Optimum ride height for R32 GTR

[ecenshu]

I'm concerned that my car is too low(was like that from Japan). I can barely fit my little finger through the gap between the guards and the tyre. I can fit a coke can under the car(standing up of course) at the lowest part so should be legal ride height.

How do Cops usually measure a car to be "too low"? Detailed explaination would be appreciated. Also I want it to handle at its optimum so is there a way to determine optimum ride height? Is optimum ride height based on damper and rebound of the shocks or am I looking at totally wrong areas?

[Targa Tom]

but not sure.

Dont know what the OEm ride height is..

A few of the guys run 340-345 front and 340-350 rear. I tested our Targa Car the other day at 335 front and rear with DMS suspension, and it seemed OK, in fact i am tempted to run those setting in this TT.

Last year we ran Tein @ F=340 & R = 345, but the front was wrong spring rate.

Measure from centre of your wheel to bottom edge of wheel arch

As far a cops are concerned, check with the local authorities

TT

[ferni]

well 100mm is the legal hight in vic afaik

cops will just say its too low when they feel like it - but when you take it to get the defect off its 100mm

[Targa Tom]

Well if that is the case, that is very low. Tein give a 90mm test bar for setting their suspension, which you put under the front of exhaust (Lowest Point)... That translates to 320mm ride height on a HCR32 with std wheels

TT

[GTR32]

I'm concerned that my car is too low(was like that from Japan). I can barely fit my little finger through the gap between the guards and the tyre. I can fit a coke can under the car(standing up of course) at the lowest part so should be legal ride height.

How do Cops usually measure a car to be "too low"? Detailed explaination would be appreciated. Also I want it to handle at its optimum so is there a way to determine optimum ride height? Is optimum ride height based on damper and rebound of the shocks or am I looking at totally wrong areas?

Hi ecenshu;

My R32 GTR rides about R370mm F360mm measured from hub to guard lip with standard suspension.

'Optimum' ride height will vary depending upon what you want to use the car for, however, I understand that less than 350mm measured as above will cause you to upset the dynamic aspects of the suspension. You'll also need to adjust camber if you go lower than standard.

As far as I know the cops don't measure ride height, they measure ground clearance. The RTA should be able to assist with this, about 100mm sounds right.

You might also wish to call Whiteline suspension in Sydney for advice.

Regards

[ecenshu]

Not having any real experience with 1:1 scale cars, based on my knowledge of RC cars though:

A good setup for rough terrain(public roads) would be to have the car as low as possible with while maintaining maximum suspension travel. Also, go softest you can with the dampers and get the stiffest roll bars that you can put up with...however, there is a point where it is too soft and I think the standard damper rates would classify as the softest setting possible.

Do you think my reasoning is flawed? My opinion is to get dampers that are closest to the stock settings and maybe a bit stiffer to minimise roll to a certain extent. Anti-roll bars should be the controlling factor for body roll as stiff suspension would only be useful for tracks because theres not too many weight transitions on public roads...I can only think of roundabouts and I can't picture a stock GTR suspension settings with stiffer roll bars not being able to handle them

Lemme know what you think...

PS: would anyone know what the lowest ride height for a R32 GTR while still maintaining about 80% of the suspension travel would be?

[GTR32]

Hi ecenshu, my thoughts (*) on what you've written are:

A good setup for rough terrain(public roads) would be to have the car as low as possible with while maintaining maximum suspension travel.

* Maximum suspension travel is relative to what you want to use the car for. How much do you need? You can have the car as low as you like provided your camber is OK and the available travel is sufficient. Height and suspension travel are related in the extreme sense, but actual travel will be different for a given spring rate and length, which is related to the next point.

Also, go softest you can with the dampers and get the stiffest roll bars that you can put up with...however, there is a point where it is too soft and I think the standard damper rates would classify as the softest setting possible.

*The dampers should be matched to the spring rate. If the dampers are too stiff the springs won't compress or rebound. I think if you used the stiff roll bar soft damper set up you'd get either over or understeer badly (?) depending upon the set up. Camber setting will also play a big part here. I don't believe roll bars should be used to do anything other than minimise roll and control over or understeer. The rest is up to shocks, springs, and alignment. I'm fairly sure that extremely stiff anti roll bars on their own will make the car a skate in the wet.

Do you think my reasoning is flawed? My opinion is to get dampers that are closest to the stock settings and maybe a bit stiffer to minimise roll to a certain extent. Anti-roll bars should be the controlling factor for body roll as stiff suspension would only be useful for tracks because theres not too many weight transitions on public roads...I can only think of roundabouts and I can't picture a stock GTR suspension settings with stiffer roll bars not being able to handle them

*You haven't mentioned springs here anywhere. Don't overlook them because they've got to be considered carefully. Body roll is only one factor, without it there can be as many problems as with too much as I understand it assists weight transfer and therefore grip as long as it's withn reasonable limits for the intended use.

[ecenshu]

Sorry I wasn't clear before, or I'm probably getting my terminoligy incorrect.

Car will be for street use and pending $$$ a circuit car. I said damper when I intended to mean the whole shock assembly, ie: matched springs to shocks.

Well I guess t get "maximum" suspension travel I'd end up with a landcruiser setup! . I would like the car to be able to handle a pothole or two while cornering hard if thats too much to ask....

Preferable setup will be "firm" ride with some roll on the road so it doesn't skate or skip over ripples. Adjustable anti-roll bar will be stiffened when minimal roll is wanted.

Does this seem I'm thinking correctly? Or should/would I need to get a firm/stiff spring/damper combination to stop/minimise body roll?

Also, is it damping, rebound or spring rate that affects how much a car rattles your bones?

PS: I'm just a dumb car owner and don't know what I mean!