GAZ Gold V8S settings?
Discussion
Hi All,
My V8S has Gaz Gold springs and shocks fitted. On motorways with any undulations, I find it a bit "bouncey". Is that because the damping is too firm or too soft?
And are there any general settings that people set them to on a V8S? (back road blasts, motorways, general real road use.)
Thanks. And aplogies if I have missed a thread on this already.
My V8S has Gaz Gold springs and shocks fitted. On motorways with any undulations, I find it a bit "bouncey". Is that because the damping is too firm or too soft?
And are there any general settings that people set them to on a V8S? (back road blasts, motorways, general real road use.)
Thanks. And aplogies if I have missed a thread on this already.
I don't know how many "clicks" there are on Gaz Golds? My Protechs have 12, I find six back from max (fully clockwise) suits me.
Only way is to try it, wind them up a couple of clicks, see how that feels and go from there.
Might be worth winding up to max, counting the clicks so you know where you started from.
Usually bouncy means the dampers are too soft.
Always adjust dampers by setting them to the hard position and then backing off to the setting you want.
The general approach is start with them uncomfortably hard and then back off until you find the car is bouncing. Then stiffen them up the least possible amount necessary to stop it bouncing.
I wouldn't assume somebody else's settings will suit you, unless you know that the two cars are the identical spec and the driver preferences are the same. Typically, front and rear settings won't be the same except by chance.
Always adjust dampers by setting them to the hard position and then backing off to the setting you want.
The general approach is start with them uncomfortably hard and then back off until you find the car is bouncing. Then stiffen them up the least possible amount necessary to stop it bouncing.
I wouldn't assume somebody else's settings will suit you, unless you know that the two cars are the identical spec and the driver preferences are the same. Typically, front and rear settings won't be the same except by chance.
I'd do them all together but adjust one end at a time iyswim.
In other words, set them all to a setting which you know is too firm.
Back the front off a little, take it for a test and confirm it isn't too soft.
Back the rear off a little, take it for a test and confirm it isn't too soft.
Keep going until you feel it is bouncing and under controlled.
Stiffen the front up slightly, take it for a test and check whether it's still too soft.
Stiffen the back up slightly, take it for a test and check whether it's still too soft.
It can often be very difficult to tell whether the symptoms you're feeling are coming from the front or the rear, especially when they're trying to tell you different things, so best to try to keep both ends feeling vaguely similar while adjusting.
Be prepared to make several iterations while you hone in on a setting that suits you.
If you can't tell whether it's getting better or worse, you're probably close enough that it doesn't matter.
Different drivers will have different sensitivity and opinions, and what's best on any given day will depend on road conditions, state of the tyres, dampers, brakes, what mood the driver is in and so on. There is no perfect setting, so don't sweat.it.
When I said always start adjustments from the hardest setting I mean that any time you adjust any damper you wind the adjuster to the fully hard position (count the clicks) and then back out to the setting you want. I've lost count of the number of times I've found dampers set wildly differently to what the driver thought they had, often different side to side, because the person making the adjustment had lost track of clockwise and anticlockwise at some point while working left handed upside down ...
In other words, set them all to a setting which you know is too firm.
Back the front off a little, take it for a test and confirm it isn't too soft.
Back the rear off a little, take it for a test and confirm it isn't too soft.
Keep going until you feel it is bouncing and under controlled.
Stiffen the front up slightly, take it for a test and check whether it's still too soft.
Stiffen the back up slightly, take it for a test and check whether it's still too soft.
It can often be very difficult to tell whether the symptoms you're feeling are coming from the front or the rear, especially when they're trying to tell you different things, so best to try to keep both ends feeling vaguely similar while adjusting.
Be prepared to make several iterations while you hone in on a setting that suits you.
If you can't tell whether it's getting better or worse, you're probably close enough that it doesn't matter.
Different drivers will have different sensitivity and opinions, and what's best on any given day will depend on road conditions, state of the tyres, dampers, brakes, what mood the driver is in and so on. There is no perfect setting, so don't sweat.it.
When I said always start adjustments from the hardest setting I mean that any time you adjust any damper you wind the adjuster to the fully hard position (count the clicks) and then back out to the setting you want. I've lost count of the number of times I've found dampers set wildly differently to what the driver thought they had, often different side to side, because the person making the adjustment had lost track of clockwise and anticlockwise at some point while working left handed upside down ...
^^ Peter always gives good advice.
What you're describing as bounciness / wallowing sounds like poor body control, which is slow speed damper rod speeds and almost entirely controlled by the bleed valve since at slow damper rod speeds virtually all the oil flow is through the bleed valve rather than the main valving itself. As such this is the easiest bit to get where you want it. Peter's advice is spot on for this.
The only thing I add when I'm trying to describe this aspect of adjustment is for the car owner to go find some of those table top full road width speed bumps. Because there is usually significant distance between the up and down parts of the speed bump you can more easily work out what the front and rear ends are doing. You can tell if one / both ends of the car are not settling quickly after going over the speed bump.
What you're describing as bounciness / wallowing sounds like poor body control, which is slow speed damper rod speeds and almost entirely controlled by the bleed valve since at slow damper rod speeds virtually all the oil flow is through the bleed valve rather than the main valving itself. As such this is the easiest bit to get where you want it. Peter's advice is spot on for this.
The only thing I add when I'm trying to describe this aspect of adjustment is for the car owner to go find some of those table top full road width speed bumps. Because there is usually significant distance between the up and down parts of the speed bump you can more easily work out what the front and rear ends are doing. You can tell if one / both ends of the car are not settling quickly after going over the speed bump.
Have you read the WIKI at the top of the Forum page? There's plenty of info on there to get you started.
I'd second the comments above about the reason for the "bouncy" feel. This is down to the damping settings. If you have adjustment on the rebound damping turn it up to maximum and see how it feels.
Once you start messing about with the ride height adjustments you could end up with all sorts of grounding out issues.
If the Gaz Golds have done any sort of mileage they are probably due for a rebuild or replacement. They aren't that great to start with.
If you still have the original dampers and springs then consider putting them back on. If the original springs are OK (ie not sagged) then it would be worth having the Koni dampers rebuilt. Lots of info on that on this forum.
I'd second the comments above about the reason for the "bouncy" feel. This is down to the damping settings. If you have adjustment on the rebound damping turn it up to maximum and see how it feels.
Once you start messing about with the ride height adjustments you could end up with all sorts of grounding out issues.
If the Gaz Golds have done any sort of mileage they are probably due for a rebuild or replacement. They aren't that great to start with.
If you still have the original dampers and springs then consider putting them back on. If the original springs are OK (ie not sagged) then it would be worth having the Koni dampers rebuilt. Lots of info on that on this forum.
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