Questions for Road Race/Autocross drivers.

[Matthew]

First, if your response is going to include senseless remarks like "Hondas suck" , "Mazdas are gay" or "240sxs are the best car ever" like so many other posts on here, dont waste anyone's time.Anyway....Right now i have a honda CRX with mostly suspension mods, i planned on becoming pretty serious about road racing, and planned on entering HPDE style events, but the body is getting pretty bad, and will most likely will be demoted to winter beater status.So i have to look for another car, i am curious if anyone could give me a good explination on how the 240sx feels. I'm coming from a very tossable car, that weighs 2100. i know the 240sx is competetive with the CRX in ITA, but i am still afraid that the much heavier car will feel too boatish (they are in the 2600lbs range for an s13?).I'm also looking at maybe an FC RX-7 (which is also an awesome IT car), an mr-2, or maybe even a 92-95 civic hatch back.All the cars are capable platforms, i just want to know why 240sx drivers, who have driven other cars, chose it.thanks!-mattPS. please no "The 180sx is the JDM drift car y0 y0 boi!" ****.

[Repo Man]

First, if your response is going to include senseless remarks like "Hondas suck" , "Mazdas are gay" or "240sxs are the best car ever" like so many other posts on here, dont waste anyone's time.Anyway....Right now i have a honda CRX with mostly suspension mods, i planned on becoming pretty serious about road racing, and planned on entering HPDE style events, but the body is getting pretty bad, and will most likely will be demoted to winter beater status.So i have to look for another car, i am curious if anyone could give me a good explination on how the 240sx feels. I'm coming from a very tossable car, that weighs 2100. i know the 240sx is competetive with the CRX in ITA, but i am still afraid that the much heavier car will feel too boatish (they are in the 2600lbs range for an s13?).I'm also looking at maybe an FC RX-7 (which is also an awesome IT car), an mr-2, or maybe even a 92-95 civic hatch back.All the cars are capable platforms, i just want to know why 240sx drivers, who have driven other cars, chose it.thanks!-mattPS. please no "The 180sx is the JDM drift car y0 y0 boi!" ****.

Yo yo yo. Tha 240 is hella...:aug2 Ok, got that out of the way. I've raced my 240 in the STS class this past summer and while I'm not the best cone reader in the world the car showed me it's potential. The 240 is very tossable, albeit somewhat larger than a CRX. The CRX is an excellent auto-x car and I've seen them do very well on road courses as well, as long as they're matched against cars with similar power.

A typical S13 weighs around 2600-2700lbs. There is a chart somewhere that breaks it down. Search for it when you have time. They have excellent manuverability due to a quick steering ratio which makes them good for auto-x when things get tight. The low-end torque from the KA24 is also helpful on a tight course to pull out of turns.

Keep in mind that the 240 is RWD and will feel completely different than the front drivers you're used to. I would buy one over a Civic hatch anyday. Civics have small discs up front and drums in the rear. What the hell kind of performance car comes with drum brakes? You know? 240's have 4 wheel disc as standard equipment.

Have you considered a Miata for auto-x?

[red240ne]

the s13s handle so good, i think they're better than s14s, but that's just my opinion. rear wheel drive is so much fun. it feels so good to turn corners at 40+ mph, b/c it seems like the car is just telling you to do it. it feels like it just wants to hug every corner, and it's fun too when you go around a corner fast, and your rear end whips around. i can't imagine what it will be like with suspension upgrades. out of those cars, i would think that if you want total power, and pretty good handling, go for rx-7. if you want a lot of power, and a lot of handling, go for 240. if you want all handling, and a little power, go for the mid engine mr-2. no FWD cars, they're boring.

[Exar-Kun]

If I was to build a project car OTHER than my current car(1993 240sx for road racing) I would pick either a older Z, for the ITS class, or a mr2, or miata....

but the major problems I see with CRX's is that they have the short wheelbase, no LSD(gotta buy it, and some 240sx dont have them either), cruddy brakes, and since they're FWD the weight distribution seems to be a hinderance to the drivers and cars dynamics.

just my .02c

-chet

[96_S14_SE]

I run my 240 out there and there are some very quick H cars out there. A del-sol tore it up on one track I was at last month. Like wise with the crx's and some civics.

One of the faster cars out there though are the miatas and new MR-2's they are just sick even in stock form.

While I love the 240 its not the best auto-x car out there sadly. It is a blast to drive out there though. I couldnt imagine driving anything else out there. I just wouldnt drive a fwd solely on the weight ballance, and its unablitly to rotate with throttle. Understeer even slightly pisses me off worse then anything hehe.

[TooSicks]

Rgith now i currently drive both an '89 240sx fastback and a '90 crx dx and i have to say i truly love both cars. I've owned my crx for 6 months before i bought my 240 and my initial experience with the feel of the 240 is it felt like a monster after tossing my rex around, but once got a few weeks in the car the big feeling went away and was replaced by confidence inspiring stability. It's a matter of personal taste tho, because they are two truly different cars.

my crx is quick, nimble, light on it's feet and very agile, to which i'm sure you'd agree and is capable of performing some amazing feats in tight quarters. it's a car that likes to float through most challenges and seems to tiptoe though high speed stuff with little effort.

the 240 on the other hand, feels long and has a comparatively low yaw rate when things get interesting and doesn't like to be tossed as much as my rex does, although it loves to stick and the rear wheel drive gives a dimension of overster that only a rwd can provide. there is no better feel than when the 240 hooks up in turns at 40+mph and you can just feel the *** end both floating and digging in at the same time.

although it's not as agile as the rex i find it is significantly more responsive and is just plain fun to drive. there's a good feeling when you are heel toe braking down into second and getting on it, letting the *** hang out slightly around the radius of your turn and still maintaining power on control.

I was running my favorite mountain pass with my 240 a month ago and while drifting i got the rear tires hung out on some gravel near the white line and the 240 snapped hard!!! it swapped ends quick and continued to rotate all the way around and i was able to recover when it came full 360, (pretty hairy with a 500 foot drop and no guardrail to the inside) if you got good traction the 240 hooks up but watch out if you suddenly lose grip cause it likes to swap ends, but that's the nature of rwd.

After driving the rex it'll feel weird, but when you get comfortable in it you'll feel really good about tossing it, even as big and heavy as it seems. When i first got it i thought it was big, now i think it's small too. I haven't driven the miata, but i have driven the '93 rx-7 turbo and was VERY impressed. i've driven the '86 mr 2 supercharged version and it is a rocket that can change directions so well you'd swear there was some recovered alien technology in that equation, but it does have a smaller feel to it than i like fora rwd that quick. the 240 feels very balanced in stock form, and i look forward to the day when it sits on tight coilovers with heim joints instead of rubbers and is pushing 200+ hp.

Peace

[TommyHawk]

I'd like to show you some video of my S14 blowing past Miata after Miata at Hallett, with an extra 150lbs in the passenger seat.The way I see it, smaller cars are easier to drive and the Miata is small. There are probably several opinions on that.Sounds to me like you want some road course rather than parking lots. I've done a couple Auto-X events and 2 HPDEs. I would definitely lose the front wheel drive. I've driven, and rolled, a 2nd gen RX-7. They have a weird rear steer geometry that feels crazy! You have to buy special bushings to get rid of it. After I got over the RX-7 I got the 240. It feels awesome! It feels exactly like it should. Good balance, predictabiliy. A little too much roll, but I'm still on stock suspension.

Tom

[SpeeDDrifT]

i used to autox my 88civic hb when i had one......it did well and after i got my 240 i had a hard time matching times with the civic. i truely believe the 240 takes more skill but if driven well it does well on the autox. i also believe the 240 trains you to be a better driver. i DID however buy mine for drifting, i know you don't want to hear that.....but i did. in your case if your looking for a good autox car......i'd buy a miata and put the supercharger kit on it.

with good driving skills a RWD will overcome a FF always.

[Matthew]

I appreciate all the replies. I'm pretty much sold on a 240, and if anyone knows anyone selling a LSD equipped 91-94 in the new england area, let me know!I would really like to have a car to attend the school event at Lime Rock in March (stock of couse, in novice).And i am obviously going to keep the honda, as everyone hates you, when you are faster than them, in a honda (it's great to be hated).

[Nils]

I appreciate all the replies. I'm pretty much sold on a 240, and if anyone knows anyone selling a LSD equipped 91-94 in the new england area, let me know!I would really like to have a car to attend the school event at Lime Rock in March (stock of couse, in novice).And i am obviously going to keep the honda, as everyone hates you, when you are faster than them, in a honda (it's great to be hated).

I got a 240sx s14 and it is awsome for track events, dont know about auto-xing since I am not really into that.

The 240 is very neutral and handles exceptionally, to me the car is very light coming from driving a heavy Supra on the road courses. If you are serious about it you can gut the 240 and make even lighter.

Another plus for the 240sx is the neverending aftermarket support in Japan, and alot of the Japanese aftermarket companies are coming over to the States now. Seems that the 240/Silvias over in Japan is like the Civics over here... there are lots and lots of them.

Good luck, in my opinion the 240 (no matter what generation) is an excellent choice for road racing.

take care,nils

[Two-Forty]

it all comes down to what YOU like and how much you're willing to spend. With all cars it takes time for you to get used to the car, but in time every car has it's advantages and dis advantages. But with RWD cars it's much better to take to autox.

[96_S14_SE]

I saw a SC miata running stout wide wheels with victos on em the second to last event I went to. Ran SM if IRC. That car was quick hehe, was also one of the many cars, I think, that chased me down that day at my station (almost got my legs clipped if I was a tad slower by an open wheel ford 1600).