RebekahsZ Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 I checked my available rear droop from the ride height I am currently running: 2-inches before the tires start to scoot on the floor. Doesn't prove anything-just another piece of data. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heavy85 Posted September 7, 2014 Author Share Posted September 7, 2014 Update. Ended up going back to the smaller swaybar before yesterday's race but left the lower rear roll center. Results were good but not faster. Car was a easier to drive, more consistent, and less sideways but ultimately best lap time didnt improve. Yesterday ran 6 laps within a tenth 119.0-119.1 where the previous race ran a 119.2, several 119.6, and one flier at 118.9. Seems like Im at a wall. As I make changes I can change the feel and consistency but really am not going faster. For reference I went 118.1 two years ago on this track, 118.8ish last year and 118.9 this year. Need to figure out something to lower times again as prior to this every race I was making gains in both the car and myself. As a side note, I also ran old, used, not well cared for 275/35-15 R6 vs the 255/4?R17 RS2-V2. Granted there are a lot of variable with both width and diameter changes but the old R6 was 1.7 sec faster but significantly less consistent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted September 7, 2014 Share Posted September 7, 2014 Was this a road course or an autocross? I'm no expert, and I mean this with all respect. Do you think it would be worthwhile to get an instructor in the car with you on that particular track? That's what I do when I feel like I've done all I can and have plateau-ed. Not specifically in driving, but in all things. Even though you are plateaued time-wise, are you climbing against the other drivers-every day is a new day, even on the same track. If you are advancing among your peers you may be getting better even though the time is staying the same. It's easy to make gains when you are a bad driver like me, but the better you get, the gains are much harder to see....lets see what the experts say... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-E Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 To me, a consistent, easier to drive vehicle just shows that you're well setup... so you should be pleased about that as a driver. Now you can try tuning with other elements like toe or chassis stiffening for example, or maybe you just need more powwaaahhh! A lot of people make the mistake of changing too many things at once, often one area counteracting gains in another, but it sounds like you've reached a new plateau that's a great new baseline to work from... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube80z Posted September 9, 2014 Share Posted September 9, 2014 Update. Ended up going back to the smaller swaybar before yesterday's race but left the lower rear roll center. Results were good but not faster. Car was a easier to drive, more consistent, and less sideways but ultimately best lap time didnt improve. Yesterday ran 6 laps within a tenth 119.0-119.1 where the previous race ran a 119.2, several 119.6, and one flier at 118.9. Seems like Im at a wall. As I make changes I can change the feel and consistency but really am not going faster. For reference I went 118.1 two years ago on this track, 118.8ish last year and 118.9 this year. Need to figure out something to lower times again as prior to this every race I was making gains in both the car and myself. As a side note, I also ran old, used, not well cared for 275/35-15 R6 vs the 255/4?R17 RS2-V2. Granted there are a lot of variable with both width and diameter changes but the old R6 was 1.7 sec faster but significantly less consistent. Old tires can be used to work on balancing your setup but when the grip goes the car still feels good but goes slower. If you run a data logger you should be able to compare your lateral acceleration from when it was working better. If you don't data log I would recommend adding that to the must have column of stuff. From what you're writing it's clear to me that you need to be stiffer. That will reduce rebound requirements and you'll need less bar and let you run with lower roll centers. As far as how to go faster that is all about first principles. That is what are the terms in the equations of motions and their various forms. That is mass, center of gravity height, and grip (force). One often overlooked area that pays big dividends we have talked about from time to time is friction. The more you can remove from the parts the move equals more grip. Hope that helps, Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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