say solid (OEM or better) struts and a nice set of lowering springs is a great start for getting into Auto-X (or any other racing TBH). Further, tires and brakes seem to have the highest ROI, I'm not talking a "Big Brake Kit" or anything ridiculous like that.. GT Brakes, Stainless Lines, and a solid street pad (EBC Red?) should not be out of the range for the causal auto-x'er. Get yourself some OEM 15"Alloys, they fit perfectly, they are cheap, and the Falken Anzenis are only $110 or so a tire

I agree with both of you, my point was not to say that you need to buy coilovers in order to get into autocross, my celica handled perfect in stock form. what I'm saying is for us with swapped engines / trans, the weight of our cars has changed and since I have coilovers I would benefit from a corner balance, or anyone else with the similar mods as mine and with coilovers.

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+1.

Out of curiosity, (and not to poach this thread) how much more/less weight do you think you have up front with your engine/trans swap?

I did some quick math based on the weight I found floating around on internet for the engine / trans and compare them to stock engine/ trans, it came up to a diference of around 110 lbs which just added to the front is a significant increase.