2002 Tacoma for Autocross

Driver mod is the best mod no matter the vehicle which is why I practice everyday.

 

I got some practice in this weekend at the August autocross event, and a race day yesterday!

Took 5th out of 10 drivers in the novice class, with the third fastest lap time.


And 95 out of 129 overall, so plenty folks with fancy sports cars were shredded by the Tacoma this weekend!


Handed the cell to my wife for a video, check it out here..

Definitely I have been honing in my skills as a driver attending all these events this year, and having more fun than ever as well!!

Trudy still holding up just fine too (of course)..

 

I pulled the trigger on an x-runner x-brace that goes between the rear shackles. I'll be curious to see how much that helps/changes. Dealership told me it was one of four left in the country.

 

Sounds awesome! Let us know how it works out please, I was thinking of building my own for my first gen but not sure if it would be worth the effort.

 

I've seen a couple sites that offer plates for the first gen that box in the frame. People claim it helps stiffen the rear and make it feel more connected to the road. I know that I'd have to lose the spare if I hadn't already, doing this x-brace.

 

Never seen these plates, if you have any links I would like to check this out please!

Thought you can use a spare with the x runner brace, is this because your tires are too massive?

 

That's exactly the problem. I don't have a full size spare for this truck. And I think with how low it was, the spare probably would've hit the ground! I'll post a link shortly.

 

And I just ordered my set of Falken RT 660's in 295/40/18. Can't wait to get fresh sticky meat on this thing!

 

295's.. hell yeah!!!

 

The current tires on those rims are 275/40/18 and they're stretched slightly. 10.5 in wide wheel, so 295 should fit beautifully.

 

They're here!

 

Super bad ass! Cant wait to see them on the truck!!

Definitely making me think to go for more rubber next time around, better melt my current set quick out there.

 

These RT 660's are what almost all the guys up here have switched to since the RE71R's are no more. I was considering the nitto nt05 if I remember right, and they were an extra $75 per tire.
I forget if I said this in here before, but the club I run with has limited me to 200 tw tires for the time being, since they're concerned about it becoming a rollover risk. I've got one more event left this year, on the 18th and 19th. I'll be sure to update with how the new tires go!

 

Gotta love being told you are a rollover risk on one hand, then getting tossed into a class against modified sports cars... I know the feeling!!

Most guys are also running the Yokohama A052 or Nankang CR-1 where I run as the top 200 treadwear choices. I scooped up these RE71 on mego clearance so I could not resist, but next round I think them 265's on some wider wheels would be juicy!

 

Got the x-runner x-brace today. Mounting bolts are being shipped separately, so hopefully I'll have it installed next week before the autocross.

 

Tire update. Haven't gotten the mounting bolts for the x-brace yet but hopefully that will be this weekend.

 

So I can say with a lot of certainty that the RT660's are a fantastic tire. I've never experienced a truck with this level of grip. I was carrying the front inside tire about 4-5 inches off the ground in some turns today. My time was only 1.5 seconds off of a very modified 2019 fiat 124 spyder on the same tires, just not as wide as mine. Highly recommend these tires!

 

In the interest of autocross related mods, I have an idea that I need to research. My truck requires a lot of steering input for some of the courses and elements I try to make it through, so I'm looking into a tighter ratio steering rack. This is also because mine is starting to leak a little bit, so what better time? I'm wondering if the rack out of a FRS or similar would be able to be fit without too much work. Any suggestions or thoughts?

 

Is your steering rack the same as that on the PreRunner, or no?

 

I'm not sure, I'll have to start comparing part numbers. But I would think the prerunner would have a taller ratio than the 5 lug