hfp suspension questions and tips please

[Slip_Angle]

My tire recommendation = Hankook Ventus EVO V12's

I came from Dunlop Z1's, which are a GREAT tire but the EVO is better for a daily driver -- offering great comfort/noise, wicked wet and dry grip and a low wear rate plus they are cheap.

[makavelibranded]

, but for a weekend/autox car I'd go with a slightly stiffer rear bar.

I disagree since I can throw my ep3 up on 3 wheels no problem when racing with the itr rear sway back on my old tein s tech, and stock shocks setup. You want to tune your spring rates, and sways according to your tires.

I also dont agree on all seasons unless your broke, high performance summer tires can last just as long, can out turn, brake or whatever in all weather conditions, which is much more safe so long as you choose the right tire. Ive driven in snow and ice, and have raced in the rain on my KDW 2's no problem.

[Slip_Angle]

^^ Agree.

Sway bars take away grip. I'd rather have an under-steering car with more grip than an over-steering car with less grip... The ITR bar is pretty ideal and a nice balance. Matches the HFP suspension very well.

[Blue03Si]

My tire recommendation = Hankook Ventus EVO V12's

I came from Dunlop Z1's, which are a GREAT tire but the EVO is better for a daily driver -- offering great comfort/noise, wicked wet and dry grip and a low wear rate plus they are cheap.

I just switched to these tires, running 225/45-17. I had my first auto-x in the wet with them on new years day and they really surprised me. I was posting better times than some of the awd guys. Great tire and I'm really looking forward to seeing how they handle in the dry.

[Slip_Angle]

I just switched to these tires, running 225/45-17. I had my first auto-x in the wet with them on new years day and they really surprised me. I was posting better times than some of the awd guys. Great tire and I'm really looking forward to seeing how they handle in the dry.

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...mparison_tests

[Zzyzx]

I just switched to these tires, running 225/45-17. I had my first auto-x in the wet with them on new years day and they really surprised me. I was posting better times than some of the awd guys. Great tire and I'm really looking forward to seeing how they handle in the dry.

The more you compete the more you'll realize that the largest variable to how fast a given car is will always be the driver. As an old racing hand once told me "It takes a lot of car to make up for bad driving". So be happy that you were faster then some of the AWD cars, but be happier to realize it was you the driver that was the winning piece rather then any particular part on the car.


If you were running an SCCA event, check the PAX results. that should give you a better idea of just how much better you drove vs the other cars. As the PAX, while not perfect, does give you a good look of driver skill minus the car.

[Blue03Si]

The more you compete the more you'll realize that the largest variable to how fast a given car is will always be the driver. As an old racing hand once told me "It takes a lot of car to make up for bad driving". So be happy that you were faster then some of the AWD cars, but be happier to realize it was you the driver that was the winning piece rather then any particular part on the car.


If you were running an SCCA event, check the PAX results. that should give you a better idea of just how much better you drove vs the other cars. As the PAX, while not perfect, does give you a good look of driver skill minus the car.

It was an event through another club, but they follow the SCCA format. My index was 12 out of 90 participants and my over all rank was 26 out of 90 on a very cold and wet course. Don't think i'll be that high in the index again, but I can only hope!

[makavelibranded]

If you were running an SCCA event, check the PAX results. that should give you a better idea of just how much better you drove vs the other cars. As the PAX, while not perfect, does give you a good look of driver skill minus the car.

can you please elaborate on what pax is? ive searched a few times and couldint find a thing on it

[Zzyzx]

It was an event through another club, but they follow the SCCA format. My index was 12 out of 90 participants and my over all rank was 26 out of 90 on a very cold and wet course. Don't think i'll be that high in the index again, but I can only hope!

You did well regardless. Rain is the great equalizer, as it punishes mistakes much more severly then dry weather.

the few times I got to compete in the wet were some of the most fun events. Its like trying to tap dance on ice.

[Slip_Angle]

can you please elaborate on what pax is? ive searched a few times and couldint find a thing on it

PAX is a handicapping system used to even out cars capability in autocross. So if you bring a ringer like an S2000 to autocross and your friend has a pinto, you still have just as much a chance to win.

http://www.tirerack.com/features/solo2/handbook.htm

PS. How did the EVO V12's do with respect to tire wear? Have you tried them in the dry? Any chunking?

[Zzyzx]

can you please elaborate on what pax is? ive searched a few times and couldint find a thing on it

PAX is a handycaping system designed to remove differences in classes so that you can directly compair drivers.
here's a link to the PAX indexes as they have changed over the years. http://www.autox4u.com/pax.htm

I'll quote them so I dont have to rewrite a discription...

Written By Tony "Mario" Crea
PAX could best be described as a relative index of performance in autocrossing, much the same way a handicap rating is given in the game of golf. PAX indexes are based on results from the SCCA National Championships (the best of the best) each September. How strongly a class performs compared to the thirty-something other classes represented helps determine PAX indexes the next year. The following is an example showing how PAX is used at events...
The class "A Modified" is the fastest class in autocrossing; it is expected that the cars in this class represent the pinnacle of autocross-specific race car design, engineering, and performance. The class rarely disappoints! Due to its unbelievable performance the PAX index for this class is 1.000 (no handicap is given). This means that if an A Mod car runs a time of 50 seconds, it will show up on the final results as 50 seconds.
Now let's compare this to a car in "C Street Prepared", which has a PAX index of .844. A car in CSP runs a time of 62 seconds on the same course as the A Mod car, yet its time will appear as 52.328 on the final standings. This was done by multiplying the raw time by the PAX index. As a result, the CSP car finishes only 2.328 seconds (not 12 seconds) behind the A Mod car. Yes, it still lost based on raw speed alone, but it allowed the driver in the CSP car to finish much higher overall. Thus, most regions base their overall driver championship on PAX performance whereas class championships are based on raw times.

[i_love_my_ep3!]

ok guy thanks for all the replies well this is my ideal set up in mind


hfp suspension
rear itr sway bar, i dont know what a good front sway bar
energy suspension master bushing kit
all new endlinks and tierods


dose having a specific tier size for the front and rear help preference

i really just want to improve my over all suspension i dont see the point of having a fast car the handles like shit

[i_love_my_ep3!]

any inputs or changes should i do to this set up to get the best bang for my buck come on guys

[makavelibranded]

As for the front sway its completely up to you and you can try it out to see if you like it but a smaller front sway i think will benefit you like from the 01-05 2-4 door civics. Its just what I think everyone will setup there car differently, drive differently and whatnot. Id say take the front off completely but I have the spring rates to compensate for it.

On mine ive had it oversteer without it up front so dont get all crazy with it just in case, your not going to notice a difference in handling performance untill you push your car. Most car manufactures will turn there cars for understeer keep that in mind aswell.

[makavelibranded]

PAX is a handicapping system used to even out cars capability in autocross. So if you bring a ringer like an S2000 to autocross and your friend has a pinto, you still have just as much a chance to win.

http://www.tirerack.com/features/solo2/handbook.htm

[QUOTE=Zzyzx;833420]PAX is a handycaping system designed to remove differences in classes so that you can directly compair drivers.
here's a link to the PAX indexes as they have changed over the years. QUOTE]

thank you both for this