Global Rally Cross?

Shit, come to think of it I would most likely run a welded diff in a 2WD car.

In talking to a few of the US guys that ran in NJ the biggest thing when taking a stage or RR car out was the windshield, headlights, and radiator getting hosed with gravel.

Pretty easy to fab up a Laxan wind screen, swap out head lights for blank plates.... but moving the radiator to the back is a lot more work.

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BillyElliot

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Gravel Spray
Could even just go out and buy a Honda Challenge H2-H5 car and be ready to go from the start with only adjustments for rallyx specifics.

That's exactly what I did...all for under $10K, and the car will see gravel stages!

We'll see how good it is next weekend...

Andrew

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Jon Burke
^^ I guess I'll find out next weekend, but what are teams typically running for tires at these events? Rally tires? Tarmac? Cut tarmac tires? snow tires?

Jon, are you going to compete or watch?

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alkun

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Jon Burke
^^ I guess I'll find out next weekend, but what are teams typically running for tires at these events? Rally tires? Tarmac? Cut tarmac tires? snow tires?

Jon, are you going to compete or watch?

just watching....but seriously thinking about competing for next year.

<hatching evil plan>

I think 1 thing that rally drivers have never done and is the key to being fast in a rally cross is dealing with traffic.

Most new drivers in oval can qualify very well but when it comes to making a pass its a hole new ball game.They usually are way faster then the car in front of them and spend half the race trying to pass that 1 car and then use up there stuff and go no where.

You guys may be used to going 90 MPH threw the woods but put 2 or 3 more cars beside you and not know where or what there going to do is far from rally.

The course may be the same but the moving obstacles (other cars) changes every second!

I do agree that you will need way more power then rally. The you can only hook up 250 HP is out the window. 600 hp on tarmac will kill the 250hp rallycar. Even with 50% dirt unless its fresh gravel and rota tild it will be swept clean and you hook up way more power. after a couple heat races.

This does look like a lot of fun but I my self dont think its any thing a well prepped rally car will be fast in.

I dont think FWD will be the way to go in euro Rally cross. What are the 2wd cars in euorope?

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Reamer
I think 1 thing that rally drivers have never done and is the key to being fast in a rally cross is dealing with traffic.

You can get experience at a 24 Hours of LeMons or Chump Car event. LeMons more so, because they field 120 cars on small 2 mile tracks and it's like rushour traffic.

You've got such variance of car speed and driver skill, it's a handful to not crash into anything. And most people don't understand that your car is faster than theirs and you're 20 laps up on them so you have to be pretty aggressive on passing.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/21/2011 06:00PM by BillyElliot.

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BillyElliot
You've got such variance of car speed and driver skill, it's a handful to not crash into anything. And most people don't understand that your car is faster than theirs and you're 20 laps up on them so you have to be pretty aggressive on passing.

It's not that my car is faster than yours, I'm just a better driver.

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Reamer
I think 1 thing that rally drivers have never done and is the key to being fast in a rally cross is dealing with traffic.

Most new drivers in oval can qualify very well but when it comes to making a pass its a hole new ball game.They usually are way faster then the car in front of them and spend half the race trying to pass that 1 car and then use up there stuff and go no where.

You guys may be used to going 90 MPH threw the woods but put 2 or 3 more cars beside you and not know where or what there going to do is far from rally.

The course may be the same but the moving obstacles (other cars) changes every second!

I do agree that you will need way more power then rally. The you can only hook up 250 HP is out the window. 600 hp on tarmac will kill the 250hp rallycar. Even with 50% dirt unless its fresh gravel and rota tild it will be swept clean and you hook up way more power. after a couple heat races.

This does look like a lot of fun but I my self dont think its any thing a well prepped rally car will be fast in.

I dont think FWD will be the way to go in euro Rally cross. What are the 2wd cars in euorope?

Karting at some of the "public performance" places is great for that. By that, I mean places with fast karts where people go for fun. Sykart is a great example. This way, you get people who really dont know what they're doing acting as mobile chicanes, and people who do.

Karting is a lot of fun. I know it shows me how out of shape I am! I was on a league a couple years ago. We ran endurance races. You defiantly know the next morning when you have been on a Kart for 1 1/2 hours straight. I also like it when a 200 pound guy is faster then the 150 lbs punk kid!

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Reamer
I think 1 thing that rally drivers have never done and is the key to being fast in a rally cross is dealing with traffic.

Well generally agree. Even though I had 20 years of LOTS of moto-cross with 30-35 guys, there was a huge difference: they were skilled and mostly smart (about on track stuff) and very PREDICTABLE.

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You guys may be used to going 90 MPH threw the woods but put 2 or 3 more cars beside you and not know where or what there going to do is far from rally.

Yeah that's what i was saying about potential damage. I mean look at the variety of ideas which in reality are plain pointless, and really frankly stupid that people come up with. In the end it says they're not making "smrat" decisions on allocation of effort, money and poor judgment on predicted outcomes.
Are we really expected to believe that "your typical schmoe" who is willing to waste huge amounts of money, and effort for obviously losing propositions in a car is going to make careful reasonable calculations on which line, or braking?
ER, um.
I stink not.

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The course may be the same but the moving obstacles (other cars) changes every second!

Unpredictably possibly.

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I do agree that you will need way more power then rally. The you can only hook up 250 HP is out the window. 600 hp on tarmac will kill the 250hp rallycar. Even with 50% dirt unless its fresh gravel and rota tild it will be swept clean and you hook up way more power. after a couple heat races.

That's the way it went way back in the beginning of time in Europe. Instantly people had to go power mad.

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This does look like a lot of fun but I my self dont think its any thing a well prepped rally car will be fast in.

Yeah but there's an old saying that really applies to this case and North american rally:
"In the Land of blind men, the one eyed man is King"

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I dont think FWD will be the way to go in euro Rally cross. What are the 2wd cars in euorope?

At least in northern Europe they're typically rwd and there's a cut at like 2150cc. BIG motors and outputs around 285-300 are the goal in the bigger class. I sold a set of my Sooooper bitchin long rods and CP Pistons to a guy doing a big Volvo motor into an Opel Ascona B chassi 99.1" wheelbase and the King of the Woods from mid 70s to mid 90s when all the shells were gone! And 240 Volvo took over)


Hey Doood! Hows it going with sending some Subie junk out here?

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NoCoast

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BillyElliot
You've got such variance of car speed and driver skill, it's a handful to not crash into anything. And most people don't understand that your car is faster than theirs and you're 20 laps up on them so you have to be pretty aggressive on passing.

It's not that my car is faster than yours, I'm just a better driver.

Had that. We were in a 100hp (when the motor was running good, and by the end of event 2 it wasn't so good) and we were still passing plenty of cars with more HP than us. More so was the little 100mph kink where SOOOO many people lifted and/or braked for. I was taking it flat out every lap and sometimes I would pass people like they were standing still.

Also mentioned above, karting is a good moving chicane practice. Teaches you very aggressive passing techniques. However, I usually have a bit of a cushion for bumping the person to squeeze through in karting since they have the bumpers around the karts.

Im still up in the air with what piston size I want to run in the shock. I havent had much time to do much research on what will be the best MM piston with the most tech availability in rally. If that makes sense. I can get the spindles to you so you can make the mounts but Im still unsure on tube diameter. As long as your open minded on what my plans are we will get r done.

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BillyElliot
Had that. We were in a 100hp (when the motor was running good, and by the end of event 2 it wasn't so good) and we were still passing plenty of cars with more HP than us. More so was the little 100mph kink where SOOOO many people lifted and/or braked for. I was taking it flat out every lap and sometimes I would pass people like they were standing still.

The track day I did in my 84 Colt rally car was so much fun, but total nightmare. No passing except on straights. In the tight areas I'd go flying around this Mustang and M3 that were hanging together. In the long straight, where I could hit maybe 80 MPH I'd just move inside and they'd fly past at 120. Then there was a tight almost hairpin right, long straight with a L5 to R5 150 to R3. I'd be on their bumper by the R3 and passing them in the next straight, through a few tight corners and then repeat. Got really old by the fourth time... The biggest thing I learned that day is that it's all about not braking.

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NoCoast
The biggest thing I learned that day is that it's all about not braking.

...and putting a race head on your next car so you don't get buried on the straights. :p

Dave

One race in, one car wrecked...