What is Autocross?

• 30-70 second test of driver skill and car handling ability through a cone course (5-8 passes)

• Speeds usually do not exceed 70-85mph

• Locations include parking lots, Airport runways, and real race tracks

• Low cost of entry $55-75

• Low risk of damaging your car

• Minimal wear on your car with the exception of tires

• Must pass basic safety inspection (car has to be in good working order)

• Helmet needed (clubs usually offer loaners for free). SA2015 or newer recommended; some clubs allow M-rated.

• You must work part of the day (picking up cones etc)

• Any car will do (not taller than it is wide), but small cars usually excel (Miata, Lotus, BRZ/FRS etc) see our AUTOCROSS BUILDS PAGE HERE

Table of Contents

• Typical Autocross

• How to sign up for an Autocross

• Typical Structure of an Event

• What to Bring

• Basic Prep (Passing Inspection)

• Helmets/Safety

• Classing (SCCA)

• Walk the Track

• Ride With an Experienced Driver

• Setting Your Tire Pressure

• At the Starting Line

• Average Cost to Run A season

• Numbering Tips & Tricks

• Tire Heat Management

• Camera Setup Guides

• Insurance

• Other Types of Autocross Events

• Alignment

• First Modifications to your car

How to sign up for an Autocross

• Read through the rest of this guide first

• Most of the local clubs have moved to https://www.motorsportreg.com/

• FInd a “solo” SCCA autocross event near you and sign up.

• Cars are divided up into classes (more on that below).

• At the beginning of the event around the safety meeting event organizers will group a few classes into a “heat”

• There are typically 2-4 heats in a local event

• You WILL HAVE TO WORK one of your heats. Essentially you Work one heat, Run one heat and are Off one or more heats.

  Typical Schedule

• Check in early at gate

• Check in online or at tent/trailer/etc

• Get car ready for tech inspection (more below)

• Safety meeting

• Get Run/Work Order

• Run or Work

• Trophies

• Water/Food

• Sunscreen/umbrella

• Tire Pressure Gauge (LINK) / Tire Inflator / Chalk

• Cameras with mounts

• Car Phone Charger

• Rubber-made tub for your loose items or if it rains.

• Windex or Spray Wax for removing dust to attach camera mounts and clean windshield

• Painter's Tape that contrasts the color of your car

• (Optional) SNELL SA Approved Helmet

• (Optional) Torque Wrench - Your wheel's lug nuts must be properly torqued. Don't trust the tire shop! Many clubs require verification at tech inspection.

• Be prepared to suck. There are always folks with more money, time and skill. Set expectations for fun. The best way to get better is seat time!

Basic Prep (Passing Inspection)

• Make sure your car is in good working order ex: no leaks or loose parts. Suspension should be tight, brake pedal should be firm, and no bald tires.

• Use blue painters tape to tape off any sections that you would worry about getting hit by cones (ex: if you have a new car/show car etc)

• Use valet key or remove key-chains

• Remove excess items from vehicle. You do not want items rolling around while on the track

• Remove radar detectors

• Bring any specialized tools for your car. ex: Coil-over adjustment wrenches etc

• Remove valve stem caps

• Arrive with at least a half-tank of gas. Some cars can starve for fuel during hard turns when the tank level is lower.

Helmets

Buy the latest SNELL rating https://smf.org/home. As of October 2025. It should be SA2025 however helmets are good for ~15yrs. Some clubs allow motorcycle helmets

• Clubs usually have helmets to loan before investing in one yourself

• Consider Closed vs Open Face. Closed is usable at track days (some may allow open). Open face helmets are less hot however.

• Carbon Fiber vs Standard Materials.

  • If you can swing carbon fiber IMO its worth it. Your head has alot of momentum and being able to look lock to lock with ease vs a heavy helmet is less nauseating and you can look a smidge faster. However any gear for racing is usually better than no gear….

Beginners Guide to Classing - (SCCA RULES)

This will get you in the door and going at a local event. When you start getting more into the sport and your car starts "bending" the rules you'll have to sit down and read the painfully long and confusing rule-book. This is ESPECIALLY true at National events where tech inspection can be annoying.

MY CAR IS STOCK

• Go here and find your car! (Its the SCCA websites rule book).

• However you will likely be required to run in a novice class

MY CAR is modified

• Run in your club’s novice class first. If you are more interested in what class your car will end up in.

• SCCA Rules Page is the book. It is ONLY 421 pages!

• Anyway start in the “street” category which in the 2025 edition was around page 75 or section 13. Classes are broken up into major categories like Street but then broken out depending on car and or mods. The rules sort of compound on top as you get to more modified classes within each category.

• Read through the other categories to see where your car might fit.

WALK THE TRACK

• Walking the track is critical to knowing the course. You only get 4-8 runs so memorizing the track before hand is important

• Make sure to keep an eye on optional slaloms. Run the course through your head to see if exiting left or right is more beneficial

• Look where you would want to shift into 2nd/3rd.

• Walk it without distractions or turning around. If you need to walk it more than once. If you are in a later heat walk it again during lunch break.

Ride with an experienced driver & Have them ride with you

• Position yourself near the end of the run group when you grid your car.

• Go ride with someone that is experienced that can give you a basic rundown

• Let the grid workers know you are a novice and would like an instructor.

How to set your tire pressure

• Set your initial tire pressure (use side panel on car)

• Chalk your tires (see video below)

• Run your first run

• See where your wear marks are

• Adjust tire pressure up if wear marks are on the side wall

• Adjust tire pressure down if you are not wearing on the tread patch

• Heat build up will increase your tire pressure so monitor your readouts after each run and return tire pressure back to optimal point

AT THE STARTING LINE

WHAT TO DO

• No smokey burnouts

• Clean launch, maximize your grip, though do not bog.

• Prepare to shift early into 2nd if there is an immediate slalom. Shifting whilst mid turn could upset the balance of your car.

• At the start, point your car in the direction you need to go. As in if the first turn is to the left don't point your car strait. Get as much angle to the left as possible.

First runs

• Start slow - build up your confidence

• Don't compare your times immediately to others. Improve your own driving with feed back from instructors

• Once you build up your confidence don't be afraid to push it! Most locations are very safe and have allowances for wipe-outs.

• Fold mirrors in

• Don't look back if you think you hit a cone

AVERAGE COST TO RUN A FULL SEASON OF AUTOCROSS

• Most regions are 10-15 events with drops, so you dont have to make every event

• Most Street tires should last 2 seasons even aggressive sets like RE71R Bridgestones

• 10 events @ $65 = $650

• 1/2 set of tires: $500

• 1 hour drive each way to location: $30 gas = $300

• Basic Gear: $50

• Alignment: $90

• TOTAL COST: $1,590

TIps & Tricks to numbering your Autocross car

• Generally pick a number less than 199

• Pick a reversible number thats easy to distinguish. eg. 81

• individual Magnetic numbers are best for autocross but can come off at HPDE

• Magnetic Placards are easiest but wont work with co-drivers

Tire HEAT MANAGEMENT

• Generally Hotter tires grip better.

• During cold days the best thing to have is a co-driver

• A set of RCX Tire Blankets will work great too. These can be homemade out of insulation as well. Check out our video.
  
  
  

Camera sETUP GUIDES

Camera Placement

• Inside car between front seats

  • Lets you see the environment and your driving input. See video below on light balancing though as that can be a problem. (Set an ISO bracket)

  • This is the most recommended starting point for camera placement. Until you get really good human factors (hand placement, seat position, where you are looking etc) are the most important thing initially, Later on you can focus on getting closer to cones and such for autocross. For track inside placement is best regardless. As it is safer and less drag.

• Outside Car Driver-side

  • Lets you see driver input and how close you are hitting apexes. Cant see right side however.

Insurance

• Insurance usually does not cover incidents at Autocross

  • We have been autocrossing for 13 years or about 100 events and have seen 1 totaled car and about 10 damaged.

  • You can buy Autocross policies through Hagerty or Lockton, we use Lockton. It was $500 for unlimited events for a $61k Tesla in 2022.

Other Types of Autocross events

• PRO-SOLO

  • Autocross with a dual 2 car mirrored course. Drag Racing starts with tree.

  • Be sure to bring a pit helper as you cannot get out of the car for first set of runs to adjust tire pressure

• National Event Style

  • Same similar rules however fewer runs and stricter overall on those rules

  • more to come here….

ALIGNMENT

Below is a general idea of where to go with you cars alignment. But be warned every car is different. A good place to start is to find someone with your car that already competes regularly and ask them about their alignment.

Camber

“The inward or outward angle of the wheels”

• Front Wheels generally like lots of negative camber.

• “Street” Camber is generally less than -1 with race anywhere up to -3.5 or so. Race Camber will wear out your tires quickly. We suggest a set of adjustable camber plates that you can adjust at the track if you dont tow your car. This lets you set race camber at the track and then return it to street for the drive home.

CASTER

“How forward or backward your tires are relative to its center balance point”

• Factor Caster settings are usually crossed so cars have a slight drift to the right in case a driver falls alseep.

• Race Caster is usually positive. E.G on Axstang we run 7.2 degrees forward Caster

TOE

“How much your wheels are facing outward or inward or perfectly PARALLEL while looking directly at the car from the front”

• Toe out allows for greater slip angle but will also wear your tires quickly on the street. Lots of toe out is great for autocross but can have mixed results on track. It is not really safe to run on the street. If you tow your car you can run a race style toe alignment for autocross.

First modifications to your car

• Seat time is obviously everything to getting better however there are a few things you can do to help with that

• Dedicated set of autocross Tires.

  • A set of 200tw “street” tires that you can swap to the day before the event will help with consistency and be more competitive as this is mostly what everyone runs. 200tw is considered the lowest treadwear for street tires. These are usually called Extreme Summer Performance Tires

• Bushings or Suspension Mods

  • Stock car suspension is usually very cushy for comfort, even in sports cars. Pressing out stock rubber suspension bushings for poly or spherical bushings can make a massive improvement without spending a ton.

  • Coilovers wont always make you faster but will make it easier to be consistent

• Beyond those mods everything else will be diminishing returns. However the point is to have fun so if you like modifying cars and thats what you enjoy just know it might not make the difference but it sure will be fun.

OLDER DIY VIDEOS BUT STILL RELEVANT!

MORE TO COME

Tell us what you would like to see

SpectroRacingChannel@gmail.com