anyone autocross their RS6?

[kismetcapitan]

for SCCA Solo II, Audis tend not to be the weapon of choice. But when I was in high school, it was my first experience driving a car in anger, well, legally. I remember not really knowing how to race, I hit plenty of cones, and that ur-quattro just loved to understeer with my ham-fisted steering and going into every corner way too hot.

last friday I got clocked by a cop - 96 in a 55, and I saw him and was hard on the brakes before he pulled the trigger. I have realized that I need an outlet for the car - 55mph is a crawl in these things, and commuting home at 120mph in an RS6, well, if this were Germany, it'd just be a sedate cruise.

So I've decided to enter an autocross this weekend. The track is a NASCAR-type short track with a sort of "outfield" with a chicane. Should be interesting, and I'm hoping that I can put down some power to make up for handling deficits.

I'll be racing in E Street Prepared; the competition locally is only one other driver, in a Mazda 6. On paper I should beat him, but in Solo II it's about not hitting them damned cones and my new suspension will truly be put to the test.

It's been two decades, but I do remember the fundamentals of autocross. I'll be running with about 5 gallons of gas in the tank plus spike it with some xylene (I prefer toluene, but you can't really get it in the States without the cops knocking on your door looking for a meth lab!). Adjusting tire pressures, etc, all those tricks too.

Only question on my mind is whether to run with ESP or not. My thoughts on that is with ESP off, the car is running with completely open differentials, if I understand the system correctly. Will ESP exacerbate understeer, will it help, or will I fry my brake pads?

[Jimmy]

I have auto-xed my RS6 before, and have been auto-xing since 1995....you should be fine. I've honestly never seen brake pads go bad at any of the 70+ I've been in , even at the Solo Nationals with their high(er) speed courses. Not sure brakes are even required use in an auto-x; stay in second and use the motor to slow you down for the next turn...perhaps only a quick stab on the brakes if its a tight 90 degree turn. Driving styles will vary.

But....you might be a God if you do blow thru pads during a less than a minute auto-x !

I do not turn off the ESP...spinning tires gets you no where on an auto-x....tho it might be hard to spin all 4 tires on an Audi with quattro. As you know, its not about your car's power in an auto-x , its all about the driver skill and the smooth transitions.

E-prepared? Is that because your car is lowered? EP is usually a tough class where-ever you race in SCCA Solos....lucky for you there is only one other car this time to beat (or be beaten by). I'm sure I speak for everyone here when I say ' Good luck' !!

[kismetcapitan]

I'm pretty excited to run; thanks for the advice on the ESP and using engine braking - that should keep things smooth and the car settled.

yep, with Konis and H&R springs that would put me in street prepared. I just need to resist the urge to hit the gas too hard - once the boost comes in, the next set of cones will be on top of me, then hitting the brakes will unsettle the car and then I'll probably plow into a cone or three :P

[ThrillHouse]

I'm looking forward to seeing/hearing the results. My friends got the autoX bug pretty bad and really wanted me to autoX the GTI (lease) I had prior to the RS6. Do what you can to get some video/GoPro footage!

[MaxRS6]

Good luck and take no prisoners. They ain't worth feedin....;0

[Bigglezworth]

Make sure you have top quality DOT4 (DOT5 is better) brake fluid in the lines or you stand the chance of boiling your brakes...

[Justin9212]

I have not auto-x'ed in many many years. I auto-x'ed up until the first time I did a track day event. Now I could not imagine even wasting my time at auto-x. Find a track around you, and never look back. My .02

[ben916]

video or it didn't happen.... good luck!!!!

[kismetcapitan]

Nashville Superspeedway ran track days up until last fall, and is now closed indefinitely. Interesting infield section, then a blast around the NASCAR bank. Hopefully the ownership thing gets sorted out and reopens for track days. But you are absolutely right. With access to a proper track, I wouldn't bother with cones. God forbid I end up with a Miata with $20K in suspension mods.

Nashville SCCA alternates between a parking lot and a smaller speedway - the latter should be more interesting. They also run a shifter kart class. Going 100mph in one of those things has to be one of the most terrifying things I've ever done.

[kismetcapitan]

this is the course for this saturday. not the biggest track, but looks like I might be able to take advantage of RS6 power!
http://youtu.be/OF15Ot7uXG8

[Jimmy]

That is a cool little course. The RS6s power would be useless in a parking lot setting.

Our local SCCA auto-x is an abandoned airfield...lotsa high speed Solo 1 type courses thrown in the mix along with the slower, tighter courses for the littler cars...

[dab]

Autocrossed a couple of different times, the only thing that i did was raise the tire pressure ran with both esc on and off. I don't like that it esc will bog you down when turned on looking for power. It is a pig of a car pushes soo hard on the front end, don't worry about your brake fluid and don't expect to win. Have fun.

[kismetcapitan]

it was a great first experience. I forgot to set up a camera; will do that next time. There is only one other car running in my class; a tuned Mazdaspeed 6. I rode with him on his first runs; I think the automatic makes for smoother transitions, and I did a lot of coasting before corners instead of braking. ESP off.

Understeer is the limiting factor; I am tempted to switch my front roll bar back to stock for the next time. Fiddling with tire pressures helps a lot. I may also try running with the spare tire to help with weight distribution; on such a small course, I have more than enough power.

There was an E63 AMG running. He was very, very slow. Fastest by far were the 125cc shifter karts. I am unquestionably going to buy one in the near future - those buzzy little things do 0-60 in a little over 3 seconds, and top out well over 100mph!

[Jimmy]

Sounds like good times !

I'm curious tho to why they have you with theTT V8 in the same class as that Mazda(I assume he doesn't have a TT V8) How much quicker (or slower) were you than him?

Them shifter karts are the bomb...beware, you'll be so sore after a day of racing in one, it's like going into the gym after 10 years away and doing a full 4-hour workout with weights. Check out http://www.endurancekarting.com/ Lotsa fun !

Funny on the E63 being slow; it should be really fast with a good driver. I just drove a slew of the new twin-turbo E63s at the AMG Driving Academy. They are wicked fast cars right out of the showroom.

Any pix? Even just the cars in the pits?

[kismetcapitan]

we were within half a second - he's chipped to about 350bhp I'm guessing, and the car is 3400lbs, so it's damned quick. There is no listed class for the RS6, so it fell into E class, which covers "sedans over 3.0 liters".

The track, as all autocross tracks are, are full of 25-30mph hairpin turns. That E63 was one of the first ones, so no supercharger, and it just looked like a limo out on the course.

Corvettes are the best to watch. If the driver is very talented, they can top the timing charts. But usually, they do these dramatic tail slides and take out a swath of cones :)

I totally blanked on pics, etc. I'll be sure to get some next time!

btw, I am having a REALLY hard time finding a shifter kart. I'd have guessed there'd be a shop in every major city...not the case? I've found just a few online retailers, and it appears that people buy various parts and assemble their own brew?

[kismetcapitan]

well, after a few events in Nashville and Huntsville, I'm about ready to throw in the towel. It's doable in this car, but it requires a lot more skill than getting good times in a Miata or Elise. I've only run against two other cars in my class; the aforementioned Mazdaspeed 6, and a Roush Stage 3 Mustang. The Mazda driver is really good and would be good in just about anything. I got closer to the Mustang's performance, but it was just frustrating to watch - while for me it was all about managing and strugging with understeer (sometimes the ESP would really bind up a wheel), whenever the Mustang needed help rotating, he'd just blip the throttle and the rear would swing into place. Damn.

I ordered a GoPro but it's backordered. Should have just bought one at the store, but with Amex points it was free. Argh.

I'm sort of torn between trying to get better; if one can hustle an RS6 through a tight autocross course, it does develop a certain skill. But I'm not sure how much that would translate to the track. There's one type of event I've yet to try though, and the RS6 might shine a bit more here - SCCA Rallycross. Basically running autocross, but in a field. Maybe the quattro system will shine there?

[kday]

Just buy a Miata, dude. Use the right tool for the job.