Upgrade suggestions - suspension & exhaust

currently at 2 & 7/8 F - 3 & 3/4 R. Feels a lot better - still underdamped, but moving away from uncontrollably so.

Also, read up on tire pressures and suspension and whatnot the last few days.

When I decided to raise my tire pressures and felt it was better it was because the higher pressure gave a more responsive feel to the steering - most likely decreased my overall traction, though.

Since then I've installed steering rack bushings to help with that exact problem. Higher tire pressures shouldn't be doing me much good right now, then.

So, I dropped them to door-jamb numbers: 32psi F/29psi R. Felt a bit more comfortable, stickier in the back, didn't seem to be getting any roll onto the sidewall - but it was wet and I was starting to slide first, and didn't decrease the sharp turning response I have compared to stock with those bushings.

I'll be replacing as many more of those suckers as I can once I drop the taxi's subframe's. My underside will be Whiteline bushing yellow. lol

 

:banana:

I finally found the point where the fronts become too stiff. Right around 1 & 3/4.

Yippee!


Rears are at 2 & 3/4 and they're still underdamped! I never would've guessed I'd have to go so stiff on the rear struts.

Another 1/4 to 1/2 turn stiffer on the rears and I ought to find the "too stiff" point on those as well.

Then maybe I can see how this bish handles. lol

Just in time for the car control clinic.

 

Good.

It's a little harder to discern the rears. On the front, you can watch the nose of the car bounce continuously if underdamped, float when right, and feel the front end fall after bumps if too stiff. In the rear, you have a harder time perceiving it. You need to spend some time feeling it. As well, swerve side to side as you drive (carefully ). If the front is overly stiff relative to the rear, you'll feel the front end pull you around. As you stiffen the rear more, this will lessen and eventually the car will feel very even. If you up the rear more, the rear end will become dominant, and it will feel like you're driving the car with the rear wheels instead. This balance will depend upon the spring rates too, so a relatively heavy rear spring will require a higher damper setting and make the rear stiff anyways. You can lower the dampening and dynamically balance the car, but it will be a little sloppier too.

Basically, set the front right. Then set the rear close to correct but also dynamically correct too. Fiddle with it.

Me just playing with numbers: 2001 RS, curb 2850 lb + 150 lb person + 150 lb in trunk = 3150 lb, 55%/45% weight distribution (150lb in trunk)
318 lb/in front spring, 280 lb/in rear spring
Front: 2 from full stiff (280 kg = 100% rebound dampening)
Rear: 4 from full stiff (230 kg = 100% rebound dampening)

The front seems about right if you find 1 3/4 turns too stiff. The rear, I expect much lower. I'll note it's hard to tell what the rear is doing. Drive over rough surfaces and turn your head sideways (looking towards passenger seat). How does the rear feel? Turning your head this way gives you a better front-rear sense of motion and if the rear end is hopping over bumps or bounding afterward. Along with serving and feeling if the front or rear is the stiffer side, you should be able to work the rear to the right point.

 

After more experimentation and reading that ^ it did in fact seem that the rear's were too stiff already, and it was tough to "feel" that.

Also, the front's were a hair too stiff, too.

So, I turned the front's down to 2 and the rear's to 4. Felt pretty good. 3.5 on the rear feels better.

It's still off a little - but not much. It's been very difficult to try and sense if its the front or the rear still off a bit and if its too stiff or too soft. I've been muddling around 2F/3.5R by 1/4 turns and everything away from 2F/3.5R has been worse.

At 2F/3.5R I don't get any of the bad, uncontrollable stuff I had been getting. Just a few particular stretches cause the car to sort of bounce up and down a bit - but its nothing all that bad and I had worse of the same with the stock suspension actually.

Oh yeah - and with 3 people in the car I have 0 complaints. Perfect.

It's still just a hair stiff overall for my liking, but I don't know yet if its enough to make me buy different springs. I'll need to drive with it on these settings for a few weeks.

I can really tell how much better it is just by how much more aggressively I'm driving the car. I had been scared to push it because it seemed so unstable and random. Now its acting much, much more behaved.

 

Yep, just keep fiddling. Expect to tune down towards the 1/8 turn, 1/16 turn kind of level eventually.

My numbers are pure guessing. It depends upon the overall weight and and front/rear balance of the car. I'm purely guessing with numbers here. I did similar with my car and basically found I turned about 1/4 turn softer then what the math figured, and I was sitting really good. If you like the rear at 3.5 turns, it may be a little more rear heavy then I was thinking. You said 150 lbs, but maybe it's more.

Anywho, tweak and tweak again. Eventually it will start to feel really right and you'll be really close. Part of it is adjusting relative to the springs and the other part is front-rear balance so handling feels even. It's good to hear you're getting there. It just makes the car a whole lot more enjoyable to drive. :laugh: