Please note we have made a few small changes to the original version of WTAC Rules. Make sure you have the latest version. While we’ll be fine-tuning the rules for the next couple of weeks, there will be no major changes introduced after February.
As I am sure everyone is well aware, the World Time Attack rulebook was well overdue for a makeover and after several months of long days and late nights we have completed, what we hope, will be the way forward for the sport into the future.
It would be fair to say that the growth of time attack has “exploded” since our inception and some of the cars that appeared at WTAC, built around our “previous” loosely worded rulebook, have caught us off guard.
All that has now changed. We have put a lot of thought and effort into finding out and confirming what competitors want to compete in and what fans want to see and what we have come up with is an event based around FOUR classes of racing. I will endeavor to explain each class in detail below and also the introduction of the Yokohama control tyre formula for 2013 and beyond.
Clubsprint Class
The Clubsprint Class is the “street” class and this year will see wholesale changes bringing the cars back to true “street style” with major restrictions on aero, body kits, suspension, tire size and many other aspects. The class will now run on the Advan Neova ADO8 control tyre. This class will now focus on “clever vehicle set up” and “driver skill” rather than radical modifications. We are certain that both a large contingent of the competitors and fan base will be excited to see the competition return to its original “intent” of like-minded people competing against each other in comparable vehicles.
Open Class
The Open Class has been from day one the biggest class at WTAC. With almost 60 competitors it is the domain of both tuning shops and private individuals. For 2013 this class also sees some restrictions on aero to make the class more affordable. We will also be introducing minimum vehicle weights along with certain things like “sequential shift gearbox allowed but no paddle shift”. This will once again control costs. This class will run on the Advan AO50 control tyre in either medium or soft compound and will be limited to THREE full sets for the duration of the event. Aside from these changes this class will still be largely unrestricted so once again expect to see the best tuner cars in the country battling it out for supremacy with a much more level playing field.
Pro Am Class
This is the exciting new class for 2013. This is short for Pro-Amateur and will run under the same rule set as the elite level Pro Class with two distinct differences. The biggest difference being that the Pro Am must be driven by the owner of the vehicle and that particular person cannot be what is deemed by the organisers as a Professional Driver. This will give the owners of the Pro Class cars a chance to compete against people of a similar skillset. The other difference between Pro Am and Pro classes is that Pro Am will be ALLOWED FOUR sets of tyres for the duration of the event. This class will run on the Advan AO50 control tyre
Pro Class
This is the domain of the big guns. You can still expect to see all the exciting stuff you have seen in previous years. What we have done is put some rules in to stop the cars “growing any weirder, wider or larger”. We have also put some rules aimed at getting back to the original spirit of time attack racing. These rules will prevent the use of things like space frames get the cars back to looking like “true cars”. We have also put a minimum weight in for all vehicles. We have been fairly generous with these restrictions and at this point, while some of the top teams may have to do a bit of work to get their car to comply, it is still achievable and will shape the way of the sport into the future. Our aim is not to exclude anyone but simply create more exciting event and provide a level playing field for everyone involved. The Pro Class will run on the Yokohama Advan AO50 and be limited to FIVE sets of tyres for the duration of the event
Control tyre formula
For 2013 we will be, for the first time since our inception, running on a Yokohama Advan control tyre across all classes. This will provide a much fairer and more even playing field than in previous years with rumors and innuendos of sponsored teams running on “special” tyres that were not available for sale to the public. The Control Tyre will eliminate any controversy and put every competitor in each class on the same tyre. Yokohama will be offering a special price for competitors that pre-order these tyres.
It is at this point that would like to mention that it was Yokohama that believed in our vision for WTAC from day one and have heavily supported the sport we all love ever since. So we ask that you support them, because without Yokohama there would be no World Time Attack Challenge.
So there you have it in a nutshell. If you intend on competing please READ the rules very carefully as we will be enforcing them a lot more in 2013. That is not say we will be going over every single car with a fine tooth comb BUT if you finish in 1st 2nd or 3rd in ANY CLASS your car WILL BE checked and inspected closely by our eligibility scrutineers prior to any awards being issued. Should the car not comply with the rules you MAY BE excluded from the official results.
The bottom line as far as the rules goes: IF IT DOESN’T SAY YOU CAN DO IT IN THE RULES THEN YOU CANNOT DO IT. If you have any questions please contact scrutineer@superlap.com.au and allow up to 14 days for a response.
Go to to the 2013 WTAC Rules Page.
Ian Baker
CEO
Superlap Australia Pty Ltd
So is there going to be pipeline for those of us in America to acquire tires for testing?
As for the quasi-spaceframe rules in pro-class, I look forward to reading the full rulebook with revisions. I don’t see this in any light of a cost savings but as an opinionated move of ‘the spirit’ of time attack, which is and of itself about going faster. I see $6k (USD) in laser cut CNC tubing and some time doing FEA in my CAD model versus spending $60k+ on an aero engineer, paying for composite material and having a lab build it. Then comes the windtunnel test time, etc…what was the goal of this rules change again? I know we (Nads, Andrew Brilliant, Eric Hsu, etc…) had a large debate about this on motoiq.com’s cover on NEMO car. I see this as limiting skillsets, not cost or competitiveness.
The discussion: http://www.motoiq.com/magazine_articles/id/2714/sneak-peek-the-nemo-racing-evo-part-2.aspx
Hi Micah.
Thanks for your opinion as clearly you are going to give it to us. As far as we are concerned we spoke at length with two of the three guys you mentioned when we wrote the rules along with just about all of the other top Pro Class guys that have competed in the past and nearly all of them agreed that this is a big step forward in the right direction. Every year we cop flack from the vocal minority about something they do not agree with but every year we continue to grow with every single facet of our event selling out from sponsors to entrants in every class and every year we continue to have more competitors coming from around the world to compete in what is now the benchmark in time attack racing and we have written the rules accordingly. As far as tires are concerned you can contact Tats Kano from Yokohama Australia on kano@yokohama.com.au if you are serious about committing to come and he can organize something for you as he will be doing for Team America. Cheers
Great job on the new rules. Surprised that a lot of people are having such a whinge about the control tyre rule. You have to remember that Yokohama ADVAN are the main sponsors of the event and without them there would be no event. For every person that says they now can’t compete because of the control tyres just remember there’s probably at least 5 more people putting their hand up for a spot. Such is motor racing.
Sorry but some of the changes are good but I have to reiterate the Anti Sequential in Open class movement. Any of these guys should be in Pro-Am. It’s a HUGE advantage over H pattern. The whole spirit of T/A going back to Oran Park seems to be somewhat forgotten with the supposed Joe Average allowed and capable of running SQ trans.
The change to the Aero on the ‘Flat roof’ cars seems to have swung the pendulum a little too far. Now they are 150mm above roofline where normal cars can only run level with roof.
Open class not being able to run a proper full flat bottom undertray. So you can run a sequential trans at $25-$30k just for the sticker price but you can only run a splitter and diffuser to the axles. This is an extremely cheap modification by comparison and by not being able to do it you have a wasted aero package with it being totally disrupted by the gap between the axles?
We realise that you can’t please everyone all of the time and respect the time and effort put in by the organisers…but still not happy with some of these rules.
Great to see an actual attempt to bring the WTAC back into the competitive “TA” realm. For the most part, the changes to both aero and tyres seem like a step in the right direction, in all classes.
Using the success of the H pattern in the CyberEvo and SSE as evidence for why the OPEN CLASS does not need a seq. gb restriction, is pure crazy talk. Those two teams/builds are at the top tier of the highest echelon in PRO CLASS, not even comparable to most teams in the pro class, and not to any team in the open class. I find it absolutely absurd that any seq. gearbox (coming in at around 20k, lol) is being written off as a small part of the equation for Open Class success. That sounds ridiculous, and makes the open class not as “open” for anyone, just those who would consider a 20k gearbox a “small part” , lol?
Agree. Sequentials shouldnt be in open class unless part of the original vehicle manufacture.
The time difference between nudging a sequential with your hand or a paddle with your fingers is almost nothing, but the difference between a sequential and h-pattern is much greater. If you can afford 25k for a sequential you should be playing with the big boys in pro class (because youve got sponsors), or playing in pro-am class (because your a big boy with money).
Guys, great job with the new rules.
The only comment I have is in relation to sequential gear boxes in Open Class. If the spirit of TA and Open Class is to have cars still resemble their street counter parts and to keep costs down for a more level playing field, then I can’t see how sequential boxes tick these boxes.
- 99.9% of road cars don’t have sequential boxes,
- $20-30K is hardly keeping costs, and
- To get on the podium in Open Class you will need a sequential box, which means budget (again) is the deciding factor as 90% of competitors in Open Class won’t / can’t outlay $20-30K for a sequential box.
You’ve done a great job reducing canard and wing size to retain the cars street roots, but left a gaping hole in this area.
Firstly Dean, the “street” class is the “Clubsprint” class not the “Open Class” and in that class sequential gearboxes are not permitted. We thought very carefully about the rules regarding this and the whole idea is controlling costs whilst still having the fastest tuner cars battle it out. The reality is that at least 20% or more of the Open Class field will be probably running a sequential gearbox in 2013 and we feel it is well within the spirit of this class. When we say we want to control costs we are talking more specifically about aero, which when done properly costs up to 3 times the amount you are talking about and does fall out of reach of the average guy without a doubt. And the other thing i will mention…. Cyber Evo and Sierra Sierra managed to beat most of their rivals for many years and they both still used H pattern boxes. The reality is that to win Open Class the $20,000 spent on a gearbox will be but a small part of the equation and as you can see by the above comment the sequential gearbox would not necessarily give you an unfair advantage, where as $60,000 worth of aero would without a doubt!
Also the Aero restrictions. What about a Civic in Open class wanting to put a wing on? Can’t go higher than roofline? Other cars now have to build new wing supports to run them lower.
This is something we have on our list to put into the further regs and you will see this and other minor things changed in the next week or so.
Sequential trannys shouldn’t be allowed in Open.
Can Yoko absolutely guaranty enough tyres to not on cover the event but all the events leading up to WTA and general practicing? Will the nobodies get old stock tyres while the teams get the fresh stuff?
Yokohama will have enough tyres for sure and everyone that orders their tyres when the entries open will get FRESH tyres at a discounted price regardless of who they are.
Thanks for the reply WTA. Hope you’re correct about the tyres. Keep us all posted re any amendments there are to the new rules too please.
Love the new Pro Am class. This will give guys like myself the opportunity to compete in a largely unrestricted car that we can build and then drive without having to try to compete with a professional driver in a similar car. Also putting a limit on the tyres is a fantastic idea as last year I watched some of the tyre company sponsored top Pro Class teams putting on two sets of tyres per session which would certainly be cost prohibitive to those that do not have the tyre sponsor. Also these cars were apparently running on tyres that the average person could not even buy so how is that fair? As long as the tyre rule is “Policed” properly and everyone has to use the same tyre it can only be better for everyone moving forward…
I agree All the rules sound great except for the tyre regulations. I started building a car privately for World Time Attack towards the end of last year, an event ive been wanting to do since it started. I bought a set of new Toyo R888 in December to get it ready and now your saying I have to buy another set of tyres. I don’t have sponsors and work to hard for my money just to chuck it away like this! These Rules changes should have been bought out at the World Time Attack event last year or straight after not 5 months later!
The control tyre is something that other TA events world wide (like the UK TA series) have done and it works well.
Yokohama have said they will offer special pricing for competitors and you can still have the Hankook sponsor stickers on the car even if not running their tyres. Not ideal but still gets the name out there.
As for gettiig rid of space frames, contrary to what Nandakukmar thinks space frames increase costs and make it harder for those without the money, facilities and/or technical expertise to compete. All that aside, TA is a production car based motorsport, not a one off custom chassis series. Keeping the productions chassis’ for WTAC runners is a great thing IMHO.
Overall I like the changes and I’m building my car accordingly. 2013 is going to be a good year for WTAC.
While I’ve got no issues buying an ad08, the problem is Yokohama don’t actually bring 16 inch ad08s into the country. My car runs 16s due to its size and going bigger in terms of rim isn’t really feasible. Will Yokohama supply a bigger range to the country now?
My car actually came with ad07s from the factory
You can run the AD07′s:
4.If the tyre is not available in the Advan size range then the vehicle must use the original specification tyres and this must be checked by the organisers prior to competing.
Spaceframes don’t increase costs, they actually allow competitors to build more affordable lightweight race cars around. Spaceframes should be allowed but with tighter and more spaceframe specific regulations.
All this talk about tyres! Who cares what tyres they run! Just tell us what teams are coming from overseas, and please tell me Tarzan will be back and hopefully driving something capable of winning!!
I think this whole rule set is a step in the right direction. A majority of the rules are aimed at controlling costs and keeping the sport moving forward into the future and as we have seen with almost every other form of motorsport. Even when restrictions are put on things, engineers will work out ways around them and the Pro class rules still look pretty unrestricted anyway. The Clubsprint class is a huge step in the right direction with cars going back to affordable, street style cars
It is also pretty common knowledge that the “sponsored” top cars in the Pro Class that finished on the podium last year were running on “super soft” tyres that are not available to the general public so by putting all the cars on the same tyres will undoubtedly make for a better battle on a “level playing field”
A control tyre is not an uncommon rule. V8s run on control tyre too. It puts more pressure on the driver/car combo which is what time attack is all about. If you look at it from a business point of view, Yokohama has been the naming sponsor of the event for a few years now, so of course the control tyre will be from Yokohama, why would they pick another brand and lose the naming sponsor??
Like many teams, we’ll have to change our tyre brand too, but we don’t see this as a huge problem it’s made out to be.
Tyre rule is harsh, like already posted it causes you to lose hankook as a sponsor, stops Achilles joining in too.
It forces everyone to buy as said the most expensive tyres on the market and not necessarily the best tyre as people have different results with different tyres.
Can Yokohama handle the sponsorship solely?
Vehicle rules are great, it’s stops people with endless budgets running away from DIY guys.
So what does this all mean for Nemo?
nemo will just need to re-fit the B-pillars, that’s about all
i think the max width rule is to the same amount of extra width that nemo already had..
everything else on nemo should already comply
my question is will the ark(team usa) r32 need to move their turbo?
i don’t quite see how it’s floor cut out will fit in the new rules?
honestly i like the rest of the rules from what i can see(generally i need to say you’ve done well).
i just strongly disagree with the control tyre rule , it doesn’t make it cheaper for the competitors(infact the oposite).
it only makes it cheaper, more lucrative and a monopoly for your major sponsor!
so you go to a control tyre from the most expensive brand on the market!
i agree on limiting the number of tyres and the tread wear or durometer readings, but limiting to one expensive brand only costs more for those who would have preferred to use a cheaper brand and gets rid of any sponsoship from any other tyre companies in one foul swoop