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Autoccross Autocross (also known as Solo2 by the Sports Car Club of America and AutoSolo in the UK [1]) is a popular form of motorsports competition. Rather than racing wheel-to-wheel, as in road racing, drag racing, or oval racing, an autocross is a timed handling competition similar to rally racing, although on smaller facilities. National organizations such as the Sports Car Club of America ("SCCA") and National Autosports Association sponsor autocross events throughout the United States, and many areas have independent autocross clubs. Similar autocross and sports car clubs and events can be found worldwide. Automobile manufacturers and their associated clubs (e.g. the BMW Car Club of America) sometimes hold marque autocross events.
 Autocrosses are usually held on parking lots or similar large paved areas (such as airfields) with the temporary course marked by traffic cones. Typically, new courses are created for each event so drivers must learn a new course each time they compete. Prior to driving the course, a competitor will walk the course, taking mental notes, and develop a strategy that will be refined on each subsequent attempt at driving it. Speeds generally are slower in absolute terms when compared to other forms of motorsport, rarely exceeding highway speeds, but the activity level (in driver inputs per second) can actually be higher than even Formula One due to the large number elements packed into such small courses.
In ProSolo, an SCCA-sanctioned variant of autocross, two cars run side-by side on mirror-image courses after starting at a "christmas tree" starting system similar to that used in drag racing.
Autocrosses typically have many classes which allow almost any vehicle prepared to almost any prep level to have a realistic expectation of doing well, subject to driver skill and experience level. Autocross places more emphasis on the skill of the driver than on the attributes of the car being driven. Autocrossing is a good way to get started in sports car road racing, as witnessed by the many SCCA national racing champions who started their careers in autocrossing, as well as being a top-level sport in its own right.
 Comparison to other Motorsports
Autocross is most common in the United States, but other countries have similar motorsports. For example, Motorkhana is popular in Australia and New Zealand, and autotesting is common in the UK and Ireland. Both motorkhana and autotesting are slower than autocross (motorkhana rarely exceeds 40 mph (60 km/h)), require handbraking, and have sections that must be negotiated in reverse. Autocross is faster, sometimes exceeding 60 mph (100 km/h), and never requires the driver to enter reverse. Handbraking is not necessary on typical autocross courses. SCCA Rallycross resembles autocross, but is held on unpaved surfaces such as grass and dirt. |
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