Suspension Wiki
I've created this for Joe (V8S4ME) he is keen to collect other owners suspension settings & opinions.
Please refer all queries to Joe.
Front spring rate increase:
More under steer; increase in proportional weight transfer to the front when rear wheel rate is not increased; reduces front traction when rear rate is not changed.
Usable adjustment: 150-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of too much adjustment: terminal under steer; front of car hops in corners; excessive wheel spin on inside front tire on FF cars.
Front spring rate decrease:
Less under steer; decreases proportional weight transfer to the front when rear wheel rate is not increased; increases front traction when rear rate is not changed.
Usable adjustment: 150-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of to much adjustment: Too much over steer; over steer then under steer if spring is so soft that the car bottoms out on lean, car bottoms out excessively with a jolting ride.
Rear spring rate increase:
More over steer; increase in proportional weight transfer to the rear when front wheel rate is not increased; increases rear traction when front rate is not changed.
Usable range: 100-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of too much adjustment: too much over steer; sidestep hop in corners; twitchy; pretty scary.
Rear spring rate decrease:
Less over steer: decreases proportional weight transfer to the rear when front wheel rate is not changed; increases rear traction when front rate is not changed
Usable range: 100-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of too much adjustment: car under steers; if way to soft car under steers then over steers as car bottoms out on lean; car bottoms out excessively with a jolting ride.
Front anti-roll bar stiffer: more under steer
Usable range: none to 1.25 inches in diameter
Symptoms of to much adjustment: terminal under steer; lifts inside front tire off the ground witch can cause massive wheel spin on FF cars; also not good for most effective tire usage as inside tire is now doing nothing.
Front anti-roll bar softer: less under steer
Usable range: none to 1.25 inches in diameter
Symptoms of to much adjustment: overstate scary; more like fun
Rear anti-roll bar stiffer: more over steer
Usable range: none to 1 inch in diameter
Symptoms of too much adjustment: Big-time over steer. Can cause inside rear tire to lift off the ground.
Rear anti-roll bar softer: less over steer
Usable range: none to 1 inch in diameter
Symptoms of to much adjustment: under steer; slow and boring
Front tire pressure higher: less under steer by reducing slip angels on most tires
Usable adjustment: up to 55psi hot
Symptoms of too much adjustment: no traction- tire crowned so more under steer; adds wheel spin in FF cars; jarring ride; center of tire wears out
Front tire pressure lower: more under steer by increasing slip angles on most tires
Usable adjustment: not less then 20psi
Symptoms of too much adjustment: edges of tire wear quickly because tire is folding over; feels mushy; tires chunk because low pressure means heat build up.
Rear tire pressure higher: less over steer by reducing slip angles on most tires
Usable range: up to 45psi hot
Symptoms of too much adjustment: no traction—tire is crowned so more over steer; bad wheel spin on FR cars; jarring ride; center of tire wears out.
Rear tire pressure lower: more over steer by incresing slip angles on most tires.
Usable range: not less then 20psi
Symptoms of too much adjustment: edges of tire wear quickly because tire is folding over; feels mushy; tires chunk because low pressure means heat build up
More negative camber front: less under steer because of better lateral traction as tread is flatter on the ground under side load.
Usable range: up to 3.5 degrees negative
Symptoms of too much adjustment: poor braking; car is road crown sensitive; twitchy; front tires wear on inside edge
More negative camber rear: less over steer because of better lateral traction as tread is flatter on the ground under side load. More rear grip
Usable range: up to 2.5 degrees negative
Symptoms of too much adjustment: more over steer; car feels twitchy in back; tires wear out on inside edge; less breakaway warning when limit is exceeded.
Ride height to low (typical beginner mistake): car is twitchy with unpredictable dynamics. Bump steer make you life miserable.
Usable range: usually 1.5-2.0 inches lower then stock unless car has been modified to go lower.
Symptoms of too much adjustment: everything that could possibly go wrong: sudden over/under steer; twitchy due to bump steer; very harsh ride; premature tire wear.
Toe in – front: car is stable going straight. Turn in is average
Usable range: 0-1/8th inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: car has slow twitchiness under braking; feels odd; kills outside edge of tires
Toe out – front: Car turns in well; works pretty well on FF car as they tend to toe-in under load.
Usable range: 0-1/4 inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: Car is really twitchy under braking; car wanders on straight road; kills inside edge of tire
Toe in – rear: car is less likely to over steer when the throttle is lifted
Usable range: 0-1/8th inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: weird, slow, rocking movement in back; feels slow but still unstable; wears outside edge of tires.
Toe out – rear: Helps car rotate useful in low speed and slalom courses; very common on FF pro rally cars.
Usable range: 0-1/8th inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: not to good for street driving; causes lift throttle over steer; makes violent side to side rocking motions in the rear; tie wears on inside more.
Positive front caster: helps stability; suspension will get more negative camber when turning; reducing positive caster reduces steering effort. (Negative caster is not usable)
Usable range: 4-9 degrees positive
Symptoms of too much adjustment: can increase under steer especially in cars with wide low-profile tires. Can increase steering effort.
Single adjustable shock stiffer: Better turn in; better transient response; causes slower onset of over/under steer by slowing weight transfer depending on what end of the car is adjusted.
Symptoms of too much adjustment: suspension becomes unresponsive; ride gets harsh; car skips over bumps, loosing traction; Causes a big delay in weight transfer resulting in strange handling like under steer then late corner stage over steer.
Single adjustable shock softer: slower transient response; quicker onset of over/under steer
Symptoms of too much adjustment: car oscillates due to under dampened spring motion, like a boat. Car gets twitchy in turns. Feels unstable.
Please refer all queries to Joe.
Car | Damper | Spring Rate F* | Spring Rate R* | Rebound Setting F** | Rebound Setting R** | Ride Height mm*** | Comments/Experience | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Example input | S1 S2 S3 V8S | GGPro | 425 | 400 | 7 clicks (from hard) | 8 clicks (from hard) | Handles like a wet sponge | ||
HvdWeerden | S3 | GGPro | 375 | 300 | 13 | 13 | 165 | good on motorway,harsh on short bumps. One front spring rusty after 0,5 year | |
HvdWeerden | S3 | Intrax RSA | 335 | 335 | 50 | 50 | 165 | total 50 clicks Fr/Rr. For track use 40 clicks. For normal use complete open (50 clicks). Balanced on normal roads, track to be checked | |
gifdy | V8S | Nitron | 325 | 300 | 6-10 | 6-10 | ? | good road setup but felt too soft for track | |
gifdy | V8S | Nitron | 450 | 375 | 3 from soft | 3 from soft | tbd | bit crashy to start, softened is now excellent on road. Track tbd | |
Le TVR | S1 | GAZ GP8 | 375 | 300 | 12 from soft | 25 from soft | 165/170 | With S3 trailing arms. NG with S1 T/arms. Could easily go 50lb more each end | |
Top Gear TVR | S2 | GGpro | 400 | 375 | 13 from soft | 15 from soft | - | Rear spot on now, front great on good surfaces but suffers a little with poor surfaces / bump steer / rebound - need to play with damping and check alignment. tracking set at 0 degrees currently | |
Stew Mc | S3C | GGpro | Spring Rate F400 | Spring Rate R350 | Rebound Setting F11 | Rebound Setting R09 | Ride Height mm175F, 190R*** | Set up is OK for road use but I have not finished playing with them as yet. A little soft for track use from the limited time I have spent on one | |
orange_dodo | S1.5 | Avo Adjustables | ??? | 275(ish) | 8 from hard(ish) | 12 from hard (halfway) | Not very much! | The springs are too soft. the rear is ok but the front needs the shocks quite tight. Although the car handles nicely there is distinct tool oversteer as the car rolls so slowly due to the tight front shocks the car tightens into a turn about half a second after you have turned the wheel. | |
Andy Lynch | V8S | Gaz Pro Gold | Spring Rate F450 | Spring Rate R375 | Rebound Setting F9 | Rebound Setting R9 | Ride Height mm 145F, 170R | Set up is OK for road use, but still playing, not been on a track | |
zombeh | V8S | Nitron | 400 | 300 | tbc | tbc | 185/193 | rose jointed drop links and poly bushes, a smidge hard for the roads we have over here, perfect for smooth roads and autotesting. Height measured with 225/45/17 tyres on, would be ~3mm lower with standard wheels | |
Andy L | V8S | GG Pro | 450 | 375 | tbc | tbc | -/- | much better both on the motorway and over the hills on fastish A road | |
S2Andy | S2 | F Gaz Gold R Spax with fixed spring seats | F350 | R Orig | F half way- | R Spax 4 from soft- | 185/190 | Tried 300 on front too soft, now a comfortable compromise ride / handleing. People comment on how good the ride quality is- | |
SJS357 | V8S | GGpro | Spring Rate F400 | Spring Rate R350 | Rebound Setting F9 | Rebound Setting R9 | Ride Height mm175F, mm180R | Set up is fine but further playing will be needed. | |
Barry S1 | S1 | GGpro | 450 | 350 | 7 from soft | 10 from soft | 170F,180R | Not bad on the road but i think its to soft for track. | |
Phillpot | S3 | Protech | 400 | 375 | 8 | 8 | 172 F, 172R | Wheels are "aftermarket" but standard size (7 x 15") with 205 / 60 Toyo CF1's. A reasonable balance between handling and some modicum of comfort | |
tozerman | S3C | GGPro's | 425 | 325 | 4 from hard | 6 from hard | car gone so can't measure | for the price they are hard to beat, ok on track (ring) always had the rear softer than the front. ok on road too | |
RayTVR | S3 | GGPro's | 375 | 300 | 14 from hard | 18 from hard | 175 mm F 185mm R | Happy with setup but haven't tried any other options or been to track. As these were fitted 2006 I would be interested to know if they are due for change -they are quite corroded and have to come off anyway as the bump stop on the rear is split | |
Alan Whitaker | S1 | Penske 7300 | 500 7" Eibache Race Springs | 600 8" Eibach Race Springs | middle | middle | 175 mm F 180 rear | 3 position ride heigth | |
Magpies | S1 | Bilsteins | 450 | 375 | Fixed Rate | Fixed Rate | 120 F / 135 R too low? doesn't seem that way | Low mileage Bilsteins from a Griff converted to height adjustables. Done about 10000miles. Happy with ride - chassis modified to allow exhaust to run no lower than the chassis and 17"rims. | |
greymrj | S1 | GAZ Gas Classics (GP8) | 450 | 375 | 10 clicks (from soft) | 8 clicks (from soft) | 175F 190R | TBA | |
cjacks | S3 | GAZ Nickel | 375 | 300 | 10 clicks (from soft) | 8 clicks (from soft) | 175F 190R | Probably needs 400 front and move 375 to rear and soften shocks but rides and handles well, neutral on corners. Tyres 24psi all round. | |
glenrobbo | S1 | Gaz GP8 | 450 | 375 | 8 clicks (from hard) | 8 clicks (from hard) | 182F 185R | Very pleased with the setup after the alpine testing. Edit May '15 Ride heights raised to reduce exhaust grounding | |
scoobimax | S3 | Gaz Nickel | tbc | 350 | tbc | 7 clicks from hard (out of 21) | 190F 200R | only just fitted so not driven yet - watch this space!!! | |
mohitos | V8S | Gaz Monotubes | 450 | 375 | 6 clicks from soft | 6 clicks from soft | TBC F TBC R | Handling and ride quality seem excellent. Ride height to be raised to allow for touring weight in car and bonnet to fully open | |
v8s4me | V8S | Koni Adjustable OEM | ? | ? | max resistance | max resistance | TBC F TBC R | Nice flat ride with no wallowing. Quite firm but not harsh. The dampers are set to maximum rebound resistance. Ride heights to follow | |
damians3 | S3 | Nitron | 400 | 300 | 2/3 towards hard | 2/3 towards hard | TBC F TBC R | Poly Bushes, 26mm anti roll bar, 25 mm wheel spacers. Lovely ride and handling.. IMHO far better than with GGP installed | |
TheMoff | S2 | GAZ GHA100 | 450 | 375 | 6 clicks from soft | 8 clicks from soft | 170F 192R | better than before, springs work well and improved ground clearance/damping - might need another 5MM on the from to clear extreme bumps |
* Spring Rate in Lbs | ||||||||
** Rebound Setting = number of clicks from hard (ACW = anti-clockwise) | ||||||||
*** Ride Height measured in mm at the front outside corner of the out-rigger & taken as an average of both sides |
Front spring rate increase:
More under steer; increase in proportional weight transfer to the front when rear wheel rate is not increased; reduces front traction when rear rate is not changed.
Usable adjustment: 150-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of too much adjustment: terminal under steer; front of car hops in corners; excessive wheel spin on inside front tire on FF cars.
Front spring rate decrease:
Less under steer; decreases proportional weight transfer to the front when rear wheel rate is not increased; increases front traction when rear rate is not changed.
Usable adjustment: 150-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of to much adjustment: Too much over steer; over steer then under steer if spring is so soft that the car bottoms out on lean, car bottoms out excessively with a jolting ride.
Rear spring rate increase:
More over steer; increase in proportional weight transfer to the rear when front wheel rate is not increased; increases rear traction when front rate is not changed.
Usable range: 100-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of too much adjustment: too much over steer; sidestep hop in corners; twitchy; pretty scary.
Rear spring rate decrease:
Less over steer: decreases proportional weight transfer to the rear when front wheel rate is not changed; increases rear traction when front rate is not changed
Usable range: 100-600 lbs/in
Symptoms of too much adjustment: car under steers; if way to soft car under steers then over steers as car bottoms out on lean; car bottoms out excessively with a jolting ride.
Front anti-roll bar stiffer: more under steer
Usable range: none to 1.25 inches in diameter
Symptoms of to much adjustment: terminal under steer; lifts inside front tire off the ground witch can cause massive wheel spin on FF cars; also not good for most effective tire usage as inside tire is now doing nothing.
Front anti-roll bar softer: less under steer
Usable range: none to 1.25 inches in diameter
Symptoms of to much adjustment: overstate scary; more like fun
Rear anti-roll bar stiffer: more over steer
Usable range: none to 1 inch in diameter
Symptoms of too much adjustment: Big-time over steer. Can cause inside rear tire to lift off the ground.
Rear anti-roll bar softer: less over steer
Usable range: none to 1 inch in diameter
Symptoms of to much adjustment: under steer; slow and boring
Front tire pressure higher: less under steer by reducing slip angels on most tires
Usable adjustment: up to 55psi hot
Symptoms of too much adjustment: no traction- tire crowned so more under steer; adds wheel spin in FF cars; jarring ride; center of tire wears out
Front tire pressure lower: more under steer by increasing slip angles on most tires
Usable adjustment: not less then 20psi
Symptoms of too much adjustment: edges of tire wear quickly because tire is folding over; feels mushy; tires chunk because low pressure means heat build up.
Rear tire pressure higher: less over steer by reducing slip angles on most tires
Usable range: up to 45psi hot
Symptoms of too much adjustment: no traction—tire is crowned so more over steer; bad wheel spin on FR cars; jarring ride; center of tire wears out.
Rear tire pressure lower: more over steer by incresing slip angles on most tires.
Usable range: not less then 20psi
Symptoms of too much adjustment: edges of tire wear quickly because tire is folding over; feels mushy; tires chunk because low pressure means heat build up
More negative camber front: less under steer because of better lateral traction as tread is flatter on the ground under side load.
Usable range: up to 3.5 degrees negative
Symptoms of too much adjustment: poor braking; car is road crown sensitive; twitchy; front tires wear on inside edge
More negative camber rear: less over steer because of better lateral traction as tread is flatter on the ground under side load. More rear grip
Usable range: up to 2.5 degrees negative
Symptoms of too much adjustment: more over steer; car feels twitchy in back; tires wear out on inside edge; less breakaway warning when limit is exceeded.
Ride height to low (typical beginner mistake): car is twitchy with unpredictable dynamics. Bump steer make you life miserable.
Usable range: usually 1.5-2.0 inches lower then stock unless car has been modified to go lower.
Symptoms of too much adjustment: everything that could possibly go wrong: sudden over/under steer; twitchy due to bump steer; very harsh ride; premature tire wear.
Toe in – front: car is stable going straight. Turn in is average
Usable range: 0-1/8th inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: car has slow twitchiness under braking; feels odd; kills outside edge of tires
Toe out – front: Car turns in well; works pretty well on FF car as they tend to toe-in under load.
Usable range: 0-1/4 inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: Car is really twitchy under braking; car wanders on straight road; kills inside edge of tire
Toe in – rear: car is less likely to over steer when the throttle is lifted
Usable range: 0-1/8th inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: weird, slow, rocking movement in back; feels slow but still unstable; wears outside edge of tires.
Toe out – rear: Helps car rotate useful in low speed and slalom courses; very common on FF pro rally cars.
Usable range: 0-1/8th inch
Symptoms of too much adjustment: not to good for street driving; causes lift throttle over steer; makes violent side to side rocking motions in the rear; tie wears on inside more.
Positive front caster: helps stability; suspension will get more negative camber when turning; reducing positive caster reduces steering effort. (Negative caster is not usable)
Usable range: 4-9 degrees positive
Symptoms of too much adjustment: can increase under steer especially in cars with wide low-profile tires. Can increase steering effort.
Single adjustable shock stiffer: Better turn in; better transient response; causes slower onset of over/under steer by slowing weight transfer depending on what end of the car is adjusted.
Symptoms of too much adjustment: suspension becomes unresponsive; ride gets harsh; car skips over bumps, loosing traction; Causes a big delay in weight transfer resulting in strange handling like under steer then late corner stage over steer.
Single adjustable shock softer: slower transient response; quicker onset of over/under steer
Symptoms of too much adjustment: car oscillates due to under dampened spring motion, like a boat. Car gets twitchy in turns. Feels unstable.