MattP:I don't understand the weight penalty for 2 seaters in a FWD only SM class. What's the advantage of a CRX over a Civic of the same year? It's lighter! Why does that matter in a class with minimum weights?
1st gen crx has a wheelbase of 86". 2nd is at 90". they are much shorter then the equivalent civic, to the tune of 12~15" in just wheelbase alone (a foot and a half compared to later cars). given equal power, weight etc the smaller car will always be faster then the larger one. we currently have uber lightweight classes for said crx and civics (sts, sts2, ep).
an ep car with an interior and dot tires will surely trump a late model vw, honda, scion, mazdaspeed, cobalt, etc. an example of what will be a fast fwd SM car would be Jose Mercado's rsx. he has a 2 liter supercharged powerplant with 315's up front. he will be required to weigh 2330 under the new ruleset. his car is currently 2700, but he still has sunroof, a/c, etc. the car can drop 200 easily, and with some $ and development he can be much closer. he has not had the drive to do this when he has to compete against evo's that weigh roughly the same, make much more power and have 2 extra drive wheels. he has had renewed vigor as of late, because SMF is on the horizon.
there are plenty of these examples out there, for instance the srt4 neon from ohio (sorry, forgot his name). the srt would be a perfect match for Jose's rsx. as well as the current civic si, and previous gen civics, gti's, etc.
for those who still want to campaign an early civic/crx, how would you propose we equate a 20 year old crx with a recent srt4? short of adding a large amount of weight, i do not think there is anything you can do to equalize the cars. again, if you have a early civic/crx and want a competitive class, you have STS/STS2. want race tires? CSP. want to gut the car and run real slicks? EP.
a friend has a 1.6 supercharged crx. car weighs 2160, as it is not fully prepped for the class. under the new proposal, it will have to weigh 2400. excessive? yes, most think so. now think of it this way: if the min weight was to be 2200 for said car, it would surely annilate jose's aforementioned rsx, and i would personally run the crx of the rsx. but, jose's car at 2330 with 300whp will have a def chance against a 2400lb 225whp crx.
another data point for crx ballast: a csp crx with the 1.6 naturally aspirated will have to weigh 1970 (100+ over csp weights), before the added 150 lbs. i hate to use jose's car reference again, but would you rather be in a 2400lb rsx or a built 1.6 csp crx with 200whp that weighs 1970? again, easy choice. okie, add 150 and the 2120. still very competitive imho, but clearly not the overdog it would be at csp weight of ~1840.
all this weight talk is making me realize i am a fat bastard and need to drop 40lbs.... ok, i have to go to bed. 
Hi! I'm Rodney. "Hi Rodney!" I'm addicted to Solo....