Hi, my mr2 is at the garage right now and I want to make the autocross event next week end, my mom would borrow me her fit dx 2009. I would like to know if the stock brake pads are sufficient for an autoslalom event?

Also, the 175/65/15 tires are really cheap (and I don't want to use them). On my civic wagon I have a set of (failry cheap too but a bit better) all season 185-60-14 tires, would they fit on the fit? The bolt pattern should be fine, but I'm more concerned by the difference in overall diameter. Also, do you think it'a a bad idea to make a day on cheap tires? The tires are a bit worn so the thread won't "twist" in the curves too much. It's just for fun, not performance.

And the height of the car isn't an issue?
thanks.

 

Autocross is much harder on brakes than straightforward trackdays. The stock pads are fine for the track, but I'd suggest getting something better for autocross. At the very least you'll need to let the stock pads cool off in between runs.

Don't forget your fluid too. DOT4 or DOT5.1 should be golden.

The height of the car shouldn't be an issue. My car's still on stock springs, no problem on the track.

 

Auto-x harder on brakes than lapping? Are you sure?
I know that between each corner there is less time to cool down but every braking is enough short and at low speeds, a "long" hard braking from around 100mph is much harder on the brakes imo, even with some cool down after.

 

Road Racing is harder on your breaks than AutoX

 

Whatever, your mom will be not happy when car comes back with brakes shot. Flog the Civic

 

You guys really think than auto x will shot the brakes at these low speeds on cheap tires? I just won't abuse on trail braking I guess.
I already saw a guy with a stock ford aspire make some runs...

And with stock fluid, if they get too hot they won't just not brake anymore untill they're cool, without being too much worn?

And my civic is a wagon 4wd 3g. Narrower than a fit, more grip, higher gravity center, softer suspensions, I'd be really scared to roll over.

 

If your autocross course is fairly short and you have a stock Fit your brakes should be fine to run for the event.

Track use is definitely much harder on brakes because you have to use them lap after lap. In Autocross you do one run but the brakes cool down between runs.

175/65-15 tires are 24" tire diameter.
185/60-14 tires are 22.7" tire diameter so ride height will be less than stock by about 0.6" which is fine. Should not be a problem. Do a fitment check and put on one of the Civic wheels on the fit before the event day to check it is OK and does not rub on the suspension parts or brake calipers and that offset is OK. Fit has a really deep offset but I think you will be OK.

The key is to be smooth on throttle and brakes. All Season tires will scream around corners so just remember to slow enough on corner entry then get on the gas once you turn to exit. Use the brakes as little as possible so you don't loose too much speed since you won't be able to speed up very fast.

 

I just put 2 of the 185-60-14, it looks a bit small but the rims (from an integra) are still pretty cool, fitment was fine (bolt pattern, center bore) for both cars (since I had to put the fit rims on my civic). Hope it's gonna be sunny tommorow for the even, it's wet right now.. The 2nd gear probably be really short now with these tires but for auto-x it's actually a good thing.

I'll try to make my best to preserve the fit's reputation at the event

 

I just came back, the 185 tires I had were a bit better than the oem 175, and the car is really easy to drive (just too bad that the EPS doesn't give any feedback). It was raining too, so easy to loose the rear end a bit . Fair times for considering my tires I think (and that it was almost my first event)

 

Good work. Takes time to learn how to drive at the limit for a given setup.

Just keep using the same wheels and tires. You should notice your times will drop.

 

what would be a good tire/rim combination for autoX or track? I've seen several hondas with wider tires and larger rims upfront. Is this beneficial?

See link below. The FIT has 225/45/16 front setup while 195/55/15 in the rear.

YouTube - K20A FACE OFF - Best Motoring International

 

I wouldn't run so much stagger, I don't even had 30mm on my mr2 (while the oem stagger is 195-225). Square setup allows tire rotation, just use the right tire pressure (more in the rear) and a proper driving technique. Probably 205 all around with sticky street tires. I had understeer mostly of course, but it wasn't that bad and I was still able to lose the rear end (it was raining). Depends of the class you want to be in also (stock = stock wheels).

 

225/45-16 fits rims 7 to 8.5" wide with tire diameter of 23.8"
195/55-15 fits rims 5.5 to 7" wide with tire diameter of 23.5"

While stagger can be used you have to make sure you can use all that much tire with a good suspension, alignment, and reasonable tires in those sizes to match.

What tires did you have in mind?

I have used 225/50-15 in the front using 15x8 wheels and 205/50-15 in the rears on another FWD car and it was OK although not as remarkable as you might think. In general I think for FWD you'd be ok using the same tires front and rear.

 

I don't have in mind to mod the fit, since it's mom's car. But I think that for a decent autoslalom or track setup, 205 all around would be good on the fit, after you make the right alignement, tire pressure, and tire choise (by example toyo r1r for auto-x).
On my Toyota Mr2 I have a set of Hankook RS2 (mostly for lapping, even if I'm usually too lazy to remove them after a track day) and another one of Toyo T1R (daily, rain, auto-x)

 

You don't need staggered tread width at the front for track. Running the same size tire all around poses no problems.

 

Got some pics





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