Text and Photography by C. Asaravala
I've been looking for
an alternative to drag racing, because the drag strips
in my area are few and far between, and getting more and
more crowded every season. So when we thought about the
direction to take out latest project car, we decided it
was time to venture into something new. We're going to
do something that requires more from a car than brute
power and the ability to head in a straight line. That
something is autocross.
Autocrossing
Autocross, or Solo II, is the SCCA (Sports Car Club of
America) term for racing against the clock on a makeshift
parking lot course marked with pylons. Each car runs individually
(hence "solo"), and the emphasis is on the combination
of driver skill and vehicle handling. More often than
not
A '93 Cobra rounds a cone
at an autocross event. |
the quickest cars through the
course are not those with the most ponies. While autocross
is looked at by many as a stepping stone to track racing,
more recently it has evolved into a bonafide race class
of its own due to its' accessibility. While racing on
the track has its' appeal and glamour the time and expense
related to maintaining a race vehicle can be a barrier
to many weekend warriors.
Autocrossing however gains its' popularity as an inexpensive
form of racing in which the competitor can use their daily
driver to simply hone driving skills or to fully compete
in regional or national standings. The risk of damaging
the vehicle is low and modifications need not be extravagant
for one to do well. Events are generally every weekend
during race season. Many clubs run at the same location,
but use different pylon arrangements to mix things up.
Check www.scca.org for your region
We'll delve more into the sport of autocrossing when we
approach our first event with this project car.
Prepping the Project Car
In 1993, a factory new Cobra would have been suitable
for autocrossing. The Ford SVT team designed the car for
street performance by giving it a retuned suspension,
four wheel disk brakes, 17" wheels, and slightly
After 10 years it is time
for the factory suspension to go. |
more horsepower than the standard
Mustang 5.0L. However ten years and 80,000 miles later
the car has inevitably lost its' "tightness".
Not only have hard parts such as tie-rods worn considerably,
but brakes and tires have well exceeded their usable life.
Rather than take a sloppy ride
through the cones, we decided to repair and replace the
major systems first. In this article we'll cover the selection
and installation of a spring, strut, and shock package.
The objective being to lower the center of gravity and
stiffen up the suspension. In part two we'll address the
brakes and tires. Finally we'll follow up with an autocross
session with our local SCCA chapter. |
 (Front
Spring and Strut Installation) |
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In
This Article:
We begin the process of transforming our '93 Cobra
project car into a true "sports car",
with commendable handling capabilities. The process
begins with lowering the cars center of gravity
using Eibach springs, and tightening up the response
with adjustable Koni shocks and struts.
Also See:
'93
SVT Cobra Unique Project Car. Unique Goals.
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The stock Cobra springs will
be replaced with Eibach's "Pro-Kit" (P/N:
3510-140) spring set. The progressive rate springs will
drop the car about 1" all the way around. |
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Koni "yellow" Sport
struts (P/N: 8740-1121) were selected due to their adjustable
dampening rate. |
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At the back-end Koni Sport shocks
(8041-1026) will offer
the same ability to fine tune the dampening as the front.
Koni red shocks (25-1215) will replace the stock Mustang
"quad shocks". |
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