Auto-x vids - the World's Narrowest CTS-V hits the course!

**AAIIIC** · 10-17-09 11:45 PM

After a hiatus of over a year (I think) I finally got to an auto-x event a couple weekends ago. It was with a club I had never run with before - actually, I had never even heard of them until a couple days before the event. The event was run on an old runway, which means (as you'll see) that it was very slalom intensive. I've run on runways before and I have to say the design wasn't particularly inventive - there are ways to mix it up a bit more than what they did. Anyway...

I set up my two Chase Cams on either side of the car. I didn't realize until I got home and reviewed the video just how funny it would look! I managed to line the cameras up just right so that it appears the car is a giant motorcycle.

I had swapped my Rota wheels w/RE01Rs back on the night before, and forgot about the TPMS sensors until I was about to do my first run, so the first run I still had Stability Control on. Boooo!

This was my 2nd run, which was with Stability Control turned off. Unfortunately, I got pretty loose at the end, so my time wasn't any better. I probably had the organizers thinking they were going to collect $100 from the idiot that wrecked the finish line lights!

Fortunately I caught the slide and averted disaster.

My third run was my best, picking up about 2sec on the first two runs. In hindsight I can tell from listening to the exhaust that I was being too conservative on the throttle in some places, but that's part of being a year out of practice, I guess.

My 4th run was about the same time, but as you can see I got loose in one of the slaloms and picked up a cone.

My lone competitor in class ended up pipping me by 0.12sec on his final run, and I couldn't improve on my own final run, so I had to settle for 2nd (and last) in class. That's going to hang over my head for a while, as all the clubs are winding up their seasons here in the PacNW, so I won't get to another event until next spring. By then it appears I'll be back in the Washington, DC area, so maybe I'll see some of you at FedEx Field!

**tweeter81** · 10-18-09 11:55 AM

Nice vids and thanks for sharing. That camera setup is pretty trippy, but I got used to it after watching for a little bit. Thumbs ups for taking the V to the Auto-X.

**crankedupforit** · 10-18-09 06:04 PM

Nice vids! What was your lone competitor?

**CancerJCC** · 10-18-09 06:55 PM

Originally Posted by crankedupforit

Nice vids! What was your lone competitor?

**AAIIIC** · 10-18-09 10:53 PM

It was a, uh, *cough*, mumble N/A 2nd gen RX-7.

The club ran their own classing that combined some SCCA classes, so we were in "Improved B", which was a street tire class.

**kirchbed** · 10-18-09 11:39 PM

Originally Posted by AAIIIC

It was a, uh, *cough*, mumble N/A 2nd gen RX-7.

The club ran their own classing that combined some SCCA classes, so we were in "Improved B", which was a street tire class.

Hmm.. 2,700lbs of oil eating/leaking/spewing 1.3L turbo fury. S'okay, can destroy them all day long on real streets.

**AAIIIC** · 10-19-09 11:11 AM

I think the key there is the 2700# part. The course had lots of back and forth transitions, and that ~1200# weight advantage on roughly similar size tires makes a huuuuge difference. At least, that's what I tell myself.