KW V3 997.2 C2 settings and advice
Discussion
I have just had a set of KW V3's fitted to my 997.2 C2 and await the information as to how to reduce the very hard rear suspension, RPM fitted but in 3 weeks have failed to send alignment details or offer any help as yet. I was really hoping to have better support after spending £12k on suspension and a few other things, maybe I'm still too smaller customer to be of any worth
I will also see what they set the suspension to either their own recommended fast road and or the base recommended, If they ever get back to me, whilst they have promised to I have not received the promised call back or a copy of the 4 wheel alignment.
I have done this a few times with various cars 2 way and 3 way a few questions :
Do please share your front and rear settings for bump and rebound (as KW measure clicks backed off from full hard)
Any recommendations and input to the setting up process and tips, Ive re-read all I can so far
I am running new 235/305 continental Sport contact 7 and will start 30/36 PSI again any recommendations for pressures as well, these rise to 33.5 / 40.0 after a short run. I am reasonably happy with ride heights, measuring form ground to arch lip - 656 Front 670 Rear, but may raise a little to something like 660/675 (when they left RPM the back was very high 690mm which made no sense, Ive not moved the fronts and they have settled a bit)
The challenge I am having is a jarring rear and moving around the recommend KW staring point changes and to a degree improves but this is currently more jarring than my 991 GT3
Any input appreciated
I will also see what they set the suspension to either their own recommended fast road and or the base recommended, If they ever get back to me, whilst they have promised to I have not received the promised call back or a copy of the 4 wheel alignment.
I have done this a few times with various cars 2 way and 3 way a few questions :
Do please share your front and rear settings for bump and rebound (as KW measure clicks backed off from full hard)
Any recommendations and input to the setting up process and tips, Ive re-read all I can so far
I am running new 235/305 continental Sport contact 7 and will start 30/36 PSI again any recommendations for pressures as well, these rise to 33.5 / 40.0 after a short run. I am reasonably happy with ride heights, measuring form ground to arch lip - 656 Front 670 Rear, but may raise a little to something like 660/675 (when they left RPM the back was very high 690mm which made no sense, Ive not moved the fronts and they have settled a bit)
The challenge I am having is a jarring rear and moving around the recommend KW staring point changes and to a degree improves but this is currently more jarring than my 991 GT3
Any input appreciated
I think if you look at the KW spring rates compared to Porsche and the other aftermarket options, their rear spring rates are way higher than anyone else. Damping isn't going to be able to fix that.
That's what i remember reading on here over the years when people were discussing KWs. You will probably need to investigate whether you can get some custom rear springs with a lower spring rate.
That's what i remember reading on here over the years when people were discussing KWs. You will probably need to investigate whether you can get some custom rear springs with a lower spring rate.
braddo said:
I think if you look at the KW spring rates compared to Porsche and the other aftermarket options, their rear spring rates are way higher than anyone else. Damping isn't going to be able to fix that.
That's what i remember reading on here over the years when people were discussing KWs. You will probably need to investigate whether you can get some custom rear springs with a lower spring rate.
In theory, the damping is supposed to be matched to the spring rate that the damper has been valved for. If KW have iirc 120-130ish Nm/mm rear springs, putting on a softer rear spring (and you'll have to be sure there is sufficient travel to match) might not help either. Ohlins R&T are the other manufacturer I think that has ballpark similar spring rates fwiw...That's what i remember reading on here over the years when people were discussing KWs. You will probably need to investigate whether you can get some custom rear springs with a lower spring rate.
Hi all
I’ve been doing a bit of reading about comparative spring rates looks like the KW V3 is close to 997.2 GT3 front but a little at the rear. Not super excessive but no idea why they chose to go more at the rear. I’m also going to experiment more with damping rates so far I’m up a little on rebound and bump at front and down by one click on both from recommended at the rear. Moving too far feels underdamped
I’m also finding thinking of one axle independently is not helping me either
I’m going to chase RPM yet again
I’ve been doing a bit of reading about comparative spring rates looks like the KW V3 is close to 997.2 GT3 front but a little at the rear. Not super excessive but no idea why they chose to go more at the rear. I’m also going to experiment more with damping rates so far I’m up a little on rebound and bump at front and down by one click on both from recommended at the rear. Moving too far feels underdamped
I’m also finding thinking of one axle independently is not helping me either
I’m going to chase RPM yet again
Edited by Adrian-9iafn on Wednesday 9th August 09:34
Okay, I have for the moment dropped the rear pressure a little more,
Now cold 30F 35.5 R and the recommended settings are F 7/9 R 5/9 Bump/Rebound
At the moment I am 6/6 and 6/10 Rear, interestingly adding a little more rebound at the front has improved feel and also bizarrely has improved the hardness a bit at the rear. I will see if I can find out how stiff the Conti sidewalls are they are non N rated but are 102Y extra load at the back and 91Y extra load front. as it might be better to get closer to GT3 tyre recommend pressures (29/33 ?)
If I add more bump or rebound at the rear it does become much more jarring and seems less integrated as a chassis. I was also thinking about offsets I am 50F (so 7mm more) and 58 rear so (9mm more than stock), so at least this will reduce the wheel rates a small amount
So far I have tried :
7/9 5/9
7/7 5/9
6/7 5/9
6/7 5/8
6/7 5/10
6/8 5/10
6/7 5/9
6/7 6/9
6/7 6/10
6/8 6/10
6/6 6/10
And a few further afield
5/4 5/4
5/4 5/5
5/9 5/9
5/7 5/9
5/6 5/9
4/6 5/8
I bet my neighbour wonders where I go for 20 minutes twice a day !
Now cold 30F 35.5 R and the recommended settings are F 7/9 R 5/9 Bump/Rebound
At the moment I am 6/6 and 6/10 Rear, interestingly adding a little more rebound at the front has improved feel and also bizarrely has improved the hardness a bit at the rear. I will see if I can find out how stiff the Conti sidewalls are they are non N rated but are 102Y extra load at the back and 91Y extra load front. as it might be better to get closer to GT3 tyre recommend pressures (29/33 ?)
If I add more bump or rebound at the rear it does become much more jarring and seems less integrated as a chassis. I was also thinking about offsets I am 50F (so 7mm more) and 58 rear so (9mm more than stock), so at least this will reduce the wheel rates a small amount
So far I have tried :
7/9 5/9
7/7 5/9
6/7 5/9
6/7 5/8
6/7 5/10
6/8 5/10
6/7 5/9
6/7 6/9
6/7 6/10
6/8 6/10
6/6 6/10
And a few further afield
5/4 5/4
5/4 5/5
5/9 5/9
5/7 5/9
5/6 5/9
4/6 5/8
I bet my neighbour wonders where I go for 20 minutes twice a day !
Just a note that I'm pretty sure the GT3 tyre pressures are for Cup tyres. Those low settings are not for non-Cup tyres.
Have you tried setting the dampers to full-soft and then edging up from there to find your optimum? I still think the problem is the rear spring rate and that the damping is comparatively trivial for your problem. Good luck.
Have you tried setting the dampers to full-soft and then edging up from there to find your optimum? I still think the problem is the rear spring rate and that the damping is comparatively trivial for your problem. Good luck.
I’ve had two very different experiences with KW V3, sublime on an E46 M3 and rock hard on a Monaro (later found to have been developed in America not Europe).
My Last Exige came on 3 way Nitrons, the ride was a bit harsh on factory settings, backing the high speed compression off by a couple of clicks made a big difference to ride quality, as it did with the Tractive dampers on my recent CSR Caterham, give it a go if you haven’t already.
My Last Exige came on 3 way Nitrons, the ride was a bit harsh on factory settings, backing the high speed compression off by a couple of clicks made a big difference to ride quality, as it did with the Tractive dampers on my recent CSR Caterham, give it a go if you haven’t already.
A little more progress.
RPM are in holiday season but they have again promised to help and support when people return, so fingers crossed. I have found that more miles has allowed a little more bedding in and it's just hard as oppose to crazy hard.
I spoke with KW and confirmed spring rates 228/742 seems they take the stock car and assess indepently (not looking at say GT3 rates), They can also supply lower rated rear springs if that ends up being the solution.
I ended up going back up one notch on the rebound as I did find I was having a little less control over larger fluctuations and although 'stiffer' I felt it was marginally better one click up (back to stock) on rebound. I am now 6/7 front and 6/9 rear. Tyre pressures 'cold' today were 32/38, so potentially some room to reduce a tad as well. I'm not going to give up and am 'fussy' with everything which is a curse and blessing....
RPM are in holiday season but they have again promised to help and support when people return, so fingers crossed. I have found that more miles has allowed a little more bedding in and it's just hard as oppose to crazy hard.
I spoke with KW and confirmed spring rates 228/742 seems they take the stock car and assess indepently (not looking at say GT3 rates), They can also supply lower rated rear springs if that ends up being the solution.
I ended up going back up one notch on the rebound as I did find I was having a little less control over larger fluctuations and although 'stiffer' I felt it was marginally better one click up (back to stock) on rebound. I am now 6/7 front and 6/9 rear. Tyre pressures 'cold' today were 32/38, so potentially some room to reduce a tad as well. I'm not going to give up and am 'fussy' with everything which is a curse and blessing....
Adrian-9iafn said:
I have just had a set of KW V3's fitted to my 997.2 C2 and await the information as to how to reduce the very hard rear suspension, RPM fitted but in 3 weeks have failed to send alignment details or offer any help as yet. I was really hoping to have better support after spending £12k on suspension and a few other things, maybe I'm still too smaller customer to be of any worth
I will also see what they set the suspension to either their own recommended fast road and or the base recommended, If they ever get back to me, whilst they have promised to I have not received the promised call back or a copy of the 4 wheel alignment.
I have done this a few times with various cars 2 way and 3 way a few questions :
Do please share your front and rear settings for bump and rebound (as KW measure clicks backed off from full hard)
Any recommendations and input to the setting up process and tips, Ive re-read all I can so far
I am running new 235/305 continental Sport contact 7 and will start 30/36 PSI again any recommendations for pressures as well, these rise to 33.5 / 40.0 after a short run. I am reasonably happy with ride heights, measuring form ground to arch lip - 656 Front 670 Rear, but may raise a little to something like 660/675 (when they left RPM the back was very high 690mm which made no sense, Ive not moved the fronts and they have settled a bit)
The challenge I am having is a jarring rear and moving around the recommend KW staring point changes and to a degree improves but this is currently more jarring than my 991 GT3
Any input appreciated
I build competition cars, and have competed in the WRC, so have some experience of damper setup. I will also see what they set the suspension to either their own recommended fast road and or the base recommended, If they ever get back to me, whilst they have promised to I have not received the promised call back or a copy of the 4 wheel alignment.
I have done this a few times with various cars 2 way and 3 way a few questions :
Do please share your front and rear settings for bump and rebound (as KW measure clicks backed off from full hard)
Any recommendations and input to the setting up process and tips, Ive re-read all I can so far
I am running new 235/305 continental Sport contact 7 and will start 30/36 PSI again any recommendations for pressures as well, these rise to 33.5 / 40.0 after a short run. I am reasonably happy with ride heights, measuring form ground to arch lip - 656 Front 670 Rear, but may raise a little to something like 660/675 (when they left RPM the back was very high 690mm which made no sense, Ive not moved the fronts and they have settled a bit)
The challenge I am having is a jarring rear and moving around the recommend KW staring point changes and to a degree improves but this is currently more jarring than my 991 GT3
Any input appreciated
Damper settings are a very personal preference for each driver. What suits one person will be considered awful for another.
Firstly, the dampers will need a few hundred miles to bed in. From memory, a KW damper has 16 clicks of adjustment for both bump and rebound on their 2 way damper. Is that the case on yours..?
Your cold tyre pressures at 30F / 36R are good.
If I were you, I’d make a big step change; wind back both bump and rebound 5 clicks softer on both front and rear, and go for a drive on a piece of road you know well. You should notice a difference. Keep in mind the front and rear balance, and get an understanding of how the car reacts under braking and rapid direction changes.
To me, the jarring at the rear you describe sounds like too much rebound. Softening off should sort this.
It isn’t going to be a quick fix, but this is the appeal of adjustable dampers…!
Well, I'm still learning....
First off the car is much less 'bouncy' and the suspension has bed in for the most I suspect. 4-500 miles now. Im running 31 cold F and 37 R (but a warm day so cold is not really cold. 24 degC
I backed everything off to F 12/14, R 10/14. As a reminder the bump is 0-12 and rebound 0-16 o being full closed/hard. 'recommended' F 7/9 R5/9, s a good 5 clicks off
The rear was less crashy and not as 'bouncy' as the last time I backed it off (settling springs ?) still showed traits of being hard. the front felt soft and compliant, very 'road' with slow response to changes in direction and notably more vague. But more 'comfortable'. The back does not feel soft
So I went up and at the moment F 6/7 R 7/11 after a few trial and error adjustments. It's better than too backed off, not more comfortable at the back but not significantly worse and better feel at least it has better feel and is responsive to transition and feels taughter throughout. I'm definitely not there yet, but I haven't given up !!!
First off the car is much less 'bouncy' and the suspension has bed in for the most I suspect. 4-500 miles now. Im running 31 cold F and 37 R (but a warm day so cold is not really cold. 24 degC
I backed everything off to F 12/14, R 10/14. As a reminder the bump is 0-12 and rebound 0-16 o being full closed/hard. 'recommended' F 7/9 R5/9, s a good 5 clicks off
The rear was less crashy and not as 'bouncy' as the last time I backed it off (settling springs ?) still showed traits of being hard. the front felt soft and compliant, very 'road' with slow response to changes in direction and notably more vague. But more 'comfortable'. The back does not feel soft
So I went up and at the moment F 6/7 R 7/11 after a few trial and error adjustments. It's better than too backed off, not more comfortable at the back but not significantly worse and better feel at least it has better feel and is responsive to transition and feels taughter throughout. I'm definitely not there yet, but I haven't given up !!!
Gassing Station | 911/Carrera GT | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff