Life110 Geometry (only) - downsides or compromises

[Stablinski]

So, I’ve had my GT for 2 weeks and I absolutely love this car. So does everyone else, it seems, given how many people want to stop to talk about it. I did say on another thread that I didn’t see the need for Life110 geometry…

Now that I’ve had more time in it, I have noticed the slightly floaty feeling at speed on motorways and yesterday was pretty blowy and it did feel unsettled. Nothing awful but I’ve read that the geo changes make noticeable changes here.

My question is, what are the compromises induced by the Life110 geo settings only? (not interested in springs etc or is that famous last words?!) Surely there must be some potential downside?

Thanks in advance.

Edited by Stablinski on Friday 6th September 21:23

[J321 ALP]

I loved the handling of my Pure from new. As I drove it more I noticed a slight delay on turn in and a vagueness in the steering at 12 o’clock. I was also aware that on motorways or dual carriages it was less precise. Went to Spires and had the Life110 fast road geo installed. First thing I learnt that the cars are not necessarily set to the specs at the factory, mine was a little out. On the drive home from Spires I suddenly felt at one with the car, I thought about turning in the, car was already in the corner, no vagueness at 12 o’clock and less wandering at motorway speeds. I think someone explained the standard settings are spot on for a front wheel drive hot hatch and the Life settings spot on for a rear wheel drive mid engine sports car. I have not heard a bad thing from others about the Life110 geo, only praise and that’s how I feel. That said beware if you start down this route who knows where you will end up, I’m booked in for AST coil overs in a few weeks Regrets, I’ve had a few, but none to do with Life 110 mods!

[Simon Owen]

It’s just geo, there are zero downsides… other than which settings you prefer, if you try it and prefer OEM (whatever that is ?) then I suppose that’s a downside. But it is nothing extreme, i.e. it doesn’t add say monster camber or anything like that, just subtle changes that’s all. I don’t know anyone who has done it and not liked it, for c£250 my advice would be try it and see what you think.

As for hardware changes that’s another story

[Andy665]

I had a stock A110S, unsettled ride and vague at 12 o'clock

Eibach springs and Fast Road Life110 geo, no vagueness and better ride with a lot of the brittleness reduced / removed

On Welsh B roads the standard shocks struggled on crests and undulations, the dampers simply ran out of ideas and had become the weak link

AST coilovers and now a B road monster- perfect setup for me.

I would wager that many who love the suppleness of the base A110 would hate mine but its all down to how you like your cars setup - there is no such thing as the "best", merely for "best for you"

Edited by Andy665 on Saturday 7th September 10:46

[a110au]

I changed from stock to Life110 fast road geo on my PE, and yes it feels more stable on freeways however I felt like it had become inert at center. So this is directly contradicting a post above. Not moving around in a stiff wind is fine but the steering wheel appeared to gain a dead zone right around zero degrees. At all speeds.

A110 steering is not known for being super communicative in the first place so at least on straight roads the life geo, tbh, it bothered me a little. Like it reminded me the steering feel is not the strong suit of the car. I never really had a problem with the way the car would move around in cross winds or when passing trucks in the first place.

In the twisties I can't make a conclusion because I never got to the twisties and sold the car last week. I'll take the word of David and imagine it probably is better for fast twisty driving.

[Stablinski]

a110au said:

I changed from stock to Life110 fast road geo on my PE, and yes it feels more stable on freeways however I felt like it had become inert at center. So this is directly contradicting a post above. Not moving around in a stiff wind is fine but the steering wheel appeared to gain a dead zone right around zero degrees. At all speeds.

A110 steering is not known for being super communicative in the first place so at least on straight roads the life geo, tbh, it bothered me a little. Like it reminded me the steering feel is not the strong suit of the car. I never really had a problem with the way the car would move around in cross winds or when passing trucks in the first place.

In the twisties I can't make a conclusion because I never got to the twisties and sold the car last week. I'll take the word of David and imagine it probably is better for fast twisty driving.

Grateful to all for the replies and your post illustrates what I meant - my thinking being that it would be impossible to make a change that doesn’t have any compromises whatsoever.

Thanks again and would still like to hear others’ experiences of Life110 geo changes.

Edited by Stablinski on Saturday 7th September 06:41

Edited by Stablinski on Saturday 7th September 08:15

[s111dpc]

I had the Life110 geo set on my previous S and had it set on my current GT before I picked it up from new. I think I’ve done about 20k miles with the set up and no other mods and would agree with the above comments that I have found no noticeable downsides e.g. tyre wear seems unaffected. Lots of positives though, far more ‘feel’ when turning in and it reduces/removes the vagueness with straight ahead driving. My advice is get it done and if you don’t like it you can always revert back.

[7en]

a110au said:

I changed from stock to Life110 fast road geo on my PE, and yes it feels more stable on freeways however I felt like it had become inert at center. So this is directly contradicting a post above. Not moving around in a stiff wind is fine but the steering wheel appeared to gain a dead zone right around zero degrees. At all speeds.

A110 steering is not known for being super communicative in the first place so at least on straight roads the life geo, tbh, it bothered me a little. Like it reminded me the steering feel is not the strong suit of the car. I never really had a problem with the way the car would move around in cross winds or when passing trucks in the first place.

In the twisties I can't make a conclusion because I never got to the twisties and sold the car last week. I'll take the word of David and imagine it probably is better for fast twisty driving.

Interesting. I actually prefer having to turn the steering a decent amount, often preferring 'Normal' mode to the sharper/darty steering of 'Sport/Track' modes for this reason, so perhaps may prefer the Life110 settings. When I first picked up the A110 I felt it was quite nervous on motorways but after a few thousand miles I don't notice it nearly as much.

I'm sticking with the stock geometry settings for at least a year but will try the Life110 sports road settings at some point to compare. I like to really feel the difference of modifications so will never jump straight into it. An example is my car had 18" wheels from factory and always had the idea to use the 17" wheels on the road, but I waited until after 2000 miles so I really felt any difference.

It's a shame you didn't get to drive through the twisties where the car shines the most. I always loved the idea of the Alpine but didn't really fall for it until I took it to some mountain roads recently.

[domrusty]

7en said:

I'm sticking with the stock geometry settings for at least a year…

Also worth bearing in mind that the geometry may not be 100% ‘stock’ on leaving the factory - I seem to recall various people have reported it being a bit off when they get it checked.

For me I found the Life 110 geo a definite improvement and it’s probably the first mod I’d recommend… plus it’s cheap, and easily reversible.

[Martyn P]

Stablinski said:

Now that I’ve had more time in it, I have noticed the slightly floaty feeling at speed on motorways and yesterday was pretty blowy and it did feel unsettled. Nothing awful but I’ve read that the geo changes make noticeable changes here.

Edited by Stablinski on Friday 6th September 21:23

I suggest you live with it for a bit longer before making a change. Mine was exactly the same but after a few 1000 miles as the suspension settled in the floating disappeared.
Would also suggest if you are on the lower tyre pressures adding a bar or two and trying that, certainly improved handling feel for me.

[croyde]

Have to say mine feels pretty solid and steady at silly speeds but I did buy it a couple of weeks back with 3800 miles already on the clock.

Have added 700 already

Would be more but have been in a courtesy Alpine for the past 3 days.

[timbo999]

Martyn P said:

I suggest you live with it for a bit longer before making a change. Mine was exactly the same but after a few 1000 miles as the suspension settled in the floating disappeared.
Would also suggest if you are on the lower tyre pressures adding a bar or two and trying that, certainly improved handling feel for me.

I assume the above is a typo and you meant psi? Adding 2 bar would put the tyre pressure in the 60 psi region.

[Martyn P]

timbo999 said:

I assume the above is a typo and you meant psi? Adding 2 bar would put the tyre pressure in the 60 psi region.

Many thanks … finger trouble. I meant 0.2 bar!! Cheers

[Life110]

I would say asking questions on a forum will always generate plenty of opinion.

The engineering reasons for changing the geometry are rooted in fundamental principles of vehicle dynamics, so there is genuinely no downside. You’ll see improved steering from the moment you turn the wheel combined with better straight line running and better tyre wear.

To date negative comments I’ve seen have been corrected once the geometry has been applied properly, it’s never as simple as taking a piece of paper with some settings on to any garage.

Across the world this geometry has been applied hundreds of times and I can count negative feedback on one hand.

[STSCH]

I have my 2019 Alpine for about 6 months. After the first 2 months I began to doubt the rave reviews, tricky to drive on bumpy roads and never felt precise on twisting roads. I had the Life geometry by Spire six weeks ago. Initial tracking was out when first measured.
The car is now a different vehicle. Precise, stable and easier to drive at speed. No downside as yet and seems unlikely given the number of satisfied owners.

[James Elmer]

Stablinski said:

Grateful to all for the replies and your post illustrates what I meant - my thinking being that it would be impossible to make a change that doesn’t have any compromises whatsoever.
Thanks again and would still like to hear others’ experiences of Life110 geo changes.

Edited by Stablinski on Saturday 7th September 06:41

Edited by Stablinski on Saturday 7th September 08:15

Hi Stablinski. I’m not sure where you’re based but you’re welcome to try my car that has the Life110 settings applied - I’m in Essex, near Colchester. I’ve driven a fair few things in 33 years driving and have fettled most of what I’ve had. I can say that David’s settings have transformed my car and I have not found any downsides, and don’t expect to find any downsides.

[croyde]

I'm Richmond upon Thames way. Any places that anyone recommends around this area to have the Geo done?

Or is it recommended to take the car to say Spires, as they know the model, and I presume don't need the specs downloaded?

Cheers

[Andy665]

croyde said:

I'm Richmond upon Thames way. Any places that anyone recommends around this area to have the Geo done?

Or is it recommended to take the car to say Spires, as they know the model, and I presume don't need the specs downloaded?

Cheers

The Life110 geo settings can be downloaded free of charge from their website. The A110 is not a complex car suspension, anyone who has something like a Hunter alignment machine AND knows how to use it should have zero issue in setting the car up properly to the Life110 settings - I have used Spires and recommend them highly but the setup is not rocket science

[Stablinski]

James Elmer said:

Hi Stablinski. I’m not sure where you’re based but you’re welcome to try my car that has the Life110 settings applied - I’m in Essex, near Colchester. I’ve driven a fair few things in 33 years driving and have fettled most of what I’ve had. I can say that David’s settings have transformed my car and I have not found any downsides, and don’t expect to find any downsides.

Super grateful for the extremely kind offer James, but I’m oop ‘norf, near Manchester. 33 years’ driving here, too….crikey, I got old!

Also very grateful to everyone who has contributed their opinions. My take from what I’ve read on this thread has confirmed what I thought before I started it - that it is definitely worth trying, given the near universal acclaim the changes have been met with.

Next question: can anyone recommend a place that can do this in the North West?

[neon_fox]

I bought a new A110 GT recently, and the supple, 'magic carpet' ride of the base car at the dealership is missing, replaced by something more like the BMW M car ride of the A110 S that I also test drove for comparison.
Could this be down to geometry?
Or is it something else?