General Seicento finally puts in a respectable performance

[Metalguru3]

Hi there and happy new year,

Did my last autotest at Curborough sprint course on 28th december on Cannock and district car clubs "stuff the turkey" autotest
What a great event- really well organised and run by their one man army Mr Will Barnes and his band of volunteers.
Had a respectable 6th in class 20th overall of 43 entrants with the lowest powered car there.
My 15 year old daughter competed again and is getting better and more confident - only 4 seconds behind me on one of the tests
The little Sei performed flawlessly but i think ive got as far as i can go with it, so I'm thinking about replacing it with a Micra
I'll probably do a few more in it as it's so much fun but the ugly competitive monster is now firmly sitting on my shoulder.
it would be nice to see a few more Fiats out this year, ill keep you posted as often as i can when events are on

 

[purf]

Re: see eicejto finally puts in a respectable performance

Sounds good. Are you able to modify and lighten your car for the events?

 

[Metalguru3]

Hi purf
mine is bog standard except for a set of 175/50 x13 Yokohama A539's on cinquecento alloys

You can modify but its really limited whats acceptable, lowering the suspension and fitting polybushes is fine but engine swaps get you in the modified class with rally cars etc

You can only use group 1A tyres from the MSA list so it keeps the competition pretty tight

Its all about what you can make your car do at relatively low speeds (3rd gear is only rarely used) and its not all about outright horsepower, the best drivers have amazing car control and theres 1 or 2 who would probably still do well in a Trabant

Great fun if ever you fancy a go and ive never had any more damage than a red scuff off a cone

 

[Pirus]

You can modify but its really limited whats acceptable, lowering the suspension and fitting polybushes is fine but engine swaps get you in the modified class with rally cars etc

I thought engine swaps would get you into the sports libre class, due to the engine not being one that was manufacturer fitted. Then you must comply with regulations S13 & S14 of the blue book. Which i believe includes the usual safety stuff - rollcage, extinguishers, exterior cutoff switch etc.
Though I dont have the blue book with me at the moment. The lower bracket for the Sports Libre class is upto 1700cc. A cento wouldnt be competitive would be good fun though.
I thought craig competed at Curburough a few times?

First I should really have a running car before I start looking at more ways to spend money at the weekends

 

[Metalguru3]

not really fully sure myself but those classes might be related to sprint cars
From what ive seen production car autotest classes are are bit less regimented as by definition they are aimed at production car drivers. You are more than welcome to bring your well modded rally car but there is a lad in a standard micra who normally beats everyone as he is unbelievably talented !
When you get it running come and have a go.
entry fees are typically £25, or if you ever fancy sitting in for a couple of tests as a passenger for me to see what its all about and more importantly - how not to do it (!!) Feel free to ask.

 

[purf]

I'm getting tempted to do an autotest. Curborough is about 3 hrs away from me. Is it easy to get lost in all the cones? ?

You just turn up with mot, licence, 25 quid and away you go?

Do you have front strut braces fitted? I think that would help a lot. When I had just a top one on my old Cinq it was a great improvement on roundabouts and tight bends ☺

 

[Todger182]

That's very interesting. Would be interesting to see what they would allow chalky to be run in.

Thanks

X

 

[Pirus]

Ignore my previous post, I was looking at the Curborough Sprint Championship which is a 'professional' series (i.e. must conform more of the MSA regs).
I even dusted out my blue book to flick through any specific regs for anyone with questions.

Would be interesting to see what they would allow chalky to be run in.

Someone needs some better Googling techniques

The Cannock and District Car Club - as the OP stated this is who the event was run by.
The Stuff the Turkey Event Regs - outlines of classes, required safety equipment etc.

Classes
A. Standard FWD Cars upto 1400cc
B. Standard FWD Cars >1401cc
C. Modified FWD Cars i.e not standard = road rally / Autotest cars
D. Standard Front Engined RWD Cars
E. Turbo Powered Cars / 4WD cars / Modified RWD.
E. And all cars fitted with Torque Biasing Diffs. ALSO Stage Rally cars. Sprint Cars.


MSA Regulations
All general MSA Regulations apply - I'm not to copy out anything from the blue book but it's the definitions of organises, clerk of the course, penalities and infractions etc etc.

Event Specific Regs
All cars must carry a passenger
Exhausts and noise J5.17 [This is basically that all cars must have a form of silcener in the exhaust system]
100db @ 0.5m or 88db @ 2.0m
Vehicles must have valid MOT and Tax


One of my favourite bits in 'Things you must do before you arrive'
Check your car battery is secure..... zip ties count right?

Todger182 I would of thought that Chalky would count as Modified FWD as she wouldn't have a log book and is road regal, where as a sprint car would be unlikely to be.


For those also that live in the Midlands area another few local clubs to look at are those under Merica Motor Sports
I was looking at joining the Rugby Motor Club - They do grass auto tests and 12 car navigation rallies.

Though equally for any grass roots motorsport check out the lists of motor clubs in the entire area.
West Midlands
East Midlands

 

[Metalguru3]

7Hi
If you want to have a go you need to join a club first. Most events i do ran by either owen or cannock invite several other clubs to their events
you will find out then what events are coming up via either a monthly publication or their website (have a look on their websites to see what i mean - you can also see some pics of me and my daughter in the sei in their photo galleries)
You fill in an entry form, pay up then its just a case of turning up on the day and having a great time
Scrutineering is very basic, unlike rallies or sprints, and the official is really checking you car is roadworthy and there is nothing loose (including the battery LOL) - i suspect cable ties would not comply, it would be better if the standard battery clamps work properly. You also need to highlight the earth lead to the battery in yellow tape.
Everyone involved in the sport is very friendly and encouraging - nobody will take the mick if you struggle a bit so dont worry about that
You might get lost on a couple of tests on your first go but its rare and they are laid out so you can easily find your way round with gates laid out in lettered order
ill try and download a video of a recent event ive done so have a look at the layout rather than the bad driving!!

 

[Pirus]

7i suspect cable ties would not comply, it would be better if the standard battery clamps work properly.

Cable ties would do fine im sure, i mean what's the worst that could happen?

I've been meaning to go to Curborough for the last few years, maybe I'll actually get there this year, then again maybe i'll have a running car

 

[Metalguru3]

Easter bunny autotest is 27th march i think
if i do it youre more than welcome to sit in on a test
will only cost you a quid for 1 day club membership
hopefully wont end up like the photos (ouch!)