Classificaiton Questions from a TT Newb (TTB)

[Mike 40]

So, it looks like I'm going to be starting time trials in the North East region this season and I have a few questions about TT classing. I Drive a 2013 EVO X GSR with the factory Aero option. Other than some safety equipment, the car is virtually stock. Ideally, I would stay in TTB (the car's base class) so I wouldn't have to spend a lot of money modifying the car any further. I'm at 19 or 20 points as the car stands now, so i'm really right on the edge of being classed up. The following are my mod points:

 

A. Tires:

-8 I’m planning on running Direzza ZII Star Spec or Yokohama AD08R tires. I only see the ZI Star specs and the AD08 tires listed. Are the ZII’s and AD08R tires the same point value (+2)?

-10 I’m planning on running size 245 tires. Since the base tire size for TTB is 265, that's a 20mm difference (-4)

B. Weight reduction:

- Is the minimum competition weight the weight of the car + driver - fuel burned during your run? I'm at 3560 with me and a full tank. at most I burn 6 gallons. at 6.3 lbs/gal that makes me 3522 Base class weight is 3500 (+0)

C. Engine:

-23 I do have a cat-back exhaust (Extreme Turbo Systems V2 http://www.extremeturbosystems.com/ETS-Mitsubishi-Evo-X-and-Evolution-X-V2-Exhaust-System.html). Does this count as points 1 or 3 points?

D. Drivetrain:

- None

E. Suspension:

-5 Swift Spec R springs (+2)

F. Brakes/Chassis:

- None

G. Aerodynamics:

-1 My car did come with the factory aero package option (not included on the base GSR). So if I’m understanding this correctly, that means the front air dam (+3), side skirts (+2) and added “lip” on rear wing (+4) would be points. Is this correct? I’m not sure any of this aero is functional. If so, I would remove the side skirts and rear wing “lip” but retain the front air dam. Could I extend the front air dam (in the vertical direction only) about 0.5” without additional points?

H. Roll Cages:

-2 I do have a bolt-in roll bar. It’s the 311RS roll bar (http://311rs.myshopify.com/collections/evo-x-parts-1/products/fall-line-for-311rs-roll-bar). I’m not sure if this would be assessed as any points. It does bolt into the frame on both sides of the cabin.

 

Also, if I were to get a COBB access port and have a pro-tune done, would this amount to any points? It seems like ECU tuning is a free mod (I'm assuming this is part of the basis for the 5 points for FI cars) unless you go with a non OEM/BTM ECU.

 

Sorry for the really long post, I just have a lot of questions and am very excited to finally be starting time trials.

 

Thanks in advance!!

 

Mike

[Mike 40]

I guess my previous post was a little intimidating. To simplify things a bit, my main questions are:

 

- Are the Direzza ZII Star Spec and Yokohama AD08R tires a +2 tire

- How many points do I take for my catback exhaust?

- Do I take points for tuning my stock ECU?

 

Thanks,

 

Mike

[Arca_ex]

For the tires you have to email Greg since they look like they are not listed in the examples list. Every tire has to be evaluated by Greg before putting it into a certain category because treadwear is not a very good indicator of performance nowadays.

 

Weight is the weight of the car as it sits on track. So including driver, fuel, safety gear, etc.

 

Your catback is +3. The option for +1 is if you kept all stock piping and just cut out the muffler to replace with an aftermarket muffler only.

 

You're right about the aerodynamics. For extension just read the rules on front air dam carefully and it should be obvious what can be done there.

 

That roll bar is 0 points. Good to go.

 

Flashing the stock ECU is 0 points.

 

 

Also remember this is just my take on things, the person you want to confirm with is your regional time trials director when turning in your classing sheet.

 

And you will need to pay attention to the adjusted power to weight figures of this car since it can make a good amount of power. After looking at the adjusted power to weight calculations, your maximum horsepower at 3500lbs is 362 AWHP if you are using a Dynojet or Dynapack, and 329 AWHP if you are on a Mustang Dyno or Dyno Dynamics. Usually people leave about a 3 to 5% buffer in horsepower in case they are compliance testing, so take those numbers and take off another 15 AWHP or so and those are the numbers you are shooting for. Anything over that and you are off to big bore in the TT1/2/3 classes.

[Mike 40]

Thanks for the reply! As far as the weight goes, is it taken before the session, or after? What I'm getting at is, do I have to account for the amount of fuel I will burn during the session? for instance, if I start the session at my base class weight (3500 lbs) but burn 5 gallons of fuel (roughly 35 lbs) and now I'm down to 3465, is that difference in fuel load assessed as points?

[Mike W.]

Thanks for the reply! As far as the weight goes, is it taken before the session, or after? What I'm getting at is, do I have to account for the amount of fuel I will burn during the session? for instance, if I start the session at my base class weight (3500 lbs) but burn 5 gallons of fuel (roughly 35 lbs) and now I'm down to 3465, is that difference in fuel load assessed as points?

The weight is taken after the session and you must be above your minimum weight anytime you are weighed. If you are going to be at 3465lbs after a session then you need to declare a weight lower than that and take the appropriate points. The other option is to add more weight to your car to be above 3500lbs after the session.

[Arca_ex]

Weight is normally taken after the session in impound but here in AZ region they tell everyone that they can be pulled to be weighed at any time during the event and if you are under even while sitting in the pits then you are DQ'd.

[Mike 40]

Thanks Guys! That answers my question about weight. I appreciate the insight.

[kbrew8991]

Weight is normally taken after the session in impound but here in AZ region they tell everyone that they can be pulled to be weighed at any time during the event and if you are under even while sitting in the pits then you are DQ'd.

most likely the car and driver combo will be at it's lightest right after a session (fuel burn, deyhdration, etc). Interesting take to keep people on their toes though.

[Arca_ex]

Weight is normally taken after the session in impound but here in AZ region they tell everyone that they can be pulled to be weighed at any time during the event and if you are under even while sitting in the pits then you are DQ'd.

most likely the car and driver combo will be at it's lightest right after a session (fuel burn, deyhdration, etc). Interesting take to keep people on their toes though.

 

Yep. Also if you are trying to get ballast correct for that day, and you go to weigh the car on your own time even before your first session of the weekend, if you are under you will be penalized.

[AZELISE]

Yep. Also if you are trying to get ballast correct for that day, and you go to weigh the car on your own time even before your first session of the weekend, if you are under you will be penalized.

 

This seems like a ridiculous way to operate. I guess the only way around this is to always add plenty of extra weight before the first weighing and reduce ballast after.

 

Mike, welcome to TT. You are going to have tons of fun. You need to make sure you read the rules on the air dam. Often times OEM aero packages will require additional points. Probably the best way to deal with this is to find a base GSR front lip and switch it out on track days to avoid the points. You could do the same with a trunk lid too. Then, you could run stickier tires with the additional points.