kismetcapitan
April 30th, 2012, 01:15
just a couple days after getting my car back, I hit the road back home to Ann Arbor. About 550 miles to get here. Some notes:
I have this odd sensation that there's no rebound damping when the car is moving on bumpy 35mph roads. It's just really, really bouncy. It's been improving; I wonder if the new suspension just needs to break in? Or is it the seats? I recall the very bouncy built-in "seat suspension" in the old M-B 190E 2.3-16, which completely turned me off from that car.
I set the rear to stiffest and the front to medium. I knew I'd regret this - next time the front links are worked on, I'll set the front to stiffest as well.
H&R springs drop the front too much. 1.25" would have been more than enough. 1.4" just gets into ghettofabulous low territory, just on the edge there. No ground clearance issues in general, although on a steep driveway here in Michigan there was a slight momentary scrape. Good thing that lower engine cover is there, and with previous cars lowered a lot more, I still don't have to think about the ride height much.
I set the rear spring perches at the lowest setting, and with the rear 1" drop, I find that perfect.
My front left has always been a bit low, and the broken front left DRC strut seemed to be the culprit. But the front left still is a little less than 1/4" shorter, wheel center to arch, and a whopping 3/8" ground to wheel arch. Hard to notice, but if you look at one side, then the other, it becomes obvious.
I did the upper control arms but not the lowers; I hope those will even things out. If not...could it be that my front subframe is somehow twisted? It has no accident record, but a previous owner could have had an unintentional offroad incursion that would have left no visible damage, except for tweaking the subframe..."
Rolling the front arches by hand worked...mostly. I couldn't get the part where the screw at the top to fold over, because I need to cut the screw insert out, and so there's a slight bit of rub there. Once I get that folded in as well, I think the lowering plus my 10mm spacers can live together in harmony. There's absolutely no rubbing when turning at full lock. No problems without the wheel spacers, but I just really love the look of the car with the spacers in, and the wheels nearly flush with the fenders.
In general I like the harder ride, but it is less comfortable over long distances. However, my wife noted that switching lanes quickly was "safer" (meaning, she felt more confident doing it), and the car doesn't exactly roll all that much.
But for all its failings, DRC did work, and it now feels like a normal suspension, for better or worse, using raw stiffness to counter body roll. The nose dips more when doing slalom maneuvers; it didn't with the DRC.
But I'm happy that the ride height is essentially solved (except for the mysterious front left issue). Going maximum on the front should make turn-in more crisp; my fears of understeer were unfounded....and I HATE body roll, and will pay any price in ride quality to eliminate it!
I have this odd sensation that there's no rebound damping when the car is moving on bumpy 35mph roads. It's just really, really bouncy. It's been improving; I wonder if the new suspension just needs to break in? Or is it the seats? I recall the very bouncy built-in "seat suspension" in the old M-B 190E 2.3-16, which completely turned me off from that car.
I set the rear to stiffest and the front to medium. I knew I'd regret this - next time the front links are worked on, I'll set the front to stiffest as well.
H&R springs drop the front too much. 1.25" would have been more than enough. 1.4" just gets into ghettofabulous low territory, just on the edge there. No ground clearance issues in general, although on a steep driveway here in Michigan there was a slight momentary scrape. Good thing that lower engine cover is there, and with previous cars lowered a lot more, I still don't have to think about the ride height much.
I set the rear spring perches at the lowest setting, and with the rear 1" drop, I find that perfect.
My front left has always been a bit low, and the broken front left DRC strut seemed to be the culprit. But the front left still is a little less than 1/4" shorter, wheel center to arch, and a whopping 3/8" ground to wheel arch. Hard to notice, but if you look at one side, then the other, it becomes obvious.
I did the upper control arms but not the lowers; I hope those will even things out. If not...could it be that my front subframe is somehow twisted? It has no accident record, but a previous owner could have had an unintentional offroad incursion that would have left no visible damage, except for tweaking the subframe..."
Rolling the front arches by hand worked...mostly. I couldn't get the part where the screw at the top to fold over, because I need to cut the screw insert out, and so there's a slight bit of rub there. Once I get that folded in as well, I think the lowering plus my 10mm spacers can live together in harmony. There's absolutely no rubbing when turning at full lock. No problems without the wheel spacers, but I just really love the look of the car with the spacers in, and the wheels nearly flush with the fenders.
In general I like the harder ride, but it is less comfortable over long distances. However, my wife noted that switching lanes quickly was "safer" (meaning, she felt more confident doing it), and the car doesn't exactly roll all that much.
But for all its failings, DRC did work, and it now feels like a normal suspension, for better or worse, using raw stiffness to counter body roll. The nose dips more when doing slalom maneuvers; it didn't with the DRC.
But I'm happy that the ride height is essentially solved (except for the mysterious front left issue). Going maximum on the front should make turn-in more crisp; my fears of understeer were unfounded....and I HATE body roll, and will pay any price in ride quality to eliminate it!