[V8] Suspension

[Jeffrey Goggin]

> Bigger front bar actually helped?  Given these cars' propensity to push
thru turns, I'd be inclined to beef up the rear bar, not the front... BTDT
w/ FWD, but not quattro.

Sometimes, with a car that has a lousy camber curve (which, by definition,
means almost every car running MacPherson struts), the drawbacks of
increasing the front roll stiffness are less than the benefits of keeping
the suspension operating in a more linear part of its curve.  In cases such
as this, the net effect of using a larger front a/r bar is less understeer,
not more.  Of course, you can go too far and bind everything up, in which
case your inclination would be correct.  Suspension tuning is more of an art
than a science and while theoretical knowledge is a good place to start,
it's definitely not a replacement for practical experience.

In my case, having swapped in springs for a much heavier car, I not only
increased the roll stiffness across the board, but I also changed the
front-rear balance.  I increased the amount of negative camber I run to
around 1.5 degrees, set the toe-in to zero (or in that range ... it's been a
while since I checked it), and added 2" wider wheels with a 1" wider front
track.  Given the above, combined with the damping characteristics of the
Koni sports (yellow body, not red), I found that the 30mm front a/r bar from
the 4.2L V8 improved transient response, as well as reduced understeer.
However, with a car that's set-up differently than mine in any way, it may
well have increased it.  Unfortunately, there's really no substitute for
trying it on your car and seeing for yourself.

BTW, while I think a rear a/r bar is a waste of time on a FWD 4k or on an
UrQ, I suspect it will prove beneficial on a Type 44 chassis car.  This is
because the inside rear wheel stays planted on the ground more during
cornering, thus allowing the rear a/r bar to have an effect upon the
suspension for a greater percentage of the time.  On the FWD 4k and UrQ, the
inside rear wheel lifts very early (in my experience) and once it's off the
ground, the only effect that a rear a/r bar has at that point is to act as
ballast.  If anyone has any experience with running a rear a/r bar on one of
these cars, I'd be curious to hear the results.  I once bought an S4 rear
end assembly with an a/r bar to install on my '89 200q, but quickly found
out it wouldn't bolt up without modification, and ended accepting an offer I
couldn't refuse before I ever got around to installing it.

Jeffrey Goggin
Chandler, AZ