strong

Following on from my post in the wheels & tyres section it appears that a move from 16" to 17" wheels will improve handling a bit. However comparing the cost involved for a 'bit of improvement' to changing the suspension for what should be a 'great improvement' I'm now looking at adjustable suspension kits...

So, what can people tell me about living with uprated suspension on a day to day basis? Keeping 16" wheels on a UK Scooby (and hopefully therefore some compliance) how harsh have people found their kits on the soft-end of adjustability?

Simply put: how much harder is the ride with uprated kit on it's softest setting compared to standard suspension?

I've felt a Leda kit on track settings at the Nurburgring and loved it, but naturally I'm concerned about the road.

Any comments on kit other than the Leda (cos I know it's the dogs danglies, but it ain't cheap) are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Paul

quattro

Paul

I do not know about others (and how many of them), but after a lot of hard work with Leda, my car is now offers an almost perfect combination of fast road/track handling, etc. ability and a level of comfort which easily exceeds those achieved on both UK and WRX/STi standard suspension. All it takes is a few miles of driving every morning for the damper oil and other moving parts to reach their operating viscosity/temperature and it is fine.

BTW, I think I mailed you my report on Leda some time ago, so perhaps I should not even be repeating what you probably already know.

regards
q.

AlexM

Paul,

I would agree with quattro - I was very suprised to find that his LEDA equiped car had a better primary ride on 17" wheels than my standard MY98 on it's 16" wheels. I came to the conclusion that the standard car is overdamped and too softly sprung, although it is fine for most road driving.

The LEDA suspension feels nicely 'cushioned' and small bumps are absorbed comfortably rather being transmitted. Obviously it is more stiffly sprung than the standard car and you don't get something for nothing, but it is never crashy like most aftermarket conversions.

I was very impressed, and I'm not a fan of overly stiff road cars. If the car is to be your daily driver, you are right to be concerned about compromising the comfort and ride in favour of ultimate grip and handling. On the basis of my limited experience the LEDA suspension can be set up so that you could easily live with it day-to-day. Have your cake and eat it too!.

Rgds,

Alex

BHORT

Quattro,

You say that after a lot of hard work you have an almost perfect combination, what sort of work was that. Was it further modificatios to the standard LEDA setup costing more money or was it the setup of the fitted kit witout further hardware mods. I am just trying to estimate where cost wise you end up

quattro

Hard work had nothing to do with costs or other hardware, apart from numerous trips to Leda at Braintree and (for me) a hard to imagine amount of patience. But,what I wanted was and is extremely difficult to achieve from a touring car/race car/formula type of suspension what Leda B and C generically are. Therefore, I am even happier as I believe I have a sufficiently comfortable armchair and fast road/track setups to choose from.

I have written an extensive report which describes all my work and findings with the Leda B and emailed it already to your address. Hope it will have been worth reading.

q.

strong

Quattro,

What setting do you run with on the road and did Alex experience these settings? I seem to remember people often running between 5 and 8 on the road. Are the lowest settings (ie 1,2,3) not worth bothering with?

I'm very impressed that Leda B gets compared favourably to a standard 98MY. Do you therefore not think it's worth going for the Leda C option? That would be nice as far as the piggy bank is concerned.

Paul

quattro

Paul
I run 8 front and 4 rear with 215/40-17 S02PP tyres and 17" OZ wheels. Tyre pressures are 32psi front and 30 rear.

No, I would NOT go for Leda C as it is harder and firmer than B thanks to the gas cylinder and nitrogen in the units. Really not needed unless you will spend lots of days on the track (and probably not even then).

Just in case you did not get the document I emailed you some weeks ago I have just done that once again.

Mail me off-line if you need more detailed information or anything else.

q.

PS. Yes, Alex experienced these settings. I normally do not change settings if they work.

[This message has been edited by quattro (edited 17-03-2000).]

strong

Thanks for the info Quattro. I'm certainly now happier that Leda B will suit my needs and I'm far happier spending £1200 than £1500 on a single mod (it's just a threshold thing).

So no-one else recommends their other suspension kits then?

Paul

strong

Pete,

Thanks for that. Very reassuring.

From your experience do you have any comments about fitting Leda B to a UK car with 16" wheels? I know Mike Nunan and Phil Gardner's STis run Leda on 16", but just thought I'd check before I completely disregard upgrading to 17 inchers.

Paul

[This message has been edited by strong (edited 18-03-2000).]

Pete Croney

Hi Paul and BHORT

One of the main advantages of Leda is that we can set the car up to the *specific* requirements of the driver. We have equiped cars where the drivers main concern was having much more compliance and we have done numerous cars which are owners track day/race toys and out and out handling was the only issue.

The standard damping envelope provides a wide band of adjustment and, with our prefered spring rates, will be perfect for almost all enthusiast Impreza owners. Any specific requirements can be catered for at no additional cost.

Mark Aigin, Mike Nunan and Quattro have considerable knowledge of suspension set ups and have chosen to fine tune their installations (all going in different directions, I should add) to suit their individual requirements.

No other Impreza suspension company can offer this level of service, other than the competition only brands... and these are designed for the forest, not mixed fast road driving.

That said, we spent a long (and enjoyable) time developing our default set up and I'm sure that the improvements offered by our standard Leda B set up will be exactly what you are after.

Pete Croney

Hi Paul

16's will be better on poor surfaces, as there is less unsprung weight and more side wall flex.

You can get more g on a high speed sweeping bend with 17's, as the side walls are less able to tuck under.