Friend's GT, may consider AutoX

[Raziel]

Hey,

My friend just bought a new (to him) Celica GT 5spd. He's considering doing AutoX, so wants to play around with his car.

I realize mods will put him in a higher bracket, but are there certain mods that he can do without putting him above stock?

Braking is very important, so I think we'll start with metal braided brake lines and new pads. Also tires, any Goodyear tires that are recommended? I have a friend that can get them for cheap.

Shocks, struts, springs.

Swaybars, Short throw shift kits.

Possibly throw in a homebrew CAI for fun?

Anyone have suggestions? What to buy, in what order to buy them? Keeping costs low would be a plus, this isn't a hardcore hobby, just something to do for fun. But we'll definitely stay away from the cheap eBay stuff.

Thanks

[OneShotUno]

The car does not need much at all. You can have alot of fun stock. If you want more, some good summer tires would be great. All the autocrossers that run in stock class pretty much just run Koni's and R compound rubber. Cat-back exhausts are also common. You don't need to bother with anything other than OEM pads and brake system for autocrosses. If he wants to do more than that for his own pleasure, thats his choise.

[slidr]

http://www.scca.com/Solo/Index.asp?IdS=0158D0-E02C520&x=050|070&~=

[Raziel]

OneShotUno: Thanks for the advice! How's your car setup? He's considering putting on some nice rubber for summer on his stock rims then putting winters on steelies. Or maybe just keep stock for winter and get some nice rims. But that's really expensive.

I'm a n00b so I don't know what to do. I shall look into Koni shocks with everything else stock? Will that be beneficial? Or just a waste of money...

slidr: Thanks! I was looking for that!

In Canada we have Solo1 and Solo2. Do you have this in the states? Time Trials like in F1 qualifying is Solo1. And yellow cones in a parking lot is Solo2. I think he'll be more interested in Solo1 but I'm not exactly sure.

Thanks!

[TaeMachine]

Do you guys follow SCCA rules like some Canadian regions? I would suggest you read the rules first and modify according to that. You don't want to put your car in a class that will make in uncompetitive.

http://www.solo2ontario.com/info/rules.php

[OneShotUno]

If you are still new to it, and the stock struts are in good condition, keep it as is before you start investing money.
I run in street touring with the following setup
The basic breathers
- Injen Short Ram
- Hotshot Header
- Rod Millen Exhaust
Supension
- Tanabe Sustec coilovers w/ upper pillowball mounts
- Hotchkis Competition anti-roll bars
- Energy Suspension front control arm bushings
- Hypermotive front strut brace
- Hypermotive 2-pt rear strut bar
And 17's with Kumho Ecsta MX 215/40/R17 tires

I started modding the car before I started autocrossing, but with what I know now, I wish I would've kept the car stock and autocrossed like that. I'm thinking that maybe one day, getting that smooth ride back and going back to stock with koni's and race rubber on the autocross days.