Reading up on Suspension/ car set ups etc etc
Discussion
There's some good threads on this in this forum but IMO the two books you should look to first are:
Competition Car Suspension - Allan Staniforth
Tune to Win - Carroll Smith
Of course these books tend to focus on race rather than road cars but I assume that isn't a problem?
>> Edited by Frik on Friday 6th May 03:02
Competition Car Suspension - Allan Staniforth
Tune to Win - Carroll Smith
Of course these books tend to focus on race rather than road cars but I assume that isn't a problem?
>> Edited by Frik on Friday 6th May 03:02
Frik said:
There's some good threads on this in this forum but IMO the two books you should look to first are:
Competition Car Suspension - Allan Staniforth
Tune to Win - Carroll Smith
Of course these books tend to focus on race rather than road cars but I assume that isn't a problem?
>> Edited by Frik on Friday 6th May 03:02
Nope, doesnt matter at all - wish to learn about both aspects...
IIRC theres a Jeffery Daneils book too that I was looking at - anyone read it (cant for the life of me remember the title.)
Thanks again
The Jeffrey Daniels book (Car Suspension at Work)is a good, readable overview.
I'm probably going to be attacked for saying this, but I think that Staniforth is very over-rated. His background is as a motoring journalist and his grasp of mathematics and vehicle dynamics is very poor. One statement that particularly sticks in my mind is that he asserts with a touch of Eastern Mysticism that he believes a well located roll centre is of great importance, but that nobody really knows why this should be...
Dynamic weight transfer depends partly on roll centre position, so a roll centre that moves about will give odd patterns of weight transfer and make the car feel unpredictable...simple as that; and very easy to calculate! The absurd thing is that there is a chapter in Staniforth's book (written by someone else!) that makes this perfectly clear. In fact, this chapter on weight transfer is the one bit of the book which is actually useful!
I'd second the Carrol Smith books as a good starting point, but if you are a Mech Eng student with a serious interest in suspension then you need to read Race Car Vehicle Dynamics by Milliken; not cheap, or easy to read, but quite comprehensive.
I'm probably going to be attacked for saying this, but I think that Staniforth is very over-rated. His background is as a motoring journalist and his grasp of mathematics and vehicle dynamics is very poor. One statement that particularly sticks in my mind is that he asserts with a touch of Eastern Mysticism that he believes a well located roll centre is of great importance, but that nobody really knows why this should be...
Dynamic weight transfer depends partly on roll centre position, so a roll centre that moves about will give odd patterns of weight transfer and make the car feel unpredictable...simple as that; and very easy to calculate! The absurd thing is that there is a chapter in Staniforth's book (written by someone else!) that makes this perfectly clear. In fact, this chapter on weight transfer is the one bit of the book which is actually useful!
I'd second the Carrol Smith books as a good starting point, but if you are a Mech Eng student with a serious interest in suspension then you need to read Race Car Vehicle Dynamics by Milliken; not cheap, or easy to read, but quite comprehensive.
If your interest is as a driver rather than an engineer, I recommend the Carroll Smith books. Both Tune To Win and Drive To Win have a lot of quite technical info' but aimed at how it affects your driving. Smith is in fact an engineer so his books are not the usual "brake brings weight forward, accelerate sends weight back" affairs that afflict many driving books. Tune To Win even has a template of a suspension system for you to cut out and experiment with! Good writing style too.
GarryM said:
If your interest is as a driver rather than an engineer, I recommend the Carroll Smith books. Both Tune To Win and Drive To Win have a lot of quite technical info' but aimed at how it affects your driving. Smith is in fact an engineer so his books are not the usual "brake brings weight forward, accelerate sends weight back" affairs that afflict many driving books. Tune To Win even has a template of a suspension system for you to cut out and experiment with! Good writing style too.
Im just interested as a driver rather than an engineer... we touched upon it on one of my modules and it was very interesting - so I wish to learn more.
Thanks again for the replies.. will try to get hold of the Jeff Daniels/ Carroll Smith books.
I found this thread very helpful but I have another question.
I tried to buy the Carroll Smith book on Amazon and there seem to be two versions, one was published in the mid-90's and costs £45 second hand, the other in 1979 and costs c. £15. Is the newer one just an update, as a basic intro does it matter (I am an enthusiastic amateur with a Physics background, not a racing driver or engineer)? Is it no longer in print?
Thanks for any help you can offer
gooner
I tried to buy the Carroll Smith book on Amazon and there seem to be two versions, one was published in the mid-90's and costs £45 second hand, the other in 1979 and costs c. £15. Is the newer one just an update, as a basic intro does it matter (I am an enthusiastic amateur with a Physics background, not a racing driver or engineer)? Is it no longer in print?
Thanks for any help you can offer
gooner
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