[sortadelux]

So I finally have the car and the opprunity to give autox a go. I just picked up a completly stock '96Celica GT. It looks like it will fall into GS and I have looked quickly through the rules but have a few questions. First is struts. My rears are failing (starting to knock) but fronts are fine. The car has 120k on it now and I assume the struts are original. I planned on replacing the rears with kyb gr2's, but do I need to replace all four? Will replacing only the rears result in some odd handling? Second I see that I need to keep the OE wheel width and diameter but can I increase the tire's section width? The car has 205/55/15's now and I will be picking up a set for summer/autox (suggestions welcomed) and was thinking about a 215/50/15. Allowable?

TIA:beer:

 

[vested74]

No one to help here?

I'm not familiar with the Celica, so I will try to answer in general terms.

I would replace the front struts as well as the rear. Aged (120k mis.) front struts will definitely be a weak spot, especially under hard braking. Also, the front suspension is a MacPherson strut type. The strut actually links the the upper front suspension pivot points. Worn front struts & bushings can contribute to erratic camber/caster settings leading to undesirable tire wear.

Either Celica GT OEM rim, 6.5X15, or 7.0x15, is approved for the tire sizes you mention. The 215/50 tire is about 5mm shorter than the 205/55 tire so it will effect (sp) your final gearing.

Hope you find this helpful. Have fun and good luck. Autocross is a blast!

 

[sortadelux]

Thanks for the feed back. I'll plan on replacing all four struts and am looking at an RSB as it looks like an can add one. As for tires, this car is already turning at 3k rpm at 65mph so I am not interested in shortening the gearing any more.

 

[Roadkilled78]

As already said, you can increase the tire section width, you can use anything that you can cram on the allowable rim for that matter.

If you're buying tires for summer/autocross, go for the 215 as vested74 mentioned. It's only going to increase your rpm at 65mph by about 50 or 60. Personally I would consider that worth it for an extra 10mm of width at every corner. Drive 64mph on the highway instead of 65

 

[StealthVR6GTI]

Pick your class before you start setting up

Take a look thru the rules again as well as how much you plan to budget to go racing. You would most likely be much happier starting out in one of the streetvtire classes like street touring. To do anything in the stock classes you need to bring full race tires and a second set of wheels. The street class are generally pretty mod friendly and much easier to come out and learn the craft.
Hope that helps

 

[sortadelux]

Oh, Thanks! I must have mixed up my classes. I know that the stock st202 is pretty under powered and since this is my first season, I planned on keeping the suspension truly stock as I don't plan on making any changes to add power either. I'm doing struts this month because they need to be done but will be keeping stock springs on it for now as well. My budget is $used helmet, $gas, $maybe tires, $entrance fee's. Thats it