General Setup Question

[Gorpon73]

Hi All,

Another noob question.

Wondering if anyone could direct me to a good guide for adjustable suspension setups.

Just replaced my whole setup and am looking for some guidedance on optimal settings.

Not real happy with the current settings (getting boatloads of oversteer).

Thx

[vstibbard]

What car?
What is your current set up spring rate ride height, toe and camber?
What tyres are you using and what are you wanting to set the car up for?

Cheers V

[rgh0]

The starting point for any Lotus setup is the orognal design - they knew what they were doing

Change things carefully and one thing at a time if the orginal does not meet your exact needs

Understeer is not a typical Elan or Plus 2 problem with the standard suspesnion set up so if you have lots of it something is wrong

cheers
Rohan

[Gorpon73]

Hi All,

Thanks for the replies! Must admit although I've been tinkering with classics and sports cars all my life, this is my first Elan and I've jumped in the deep end.

I'm trying to dial in a 69 Elan. I've installed new dampers and springs all around (with all bushings, trunions, etc.).

Ride height is standard. Toe is 0 (as close as possible with my rookie alignment). Camber is stock. Car will be for street use only (but I like a fairly aggressive set-up for street).

Currently, getting a great deal of lurchy over-steer on turn-in and under lifting.

I'm thinking its one of a few (or combination of) things:
1. My toe in is still a bit much.
2. My rear is still a bit too soft. Its notably softer at the same setting (highest or lowest) than the front.
3. My front spring rate is way too stiff.

Anyhow, any recommendations welcomed. I plan on doing it the old fashioned way this weekend. I've dialed everything down to its softest settings and adjust by trial run.

Best

[collins_dan]

You should probably post the specifics of your set up (TTR fast road koni's with x springs in rear...). Someone else may have a similar set up and can help out. If you able to dial it down to softest, it sounds like it is not original. Cheers, Dan

[Gorpon73]

Hi,

Thanks for the recommendation.

Definitely not stock.

AVO TAI36-01 damper with stock spring.
AVO PE549 front damper and spring spring.
Also, new CV axles, tie rods, sway bar mounts, trunions, bushings all around. Suspension, control arms and driveshaft refreshed, but original.

Any suggestions welcome.

Best, DJS

[ianf]

Not an expert but sounds as if the front is too soft and the rear too hard. The back end is really soft and vice-versa on a standard car. Somewhere on here there are set up details for Tony Thompson springs/dampers.

Cheers,

Ian

[MickG]

I would definitely put aside your rookie alignment tools and take it to a good tyre fitters and get it checked and set up correctly, both front and rear wheels.
The toe in is listed in the WSM. What type of tyre are you using?

Mick G

[rgh0]

Sorry I misread the orignal post as understeer when you said oversteer. This is a more common problem in an Elan. Typically it can occur when the rear rubber aeon rubber springs are missing or have deteriorated. The problem is made worse with modern stickier tyres and with the rear damping to soft.

The problem is a oversteer lurch if you dont drive the car very very smoothly which you describe.

The front on an elan is always much stiffer than the rear when setup right but if the rear is too soft then you get this roll oversteer problem on steering and power transients

I would set the front toe in per the manual (which is the only adjustment) and check all the rest of he front and rear settings to ensure it is per the manual. If its not then something is bent and needs fixing. What are you spring rates front and rear.

If you still have a problem then you can do a few things for a road car.

1. space down the rear aeon springs about 20mm so they come into play earlier ( this was a factory mod on the late plus 2 to better control the rear with its greater weight)

2. Fit a bigger front roll bar which helps control the roll transients better

3. Stiffen up both front and rear springs to match you driving style and tyre stickiness better.

cheers
Rohan

[Elan45]

You mention sway bar mounts in plural, and makes me wonder if you might have a rear bar.
Rear bars will add oversteer or at least reduce understeer if that's a problem. And Elans only came with front bars. If you have a rear bar, it was added. And I've seen some monstrously large rear bars on Elans.

Roger

[ecamiel]

The Elan is not normally an oversteering car.

First check for bad bushings and cracked suspension mounts (including rear towers) which are both common issues.

Did you tighten the suspension with it at ride height or at full droop? At Ride height is correct, Droop adds a preload.

Rear A arms must be parallel to the ground. If not, or over bumps, you can get "jacking" in the rear which leads to sudden oversteer.

Modern tires create more weight transfer than Chapman designed for. This leads to engaging the bump stops which create a sudden increase in spring rate and a change in handling balance, particularly at the rear. A cable tie with some silicon seal on the shaft and some spirited driving will show if the bump stops are making contact.

Cut down the bump stops to increase the free spring travel. 26Rs used stiffer rear springs to help solve this issue as well as to remove the stock understeer. I know this is counter intuitive for oversteer but it works.

If the problem persists, call Dave Bean, Lee Chapman or one of the other pros.

Eric
64 S1 Hart

[Gorpon73]

Hi All,

Thanks for all the suggestions and help!

Bushes (all new) and mounts are all good. Geometry is correct and the suspension was tightened under load at ride height (arms parallel to ground). Only front sway bar, I believe it to be stock, but new bushes.

Looks like some very nice weather coming up this weekend, so plan on doing some testing.

Will stiffen up the front spring then sequentially adjust the dampers until problem seems mitigated. Will also have another dialing in of the toe angles.

Only issue may be that the tires I'm certain are stickier and wider than original sizes. They're brand new (came with car) so I'm reluctant to change them if possible.

My driving style may need a recalibration as well. I'm used to being cautious of over-steer as most of my driving experience comes from early 911's, so I may be over analyzing.

Thanks again for the suggestions!

Best