Cone Dodging Part One: Tools You’ll Need for Autocross

Autocross is a fun, entry-level introduction to high-performance driving. Autocross events are usually set up in large parking lots, and the speeds are relatively low. Before you get to your pit space, here are some tools to bring along to make sure you have a good time.

The first surprising thing most new autocrossers learn to bring is a bottle of shoe polish. You’ll use it on your tires by dotting around the circumference of the sidewall where it meets the tread of the tire. You’ll use this as a quick indicator of how the tires are performing as you weave in and out of the cones. You’ll increase tire pressure if it starts to rub off, and decrease until you hit that sweet spot.

The second thing is to bring a good tire gauge. Dollar-store and discount-auto-parts-store gauges won’t really be the best, but they do work in a pinch. You’ll want a good gauge with a large dial, and it should have a way to allow you to deflate the tire as well.

You’ll bring along an air tank to refill your tires after your runs, or at the end of the day if you came in with your street tires.

Bring a wrench and a torque wrench with the proper socket for your lug nuts. You never know if you have to take your wheels off for any reason, and you’ll want to check the torque of your lug nuts before you make your first run of the day.

Which means bring your jack and jack stands! If you change tires or need to reach anything, a jack and jack stands will be handy things to have. The compact jack your Mustang came with will be of little use if you need to jack it up quickly, so don’t rely on it.

Bring tools to help remove items you don’t need that you can’t normally take out by hand. We’ll go over some items to remove before you chase the cones in the next article.

Finally, bring painter’s tape. This will not only give you a way to put your car number and class on your car, if you don’t have magnetic numbers, but can also help protect your car from cone contact. Cones are made of rubber and usually don’t cause paint damage, but they can leave marks on your car.