I just got my S about 2 weeks ago.. i now have about 1k miles on it.. do any of you see any harm in autocrossing the car with such low miles?
Thanks
=-Chris

 

Nope. It will be fine. Have fun.

 

Just make sure you put on a coat of polymer sealant (Zaino, Klasse) or some carnuba wax before you go autocrossing. This will help in removing any cone rubs or scuff marks.

 

Just out of curiousity as the weather might be really crappy saturday (autox is on sun.).. if the car is not waxed.. can the cones permanently damage the paint or anything else for that matter? (This will be my first time auto xing)
Thanks
-Chris

 

You won't do any significant damage to the paint or to anything else by autocrossing. The worst damage I've had is some light surface scratches in the front bumper that were removed by using a mild abrasive and some wax.

When you autocross, you may also pick up some black marks from the cones along the side of your car on the lower panels. The wax just makes this cleaning a little easier.

Have fun out there! An autocross is a great place to learn car control skills.

 

One other suggestion: Make sure your oil is topped off. The S2000 tends to use more oil than normal during the first few thousand miles of life. And low oil plus autocross corners can lead to oil starvation. BTW, you may want to check out threads on the "break in oil" that Honda recommends you use prior to the first oil change.

Oh, and don't forget to make sure the engine is warm before you run...3 bars on the temp gauge.

Have fun!!

 

Sounds like you're ready to start having fun with the car .

In addition to the wax/polish suggestion, I also recommend that you make sure that the car is warmed up properly before doing your runs. there's a lot of sitting around at autocrosses, and you want to make sure that the life-blood of your car is circulating feely. Plus, if you have less than 3 bars on the coolant temp guage, you won't be able to engage VTEC - wouldn't that be embarrassing .

There's a lot of helpful information about autocrossing in the Racing and Competition forum - check it out: https://www.s2ki.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?forumid=11

 

If the track you are going to is dirty or have lots of little rocks I would suggest using masking tape to tape the lower part of your car before the race. This will minimize scratches.

Gas capacity is also important it is best to have 1/3 of a tank or less. Never 1/2 as it produces too much splashing. Either go with a full tank or 1/3 of a tank - 1/2 is the worse.

 

Chris,

I autoXed my S2000 last year with 650 miles on it (You will note that I waited until the magic "600" was reached ). AFAICT, everything was fine. I would second all of the other comments you've received to your inquiry, especially the ones about letting the engine reach normal operating temperatures and checking the oil level religiously. Both help assure that plenty of oil is getting to the right surfaces.

I would also recommend dropping the clutch at over 5500 rpms (if using stock tires in cooler temps) at the start of a run. It should be far less damaging to the driveline to spin the tires a bit than to have the driveline absorb all of that punishment. Hopefully, the tires will have full grip before you hit the "start light." This type of start, of course, depends on the course layout. With some courses, there may be an immediate hairpin turn before the start timing box and, therefore, no need for a jackrabbit start.

One more thing, check the forums for other related threads. There are many great sources of information out there and many of us who have some experience with our S2000s on the autoX circuit.

Just a one-year veteran

 

heheh....you should hot warn people about the "brick wall"...everyone should find out that one on their own!~!!!