skittish handling

skittish handling

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Discussion

funbobby

Original Poster:

1,636 posts

265 months

Saturday 4th January 2003
quotequote all
happy new year everyone! have noticed my s2 seems a bit skittish over poor road surfaces and doesnt inspire confidence to put your foot down! its recently had new steering rack and bearing so presume it rules that out,any ideas??

Ballistic Banana

14,700 posts

274 months

Saturday 4th January 2003
quotequote all
Well if all the tyres are the right pressure and suspension is all ok i would say that is quite normal.
Mine used to follow the camber of the road,due to the lightnesss of the car,Solid suspension the width of the tyres are the factors that do lead to it feeling as if it is wandering a bit.

BB

Justin S

3,657 posts

268 months

Saturday 4th January 2003
quotequote all
If you have adjustable dampers,check they aren't too stiff.

JSG

2,238 posts

290 months

Saturday 4th January 2003
quotequote all
What tyres have you got?

funbobby

Original Poster:

1,636 posts

265 months

Sunday 5th January 2003
quotequote all
dunlops 205 60r15 last owner used tower view and let them deal with tyre changes i assume these are pretty good??

Paceracing

729 posts

273 months

Sunday 5th January 2003
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Get the steering geometry checked out. It could be that you are running too much Toe Out on the front wheels, especially if the steering rack has just been replaced. This will certainly make the car feel skittish, and very susceptible to small movements on the steering wheel. (Toe Out is the term used to describe the direction the front wheels are pointing in. Toe Out is where the distance between the fronts of the wheels is greater than the backs of the wheels, and Toe In is where the distance between the fronts of the wheels is less than the backs of the wheels when viewed from above). Toe In will help straight line stability, but too much toe in will cause excessive tyre scrub, and remeber that the force of friction on the road wheels will cause some natural Toe Out anyway. This is known as 'compliance'. Hope this helps!

Jas.

Gadgit

971 posts

274 months

Sunday 5th January 2003
quotequote all
How old are your shocks mate?

Seems to me that this is a shock and / or spring problem. The shocks could be ok, but if the springs have compressed then you will get the same as a hard shock. Don't forget as quoted in the bible its the spring that takes the shock in the first place and if they are knackered then you will skip a fandango right accross the road. As previous suggests, and the springs are ok (you can open the bonnet with ground clearence on the stay) then adjust the shock rate to a softer setting.
If you had the steering renewed then they should have checked the steering on fitting if it was done in a garage so find out.

Let us know what you find, and a wealth of helping hands will appear at the next stage.

Good luck.

gadgit.
It

funbobby

Original Poster:

1,636 posts

265 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all
am wondering bout the shocks think they are original and the bonnet catches floor before its in the stay. think i will get tyre geometry looked at aswell.could just be my driving!! never had a car with such direct steering. thanks for the advice

GreenV8S

30,492 posts

291 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all

funbobby said: am wondering bout the shocks think they are original and the bonnet catches floor before its in the stay. think i will get tyre geometry looked at aswell.could just be my driving!! never had a car with such direct steering. thanks for the advice



If the bonnet doesn't touch the floor, the ride height is set too high.

Peter Humphries (and a green V8S)

andyf007

863 posts

265 months

Monday 6th January 2003
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Having fitted a new rack may be just a coincidence, but I'm inclined to go with Paceracing and get the alignment checked first, it's cheapest. I assume the people who fitted the rack knew the correct toe settings for an S? I would take them with you if you use someone like SlowFit to check it.

Andy

johno

8,521 posts

289 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all

GreenV8S said ......

If the bonnet doesn't touch the floor, the ride height is set too high.

Peter Humphries (and a green V8S)


Top quote of the day award goes top Peter !

Had to put blocks under my front wheels to lift the height enough to get the bonnet stay in !



M@H

11,298 posts

279 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all
err.. however on a "standard" car with original suspension, surely there should be the customary 1" gap demonstrating the front springs are ok..?

Cheers
Matt.

funbobby

Original Poster:

1,636 posts

265 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all
when i say rack wos on recently i meant about six monthes ago by previous owner who had it done by tower view.thought if bonnet hit floor before in stay it meant there could be a prob with the suspension??

GreenV8S

30,492 posts

291 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all

M@H said: err.. however on a "standard" car with original suspension, surely there should be the customary 1" gap demonstrating the front springs are ok..?

Cheers
Matt.




They're all different, who's to say which is 'right'? However, it's common to run them with the bonnet just about touching the ground when open (tiny changes in the ground can make it hit/miss on different days) hence my comment. Better aerodynamics and handling can be obtained by lowering the front of the car even further, but you need the right springs and dampers for this to work, and you need to get the geometry right to take full advantage of it.

Cheers,
Peter Humphries (and a green V8S)

Gadgit

971 posts

274 months

Monday 6th January 2003
quotequote all
Lets put this bonnet stay to rest then. If you are on a nice level ground and you open the bonnet and you can't ge the stay in, somethings wrong!

Now it could just be that the front of the bonnet is set to low in the first place. We are assuming that TVR designed the stay to hold the bonnet open and therefore you should not be levering the front of the car up in the air just to get the stay in.

Now, my shocks and springs were all shot when I got it and after fitted Leebee's set on my car I can now open the bonnet with ease and put the stay in.

I have checked that the bonnet is level when locked down, and it is! Leebee told me he had left the shocks on the standard setting and length, and therefore, if the shocks and springs are ok and its fitting level, and you have the right springs, the stay will go in (on level ground) with a small 1 inch gap or so under the front end. This will allow you to lift the bonnet 2 inches higher than the whole for the stay. Due to you lot I've just been down in the garage and checked it, and now I'm froze up me gonger!

Happy springing.

gadgit.