I want to go Road Racing!

[DonS1mpson]

And despite being far from the ideal platform, and having a car that is FAR better to the task at hand sitting outside my window right now (an e30 BMW), I’ve adamant that I want to use a MK3.

Might I add, I’m not looking to race competitively, just a couple of track days and autotests/Auto X sessions, for now at least .

That’s why I’m here asking what suspension system I should go for. Seeing most MK3 owners looking at suspension systems are most concerned about ride height and quality, I assume that the majority of coilovers on the market are going to be useless for track usage?

As it stands, I'm looking to run more or less full weight on 17" Ex-WTCC slicks. Also looking to drive it between events, so nothing too illegal or Impractical.

Any suggestions would be great

Thanks

Josh

 

[Wiisass]

I would suggest some type of coilovers at least. I would hate to see another person try and run lowering springs and think that it's a track car.

Now obviously, I would suggest my coilovers if you really wanted to best for the price. But there are off the shelf asian coilovers that might work alright. A lot of them seem to have weird spring rates for whatever reason. But that would be something to look at. Another thing that I don't like about them is the dampers they come with. Whether they're just cheap dampers that really can't provide good damping characteristics or they don't really do any work in picking the right damping curves, I don't know. But there are other things available.

If you're running a full weight Mk3, I would suggest decently stiff springs. I probably wouldn't run much less than 900lb/in in the front and 500lb/in in the back. Probably stiffer than they, depending on how you want the car to feel. And then pair it with good dampers and you'll have a great setup.

Tim

 

[racerpage]

I would suggest some type of coilovers at least. I would hate to see another person try and run lowering springs and think that it's a track car.

Now obviously, I would suggest my coilovers if you really wanted to best for the price. But there are off the shelf asian coilovers that might work alright. A lot of them seem to have weird spring rates for whatever reason. But that would be something to look at. Another thing that I don't like about them is the dampers they come with. Whether they're just cheap dampers that really can't provide good damping characteristics or they don't really do any work in picking the right damping curves, I don't know. But there are other things available.

If you're running a full weight Mk3, I would suggest decently stiff springs. I probably wouldn't run much less than 900lb/in in the front and 500lb/in in the back. Probably stiffer than they, depending on how you want the car to feel. And then pair it with good dampers and you'll have a great setup.

Tim

Tim is right! We had a difference of opinion at first, but he is right. I would be that one person who ran lowering springs. Bad, idea! I finally went with Koni's all the way around, and went through two sets of springs. First Eibachs, Horrible!, then H&R, better than the Eibachs, but still not stiff enough, finally had to order something stiffer. A 200-300lb spring on the rear, which most of the after market stuff is, is not enough. I found that the rear of these cars need alot of attention. Notice, my setup is just temporary. If you are really going to track the car, take it to a professional. The car needs to be setup right, corner balanced, and have the proper alignment.

 

[prsrcokr]

Fwiw, I really like my Eibach/Tokico setup but I'm pretty used to it and have dialed the swaybars and alignment in to be very nuetral. I'm still on street tires and could certainly use more spring like Tim mentions but the car is pretty nuetral (slight oversteer and on- demand great throttle steer) I think it all depends on what else the car has, good bushings (as in not 20 y/o stockers) are a big help.

I'd bet the car is great on a properly sprung/dampened setup.