[200q20v] Re: [s-cars] RE: Coil overs - some btdt

[Theodore Chen]

> I'm not a fan of the helper springs for a few reasons, but to each his own.  
> I'll just say a better avenue might be the Sport Bilsteins instead of the 
> HD's.

what's your objection to helper springs?

> >  don't like tethers too much.  they limit your suspension travel
> >  and they do it abruptly.
> 
> Depends on how you look at it teddy.  If you are lowering the car, you 
> shouldn't have more upward movement than you have downward movement.  So, if 
> you lower the car by 1.0inch via spring, then you need to stop upward travel 
> by 1in. *or* change the strut extended length.  That can be done with custom 
> length struts, or cheaply via a cable.  A suspension that is fully unloaded, 
> is fully unloaded, you are just making sure that it has not become loose in 
> the process.

with helper springs, you at least have some reduction in the spring
rate, allowing the rate of extension to slow before the suspension
runs out of travel.

> IME, if you have an "abrupt" stop, you have the wrong 
> suspension setup on the car.  

agreed.  in some situations, though, it's almost unavoidable - like
when you run on a track that exercises the extremes of suspension
travel, like the corkscrew at laguna seca.  then the question becomes
whether you tune to optimize suspension behavior in the corkscrew or
to optimize grip elsewhere.  the corkscrew is a slow section, so
racers will tune to optimize elsewhere.  and that's why you see
scrapes in the pavement from cars bottoming out in the corkscrew.

-teddy


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