[shiftspark]

The red eye ones lol I’ll have to wait until new year sales as spent enough this year as also bought some mintex pads from Lohen.

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Haha I keep saying the same but things somehow keep finding their way to my door

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Got a couple hours in on the car today, didn’t get as far as I wanted though as couldn’t get the inner control arm bolts free due to being in a bloody awkward place next to the fuel tank.

My drill also died so have only part drilled the holes for the adjusters, have left the interior in bits so I can jump back on this in the week during lunch breaks.

The good news is that no bolts have been destroyed this far, and all bar the inner control arm bolts have been freed off.

Rear coil overs have been fitted, will attack the fronts next so then at least I can drive it whilst I decide whether to attack the inner control arm bolts again or get them done when I take it for alignment.

Other option would be to drop the subframe to fit them but that’s ideally a next year job when I change to alloy arms (they arrived today, well worth the £40), R56 JCW brakes, handbrake cables, drop links and thicker roll bar.
But want the control arms on before that so I can at least get a decent geo set up for next years track days.

21mm bolt wasn’t looking too pretty on its exposed threads so did plenty of wire brushing, lubing and backing it in and out so as not to damage anything.

Looking forward to the front pinch bolts this week....

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Had a productive lunch break with the fronts, got the old pinch bolts out with no drama thankfully, looks like the week of soaking paid off.

Got the front coilovers fitted, just need to put on the drop links and torque everything up.

Got some tools coming today, have decided to attack the rear lower control arms again, I refuse to be beaten.

And at least I can then run some camber at the rear until I have the subframe down and fit the alloy trailing arms etc.

And I seem to have an earth or battery issue as the alarm decided to go on the Fritz when I was locking up and turning the ignition on didn’t want to stop it.
Ears are flipping bleeding haha

Hoping my tenant didn’t nibble through anything, need to investigate further.

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Managed to get the bastard control arm bolts undone and holes drilled for the adjusters over lunch yesterday.

New lower control arms and rear suspension are back on. I set them very slightly longer than standard to add a touch of camber.
I’ve also lowered the rear a lot more than I set it at initially as i was far too conservative and it ended up higher than standard

Front looks like it will settle around where I want it but will see when I’ve got the interior back in and go for a drive. I’m not one for the slammed look like I was when I was younger.

The rear sits much better now than in the above pic but may drop too low depending on how much it settles. Was too dark to get pics by the time it was back on the ground.

Car hasn’t been washed since October so will get a good clean once all back together and tested. Itching to drive it!

Will get alignment and potentially corner weighting done in the new year to set it up 2021 track days, thinking to use Matt Roach Racing in Rayleigh as they’re not far from me. Has anyone has used them before?

Think first track day next year makes sense to be Brands so I can get a measure of how it’s handling post suspension changes.

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Finally got a side on pic now it’s been lowered, I still haven’t driven it so will see how it settles but will lower the front or raise the rear a tad if it doesn’t settle how I like.

Got the interior all back together and the adjusters poking through to boot panels.

Got the car back in the air over lunch to get the rear drop links off as was expecting the whiteline replacements to come around the same time. But they’ve only just come so they’ll go on tomorrow.

The joints on the standard ones are knackered.

Also opened up the trailing arms and new bolts which will go into the pile for after next track season as a few more bits to get before it’s worth fitting them.

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Got the drop links fitted earlier and also raised the rear a bit as was looking too low for my liking.

Looking forward to taking it out for a spin and all being well I’ll give it a wash and get some better pics.

Should be booking first couple of track days for 2021 soon, looking like Bedford or Snetterton on a weekend towards the end of Jan and then a weekday at Brands in Feb.


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[Draughtsman]

I’ve just finished upgrading my trailing arms to the alloy ones. It’s worth it just for the visual difference! Haven’t driven or had the car re aligned yet so can’t comment on the difference in the way the car drives yet.

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[Fro-dizzle]

I’ve just finished upgrading my trailing arms to the alloy ones. It’s worth it just for the visual difference! Haven’t driven or had the car re aligned yet so can’t comment on the difference in the way the car drives yet.

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Nice, agree they look so much better, be interesting to know if you notice a difference, was that the only thing you changed at the time? That way can really isolate if any difference you feel is down to them rather than a combination of things.


I still haven’t taken it for a spin since changing the suspension but plan to later today.

Booked onto the following track days last week, hopefully my area will be out of tier 4 by the 31st Jan and likewise with Kent in Feb.

Snetterton - Sun 31st Jan
Brands Hatch - Mon 22nd Feb

Won’t do any in March, and may go to Bedford in April there wasn’t much listed for April onwards when I booked the other two.

 

[CarsOrBikes]

I don't think there's much to notice in general driving really, what you could perhaps notice is the affect they have on the ARB performance, it has a bit less weight to lift so the inside rear can unload sooner for the bar position etc, droop decreases so earlier transition to rotation/oversteer possibly, without this weight the affect on rear spring rate would increase slightly, that's the way I see it fwiw.

You might notice it feel a little more jarring over rougher surfaces perhaps on some cars, weight, spring and bar dependent, both of you are on Meisters so will have low spring rates so who knows, you might well feel the difference in turns earlier on but otherwise I don't think it will change too much, they definitely do look better

 

[Vaios]

I don't think there's much to notice in general driving really, what you could perhaps notice is the affect they have on the ARB performance, it has a bit less weight to lift so the inside rear can unload sooner for the bar position etc, droop decreases so earlier transition to rotation/oversteer possibly, without this weight the affect on rear spring rate would increase slightly, that's the way I see it fwiw.

You might notice it feel a little more jarring over rougher surfaces perhaps on some cars, weight, spring and bar dependent, both of you are on Meisters so will have low spring rates so who knows, you might well feel the difference in turns earlier on but otherwise I don't think it will change too much, they definitely do look better

What about the unsprung wheel mass? Wont it affect the overall performance positevely?

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[CarsOrBikes]

yes of course a little, different words to 'less weight to lift' when I'm talking about the bar, of course yes the same applies to the tyre pushing up less, just not that I think people would really notice it as much as the bar affect etc, also people with quite varied wheel options would report differently.

 

[Vaios]

yes of course a little, different words to 'less weight to lift' when I'm talking about the bar, of course yes the same applies to the tyre pushing up less, just not that I think people would really notice it as much as the bar affect etc, also people with quite varied wheel options would report differently.

Yeap its a hard answer due to numerous variables. If you notice a difference in fitting lighter wheels then you will notice that change also i think.

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[CarsOrBikes]

absolutely, like other mods..... if the combination is right etc,

I've always run stock rims, quite happy with them and like the stock look (at first glance), not been interested in light stuff really, although I just added these as possible TD rims which feel like half the weight, so might be interesting on track let alone the road (if not on slicks😂) to see how they change the car, in conjunction with the arms I suspect rather different.

I felt the arms helped the neutral feel of my own car, then I think I lost a touch of that when increasing the rear springs a kg in August, I dare say using these rims might counter that change or assist slightly, yet to see if I get back out sometime, might run them on the road but would miss the factory image,


although they look sooo aggressive😂


tyres are too small imo, just came with them.

 

[Draughtsman]

Nice, agree they look so much better, be interesting to know if you notice a difference, was that the only thing you changed at the time? That way can really isolate if any difference you feel is down to them rather than a combination of things.


I still haven’t taken it for a spin since changing the suspension but plan to later today.

Booked onto the following track days last week, hopefully my area will be out of tier 4 by the 31st Jan and likewise with Kent in Feb.

Snetterton - Sun 31st Jan
Brands Hatch - Mon 22nd Feb

Won’t do any in March, and may go to Bedford in April there wasn’t much listed for April onwards when I booked the other two.

Had to use R56 anti roll bar drop links. They have a longer thread on the bottom of them as there is a boss on the r56 arms. You can grind the boss off and use R53 drop links but I opted to leave the boss in tact and fit the correct anti roll bar drop links.


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[Fro-dizzle]

Good shout on the thread, the whiteline drop links I’ve fitted have a much longer thread than the standard ones I replaced so I’m glad they will be transferable when I make the change.

 

[Fro-dizzle]

absolutely, like other mods..... if the combination is right etc,

I've always run stock rims, quite happy with them and like the stock look (at first glance), not been interested in light stuff really, although I just added these as possible TD rims which feel like half the weight, so might be interesting on track let alone the road (if not on slicks😂) to see how they change the car, in conjunction with the arms I suspect rather different.

I felt the arms helped the neutral feel of my own car, then I think I lost a touch of that when increasing the rear springs a kg in August, I dare say using these rims might counter that change or assist slightly, yet to see if I get back out sometime, might run them on the road but would miss the factory image,
View attachment 101999

although they look sooo aggressive😂
View attachment 102000

tyres are too small imo, just came with them.
View attachment 102001

They do look very aggressive, agree with you on keeping the relatively stock look.

Half the weight would be a huge unsprung saving though not surprised your tempted to give them a go as TD wheels.

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Ended up needing a new battery in the end which came today.

Which meant I could take it for a quick spin to check everything over and fill up with Tesco’s finest.

Wasn’t pushing anything too hard just yet but the car feels absolutely amazing! Turn in has improved massively, feels more stable in corners and strangely is less jarring/harsh than the standard suspension.

Although after 108k miles I’m sure it was well past it’s best!

I used an inclinometer and looks to be around 2 degrees front and 1 degree rear. Front makes sense as that’s where the previous owner had them set.

Damping is currently 15f and 9r which seems common, will have a play around and some longer drives to see if I want to deviate from that.

Depending on COVID restrictions I’m hoping to get the geometry set up early Jan ahead of Snetterton on the 31st.

Itching to get back out there now!

 

[CarsOrBikes]

I'd find some faster roads with some elevation changes at national speed, Meisters are softer sprung and rebound control is a bit vague imo, for me they compressed a lot and felt over extended in rebound quite easily, so the last couple I've had here with them already installed ended up around 20+ or so in an effort to slow the dampers down but that is only my view ;O)

 

[Fro-dizzle]

Thanks Sean, plenty of those roads around for me to have a play 👍🏽