RBYCC

Dash

I would like that...

Spent a great deal of time in the UK in the early eighties..
Worked out of an office in Lea Green off of the Old Kent Road.
Hung out at a wine bar called the "Bar Cave" that an Italian mini cab driver owned.
It was right in the center of Black Heath.
Used to stay in a flat in the West End.

Love the UK, my business was Middle East Petro Plant constuction, but due to Sterling almost on par with the dollar I started exporting great classic Brit cars to the USA.
Partnered with a nice chap on Hayling Island along the coast.
He had the ability to trim and respray so the cars were quite good !!

Getting old now, but the UK is still my favorite place to visit.
Incredible auto enthusiasts, enjoyed the Classic shows at the NEC in Birmingham and a few down in Brighton and the car boot sales at Beaulieu!!!

Was A jag guy back then and was fortunate to know a lot of JDC members...
Greatest thrill was some laps at Silverstone in a Coombs replica 3.8L Mark II..
Nothing like downshifting to enter a corner with a non synchro Moss box

Cheers

Ed A.

RHW

Probably already noted, but I think the OP car is "for sale" months after the coilover installation, so no long term usage review is coming.

And btw, I have just switched my lol low wagon springs for sportline springs for a more utility-usage friendly suspension. Up about 1.5" from the current sig, but lower than stock...a long term decision.

RBYCC

I'm basic..as you younger gentlemen would say.."Old School"

I've built and raced cars as a hobby for about forty five years.
Because of where I lived my associations in the 60's and 70's were with some of the top engine builders and tuners in the USA.
Learned a great deal by remaining silent, listening and observing.
Started long before computer engine control and mass use of fuel injection.
When one starts with complete knowledge of basics one tends to look at builds and performance solutions more simplistically.
Minimize variables, do one thing at a time, compare to a baseline and you either get desired results or tweak what you have.
I'm a big believer of dyno tuning and track time to get max power and handling from a build.

Why I comment and at this point it seems futile is because I've "been there and done that"
Young guys are buying Mercs and applying "ricer" mentality and the end result is that they may go faster and improve handling but the vehicle has no value.
I prefer to get a bit of return for my investment.

The internet allows for a society of "Parrots" and "Lemmings".
The "Parrot" repeats the same thing and the "Lemming" blindly follows.

Ever notice that the majority of threads are from those that have problems and the solutions offered many times are expensive and incorrect ?

Case in point:
Everyone wants to slam, heavier swaybars, shocks springs, whatever.
Parrots squawk "Camber Adjusters needed"..Lemmings purchase and install..

Nobody bothers to align after each mod or even inspect the deteriorating rubber bushes !

When was the last time any parrot squawked "CASTER" ???
I can't recall, yet the caster setting is incredibly important for high performance straight line stability as it inherently increases the camber setting..

Ed A.

DW124

Funny that as that`s no more than 3 miles from my house,don`t forget to let us know if you ever come down

RBYCC

Interesting !!!

Is the Bar Cave still in the center of Black Heath?
If I recall the owner's name was Roberto ?

My partner in the UK at the time would act like a punter but really wasn't !

I find out now that he has been given an OBE in 2006

He is the Representive for Gibraltar in Parliament...

I guess that really makes him a punter !!!

Shoomakan

Hey Ed, you remind greatly of my uncle.. Which is a great thing.

I actually JUST came back from alignment.

DW124

Sorry Ed but I don`t know as I don`t go Blackheath,a bit to posh for me lol

The only time I go there,is to take the kids when the Funfair is there

RBYCC

I take that as a valued compliment !!!

Just learn the basics as they haven't changed since the inception of the automobile !!!

There is a great deal of talk about how to improve suspensions, and the "parrot" answer comes down to struts/shocks, springs and swaybars.

These components will always enhance performance providing you stay with OEM or aftermarket performance parts that have been designed and tested for your specific chassis application.

If you attempt to proceed beyond these selections you must have a great deal of enginering knowledge to determine if spring rates, struts/shocks, swaybars are compatible.
If not you end up with mismatches and hampered handling.

I've yet to hear mention from any of the innovators of what their measured corner weights are.
Without this info you may be starting with a less then balanced chassis.

Something as basic as tire air pressure difference between front and rear can effect understeer and get it to a point that gives you better handling...

Compressed air is free...

RBYCC

Dash...

"Posh"...possibly the area, but "me" ????

I was more of a frequenter to Tandoori take aways and fish and chip shops !!!

Cheers !

Ed

Saijin_Naib

Agreed. What I've found so far for my AutoX needs has been 36PSI Fronts and 42PSI Rears (cold-ish [pre-run temp]). It gives me a fairly decent touch toward neutral, and stiffens up the sidewalls a bit reducing some sensation of float under hard cornering. I'm still trying to tune/adjust this, but I'm finding it to be the best numbers so far. Any suggestions from experience would be welcome.

RBYCC

Brett

I have a lot of respect for young men like you..
You're involved in sanctioned events and you learn from the experience of those you compete with.
Competitive motorsports or high speed street driving can be dangerous if you ignore the basics..
Impossible to go fast and not do it safely.
That's why sanctioning bodies have tech inspections !!

Very similar to what I've found...35 front / 42 rear...
Seems to be a good +/- starting point on most rear wheel drive cars..
Differences can also be by the compound type, size, cross section and side wall design of the tires...
I keep a high quality tire pressure gauge in the cars.
Always check and adjust pressure before I move them out of the garage.

From the Porsche Club of America

Tires: The quality of your tires has a huge impact on the stability of the car
to track reliably through a corner. Tire conditions such as compound and
temperature tread pattern, air (or nitrogen) pressure, and age (heat cycles in
racing tires) all come together to give you anything from poor to great
traction. The combination of these factors has a direct effect on your ability
to control over and understeer.
Attention to tire pressures is critical to good performance.

1. Making a change at one end of the car will affect the other end to some extent.
Sometimes you have to make changes at both ends at once (not at the same time!).
2.Oversteer and understeer can be modulated to "some degree" by simply adjusting tire pressures
Depending on your tire's size, rubber compound, aspect ratio, and the caster and camber of your wheels you can get the car to handle very differently by changing the tire pressures a pound or two up or down. The effects are best measured if you make BIG changes rather than small ones. That way you are sure to feel them.

There will never be another "Bucky"...just like your "first love"...
Moving on after you mourn isn't so bad...can be a bit exciting !!!

Ed A.

Saijin_Naib

Thanks Ed, that means a ton coming from you I'd still like to meet you one day for a track event. I'd love to have you do a sit-in and give me some pointers/instructions if you're up for it

The tire info is welcome, I'll have to file that away. It just seems hard to strike the balance between affordability/comfort/noise/wear/grip, especially when you try and read reviews from owners! Hard to get real info from all that noise.

If I tell you how I found out about 36/42, will you laugh? I actually do a lot of my "learning" playing in games like Sega GT & Forza. In those games, I take a lot of time playing with all the various things like tire pressure, caster, camber, spring rate, rebound rate, buffering, swaybar stiffness, ride height, gearing, etc. because it is instant to see the effect, costs me nothing (in-game money lol), and usually there is a "benchmark" tool that shows you 1/4, 0-60, 100-0, lateral G @ 60 and 120, etc.

I'm still baffled by caster/camber and anything other than shock/spring rate, but I'm trying to learn how they affect things. Ride height has a profound effect on stability and handling as you've said a million times, and I find it very difficult to recover those characteristics when an upgrade I've made lowers the car excessively.

From various tests on a wide array of RWD cars (Elise, 190e, 500e, Esperante, etc) I found that around 36/42 was ideal for how I wanted the car to handle. If not 36/42, a similar ratio between the front and rear over the OEM spec as set in the game.

So after testing that out in game a ton of times, I decided to take it to the road and try it on the Bucky. Turns out it translated pretty well On the winters I just keep 35/35 so they're pliable for going over snow, but once I get my summers on its going back to 36/42. I've not gotten to the point of adjusting it point by point after a run at the track, but I may revisit that at a later time. I generally just set it and go.

You're right, there will never be a bucky, but FrankenBucky might just become a reality once I save up a bit more to actually see this repair/rebuild through properly. So long as it keeps driving, I'm not going to give up on it!

Shoomakan

Wait, wait, wait. There's a 500E in Gran Turismo? Why wasn't I informed of this?

Brett, do you have a 900 degree steering wheel at home, by any chance?

I keep all my tires at 30 psi for usual driving over here. Summers over here are quite hot, usually between 95-105 during the day. For 2 weeks a year or so, it's 105 degrees all the time.

I figure I wouldn't like to be speeding along on the highway one day at 42 PSI in the rears and have them blow on me. :P

RBYCC

You might want to try 32/35 for street driving...
The higher pressure rear bias tends to work with most RWD cars.
Summers as hot here and never a problem !

Shoomakan

Interesting. I'll give it a shot, although we have no tracks here and it would really just be useless perfectionism, in my case.