The Street Modified
Frequently Asked Questions List
(FAQ)

1. What is Street Modified? Street Modified is an SCCA ProSolo and SoloII Autocross class for sedans prepared in excess of the SCCA Street Prepared rules, but still capable of being driven on the street. It was primarily designed for "Sport Compact Cars" or "Import Drag" cars, but anyone who has a car that meets the Eligibility Requirements is welcome. There is a sizeable American Muscle Car/Ponycar (Camaro/Mustang) contingent. SM can be thought of as "Super Street Prepared" or "Riceboy Street Prepared" :) Note that with the introduction of SM2, "Street Modified" is now a category, as well as a class.

2. Is SM a "real" class? Yes. SM (as STU) STU was offered as a ProSolo, National Tour, and CENDIV series class in 1999, and was run in these series, along with the Solo2 Nationals (as a Supplementary Class)in 2000. SM will be offered at all 2001 NationalSolo events, including Nationals (again, as a Supplementary Class) If 36 or more cars participate at Nationals 2001, SM will be granted Official Class status for the 2002 season. UPDATE And it did, and it is! SM is now a full Official class SM2, however, has yet to clear that hurdle. SM2 needs entrants! See the Events Page for more info.

3. Does SM allow race tires? YES SM is NOT a "street tire" class like Street Touring (ST). DOT-approved race tires, as per Stock/Street Prepared are allowed. (not "pure" race slicks as per Prepared or Modified) This rule is "graven in stone" and is unlikely to change - ever.

4. Didn't this used to be called "Street Touring Unlimited"? YES SM is the class previously known as STU. It was renamed to "Street Modified" in November, 1999. Note, however, that any resemblance between SM and Street Touring is purely historical. SM does not fall under the juristiction of the Street Touring Advisory Committee. We have our own comittee, the SMAC.

5. Why isn't my [Miata | CRX | MR2 | Other 2-seater] eligible for SM? You are! There is a new class, just for you. It is called SM2, and is being offered at select National events for 2002. If turnouts are high enough, it will be offered at Nationals 2002 and may eventually be made into a full National class, just like SM was.

6. Isn't [insert car here] a class killer car? During the creation of the current SM rules change proposal, we got over 50 email messages from members deeply concerned that "car X" was going to be an overdog, class killer car. Strangely enough, none of these messages agreed on what "car X" was! As well, most instances of "car X" were rare and obscure cars with even rarer and more obscure engines swapped into them That's not to say that there isn't a "car X" lurking out there somewhere, or that someone will actually show up with a rare and obscure car that turns out to be faster than first thought. If that happens, then we'll figure out some way to re-level the playing field. The SM rules are iterative, not definitive - just like most major motorsports. "Perfect is the enemy of Good Enough" Note that it's OK to be fast. It's also OK to be faster than the current crop of drivers and cars. What is NOT OK is to be so much faster than the most common and popular cars that they have no chance of ever catching up, no matter how much work is done to them. If that sounds awfully grey and nebulous, you're correct. Making good rules and keeping the playing field reasonably level for the majority of competitors is a constant exercise in compromise.

7. Where can I learn more about SM? The Home of All Things SM is the SM/SM2 Home Page, at http://streetmodified.org. Of particular note on that site is the SM/SM2 Mailing List, where the major SM players can be contacted and category issues discussed. You can also sometimes find SM-related discussions on the Team.Net Autocross Mailing list, buried beneath arguements over subframe connectors, street tires, and the Integra Type R In order to avoid spamming all the autocross mailing lists with SM discussion, we ask that SM-related posts on other mailing lists be brought to the SM list as soon as possible. You can browse the SM/SM2 Mailing list HERE

8. What can I do to help? SM needs two things very badly - participants, and mindshare. The best way to help the SM cause is to build and run an SM car! Even better is making contact with your local Riceboy cell, and getting them to come to some local events, and then working even harder to keep them coming back for more. It's very important to understand that "If you build it, they will come" is WRONG. We have to work to actively drag potential SM participants to events and get them to run their cars - that usually gets them hooked. And then you have to actively ensure your Region's event schedule gets into their hands, that you remind them when an event is coming up, you provide car setup advice etc. etc. Other ways you can help include writing letters to the major riceboy magazines (Sport Compact Car, Street Racer, Super Street, and Turbo) asking for more Solo (and SM!) coverage, and submitting content to the SM Website. But above all, have fun. We want SM to be the "Riceboy CP" - if you've ever been to Nationals, you know that the CP guys stick together, work together, party together, and generaly cause all kinds of good-natured mayhem. That's the culture we want for SM. Happy competitors are frequent competitors

9. But isn't the SCCA full of "protest weenies"? Firstly, none of this applies to most autocrosses. Protests are typically only seen at a Divisional/National level. If you're running Regional events, you can skip this section - they just don't happen at Regional events. In autocross parlence, a "weenie protest" is the practice of, when you get beat, looking for something - anything - that might be illegal on the winner's car, with the intent of protesting that illegality in order to get the car disqualified and your finishing position improved. A protest is "weenie" when the item being protested is of no performance benefit whatsoever - technically illegal, but not why you got beat. "Weenie protests" are rare, very rare, but they DO happen. And as the language in most SCCA Solo classes explicitly states that "any modification not expressly allowed is forbidden", occasionally a protest committee will uphold a protest of this type - again, it's rare (most protest committees have enough common sense to distinguish between legitimate cheating and "weenie fishing expeditions"), but occasionally one slips though the cracks. This poses a problem for SM as a class. SM DOES have rules, those rules ARE intended to be enforced, and the protest system IS the way they are to be enforced. However, SM also is all about allowing a certain level of creativity and freedom with areas of the rules not explicitly called out in the rulebook. It is impossible to get every single allowed modification into the rulebook, even though the standard SCCA practice has been "all not allowed is forbidden". The intent is that "any ostensibly illegal modification made to allow a legal modifiaction is OK, as long as the illegal modification is kept to a minimum, and serves no other purpose" Given that we can't get that into the rulebook in a manner that isn't wide open to abuse (the other kind of "rulebook lawyer") and given that it is up to competitors to police the class, we have come up with the following policy: NO WEENIES In plain English, that means "Don't protest anything that doesn't make any real difference" and "If you act like a weenie, you're going to have a bunch of irate competitors in your face in a big hurry" If you seriously feel that a competitor is cheating, or interpreting a rule in a manner that you feel is incorrect (in other words, if you feel that you have a legitimate protest) here's what we expect you to do: Round up all the other competitors in the class Show them/explain to them the problem area on the car in question Let them examine the car and come to a conclusion If there is agreement that the item in question deserves protest, file the protest AS A GROUP If, after group discussion, you still feel that the item in question requires protest, but the majority does not agree with you, you are still entitled to file your protest. We'd prefer that you abide by the group opinion, but reasonable people may indeed have differing opinions and you have the right to have yours heard by a race official. For the purposes of the class "no weenies" policy, contacting your fellow competitors and giving them the opportunity to weigh in with their opinions before filing an official protest satisfies your obligation. Accordingly, we expect competitors who object to a protest to repspect the right of someone to disagree with their opinion, and protest anyway. As long as you were told (as a class) ahead of time and given an opportunity to inspect the car in question and give an opinion, fair ball. Failure to consult your fellow competitors before filing protest, however, will be seen as sneaky and disrespectful, and should be expected to draw ire. REMEMBER - the intent behind SM is "any ostensibly illegal modification made to allow a legal modifiaction is OK, as long as the illegal modification is kept to a minimum, and serves no other purpose" RESPECT THAT. Note that "no weenies" DOES NOT mean you can ignore any rule that is inconvenient! Any rule that was taken the time to get called out in the rulebook is to be taken seriously! (For example, protesting an engine that is 0.001 litre over the displacement limit is NOT a "weenie protest"!) What you DO have is the freedom to make minor adjustments in order to get your legal mods to fit. So if you have to notch your headliner to get your roll bar to fit, or if you have to cut a hole in your radiator support to get your intercooler piping to fit, or you want to take the little plastic covers off of your rear shock towers so you can adjust your shocks, etc. etc. etc. that's OK. Be reasonable, be understanding, be polite, and if in any doubt, ASK FIRST and you'll be all right. UPDATE There is a rule coming that should greatly solve this issue. Stay tuned!

10. What's all this about "riceboys"? I drive a [Mustang | Camaro | Firebird]! SM was originally intended to be a "Sport Compact Car" class. However, it was decided that the performance levels of similarly prepared, but naturally aspirated, V8-powered "ponycars" was similar enough to the projected performance of the "riceboy" vehicles that there was value in opening up the class to these cars too. It works. So far (Nov 2000) the performance of the V8s and the Imports has been pretty well even - and the rivalry makes for great racing. Ponycar drivers are to be reminded though that their great big motors and ground-pounding HP numbers are kinda scary to the Import guys, especially newbie autocrossers. They don't see their 1500lb weight advantage, all they see is all that displacement and tire smoke. Keep that in mind when you meet a first-time Import guy at an event - once scared off, they never come back.

11. Why is the SM displacement limit 6.00l? Why can't I supercharge my Mustang? SM is a very, very diverse class. However, allowing that diversity while still keeping the playing field reasonably level is tremendously difficult: Large displacement motors make more power, and especially more low-end torque - which means they're faster. The most commonly available motor in the GM F-Body (which is also the largest motor available in these cars for the past 30 years) is the 350 (5.7) litre smallblock. Allowing motors larger than this potentially obsoletes each and every one of these cars, with an corresponding affect on participation. We currently do not (and are unlikely to ever have) per-model displacement limits or forced induction limits. This mean any increase in these limits will be applied to cars other than what the proponants of the increase may have in mind. So a rule that allows the Ford 4.6 DOHC Mustang motor to be supercharged will also allow (for example) supercharging the larger-displacement BMW M3 - something that probably shouldn't happen. Trying to convince a 1.6 litre Civic driver that running against a 7 litre Camaro or a supercharged Mustang is fair is a hard sell. In fact, convincing said Civic driver that running against stock Camaros and Mustangs is fair is tough enough already. The various 350/351 CID motors allowed by this limit are not exactly hurting for performance potential Note to self - this section needs more work