Do you even have any wheel nuts? It doesn't look like your wheel is on right at all :S
What car is that? 
It's an MX-5. And looking at that fender, might be too low, yes...
lugs are on and properly torqued. This was the ride height after initially fitting new coilovers. I've raised it a bit since, though springs will drop some more over time.
I've got about an inch wheel to fender clearence. Fender liners will be trimmed just to be sure.
why ruin a perfectly good suspension known to offer great handling like that?
A decent set of coilovers will make it handle ever better at the compromise of comfort...
Lol be lucky not to scrape on the speedbumbs in my street
Ever since the crazy bus drivers started a route through the street the residents complained they were 'speeding' through the street, they put speedbumbs in but there more like mountains
There not that high but the angle up and down onto them is toooo steep
1986 BMW 325e 82k miles and automatic( I hate auto ). I love the car though, I installed an Alpine headunit, gutted cat. Best of all, there is no rust!
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff121/kamilek12/015-1.jpg
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff121/kamilek12/016-1.jpg
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff121/kamilek12/004-2.jpg
82k miles and automatic( I hate auto ). I love the car though, I installed an Alpine headunit, gutted cat. Best of all, there is no rust!http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff121/kamilek12/015-1.jpg
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff121/kamilek12/016-1.jpg
http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff121/kamilek12/004-2.jpg
no it wont
Yeah, thats why time-attack cars run coilovers and various suspension upgrades.
After all, you can't improve on a stock car, right?
idiot
right and you with your vast expertise in engineering and suspension kinematics are able to choose the right set of springs and dampers?
judging by how low the car is the roll centre is all out of whack
and by the looks of it he cant even turn the wheel any more so id say its a pretty safe bet that he hasnt got a single clue what the hell hes doing
judging by how low the car is the roll centre is all out of whack
and by the looks of it he cant even turn the wheel any more so id say its a pretty safe bet that he hasnt got a single clue what the hell hes doing
Pays to read.
Majority of the brands that make coilovers are specificly suited to those cars with R&D behind them. And i'm not talking about China / Tawaiin shit.
obviously all the most talented engineers end up making springs for shitty little aftermarket companies instead of working for car makers that pay 5 times as much or design cars for race teams
Uhm, does JUN/Trust/HKS etc mean nothing to you?
They're all aftermarket brands that run very successful Drag and curcuit race teams...
You're an idiot that has no idea what they're talking about..
Manthey, Schrick, Abt, Schnitzer, Hartge, Carlson, Zakspeed, H&R, to name some we have over here. All those JDM tuners are mostly unknown in Euroland (only the JDM fans do)
i´ve seen you posting your pics on bimmerforums
Nice Car you got there Abt are so close to the VAG circle it should change name to Volkswagen Abt Group.
dont forget bilstein 'cmon!
so you are saying that aftermarket carparts are utter shit and OEM reigns superiority?
Because you cannot possibly make half decent products unless you're being paid a six-figure salary.
You do realize that most of the engineers designing parts for cars are not engineers for the manufacturers, right? The majority of the parts on a car are designed by the supplier manufacturers and they bid to the car manufacturers. The car manufacturers then go with the lowest bidder, hence you have the Toyota problem.
OEM parts are a compromise between comfort and performance. Just because car X has this suspension and "they are the manufacturer, thus they should know" as you guys always spout doesn't mean that the suspension is perfect. The aftermarket designs for a specific purpose, not for a compromise. They may design Y suspension components for comfort and Z suspension components for performance.
Take exhaust for example. Car manufacturers have to compromise performance for quietness. The aftermarket manufacturers don't care about the quietness over performance. They design to increase the performance.
Then again, I suppose all you internet experts work for car manufacturers and would know more about it than I do, who does work for an OEM car manufacturer supplier that has the engineers designing the parts and bidding them out to the car man. just like I said they do. I suppose I also wouldn't know how it all works when I am the one working in R&D and the one who manufactures the pre-production parts for testing that has to be just good enough so that it passes the tests and requirements and can be manufactured at a lesser quality without passing the tests at a later time when put into production.
OEM parts are a compromise between comfort and performance. Just because car X has this suspension and "they are the manufacturer, thus they should know" as you guys always spout doesn't mean that the suspension is perfect. The aftermarket designs for a specific purpose, not for a compromise. They may design Y suspension components for comfort and Z suspension components for performance.
Take exhaust for example. Car manufacturers have to compromise performance for quietness. The aftermarket manufacturers don't care about the quietness over performance. They design to increase the performance.
Then again, I suppose all you internet experts work for car manufacturers and would know more about it than I do, who does work for an OEM car manufacturer supplier that has the engineers designing the parts and bidding them out to the car man. just like I said they do. I suppose I also wouldn't know how it all works when I am the one working in R&D and the one who manufactures the pre-production parts for testing that has to be just good enough so that it passes the tests and requirements and can be manufactured at a lesser quality without passing the tests at a later time when put into production.
yeh a car comes together from a million aftermarket parts. take bmw for example(coz i work on them) they use sachs,bilstein suspension/clutch,simple things like speakers: harman/kardon,becker etc, the interior panels and so on.
So what you're saying is, the standard rubber cones that came with my car in 1994 that doughnut after 7-8,000 miles, provide better handling and reliability than a set of replacement aftermarket springs? Even though the "engineers" deliberately used softer compound rubber on later models to fool people into thinking they were more comfortable, thus ruining the legendary handling of the car and making them an annual consumable?
And I suppose you're also going to say the 12" steelies my car came with in 1994 are better than a nice set of 10" minilites? Even though the suspension geometry hasn't changed (other than softer cones to smooth the ride, but that was Mk6) since the Mk3, which was sold with 10" wheels as standard? The only reason they had to use 12" wheels was the move from front drums to 8.4" discs, which meant most 10" wheels won't clear the callipers. I suppose I should also retrofit drums to the front too, yes, as that's what the suspension geometry was designed for?
Not forgetting the standard speakers the car came with, which were still on the rear parcel shelf when I bought the car, but had been chewed to pieces by some sort of wild animal before I had it. By your logic, these speakers will still sound better than the set of JVC speakers I have installed on a speaker board under the rear seat. And since I can't get the standard speakers the car came with (which aren't made by Rover anyway, they had some cheap Chinese name on them), the silence of having no speakers will sound better than the JVC speakers, since anything aftermarket is wrong.
Oh, and the standard exhaust fitted to my car, a twin box system with cat (which I gather disintegrated some time around 1999, from my stack of receipts), is the most optimal exhaust you can fit to the car? I'm quite interested in why the first thing done to tune a Mini is to replace the standard exhaust and manifold then. And also why racing and hill-climbing Minis with the standard 1275 engine run straight-through exhausts or single box systems. Since the standard exhaust is the best you can fit according to your logic, your logic defies practicality and previous results.
When the manufacturers themselves, the very people you're saying install the most efficient parts they can, make radical changes to the drivetrain without redesigning the geometry, I can't help but think you're full of shit with saying "OEM is best". When I buy an aftermarket component for my car (which I have to anyway, Rover haven't made spares in nigh-on 9 years), I'm paying some engineer to ensure that this component is properly calibrated for and tested on a Mini. Since most of the parts I use on my car will only fit a Mini anyway, one would assume that they are designed as such.
Unless of course you are one of these "talented engineers" you speak of, in which case I'd love to know what manufacturer you work for so that I never have the displeasure of owning such a poorly designed car
Not to mention the Bugatti Veyron that is AWD but has 1001 hp
what im saying is that unless you actually know exactly what youre doing (and i rather doubt this as im quite certain you cant tell me anything about the geometry of your cars suspension) unless youre very lucky youre almost certain to make things worse
particularly with a car like the mx5 thats world renowned for its great suspension and handling
talented people tend to end up in well paid jobs
at least in the world of technology (with the exception of university and similar instituations that dont get paid near enough for the quality of work they do in general)
parts are designed to a certain spec though required by the guy who came up with the suspension geometry who most likely will be working for the car company
first of all were talking about an mx5 here a car that is everything the mini isnt and a car that many have called the best handling car in the world
secondly how much work have you done exactly when choosing springs and wheels to calculate the change in the roll centre position the change in wheel rates due to different unsprung mass and all the other things that come into play once you start changing suspension parts?
You seem to know me so well, based on a picture posted in jest
. That's cool.But I'll bite
I'm pretty sure you want me to explain about my car's suspension geometry, but not for the right reason. If my summary of the above is correct, you'll accuse me of doing a rather good copy/paste job from any wiki page regarding the MX-5 or suspension in general. If I'm not correct, be it grossly incorrect, or merely misspelling a word, you'll come down on me claiming once again I haven't got a bloody clue. Amirite?
Besides the fact that my car, like all MX-5s is equipped with a double wishbone suspension both front and rear, uses swaybars/anti-rollbars (however you want to call them really) and is able to adjust caster, camber and toe quite easily. Except for the caster in the rear, but you knew that right
The reason I changed out the suspension is, a) current shocks are about done after 155.xxx kilometers and 16 years and b) I was actually looking for improved handling, both on the street and track. Mainly track, as my car is not a daily driver anymore really...
There's no need to calculate roll centres, front roll couple and 'ideal' springrates, as there are many spreadsheets with already-done calculations available for various combinations of shocks and springs. I didn't feel like re-inventing the wheel, so to speak.
I went with compression and rebound adjustable shocks (adjusted together, I'm still on a budget unfortunately), paired with 500lb/in front and 300 lb/in rear springs. These should offer me the desired handling characteristics. A stable, neutral-ish car that is responsive, not too easy to drive and tail-happy when provoked.
If you wish to challenge my knowledge any further, please do. I rather enjoyed typing this
Good night.
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