First AutoX with the Supra

[Ron L]

I just did my first autoX with the Supra last weekend. I haven't run an autoX over the last 2 or 3 years. Before that I ran 5 to 9 events a year over 6 years in a 2021 Miata and a 2019 Toyota 86 and a 2012 Miata. I don't claim to be a very good driver at autoX. And I did this event as a kind of prep for doing a track day at Barber Motorsports Park in July.

Before I started doing autoX, I raced SCCA for over 15 years in various small, 4 cylinder mid-engine cars (Fiat X1/9, Sports Renault Spec Racer, Toyota MR2). Most were showroom stock or Improved Touring classes. The MR2 did go from SSC to ITA and ended up as an E Prod race car that made the SCCA Runoffs. I raced most of the tracks in the midwest like Road America, Mid-Ohio, Indianapolis Raceway Park, Blackhawk Farms and Nelson Ledges.

I find wheel to wheel racing vs track days vs autoX to all be quite different despite the fact that they all involve driving a car as fast as you can. Wheel to wheel involves going fast on big sweeping courses and developing/having race craft. Track Days involve going fast on big sweeping circuits that are fairly easy to learn given the amount of track time you get. AutoX is also going as fast as you can, but usually on a VERY twisty course that you don't get to see before race day and you only get a limited number of runs at. Here in SW Florida we have an airport location so runs are mile long and take 60 to 70 seconds on average. But due to high competitor turn out, we usually only get 4 runs. That makes learning the course very quickly a huge priority. And that's one ability that I'm not nearly as good at as I need to be!

At 76 years old, I'm kind of torn between AutoX and track days. The idea of buying wheels & tires for either slows me down as I find changing them before an event and then changing back after the event gets old after a few times. Especially here in SW Florida in the sun and heat of summer. AutoX would be a regular once a month event but track days would be less frequent, maybe more in the cooler winter months, but involve driving to events much further from home and involving a night or two in motels.

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[jchadwell]

Not sure what you’re asking or trying to get from this post but from your location, I think @FLtrackdays could be a great resource.

 

[type-964]

The Supra is a riot on a racetrack or an autox course. It’s awesome you’re out there doing events! Everyone who owns a sports car should get to experience it in its element.

 

[Ron L]

Not sure what you’re asking or trying to get from this post but from your location, I think @FLtrackdays could be a great resource.

FLtrackdays and I are already friends. But he doesn't do autoX.
I'm just stating what I did last weekend and would like to hear from others who do autoX with a Supra. Especially in the B Street class.

 

[FLtrackdays]

Not sure what you’re asking or trying to get from this post but from your location, I think @FLtrackdays could be a great resource.

Thx for thinking of me Jerry ? I’ve already hit the poor guy up once I found out he was local lol. Yeah, he knows I’m already biased. I reserve my time & consumable money for track dayz. I think it’s mega commendable Ron is out there willing to do both! Even Barber in the summer ?. I hope I’m in as good shape (mentally & physically) as he is in my 70s.

Who knows, he might even get me out there to our local autocross to burn up some old tires & pads I got lying around ?

 

[Branflakes123]

I used to AutoX 3-4 events a year in a Focus ST and enjoyed it. I find the capability of the Supra to be more suited to a track over all.

It sounds like you don't want to deal with changing tires. If you don't care about being the absolute fastest guy out there, a set of Hankook RS4 will do fine on the street and still last a good while being a "200 tread wear" tire.

 

[Ron L]

I used to AutoX 3-4 events a year in a Focus ST and enjoyed it. I find the capability of the Supra to be more suited to a track over all.

It sounds like you don't want to deal with changing tires. If you don't care about being the absolute fastest guy out there, a set of Hankook RS4 will do fine on the street and still last a good while being a "200 tread wear" tire.

Thanks for that suggestion. You're right about the tire changing. Hey, I'm an old dude and I don't need the extra workout! And you are also right about my not needing to be the fastest guy out there. I'm not quite able to run with the youngsters any more. But I do try!

 

[razorlab]

Old and wise enough to not mention oil...

 

[tomfree]

Thanks for that suggestion. You're right about the tire changing. Hey, I'm an old dude and I don't need the extra workout! And you are also right about my not needing to be the fastest guy out there. I'm not quite able to run with the youngsters any more. But I do try!

Since you're in FL, he Hankook will probably be OK at autox - they like heat. However, since the 200TW tires are so good now, just get a set of something really sticky and leave them on the car. Bridgestone RE71RS, Yokohama A052 come to mind. They'll all do double duty for autox and track, and they're perfectly livable on the street. I leave the RE71RS on my car 99% of the time.

 

[razorlab]

Since you're in FL, he Hankook will probably be OK at autox - they like heat. However, since the 200TW tires are so good now, just get a set of something really sticky and leave them on the car. Bridgestone RE71RS, Yokohama A052 come to mind. They'll all do double duty for autox and track, and they're perfectly livable on the street. I leave the RE71RS on my car 99% of the time.

Only feedback I have here is that the RE71RS are a bit hairy in summer monsoons, and Florida has their fair share of those.

 

[tomfree]

Only feedback I have here is that the RE71RS are a bit hairy in summer monsoons, and Florida has their fair share of those.

Yep. At anything much less than full tread depth...they're less than optimal.

I've raced Road Atlanta in the rain on Hankooks...they aren't great in the rain either, even at full tread. Now...I was in a car that had very little weight in the back and lots of torque, which might have something to do with it, but other LeMons friends who run the Kooks say they aren't great in the wet, regardless of the car.

Wet tires? Conti ECS02 or Michelin PS4S.

 

[razorlab]

Yep. At anything much less than full tread depth...they're less than optimal.

I've raced Road Atlanta in the rain on Hankooks...they aren't great in the rain either, even at full tread. Now...I was in a car that had very little weight in the back and lots of torque, which might have something to do with it, but other LeMons friends who run the Kooks say they aren't great in the wet, regardless of the car.

Wet tires? Conti ECS02 or Michelin PS4S.

Conti ECF also good in water for a 200tw. I personally would pick them over the hankooks any day.

 

[Ron L]

Conti ECF also good in water for a 200tw. I personally would pick them over the hankooks any day.

I appreciate the suggestions and the comments. I used Falkens on my Miata and they were OK wet or dry. I doubt they make them in the size we need for the Supra. But I'll just work on runing off the stock tires first. Driving fast is fun whether you are super fast or just as fast as you feel comfortable (most of the time).

 

[FLtrackdays]

I appreciate the suggestions and the comments. I used Falkens on my Miata and they were OK wet or dry. I doubt they make them in the size we need for the Supra. But I'll just work on runing off the stock tires first. Driving fast is fun whether you are super fast or just as fast as you feel comfortable (most of the time).

I’ve almost given up on the stock tires. They loose traction so easily in lower gears, it’s just slip n slide ? even in the dry. At least when it’s wet, it’s not like you’re going to accelerate hard or corner fast. So any of those 200tw tires that are priced well would be really tempting to buy a set for the stock wheels. At least for in town driving, 6 months outta the year, for me anyway.

 

[sm_corvette]

I got my Supra last year and started doing autox with it this year in B Street. I think we have some similarities with what format we prefer. I’ve mostly been doing autox throughout the year (~24 events per year, or 12, 2-day weekend events) for the past several years, and I do 2-3 track days during the cooler months.

Out here in CA, the venue I most frequent for autox is on an old airfield where the concrete is very high-grip but very abrasive (Crows Landing). I run the stock size Bridgestone RE71RS on the stock 19” wheels. I have an aftermarket front anti-roll bar and the OE camber correction spindles (“swivel bearings”?) for the extra ~-0.5° camber.

After 3, 20-min track sessions followed by ~50 autox runs on our concrete site, the outer shoulders of my front tires were about to show cord. The rears still have some life left have been wearing fairly evenly across the tread. I haven’t done any autox on any other surface or site with the Supra so far, but I’d assume that the tire wear from this particular concrete site is one of the more extreme cases. Even though RE71RS seem to wear quicker than the other fast 200TW tires (CRS, RT660), I think with your frequency and type of events, I would guess that a set of RE71RS could last a season which is about as long as I’d want to use any set of tires for best performance.

If you’re sticking to B Street and the limitations on front camber that come with it, A052 have a pretty soft construction and may wear out even quicker if used in the front. Just something to consider.

Hope this serves as a decent data point.

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