SCCA H Stock Setup

[bryanrome]

Hello, I am new here and I have a few questions. The autox bug has bitten my girlfriend. She has asked me to set up her car, an 03 Accent) to compete in stock class SCCA autox. I am fully supportive of the idea as it will also give me a car in which I can actually compete (my 02 Z06 was built for NASA TTs so it doesn't fit into SCCA SS - I think I'm in street mod - but is really no faster than a stock Vette). What can be done to set up this Hyundai properly? The car has 13" wheels, so tires are limited, any suggestions? We'll probably get a second set of the steel wheels for competition. I already have a spare Scroth 4-pt and I'm going to throw in a tachometer too. I'm also lookin' into struts and shocks, front swaybar, brake linings, whatever can be done on the cheap to make this car more competitive in SCCA stock. If anyone can suggest good vendors for these parts that'd be nice too.

Thanks much,
Bryan

[bryanrome]

Also as far as alignment goes (I already assume camber/caster is pretty much non-adjustible), do the autox people like running any static toe?

[rocconi]

Number one on the list of mods should be DOT approved sticky tires. As far as I know you can use tires that have a tread-ware rating of 50 or greater in the stock classes. These are really like race tires and are a great advantage. Also don't bother getting a stiffer front sway bar. Since under steer is a problem try to find a stiffer rear bar. Just replacing the stock rear sway bar rubber bushings with some poly ones helps quite a bit.

[bryanrome]

Thanks for the response rocconi.

The options for competition tires on 13" wheels is my primary concern. My major question is whether there was a factory option for 14" diameter wheels, as I may be able to justify the replacement of the stockers under "option package conversion" under section 13 of the published rulebook. I plan to run an appropriate DOT R-comp, probably 710s as I have the most experience on them.

That is a good point about the front swaybar, I have noticed the cars tendency (or rather incredible urge) to push. But the SCCA rulebook sadly does not allow for modification or replacement of the rear swaybar. I think it also does not allow replacement of the rear swaybar bushing material, but I am not wholly opposed to rule "bending" (breaking) if done in a subtle manner. I may be able to sand off the sharp edges of a poly bushing to make it look more like rubber.

When I was looking up repl't parts for this car a year ago i ran across parts for a "sport suspension" option. Did this include larger swaybars? Is there a symbol in the VIN to see whether our vehicle has this package already?

Shock absorbers are another key issue. We don't want to spring the extra cash for a set of Koni yellows for a car that is hardly worth the cost of the shocks themselves. (I run them on my Z06 and love 'em). So I am not wholly opposed to using the KYBs I have seen given high praise in this forum. Any preferred vendors?

Still wondering about static toe? In my Vette I run slight toe out due to dynamic toe changes under braking. But my geometry is a little bit (or a lot) different.

Lastly, I need a new set of brake linings. I mic'd the stock front pads today and they were only a couple mil over minimum specs. I'm looking for something reasonably trackable, yet usable when cold, prefferably from a big name: Hawk, Porterfield, Carbotech, EBC, Raysbestos. Are OEM repl't rotors able to tolerate the abuse of a more abrasive pad?

Thanks again[/list]

[andy]

you are going to have your hands full but it can be done

stock accent gt's came with 14s which I can't imagine were more than 5-5.5 inches wide when they came with 185/60/14 tires. The gt's also came with "slightly" stiffer struts and springs, given I don't think you would be able to feel much difference but i've never driven a stock gt model so what do I know?

Your going to be stuck with trying to fit the widest tire on a similar sized 14 inch wheel. I'm sure you could shoehorn a 205 on there with little to no problems.

Sway bar options are out there but anything other than removing the front bar is going to result in understeer since you are limited to only a front bar. A bigger front bar might help with body roll but it will make for a stubborn car to drive when you need it to rotate.

I've never tried it with a stock rear bar in place but with my bigger bar(20 mm) in the rear and no bar in front I had quite a bit of body roll and lots of oversteer on entry.

your best bet is to leave the front bar in place to keep some of the body roll in check(there will be quite a bit of it anyway especially on r-comps) and use your tire pressures to help get some rotation out of the car.

For struts and springs, if you don't want to go the koni route(which is your best option by far) then you might want to try the stock gt springs and struts. I think your still going to be underdamped but its worth a try.

Other than tires and whatever suspension setup your going to try, a good alignment should help make everything else work much better. Try to get as much negative camber as you can, I know other strut equipped stock class cars use "crash bolts" to get more adjustment. I've never heard of hyundai selling smaller strut mounting bolts before but i'm sure you could make it work with a slightly smaller bolt.

With my ksport camber plates i'm able to get damn close to -3 degrees up front and about -2.5 in the rear. If you could pull off -1 to -1.5 front and rear you'd be heading in the right directon. Also if tire wear on the street isn't that big of a deal for you i'd suggest running a little toe out in the front, no more than an 1/8th out would do wonders. I have mine set at 0 front and rear but I know an 1/8th out up front would help me in the tighter corners at turn in. However I drive mine on the street and don't have the money to replace my street tires every 10k.

for brakes, oem stuff tends to hold up pretty well, my 2000 uses a good quality semi metallic oem equivalent pad and they have held up well in autox. I use stainless braided lines in the front with valvoline synthetic dot4 fluid and cross drilled/slotted rotors. I think you'd be fine with some good fluid and new pads. I still want to try out the ebc green stuff pads. Maybe when I get some extra money. For a performance oriented pad the ebc green and reds are going to be your only option.

For power, your stuck with a pannel air filter and exhaust, which you might be able to pick up a few hp and drop a little weight but I stick with the stock stuff till you start to get bored with hearing nothing when you rev the motor.

I'd say this will give you a good starting point. You won't be able to compete with the minis but it will be a good starting point for whoever drives the car. And it will definately be fun.

Good luck

[bryanrome]

Wow great reply. Thanks very much.

I would love to run more camber, but the adjustments must be made using only factory adjustments, so for me camber plates are out of the question. And I really don't want to go up another class. I want a mostly stock car for my gf to learn on and me to compete on. It isn't worth the money to me to modify this vehicle excessively. Would running a 205 14 on a stock ride height vehicle result in any fender lip or strut clearance issues?

If you're curious about the EBC greens, I ran some a while ago in a Mini on r-comps, and they aren't great pads even for light duty track use. The yellows are still very streetable and are a major improvement over the greens. I run Carbotech XP10s on my Vette and they are the best pads I have yet experienced for a dual use car. They can however be very loud even when properly bedded. Other Carbotech pads (XP8s and PPs) are also very good. The Porterfield introductory race pad (I forgot what it's called) is also fabulous. The NorCal division champ for Spec Miata also vehemently insisted to me that the Raysbestos race pad was also an excellent buy. I just don't know what's available for the Accent...

I look forward to some competition in this vehicle and I hope to get more input from this board.

Thanks again

[187sks]

First off, I've never set a tire on an autox course, so keep that in mind.

You can get EBC green, yellow, or red stuff for the Accents. IMO the brakes SCREAM for an upgrade as when pushed hard they fade pretty badly. I don't think you'll overheat them that badly doing only autox, but I am not sure. I have had them fade to the point of being scary several times.

Having driven several different Accent GT's and Non-GT Accents stock and modified I can say the suspension on the GT is far superior to the standard suspension. It is still lacking in dampening but it sits about a half inch lower than standard, has a spring rate similar to Eibach Pro-kit springs for the Accent (so good for daily driving but still better than standard for hard driving but definately not designed for track use), and it's more confident in corners. I do not think anything besides the struts and springs are different on the GT suspension. Only downside is that the suspension doesn't recover from potholes or rough roadway as well as the standard.

The 14's that came on the GT are alloy wheels, not steel. They're also pretty heavy as far as alloy 14x5.5 inch rims are concerned.

[andy]

for your camber try using a smaller bolt where the strut mounts to the spindle and that should get you a little camber. That is the only way your going to get some camber.

A camber correction kit isn't legal in stock class but "crash bolts" are. These are just smaller bolts that body shops use when they can't get a wrecked car to match factory alignment specs. This should allow you a degree or so of negative camber.

205s on 14s should fit in the wheel wells fine

the reason I wanted to try the green stuff pads is that we don't have many aftermarket options on performance pads for the accents as opposed to the numerous options for the tiburons and I drive my 2000 predominantly on the street, I think the yellows might shift the brake balance severely to the front since I still have the stock drums in back. They might be too aggressive for my daily driver. I've always had good things to say about hawk pads and have used the hps' on my previous car with very good results. If they only offered them for the accents.

I use satisfied grandsport pads on my street mod accent and they work well for autox, but it has tiburon hubs, rotors, and calipers so i'm able to use the better selection of pads.

give us an update once you get started to see how your progressing, good luck