MAHOR Car & Race Rules

Car Rules

Box Stock class

Body rules:

1) The body must be a copy of a 1:1 car and/or concept car.

2) Bodies must be manufactured by either the process of casting or injection molding and be made from resin or plastic. No feather light resin allowed.

3) Bodies with cast-in handling pans or exaggerated details (such as unrealistic or inappropriate hood scoops, oversized windows, side pipes, sloped sides, or snow plow noses) are not allowed.

4) Bodies must be originally manufactured with the intention of being mounted with the use of 2 screws via 2 body mounting posts on an Aurora Model Motoring (Vibrator, Thunderjet, Wild Ones, Tough Ones, and Xlerators), Bachmann, Faller, Model Motoring Thunderplus, Marx, Eldon or Tyco S series HO chassis.

5) No Indy, Formula 1 or Formula style open wheel bodies allowed.

6) No ballast or fillers other than color pigment allowed.

7) Maximum overall body width is 1.200".

8) The maximum thickness of the sides of the body (including fender flares and running boards) is .125".

9) With the body mounted to the chassis and viewed from above, the body must cover the chassis except through windows and vents. Unrealistic or overly large windows and vents are not allowed.

10) With the body mounted to the chassis and viewed from the side, the top rear edge of the gear plate (minus rail) cannot be above the body profile (see diagram below).

11) The body must be fitted with the manufacturer's original or exact replica bumpers, heads, rollover bars, etc. in their stock locations.

12) Cracked or broken body mounting posts may be repaired or replaced with the use of glue or a plastic sleeve around the original post or a plastic tube in place of the broken post.

13) Other than the plastic post reinforcements stated in body rule #12, no additional weight can be added to the body.

14) The body may be lowered and lightened by removing material through the process of grinding or scraping as long as body rule #10 is not violated. The body cannot be heated or reshaped from its original casting.

15) Bodies that have a separate roof and/or windshield and have molded-in interiors may have the interior portion completely removed.

16) Front and rear wheel wells may be opened up for tire clearance. This opening may be no larger than 1/8" around entire wheel well.

17) Wheel wells must not be modified in such a way as to allow the use of a wheelbase not originally intended by the body manufacturer.

18) Any body mounting screw may be used. Non-magnetic screws are recommended so a passing car will not pick up a loose screw, thus causing damage to the car and/or track.

19) Both front and rear screws must be used and must secure the body to the chassis at all times.

20) The windshield must be plastic or resin and must fill the window frame. Tape windshields not allowed. Side and/or rear windows may be removed.

Chassis rules:

1) Only original Aurora Thunderjet chassis with non-plated copper electrical components are allowed. Brush springs may be bent to alter brush tension. Pickup shoe hanger plates may be slightly bent.

2) The rolling chassis' axle and armature holes may be slightly opened up for clearance. The front truck axle hole cannot be used.

3) The rolling chassis assembly must not be fitted with bushings.

4) The chassis may be trimmed slightly (no more than .010") to allow for crown gear tooth clearance.

5) Any original Aurora T-jet two-lamination gray pole armature with original commutator and original unmodified windings may be used. The armature may be balanced and/or trued.

6) Each armature pole is to be measured across two separate commutator segments at the solder lugs. All measurements are to be taken at the current available room (ambient) air temperature. The warming of either the commutator or the armature is not allowed before or during measuring. The combined total ohm reading of all three armature poles must equal or exceed 48 ohms.

7) Any original Aurora Thunderjet magnets or Johnny Lightning / Auto World magnets may be used. The distance between the magnets must be a minimum of .700"; no exaggerated sanding is allowed to close the arm gap.

8) Magnet shims may not be used. No shims are allowed under or on top of magnets.

9) Any flat top and bottom carbon/copper motor brushes are allowed. Brushes may be scored with one score line or an "X"; no exaggerated deep cuts or crevices allowed.

10) Any stock or commercially available stock replacement 14-tooth brass armature pinion gears are allowed.

11) Any stock or commercially available stock replacement 24-tooth brass idler and driven gears are allowed.

12) Any stock or commercially available stock replacement 9-tooth brass pinion gears allowed.

13) Any stock or commercially available stock replacement 15-tooth crown gears are allowed. The crown gear boss may be trimmed or have a spacer added to adjust for proper gear mesh.

14) Only metal drive gear shafts may be used. The shaft may not exceed .065" diameter.

15) Gear tooth friction surfaces may be deburred by polishing, filing, or sanding.

16) Gears may not be chamfered, lightened, or relieved.

17) Any wheel and axle combination is permitted providing the chassis is centered between the wheels and the assembly does not exceed 1.000" in width. Front tires cannot be smaller than .300 in diameter. Rear tires must be stock width T-jet rubber or slip-on silicone.

18) Front and rear axle shim washers or spacers are allowed. Front axle shim washers or spacers must be on the outside of the frame rails.

19) Any non-plated stock or stock replacement pickup shoe may be used. These shoes must have a factory formed step, and the step must be unaltered except to allow flat pickup shoe contact with the track rail. Replacement shoes may be American Line, BSRT #504, or Slottech.

20) Bend 1 of the pickup shoe (below the hanger slot) may not be altered in any way. The step in the pickup shoe must remain intact and be unaltered. Only the first bend in the step (bend 2) may be changed slightly for proper shoe-to-rail contact. No flattening of the step allowed. The area between bend 1 and 2 may flattened for better rail contact. The vertical slotted portion of the shoe above bend 1 may be bent to limit travel. The rear hook portion of the shoe may be bent to limit travel and tension. See diagram below.

21) The pickup shoe spring may be cut, stretched, shimmed, or compressed.

22) Any amount of the vertical gear plate rails above the upper horizontal plane may be removed. No amount of material may be removed from the gear plate at or below the upper horizontal plane. The serial/patent numbers and letters must also remain intact.

23) Guide pins must be plastic and must be of a design essentially similar to the original Aurora black plastic front guide pins. The guide pin may be trimmed or bent. Countersinking the guide pin screw hole is allowed.

24) Glue may be used on the chassis only for the purposes of attaching the gears, guide pin, or axles. Solder may be used to attach gears to shafts.

Stock class
(All rules for box stock class apply to stock class with the following additions)

1) Original Aurora or Johnny Lightning magnets must be used. Johnny Lightning magnets may be sanded to fit the chassis.

2) The chassis assembly must not exceed 1.085" in width.

Super-stock class
(All rules for stock class apply to super-stock class with the following additions)

1) Any front/rear tire, wheel and axle combination may be used. Maximum lateral movement in the front wheel assembly is 0.031".

Complete (super-stock) Car Regulations:

1) The complete car must weigh at or between 20.0 grams and 24.0 grams.

2) The complete car must freely pass through a standard 1-5/16" HO tech block.

Pro-stock class
(All rules for super-stock class apply to pro-stock class with the following additions)

1) Slip-on rubber or silicone rear tires must be used and may not be coated. Tires may be be ground down/trued or chamfered/radiused.

Unlimited class

The following restrictions apply:

1) Car must pass freely through an 1-5/16" tech block.

2) Car must have a body (no restrictions).

3) Car must use an Aurora Thunderjet chassis and gear plate.

4) Chassis must use a pancake arm.

5) Chassis may have motor magnets only. No additional magnets.

NOTE: All car rules are subject to tech committee interpretation. If you are unsure if a car is legal, check with the tech committee prior to the race. Any other modifications will be considered illegal unless cleared by the tech committee.

Race Rules

1) A maximum of two (2) cars of the same class may be entered per driver, one primary car and one backup. Drivers may not switch classes once qualifying starts. All drivers' cars will be impounded prior to qualifying and will be released after their respective finals have concluded.

2) The primary car must be used for the duration of the race unless failure occurs. Failure of the car constitutes either a significant drop in speed or complete immobility due to reasons other than lack of maintenance (cleaning, oiling, adjusting, etc.). Upon failure of the car, the driver will enter their backup car and resume racing. Backup cars will only be issued during green flag racing in qualifying or finals. Once a driver elects to enter their backup car, the primary car is impounded and cannot be used for the remainder of the race.

3) Visual inspection and wheel width tech will be done before the start of each qualifying heat. No unteched cars may be run during the race. Cars that fail this portion of tech may not enter the race unless corrections are made to make the car legal.

4) Arm tech will be done on the top five finishers in each class, and those cars will be impounded at the conclusion of the race. Cars failing arm tech will be disqualified.

5) No substance of any kind (i.e. WD-40, tire goop) is permitted on the tires at the starting line or when the car is put on the track after lane changes.

6) Driver order will be determined by draw before the race and then be determined by qualifying before main heats.

7) Home and commercial tracks will open by no later than 3PM and racing will commence by no later than 5PM, except by the discretion of the owner and/or by the group's schedule.

8) Race fees will be $5 at all tracks with the exception of special race events. A home track host will receive $3 of every $5 of fees collected for hosting the race.

9) Practice is 2 minutes per lane. Drivers must marshal at the marker of the lane color they wish to practice on prior to actual practice. Drivers may not move to another lane for practice (unless it is open) without marshalling first. It is the driver's responsibility to select, prepare and setup the best car for the race during practice.

10) Drivers must go to their lane stations before receiving their cars. Drivers are not allowed to remove their cars from impound during a race. Drivers must not remove their cars from the track following the last heat when laps-sections are tallied. Drivers who violate this rule will receive zero (0) sections for the heat.

11) Drivers are allowed 1 minute of warm-up/practice on their first lane for qualifying only. Drivers may make adjustments to their car during the race, but must do so at the driver's station and perform the adjustments themselves. No crew chief and/or pit crews allowed.

12) Race format will consist of 2-minute qualifying heats followed by 3-minute final heats. Drivers are allowed one (1) minute during lane changes after which the race will resume. Lane marshals are advised to clear the area around the track to allow drivers quick access to their cars during lane changes.

13) Following the qualifying heat, drivers are placed in the order of finish by number of laps turned. The first final heat will consist of the 4-6 drivers with the lowest lap total. Drivers with the highest laps-sections after the heat are limited to one (1) move-up to the next heat. Drivers arriving too late to enter qualifying for their class will not be eligible to race.

14) Keeping the car in the slot is the driver's responsibility. If a car deslots, the car will be returned to the track by a marshal. Marshals will do their best to replace the car in a timely fashion and are advised to watch the cars and not the race. Drivers may point out to a marshal that a car needs attention, but drivers may not curse, scream, or abuse the marshals. Drivers who have been deemed by a majority of the committee members present at a race as abusive to a marshal will be warned after the first instance and then docked 1 lap per incident afterwards.

15) Lap totals from the finals will determine finishing order by respective heats. The top five/ten drivers per class will be determined by combined qualifying and final laps-sections. The winning car from each final heat will be photographed after the race and will appear with the driver's name on the race results web page. All drivers' names and results will be shown in their respective finals heats with the top ten overall drivers listed by class separately.

©Copyright 2008 John M. Habernal. All rights reserved. No unauthorized reproduction.