Wife and I are taking the protege5 for its first autocross, and I have a few questions for the regular protege autocrossers.

The main question is, do the 3G proteges have a problem with fuel starvation while autocrossing? In my mirage I have to have about 1/3 of a tank of gas to keep it from sloshing so much that the fuelpump can't get it. Has anyone found the limit on these cars?

Also, I'm going to run tire pressures of 40fr and 42rr. Does that seem like a good starting point? I like a car that rotates relatively easy, I just hope that isn't too much.

 

I've run my 2000 ES on low fuel warning light without any problem, makes the car lighter you know

some people prefer to have 3/4 full tank of gas to stabilize the car so the gas doesn't slosh around too much, but since it's your first autocross in the car, it wouldn't matter anyway.

40 front and 42 rear sounds like a good start. I run 42 front/44 rear and I STILL understeer big time

probably it's due to my bad driving style

most important thing, remember to stay loose and have fun!

 

what would you recommend for tire pressure for the 3rd gens.... I've heard both ways (higher up front/higher up rear) and tried both... higher up front tend to do better for me, but there are other Protege drivers (and other FWD drivers here) that put higher on the rear and do REAL good...

maybe I should just get better tires (autoxing in stock poortenzas don't help )

 

I try to race with about half a tank.
I have had fuel starve a couple of times with my car (00 ES). Once at Turner field in Atlanta, where there was elevation changes and good sweeper.
Then at Topeka at Nationals last year- lots of grip- and steady sweepers.
I think there may be a swirl pattern to the fuel baffles and certain sweeping turns, cause problems. One of the touring car mechanics told me that they used to have the problem with that- but road racing has much more sustained G-s than Autocross.

Fortunately, the fuel tank is in front of the rear wheels and very low- so running a full or half full tank doesn't hurt the handling much.

If you are having problems with the car turning in (not nessecarily pushing- but turn-in)- dial in a little Toe-out in the front (one half turn on one side is fine). It makes a noticable difference.

PS. The Potenzas are not the best Autocross tires.

later

 

i ran my p5 with not even enough gass to get home...i live 30 miles away...and had no problem.

-Jason

 

i like to keep 3/4 to 1/2 tank for events, but i've run at a 1/4 tank and lower with no problems.....?

BTW, the pics below are a quick left - right up a hill, with the right being a bit longer, i was at 1/4 tank and maybe 40-45mph. but there were other sweepers and i never had a problem, infact got me 5th place in a tough STS class this was on a road course mapped out with some (slow you down) cones for autoxing.

 

Thanks for the response Jason. I'm going to go play with the alignment a little tonight. The camber is already set to max, but I can add a little more caster. I'll also toe-out the front tires like you suggested, although the car really doesn't have much problem with turn-in, especially compared to my other car. :-)

Luckily the Pro'5's didn't come with Potenzas that everyone complains about. It has Dunlop SP Sports on it. They seem to be pretty decent for a OEM tire.

 

40 psi is about the minimum up front to stop the stock Dunlop 5000's rolling onto the sidewall. Higher pressure in the back will definitely make it easier to rotate the car. I did most of my season this year with higher up front, and only the last two events with higher in the back and it makes a big difference... much nicer to drive. If you get too high in the back you'll notice it under braking... you can start with 40/46 and see how you like that.

I usually kept my gas tank pretty full .. didn't notice a huge difference between full and 1/4 though. Most of the events I went to required a bit of a drive as well and there wasn't always a gas station at the course.

 

with the kuhmo i have 38 front 36 rear. for warm weather, in the cold i'll drop it 1 or 2 pounds.

 

Just a reminder-
If you are going to set your alignment for autocross- make sure you set it back to zero before you go home or before you do any long distance driving. Excessive Toe out will cause some serious wear on the inside edge of your tires.


good luck!

 

I ran my wife's Protege5 with full tank and 45f/40r pressures.

Placed 3rd (during a fun run) in HS, and would have placed 4th or 5th in STS

 

i generally run 37/39 or 39/41 pressures, depends on surface.

Falken Azenis 205/50/15

 

I'm pretty sure he was talking about stock tires

 

Yep, I was talking about the stock tires.

This car is amazing at the autocrosses, even with the street tires. Getting it to do a 4 wheel drift was incredibly easy. (There were actually two sweepers, that seemed to reward this.)

I ended up getting 4th in the street class. Had it not been for that one cone that kept getting in my line..... Oh well. Now I know how I want my mirage to handle.