Shaun

JUNE 2009 - Thoughts on handling changes
As already alluded to, I need to rectify the current issue of handling (or lack of).

Speaking to Curtis Woodman, Simon (today) and also Richard yesterday, I have a couple of options initially. As you may appreciate, this will involve time testing and adjusting, so will not be something that will be bang on first time. The important thing is to start with a good base.

The suspension set-up under went a major change during the early part of 2008, prior to ScoobyLive 2008. This was to "tone" the suspension down, by altering the spring rates and the valving, so the car was more pleasent for the road. It is probable that the spring rates and valving it has now are totally wrong.

One of the options is to have the struts revalved and the associated spring rates reverted back to as it was. From Simon's memory, the car (when he drove it at ScoobyLive 2007) was certainly better in 2007 (but not perfect), than it was in 2008. The only difference on the handling side (between these two dates) has been the suspension overhaul. The basic set-up in 2008 was exactly the same as this weekend (apart from any adjustment made to settings on the struts, on the day). However, the feedback from Simon in 2008 and from Richard yesterday, was around the same issues.

I will see what transpires and update as and when.

Gus,
I have done the complete "service" job before, but I have to admit that Tracktive are able to cart that stuff around for me to the ScoobySprint events, so it saves me from worrying about getting a spare wheel stuffed in the back of my head when on the road!

I won't have Tracktive around at all the events I want to do, so I appreciate where you are coming from!

Shaun

JULY 2008 – Handling Base Set-Up – Starting Again
The in’s and out’s of car handling set-up has never been a subject I have ever felt comfortable with. It was almost like it was a black art; to such a degree that I thought it was never worth me understanding. Let someone else deal with that, all I need to do is just drive the car.

As I am just starting to learn about vehicle dynamics, it is imperative that I understand the affect that the handling set-up can have on both the car and my driving. However, to do this I must have a good base to start with.

It is hard to put in to words how you feel; when someone that can clearly drive, get’s in your car and tells you it handles like a piece of ****….. especially when you are trying to learn. It is quite crushing, especially when you are taking part in a competition event.

As I have previously discussed, the car was far from right at the last event handling wise…. In fact it was far from even "OK". I fully appreciate the “could of, should of, would of” argument, so now it was time for me to get things right. I have spent that long out of the seat in the Subaru, it was very hard for me to even realise how the car should perform…. Let alone making it better, handling wise.

No point in having this awesome engine with a great power band, if I can not realise that grunt and transfer it to the tarmac.

Investigate, alter and test…… and as many iterations as it takes, to get to the final “confident inspiring” set-up required, so I can concentrate on what I need to do…. and that is to advance my driving ability with in the car.

The first plan of action was to get the car to a good set-up for road use, as that is primarily what the car is used for.

I had been discussing the recent handling “issues” with Iain Litchfield of Litchfield Imports, and my conclusion was, out of all the companies I know, Litchfield’s probably have one of the widest knowledge base of how a road going Subaru should behave. With the creation of their critically acclaimed road monsters, that are the Type20 and Type25 Impreza’s, along with their 2006 Time Attack winning Spec C Race Car, I suspected they know their spuds, when it comes to realising what makes a car handle well on the road and track.

So the first port of call was a visit to Litchfield Imports newly built workshop, to see what could be made of what I currently had and how it could be progressed.

Litchfield’s have consistently supported this car since I bought it back in 2005, so it was returning back to its original home. I digress somewhat, but Iain has a slight soft spot for this specific car, as it was the first ever Spec C imported in to the UK back in 2003, originally by Litchfield Imports.

Anyway……

I arrived at Litchfield Imports and was presented with Lunch… I have to admit, this was a great start to the afternoon, as I am not accustomed to sandwiches and a drink on arrival to a tuners! I did not realise I was that special!!

Iain and I had a chat and Iain suggested that we both take the car out on a test drive route. Taking the driving in turn and giving feedback to each other on what we both feel. Return back to the workshop, make some adjustments and try again….. repeat the process until we “hopefully” get to a point that the car is actually doing what it should. This made perfect sense to me, as it also gave me an opportunity to learn as well.

One other thing that Iain suggested was that if I had any images of the car on the handling circuit, he would have a better idea of any immediate issues by seeing the cars poise in certain situations.

I was only too willing to oblige!

Too much bodyroll as you can see from the front (passenger to driver side). Too soft at the front which is causing the rear passenger wheel to lift. Not good!


Front is lifting (on power) and back is squatting, which is upsetting the car. Possibly too soft at the front. Not good!


Terrible roll on to the driver’s side and digging in (look how close the bottom of the front bumper is to the floor!). Little control at the front. Not good!


As Iain explained….. “You have quite a few issues there, and your car still achieved 4th overall at the last round?!?!. Interesting!”

Yeah…. It was bad!

Based on the feedback from Round 3, that the car was light at the front with no feel or grip, also that the rear was squatting under power, it was evident (supported by the images) that the car was far from balanced. It essence, it was probably one of the (if not the) worst set-up car at the event!! I soon realised that without appropriate testing, this is what can happen. Plenty of time had been spent on the engine with Tracktive, but I had managed to spend zero time with anyone (including myself) on the handling set-up. My fault and my mistake.

So with some information to hand, off Iain and I went to drive the car "as is" for the initial feedback.

Shaun

Test 1 - Current Benchmark
As already stated I have AST 3-Way Adjustable Struts. This allows for the following adjustment:
• Rebound – This is the spring expanding
• Bump / High Speed Compression – This is the spring compressing suddenly (say going over a pot hole)
• Bump / Low Speed Compression – This is spring compressing slowly (say going over a undulation in the road or going around a bend)

Each adjuster has 12 positions, so you may appreciate my ignorance when it has come to realising I need to understand all of this!! But…. that was not an excuse anymore.

Current (i.e. no adjustment made yet - as is) settings were recorded.....



Test 1 - Tyre Pressures
Front Drivers – 39psi
Front Passenger – 38psi
Rear Drivers – 36psi
Rear Passenger – 35psi

Test 1 - Suspension Settings
Front Drivers Rebound – 0
Front Passenger Rebound - 1
Rear Drivers Rebound – 12
Rear Passenger Rebound – 12

Front Drivers High Speed Compression – 4
Front Passenger High Speed Compression – 4
Rear Drivers High Speed Compression – 8
Rear Passenger High Speed Compression – 4

Front Drivers Low Speed Compression – 6
Front Passenger Low Speed Compression – 6
Rear Drivers Low Speed Compression – 10
Rear Passenger Low Speed Compression – 9

Test 1 – Test Drive
As soon as I drove off up the road, Iain commented on how much the front was lifting on power. Iain then commented on how much the car was jiggling over the road surface, at the rear. The next thing was to attack a small roundabout, not at great speed, but to turn in suddenly and see if the car holds the line going around the roundabout. Low and behold, initial turn-in was great, but the front soon washed away with huge body roll. Iain then took over and drove the same circuit…. with the same results! Very similar traits to what were experienced on the Sprint Circuit.

Iain explained that the car had no composure and was so unbalanced.

Although the resulting ride and composure were bad, it was at least a starting point to improve from (hopefully).

Test 1 - Conclusions
Well, as you can see regardless of whether the settings were right or wrong, they were not even across each side of the vehicle! Although the tyres on the car were now T1-R’s, as opposed to the 888’s used for the Sprint, the tyre pressures were way too high. Whilst they were not massively over, they were still incorrect and needed to be corrected.

It was also clearly evident that the reason why the front (and to a degree the rear) was unsettled, was a lot to do with the lack of rebound/compression on the front. Close to zero rebound on the front, meant that their was little to no control of this at the front end, which in theory would lead to the front raising under power, which would affect the transfer of weight to the back – losing grip to the front. To help control the front further, additional high/low speed compression was also required, to assist with composure in a bend for instance and to eliminate bobbing. The rear felt OK, but needed some of the rebound to be taken off, as well as the compression evened up over each axle. This would then hopefully make the rear more composed on the road.

Shaun

Test 2 - Change in settings from Benchmark



Test 2 - Tyre Pressures
Front Drivers – 34psi
Front Passenger – 34psi
Rear Drivers – 32psi
Rear Passenger – 32psi

Test 2 - Suspension Settings
Front Drivers Rebound – 4
Front Passenger Rebound – 4
Rear Drivers Rebound – 9
Rear Passenger Rebound – 9

Front Drivers High Speed Compression – 7
Front Passenger High Speed Compression – 7
Rear Drivers High Speed Compression – 8
Rear Passenger High Speed Compression – 8

Front Drivers Low Speed Compression – 9
Front Passenger Low Speed Compression – 9
Rear Drivers Low Speed Compression – 10
Rear Passenger Low Speed Compression – 10

Test 2 – Test Drive
The car immediately felt much better with the changes made!

The front of the car was now riding bumps better and was much more composed on throttle. The lift at the front had been reduced dramatically, as the shocks were actually controlling the front end better now. However, it was still slightly too soft.

The rear felt a lot more composed, but was still bouncing over bumps… although not to the same degree as with Test 1. The rear was possibly too hard.

Now the roundabout…..

Initial turn-in was still good and this time it held the line a lot better and body roll at the front was reduced.

Test 2 - Conclusions
Minor adjustments needed now to stiffen the front slightly, with a bit more rebound and compression. Slight adjustment to the rear required, to improve composure.

Shaun

Test 3 - Change in settings from Test 2



Test 3 - Tyre Pressures
Front Drivers – 34psi
Front Passenger – 34psi
Rear Drivers – 32psi
Rear Passenger – 32psi

Test 3 - Suspension Settings
Front Drivers Rebound – 6
Front Passenger Rebound – 6
Rear Drivers Rebound – 9
Rear Passenger Rebound – 9

Front Drivers High Speed Compression – 9
Front Passenger High Speed Compression – 9
Rear Drivers High Speed Compression – 8
Rear Passenger High Speed Compression – 8

Front Drivers Low Speed Compression – 11
Front Passenger Low Speed Compression – 11
Rear Drivers Low Speed Compression – 9
Rear Passenger Low Speed Compression – 9

Test 3 – Test Drive
I can’t remember it feeling this good on the road before!

The ride was compliant, with a controlled front and rear over bumps and was able to hold a line round a roundabout, on or off throttle.

Test 3 - Conclusions
The car was now handling as it should, on the road with the tyres that were on it. I am sure “personal” set-up changes could be done, but I was now very happy that the car was controlled and behaving how it should on the road. For now that was it, as at least I had a competent baseline to judge against and get used to, prior to any further changes.

Anti-Roll Bars
As the name suggests, these control the amount of body roll seen across an axle (i.e. across the rear and across the front). Reducing body roll is good, but makes for a less compliant ride.

Rear Anti-Roll Bar
To give some more available adjustment to the rear shocks (for track use and change in tyres), we wanted to see what affect, stiffening the rear roll bar would have. The current ARB is Whiteline 24mm. This is set to the softest setting (soft, medium and hard), mainly because of the ARB’s thickness. Normally a 22mm performance ARB is used for Newages, and this is normally set to the mid way adjustment. All based on road use. For the purpose of this test, we wanted to move the ARB to the middle position.

Unfortunately the nuts and bolts on the adjusters could not be undone (same problem as seen at the last event). This would either require a lot of heat to the area to try and free up the adjuster, or just simply cutting the bolts off and install new ones. It was decided to leave this for the moment and pick it up at a later date.

Front Anti-Roll Bar
This remains standard at present, which means there is no adjustment available. This may be changed in the future, but for road use, it seems to provide the right level of control at the front.

Shaun

Geometry / 4WD Alignment
Equally as important as the suspension set-up, is the alignment of the wheels. Do not under estimate how much adjustment to the vehicles alignment can have on both positive and/or negative affects to the vehicle handling characteristics.

The geometry had not been checked since early 2008, so quite some time ago.

Using Litchfield’s geometry hardware, the latest version of Beissbarth’s Four Wheel Alignment equipment, the Spec C’s geometry was checked.



Measuring Camber, Toe and castor at both the front and rear, showed some slight differences across each axle…. nothing jaw dropping, like the rebound/compression/tyre pressure settings seen for Test 1, but they could certainly be improved upon.

Unfortunately we were running out of time, so it was decided to leave these adjustments for another day…. soon! More on this in the very near future.

Overall Conclusions
Before spending time with Litchfield Imports, I had no idea how my car should behave on the road. The difference by altering tyre pressures and making adjustments to the AST’s has been nothing short of amazing. Understanding what and why has been a real insight and extremely worth while for me. Whilst the handling tests are far from over for road use, let alone for track use, I am so much more confident with the feel of the car and what it is doing. I am also more confident in what the AST suspension can do for me and how to alter the set-up, based on what I can feel.

Once the geometry has been set, I will take advice on how to go forward with the current AST spring rates (50nm front and 30nm rear) and valving. Taking in to account that the current set-up feels good on the road with T1-R’s, it will require at least rebound/compression changes for track use and 888’s. Whether or not I have enough rebound/compression adjustment left to allow for this (I have some adjustment left on the front and rear, apart from front rebound which is minimal), is the question to be asked. I also have testing to complete with the rear and possibly the front ARB's.

Everything is about compromise…. so it just depends on how far I want that compromise to go. At the end of the day this IS a road car now…. so that is where my priority lies.

As soon as the geometry has been set, I will provide another update.

Stay tuned!!

gussy

iTrader: (2)

Well done Shaun it seems like you are taking massive steps forward with the car and hopefully you will see the fruits of your hard work at the pod in august,I was actually on the phone to Ian just the other day asking about pressures after having a dissapointing run at the last round and only getting a 4th in class I did monkey about with my pressures on the day in hindsight I should have left them as they were cos its a pain with a tyreguage and a pump on the day hopefully it will be better next round due to going on that groupbuy for the electronic in car pressure temp/gauge will mean I can monitor things quicker and make small changes as my 5 runs get less and hopefully get a good compromise on the day or I could just ask John for some advice...wether he gives me it or not is another question

Shaun

Gus,
This is a VERY steep learning curve for me..... but I hope to understand more as the months and use of the car pass. Working with the likes of Iain certainly helps that process.

The attention to detail on the handling side has only just started, but having a competent base to work with is vital..... especially for a monkey like me.

I have finally woken up (after being told by a number of people) to the fact, that you just can't expect everything to happen all at once and be right first time. It requires a methodical approach with assessment, test, feedback and assessment (repeat until you get it right).

I need to take this slowly though..... when I get it all right, I will then have no other excuse apart from the fact that I can not drive for ****. But then we all knew that a long time ago!

It may be a long time till Round 4 on tarmac at the Pod, but I have a lot to get sorted in reality, so whatever happens, happens. I suspect I will be using this year as a test period, in the hope that for the 2010 ScoobySprint Series, I will be firing on all four cylinders.... well, that's the plan!

BTW..... No way can JF give you any tips! He is part of the Tracktive Team and that would simply not do!

F1 CJE UK

iTrader: (8)

good read thanks for posting all the info up

gussy

iTrader: (2)

BTW..... No way can JF give you any tips! He is part of the Tracktive Team and that would simply not do! [/QUOTE]


Now now Shaun where has..... in the spirit of the event gone I found out the hard way by letting Iain (Scoobyclinic driver) borrow my car and he smashed my time anyway the way things are going with Tracktive having a full compliment of drivers you should be walking away with the points at the next round I am just a mear privateer who is expecting JF to win in my class at the pod I just have to make sure Im next behind him to keep my points tally up for the final round.

Shaun

F1 CJE UK,
No problem mate!

Gus,
I have no idea if Tracktive will have their car ready for the next round, so it may not be such a "full" compliment. I might have up to three drivers on my car this time. Poor thing!

As regards to Iain being quicker.... at least it shows you how capable your car is mate. You have to take some positive from that. I wish you all the luck for the "Germany" course. Will be interesting to say the least, especially being on tarmac.

Is Iain driving yours again at the next round..... or have you banned him!

gussy

iTrader: (2)

Im really looking forward to the tarmac Shaun much prefer it to concrete and the car should do well,,,,just the driver needs a kick up the **** and not let the red mist cloud his judgement as for Iain I belive he might have a car but if not I dont mind again he treated it with respect at the last round ....at the end of the comp this year I will be selling the car on.....I dont want to but i fancy building something a bit special over winter even tho I have a cracking car it would be a shame to start pulling it apart with it being quite rare and as such should hold a good resale value more than if like I said before if i pull it apart.

Neil..

iTrader: (35)

Interesting info Shaun, and great write up.

evonorth

No excuses then

gussy

iTrader: (2)

Thats Shauns middle name isnt it

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

Shuan why don't you do what gussy did and get someone else to drive it and see what time they can get ??? I don't mean compete for you, just out of curiousity see what the car can do!

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I thought his middle names were richard and reynolds ????


shaun RR fennings

gussy

iTrader: (2)

Steve he did at the last round and yes the car is capable the failings in it was the suspension set up....ho and shaun.... but he has already admitted that.

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

He wants to have a drive of mine. Since the last tweak I notice a hell of a of a lot more just how bad my suspension is I need some good ones fitted. But funds aren't there

Shaun

I have just been out of the country for the past week, but I am up at Tracktive Solutions on Monday to look at setting the geometry. I have been in touch with AST UK and it may be that further changes are required to my actual valving/spring rates (to allow the car to better handle 888's and track - remember it is valved/sprung for the road and road tyres). Further news on all of this as soon as I have made further progress. It maybe that I leave the suspension set-up (apart from changes I can make to the actual adjusters and the mentioned geometry checks/changes), as is for Round 4. Then feedback from that can be fed in to any further changes required.

Rob,
I could be behind the wheel of a WRC car and still come last!

Gus,


EMB,


Steve,
Been there and done that! Richard Bulmer came 4th overall at the last round of ScoobySprint in my car, which was fairly good considering it handled like a bucket of ****! Hence the recent focus on the handling side.

Shaun

JULY 2009 - The Geometry Set-Up and General Car Check Over
As alluded to on my previous visit to Litchfield Imports, geometry was also an area that needed to be checked and altered if required. Unfortunately due to time constraints and the fact that all the adjusters on the car were siezed, the only item that could be completed at Litchfield's was an initial check...... it was now time to free up all the adjusters and complete the geometry set-up, so back the car went to Tracktive Solutions for a general check over and the ball breaking task of freeing up all the adjusters.

Before Tracktive started work on the geometry side of things, they completed a total check over of the engine and ancillaries. The new engine build has now completed just over 2000 miles, so Richard suggested a general check over to ensure all was well. After a check of the car on the road with the laptop and Hydra software, it was back to the unit for an under bonnet and under body check. Since the car was on the ramp, it was also decided to change the oil. I like to change the oil in the engine every 2000 miles and although it would last longer than this interval, it has always been something I have adhered to since running 500bhp and it has never done the engine any harm in over 2yrs. I am also a stickler for keeping on top of things, so it was a good chance to ensure everything was in order.... which it was.

With the boring, but essential checks out of the way it was time to get all the adjustments free'd up ready for the pending geometry tweaks.

Matty set off to take the drop links off the rear anti-roll bar, which had previously highlighted itself as being seized when Richard tried to adjust this at the last event, to no avail.



Even with the use of gas (I think he needed gas and air for himself, let alone the car), taking the nuts off the drop links proved to be somewhat of a mare. Matty persevered and after a few choice words to me and to the car, he managed to remove both nuts, clean the threads up and re-apply the nuts. The rear ARB was never going to be adjusted at this time, but I wanted the ability, that should I wish, I could at a future event without calling the air ambulance. As the rear ARB is 24mm and the front is OE, the rear ARB was kept on the softest setting..... for now.

With the ARB sorted for future adjustment, it was now time to ensure that arms, track rods and bottom strut mounts could be adjusted in readiness for the geometry checks if required.

These proved to be just as "tight" as the ARB droplink nuts, so as Richard felt sorry for Matty, he rolled up his sleeves and gave a hand. I would of helped, but someone had to hold the camera!!



After Richard asked "You never told me you lived by the seaside Shaun!!" (i.e. everything was jammed solid), the grafting duo had ensured (after another hour of sweat and stress!) that the car geometry could now be adjusted if required.

With the "WheelForce" four wheel laser alignment rig now set-up, the car was ready to be checked and adjusted.



As already alluded to at Litchfield's, the geometry was not symetrical when tested at Tracktives. It was also advised by Tracktive that the geometry could be improved slightly, with the adjustment available.

Now, quite a few people tend to keep their geometry a bit of a closely guarded secret (based on anything from the norm), but in the true sense of this project thread I will reveal all. Not that it is any closely guarded secret in my view.

Adjustment comes in the shape of Camber, Castor and Toe. Everything but the castor (which is front only), can be adjusted at both the front and rear. Some cars have very little adjustment.... some none at all (unless other bolt on goodies or modifications are made).

Based on the adjustment that I had available, all three area's were adjusted.

Put simply, Camber is the amount of movement of the wheel in and out (left to right) from the bottom. Negative camber is the bottom of the wheel out and the top in. Positive is the other way round.

Castor is the position of the wheel front to back within the arch. Positive being more forward (longer wheelbase). Negative being the other way round.

Toe is the wheel pointing out or in (like you turning the steering wheel). Positive is turning in (toe in) and negative is turning out (toe out).



Most fast road Subaru's are set to 2degs negative camber at the front and 1.5degs negative camber at the rear. This was further increased on mine to 2.5degs at the front and 2degs at the rear. This would hopefully provide less understeer at the front.

The final geometry adjustments were:

Front (both sides)
Camber - 2.5degs Negative
Castor - 5degs Positive
Toe - 0.6mm Positive

Rear (both sides)
Camber - 2degs Negative
Toe - 0.2mm Positive

The whole idea was to ensure that firstly, all wheels were pointing in the right direction across each axle and secondly to improve on the adjustment available.

With the geometry set along with the suspension, at least the car was now on a level (straight) playing field, so any further adjustment from feedback was based on a good set-up.

I am under no illusions that "this is it", so I suspect that things will be tweaked over time.

As far as I am concerned (apart from suspension adjustment on the day), nothing else will be changed or altered until I have re-tested the current set-up. It looks like the next testing phase will not be until Round 4, but I may be able to squeeze in a test day prior to then on track.

Thanks to Tracktive for removing the skin from their knuckles in the name of my car.

Onwards and upwards.... I look forward to the next use of the car in anger, either on or before ScoobySprint Round 4!

Shaun

JULY 2009 - Further Supension Adjustments for Road
Spent a few hours today in the Spec C on the road and I finally have some confidence and inclination to start changing the AST strut settings (rebound and bump). Certainly made sense to me to start trying to understand what the car is doing, especially post recent geometry changes.

After picking a stretch of road that had bumps, off I went to see how I could improve compliance.

Even though the car was much better after I had visited Litchfield Imports, I still wanted to increase the compliance further.

For the purpose of this excercise I was not going to alter the rebound, as I did not want to affect the rate of transitional roll on entering a turn. I just wanted to see what affect changing high and low speed compression would have on bumpy roads.

After completing five sets of changes (all recorded), I found a setting that gave me very good bump compliance:

Test 4 - Tyre Pressures
Front Drivers – 34psi
Front Passenger – 34psi
Rear Drivers – 32psi
Rear Passenger – 32psi

Test 4 - Suspension Settings
Front Drivers Rebound – 6
Front Passenger Rebound – 6
Rear Drivers Rebound – 9
Rear Passenger Rebound – 9

Front Drivers High Speed Compression – 7
Front Passenger High Speed Compression – 7
Rear Drivers High Speed Compression – 2
Rear Passenger High Speed Compression – 2

Front Drivers Low Speed Compression – 9
Front Passenger Low Speed Compression – 9
Rear Drivers Low Speed Compression – 5
Rear Passenger Low Speed Compression – 5

Test 4 – Test Drive
The car was more compliant over bumps than before (softer) front and rear, but still felt very controlled.

I then took the car down a B road and dual carriageway and whilst the ride felt better than before, I was picking up some bobbing (especially on the dual carriageway). I am wondering if I now need to reduce bump even more.

Test 4 - Conclusions
With the car getting more compliant for my preferences, the next area to test would be rebound, but this would be for another day.

rickya

iTrader: (18)

Very informative as usual

Shaun

AUGUST 2009 - Further Supension Adjustments for Road - Final
After recent conversations with Curtis Woodman of AST UK about the suspension set-up, Curtis suggested that I popped over to see him so he could check the set-up, measuring gas levels etc in the shocks and ensure everything was OK for the next event.

I picked one of my mates up on the way (who also has the same shocks on his car, albeit a RS Focus) and he could not believe how compliant the car felt now compared to his set-up. A lot of this is down to personal taste and for my purpose I wanted the car to be nice and compliant for the road, with a little roll for grip etc. Based on my last suspension changes to bump, I think I was 99% there.

Curtis and I went out for a "brisk" test drive, on a mixed road surface and camber route, followed by a bit of dual carriageway driving to finish it off.

Test 5 – Test Drive
Curtis thought that the car handled well on the road, and in reality very compliant. If anything, it needed a minor adjustment at the rear on low speed bump. I asked about the slight bobbing and Curtis explained that it was nothing to worry about and was the best I could achieve on the current inserts. The only way to erradicate it would be to move back to the smaller 22mm inserts, to remove the sticktion (sp?).

Curtis made a slight change to the low speed bump (reduce it) and we returned along the same route back to the workshop.

After completing the minor changes the settings were:

Test 5 - Tyre Pressures
Front Drivers – 34psi
Front Passenger – 34psi
Rear Drivers – 32psi
Rear Passenger – 32psi

Test 5 - Suspension Settings
Front Drivers Rebound – 6
Front Passenger Rebound – 6
Rear Drivers Rebound – 9
Rear Passenger Rebound – 9

Front Drivers High Speed Compression – 7
Front Passenger High Speed Compression – 7
Rear Drivers High Speed Compression – 2
Rear Passenger High Speed Compression – 2

Front Drivers Low Speed Compression – 9
Front Passenger Low Speed Compression – 9
Rear Drivers Low Speed Compression – 4
Rear Passenger Low Speed Compression – 4

Test 5 - Conclusions
Well..... that is about it for the road set-up and I now have a set-up that I like. Curtis also gave me some suggestions for set-up for the next round of ScoobySprint, depending on whether it is dry or wet, so at least I have some informed information to assist me with changes on the day.

Thanks to AST UK for the help / support.

Shaun

AUGUST 2009 - Time to move on?
Now that I have spent all this time and money (lol), I am seriously considering selling the car and moving on. Myself along with a number of individuals have spent a lot of time over the past four years developing and changing various aspects, of what was once a humble 320bhp Spec C.

It has been a journey that has had it's highs and lows, but I am pleased to have been in a position to be part of that journey.

I think the time has finally come for me to hang up the gloves. Whilst nothing has been agreed or sorted yet, I think I maybe kidding myself in thinking I will keep this car much longer.

Would I do it all again..... yes, but certainly with what I have learnt, I would do it differently.

Whilst I have not made a final decision yet, if I were to sell the Spec C what would I get next for my play thing? It will still be performance related (maybe even another Subaru ), but it will most certainly be more "normal". High performance cars such as my Spec C have compromises...... unfortunatley, I am getting to that time of my life when I would rather have less compromises and more creature comforts.

Only time will tell and I suspect that if I change my mind and decide to keep the Spec C (which usually happens when I get behind the wheel again lol), then this thread will continue. But then I might have to start another project thread...... about the next Scoob!

typeRv4

madness

Hammer man

iTrader: (25)

Shaun. Were the tyre pressures in all these tests, cold pressure(before you tested) or hot pressure(when you had finished testing)

Shaun

Hammer Man,
Ahhh.... sorry for perhaps leading you to thinking they were checked everytime, which I can see it perhaps looks that way. The tyre pressures were only checked twice, once for TEST1 and then TEST2 (and adjusted). This was done whilst cool on both occasions. The reason I kept repeating the tyre pressure information for each test set-up, was to underline the fact that they had not been readjusted since TEST2.

Hope this helps.

F1 CJE UK

iTrader: (8)

Another good read, very surprised your still running your arb on 24mm soft on my wrx i have it on hard giving great turn in, maybe the softer suspension of the wrx accounts for this. Will have another good read once i have my rcm lump in and have moved onto suspension.

Shaun

If you stuck the rear ARB on mine to the hardest setting, you would not have much of your **** left. I remember Iain Litchfield telling me he tried this once on a Spec C and he nearly killed himself.