not really, I haven't seen any competitive one, regional or national.
if u want to compare it to 350z, which in A-stock class per SCCA rule, that A-stock class is dominated by Rx8, clear shown which car is the winning formula.

G35 coupe will be compete in F-stock class, which is full of Shelby Mustang and Camaros.....

I guess autoX usually benefit shorter wheelbase and lighter car.
You probably have more fun and learn more if you take a lighter car.

 

The 350Z and RX8 are in B stock not A stock.

I think the G35 would be very competitive in F stock; however, there is very little national level data to support or refute this.

Picks of 275/40R17 on 17x10 are on my website.

 

you are right, my mistake. B-stock.
A stock is flocked by those S2000 guys (which I enjoyed defeating them in RAW time, even from competing in touring class, on street tires)

 

1) Choose the class you want to compete in, unless you have extensive existing existing mods you cannot do without. Honestly I think the car is most competitive in Stock, because the typical bolt-on mods do not add enough advantage to be competitive in upper classes. A local took his to nats 2 years ago from CT.

2) 275 width rear street tires will kick you all the way out of Street Touring Classes, i.e. STS, STX, STU. STU does not allow G35 Coupes - "Coupes/Sedans - 4 seats minimum except sports car-based"

3) If you're already up-class, then it's too late and you're probably already in a SP class of some sort. Unless you're prepared to shell out for competition tires and separate wheels, or you'll be at a disadvantage to those who do, possibly up to 1-2 seconds on a 30-60 second run.

18's would then be my choice, or possibly a 19 ONLY if it was light like the NISMO LMGT4's, ~21 lbs per wheel. That same wheel in an 18" is about 3 lbs less per corner. They're not cheap, but some dealers sell through eBay. I picked up my 19's brand new in factory boxes for $1200, set of 4 - about 50% off MSRP.

Rim width for the 19's is 8.5"F, 9.5" rear - you end up with the same with as the 18's, 245F/275R, but a lower profile (245/35/19, 275/35/19).

Downsize the wheels up to 5% below stock if you want an effective higher gear ratio, but that's tricky with our cars.

 

SM or Stock IMHO is the sweet spot for the car. As you point out, the large amount of power isn't always a plus. The middle SP class puts your car up against more hp, higher torque Mustangs and such, and you cannot really do anything significant to the motor.

Problem with the G is it takes very few mods to kick it from stock to SP, and once in SP you'd better have comp rubber, and everything allowed for the car in that class. "Sports-Car based Coupes and Sedans" with 3.5 liters NA cannot run STU, and the motor/tire puts it right of of STS/STX.

The specific stock class seems to be a moving target. Several years ago it was under classed, in 2008 it's F Stock, but in 2007 I ran events and it was classed G-stock, go figure.

Classing is a real game - I have a '91 SE-R in DSP where it has 200 stock hp Civic Si's for company, really not fair. There's a SCAA rule change proposal for 2009 to drop all the 91-94 SE-R's to FSP from DSP. I don't care that much since I still can finish top 3 in local DSP, it's just winning that's hard - I'm usually down 0.7-1.0 seconds on first.

The car can be competitive, you need to focus on the class. And btw I killed both stock RX-8's I ran up against, so don't forget its the DRIVER not just the car!

My only other beef with both the G and Z is visibility - the driver position and low helmet clearance if you have a sunroof (I'm only 5'10") plus the large pillars and fender line can make cones disappear if you're not focused far enough ahead. I kill my G's times with my SE-R, albeit with highly modified suspension, 2400 lbs, but also spotting 100 whp.

In any case, the 275R/245F seems to be a really good width for getting the handling out of the car.

AutoX always comes down to a) pick your class, b) then pick your car. If you do it in reverse order, it's a compromise, plan on having fun but not on placing well.

 

+1, F Stock is a good place for the car. My only bitch is the sways are a little loose for my taste and taming the body roll with Hotchkis and Powergrid end-links is by far the best upgrade I've done with the car after the much lighter NISMO Rays.

and my mistake above, in 2007 I was stuck twice in BS (not GS) because the G35 Coupe and 350Z were "same-classed" at some events. Mostly people just didn't know. Worse, I got thrown in with AS in a combined class due to not enough BS in attendance, with AS Evo's, STi's, Vette's etc. when I was running my Michies at the end of the wear bars, the rear end was a complete handful Finished a distant 4 seconds off the pace from first.

What effective diameter change did you end up with using 17's, if any. I didn't see the profile listed. I used 17's on the track with my 350z for weight and slightly smaller diameter, effectively changing the gear ratios for more rpm at a given speed.

The G35 2004 MY that did well in the NE a few years ago ran 275's all around on 18 stock rims, the 7.5"/8.5" staggered set. Cannot imagine how much fun it was mounting those tires.

I don't AutoX my G anymore except as a backup; I use my SE-R exclusively unless it's broken for some reason (e.g. just snapped something around the clutch fork inside the trans), then I'll either double up with my friend's STi, a freakin' handful with 350hp/380ft-lbs, or use my old 1995 Altima with the usual bolt-ons, Calum Realtime ECU, and run STS on Kuhmo MX's.

It all works, seat time is the most important thing to keep in mind. That, and I'm pulling the fuse for the wipers

 

profile was 40.

 

I think that breaks down a little taller than the stock rear wheel/tire, so that's a slightly higher effective gear ratio, but having 275 rubber on all 4 corners, that's some footprint.

rear:
Stock 245/45-18 c= 1871 mm, d=595 mm incl tire
17's 275/40-17 c=1905 mm, d=606 mm incl tire

so only about 2% larger for a much wider tire, hardly noticeable. Seems like the range of rpm/speed in 2nd gear is pretty good even with my DE's rev limit for

What kind of wheel did you find in a 17x10? Any clearance issues up front? My 245/35/19's are right near the fender, but they have OEM-compatible offset of the NISMO LMGT4's.

There's no point running in a SP class (mods force that for my G) w/o comp tires and my Goodyear F1's are 280's, a balance between stick and wear more on the wear side. Fine for road use and pretty decent wet traction, too.

Thanks for the answers in advance, trying to come up with a good combo for a second set of wheels. My last outing with this car was a very squirrelly affair despite good weather and PS2's.

 

I always thought that the G35 Coupes would be eligible for STX and STU, especially since it's in FS and competes with the Mustangs and Camaros (which also happen to be eligible for STX and STU).

The "sports car based" terminology seems a bit nebulous to me. Does that mean the G35 sedan is also excluded from STX because it shares the similar suspension, engine, and chassis to the Coupe? One could argue that the G is an entirely different model than the 350Z.

That said, with 245 tires and 8 inch wide rims, I don't see the G being that competitive vs the WRX's in STX or the STi's and Evos in STU.

 

Yeah, like a lot rules that's a vague one. In any case my 275 rears kick me out of all those classes.

As far as trying to distance the G Coupe from being a "sports-car based coupe" that's a tough sell given sharing the FM platform, engine, nearly identical suspension (in my case swap rear springs, beef up the sways, it is the same as the '04 Z), same track, steering, it's a long list. In 2004 the G was all of 3410 lbs vs. 3100 lbs approximately, it starts to be a tough sell.

At least at that point, the sedan was down on power a small amount, did not get suspension nearly as close the Coupe 6MT's to the Z, and most of all, I believe the rule states "Sports-car based Coupes". I've owned a 2003 350z and a 2004 G Coupe, and my G gives up nothing to my old Z in terms of performance for AutoX stock, and with its upgrades, it's better.

I don't see STi's and/or Evo's in STX/STU, usually they're either A-stock, or have power-related mods and run Modified. WRX, yes, which I see as one of the most absurd classing faux pas, allowing an AWD FI EJ20 powered car which can be chipped to well over 200 hp w/o much effort at all to be slapped in the same class as F/F drivers with 150-170 hp. That's just stupid.

In 2004 and 2005 Pro Solo was won by Josh Sorter with Progress suspension (see Team Progress) and Solo 2005 National Championship. Go look at his list of mods and you really have to ask "HOW?" was that classed STX? Kudos to Josh, really great driving, but he also worked the rules to max advantage.

 

5zigen FN01R-C's (17x10/+25). No modifications to the wheel wells were necessary for fitment. Pics are on my website.

 

Thanks Bala, lots of good info on your site. I found the progression really interesting and very familiar w/re to driving and finding your groove. Wheels and tires are a huge part of it, but I think street driving the G Coupe tends to build habits of "fast in, fast as I can manage out" on backroads, late braking, and some other habits really not helpful for AutoX.

I ran 5 runs at out local event Sunday, first time out with the G since last September, my other car's still down. Took one run to remind me how not to drive, then knocked 2.0-2.5 seconds off every subsequent run, on a ~55-60 second course with multiple loops and tight turns. Most of that was by using the accelerator more effectively in open sections, giving up some speed into combination where I needed to be set up for best possible speed out to do well.

Off topic, so I'll have to kick in one topic - you mentioned on your site "I'm tempted to take it out to an autocross sometime and see how well they do." Given the RE050 is stickier than my Goodyear F1's, I'd have to say not bad at all. Mine at the same sizes on the NISMO (8.5"F, 9.5"R) 19's, and they did not disappoint. I have the full F/R Hotchkiss sways (set on most stiff -1 F/R) with Power Grid adjustable end-links, so the tires stayed planted well. Stock springs meant more body movement than I would have liked on more extreme turns.

Got my butt kicked in class to the tune of 5 seconds (!) by a Mustang GT with 315 Hoosiers all-around and some nice mods, but so did everyone else. I knew I was racing for second at best in ESP with stock springs and dampers, nearly stock power. With your tire setup I may have been able to pull back another 2 seconds or so, but that ain't 5 seconds.

As is was, I missed 3rd by 0.012 seconds, oh well.

SO - best tires/wheels for autocross for the G Coupe?

1) NOT the ones the car came with. Not the wheels the car comes with either, even if you have the OEM 19's - too narrow. OEM PS/2's don't have the traction or the width to run fast easily.
2) ~9" front, ~10" rear, large enough for at least a 275, up to 315 would be even better, and it would fit at least in an 18" both around the brakes and in the wheel wells - they fit. 17's preferred (or 18") for lightness, 21 lbs or less.
3) If you're doing street tires, bump up to the 245/35/19F 275/35/19 R.

 

I see alot of STIs and EVOs in STU, personally.

As to a modded WRX ... well, yeah, I think there is a problem there with any FI car. Its just SO easy for them to pump up power over the NA cars. Stock vs stock, I do well against the WRXs I've run into. If I make the jump to STX the WRX can push over 300hp, like you are indicating, without much effort and still be several hundred pounds lighter than me.

To put it in perspective, stock WRX is roughtly 14lbs/1hp and my G35x is about 14.25. So very close. Modded, the WRX can hit 11lbs/1hp, while my G ain't gonna do better than ~13 without spending BIG bucks and going FI.

By the way, this past weekend I came within 1 sec of the Mazdaspeed3 that always dominates DS at the events I attend. I'm pretty proud of that given my summer tires and 500lb disadvantage. The other driver believes I would have easily defeated him if I was using R compounds like him. So, yeah, I think the G can do pretty well. Even if not, it is a HELLUVA lotta fun!

 

I'm running my G35 Coupe in FS in the San Francisco SCCA region. I am very competitive against the mustangs and the shelby mustangs. In fact, I should take the championship this year. I ran in the first event of the California divisional series, and took 2nd not too far behind the 1st. This is my first year so in later events I've closed the gap to her to within 4 hundredths of a second.

Right now I just use 18" oem wheels on Hooser A6 245/35-18's. The tires lasted essentially 18 events. I will probably get the Kumho Escta 710's next season since they last longer and I plan on getting the front sway bar.

From talking to people around, the G35 Coupe should be pretty competitive. I really think its just a case of them not been developed enough on a national level. I think they can be a contender with some work, at least in FS.

 

Not to hijack the thread but... is there any legal way for us to get some neg camber outside of camber adjusters which are not allowed in FS?