It’s probably too late for you to get this advice… but maybe you’ll check it before you take off for the AutoX.
Car Prep:
Clean all the loose items out of your car. You don’t want that CD flying off the visor in the middle of the turn, and often you won’t pass tech. w/ junk in the car.
You’re going to want to add air pressure to the tires. Try about 42/38 front/rear. Check the pressure after each run, as the tires get hot the air will expand and the pressure will go up. Also, look at you sidewalls and try and see how far the tire is rolling over. You can drop the pressure to increase the footprint if it doesn’t look like you’re getting to the sidewall at all.
Check your battery hold down. They’re notorious for breaking in Fbodies… and you won’t pass tech. w/ it broken. If it is broken hit up a parts store for a universal hold down and some J-bolts and rig that up. It’s ten times better than the stock hold down, cheaper, and if yours is broken probably the only way you’ll get to race today!
Run with at least 3/4 of tank of fuel. This isn’t a drag race so don’t’ worry about the weight. The added benefit of the weight out behind the rear axle is huge (ever notice how your car gets way more loose on an empty tank?). Also, it’ll prevent starving the fuel pump.
Driving:
Here’s the old cliché: slow in, fast out… fast in, spin out. It’s really true, it’s better to give up a little bit of entrance speed to make sure you’re on the right line and can get on it coming out of the turn.
With Fbodies when you come into a turn too hot they’ll push really bad (especially w/ a stock susp.) and you’ll end up way wide on the turn. This is probably the number one thing you will do wrong and will hurt your times. In AutoX it’s all about running the right line: the one that makes you cover the least distance while allowing you the most speed. When you’re pushing you end up taking the loooooong way around the corner and going slower.
I guarantee you’ll experience the classic Fbody push where the whole car shakes as the front tires skip along. When it happens try trail-braking. Hitting the brakes a bit will bring the tail of the car up, taking weight off the rear tires and putting it onto the front. This should help… but be careful cuz it can also bring the rear all the way around.
My biggest advice is to walk the course w/ a veteran. They’ll point out the right line, pay attention.
Then what you want to do is basically drive at all the extremes. If you’re going in a straight line you should either be at WOT or full brakes… you should never be coasting. In anything but a decreasing radius turn you want to get all your braking done before the turn, in a straight line. Enter the turn looking ahead to the apex lightly on the throttle to maintain a constant speed. As you come through the apex roll into the throttle as much as the turn and traction will let you. As soon as you get the car pointed straight for your next target go WOT. Of course, if two turns are back to back there might never be a chance to get fully straightened out. Once again, be willing to give up a little in speed to put yourself in the proper position for that next turn.
Also, yeah I’d say leave the A4 in 2nd. You sure don’t want it to shift into 3rd etc. and you’re going to exceed 1st gear speeds.
Anyway, just relax and have fun.
-TJ
