RE: Car set-up basics: part one
Discussion
I have a capri with compression strut front end up-side down short adjustable Bilsteins end and four bar with Watts linkage rear.
The set up is infinitely adjustable,but I started off from the Ford tarmac settings which were 2 deg camber and 2 castor and tweaked from there.
All the time noting how different settings affected the handling and just kept tweaking from there
,I have two settings now that give me a choice of ride comfort/feedback,but with a weight of just under 1200 kgs and 250/190 springs its never going to be smooth although but body roll and any inkling of vagueness is removed.
my wife complains of it being firm,my response is firm but precise.
And yes its an acquired taste I admit but the feedback from rose-joints is impossible to re create using even hard bushes,at all angles you know the geometry is spot on.
I learnt a lot just from tweaking and fiddling much like many have done before,if you have reference to a set up that is neutral or how you have it now,go ahead and have a fiddle.
Ans as some one mentioned previously manufacturers might have spent millions developing it to the best of their abilities or budgets but it does not mean its set up to how you prefer it.
The set up is infinitely adjustable,but I started off from the Ford tarmac settings which were 2 deg camber and 2 castor and tweaked from there.
All the time noting how different settings affected the handling and just kept tweaking from there
,I have two settings now that give me a choice of ride comfort/feedback,but with a weight of just under 1200 kgs and 250/190 springs its never going to be smooth although but body roll and any inkling of vagueness is removed.
my wife complains of it being firm,my response is firm but precise.
And yes its an acquired taste I admit but the feedback from rose-joints is impossible to re create using even hard bushes,at all angles you know the geometry is spot on.
I learnt a lot just from tweaking and fiddling much like many have done before,if you have reference to a set up that is neutral or how you have it now,go ahead and have a fiddle.
Ans as some one mentioned previously manufacturers might have spent millions developing it to the best of their abilities or budgets but it does not mean its set up to how you prefer it.
" More air out of the tyres to 28psi from 34 (it's amazing what difference this makes) and three fewer clicks on the front dampers yield an improvement, but it's still not perfect."
Make just one change at a time, especially when learning
Which made the difference? The 6 psi or the 3 clicks?
Make just one change at a time, especially when learning
Which made the difference? The 6 psi or the 3 clicks?
I've been amazed how many 7-esque kits are set-up overly low and firm under the assumption that this is fastest.
I bought one that was very skittish until I loosened off the shocks a bit to make it more compliant on the road.
Dropping the rear tyre pressure from 36psi (presumably by an inexperienced tyre fitter) to 16psi made a massive improvement too!
Regarding geometry, a methodical approach noting the effects of increments from neutral seems like the best approach if you're not in a hurry.
Also, slightly O/T but on a normal road car, a proper 4-wheel alignment can make a massive improvement, just correcting the cumulative effects of pot-holes etc over time.
I bought one that was very skittish until I loosened off the shocks a bit to make it more compliant on the road.
Dropping the rear tyre pressure from 36psi (presumably by an inexperienced tyre fitter) to 16psi made a massive improvement too!
Regarding geometry, a methodical approach noting the effects of increments from neutral seems like the best approach if you're not in a hurry.
Also, slightly O/T but on a normal road car, a proper 4-wheel alignment can make a massive improvement, just correcting the cumulative effects of pot-holes etc over time.
For tracks this all makes good sense and is v.interesting - what I find quite refreshing when it comes to road driving is how someone like Harrismonkey will repeatedly say that they drive cars in 'comfort' all day long tho...
Obviously, a lot of this is down to marketting - 'comfort' probably means 'the settings the engineers thought worked best overall' wheras 'sport' means 'shake your passengers to death' and 'race' means 'spinal injuries'.
It's classic human nature - as we gain more knowledge and more ways of controlling the world around us, we demand that control be given to us, instead of leaving it to the experts to sort-out.
We're all the person who "knows nothing about computers" and yet 2nd guesses your every attempt to fix theirs
Obviously, a lot of this is down to marketting - 'comfort' probably means 'the settings the engineers thought worked best overall' wheras 'sport' means 'shake your passengers to death' and 'race' means 'spinal injuries'.
It's classic human nature - as we gain more knowledge and more ways of controlling the world around us, we demand that control be given to us, instead of leaving it to the experts to sort-out.
We're all the person who "knows nothing about computers" and yet 2nd guesses your every attempt to fix theirs
When I bought my Seven clone it was owned by a former race enginneer. He gave me the option of setting it up for the street or track. I told him street. More than a year later, at a track day, he helped me change the settings for the fastest laptime. The difference was .6 seconds (58.2 versus 58.8) per lap. Ironically, it was faster, rattled my teeth on the open road, and had a propensity to swap ends: it was much more challenging to drive as well and ate a set of tires after only two 45-minute sessions rather than the street setting which made the same tires last 6-8 sessions. The real kicker is that I was never able to match my 15 lap times on the more agressive settings--it was harder to drive and I would always make an extra mistake or two as a result.
I have since changed back to the less agressive setting.
I have since changed back to the less agressive setting.
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