Tony

Point to note though the F1 is not suitable for the rear of a FWD car, since most experience 'Heel and Toe' wear patination.

Wise words indeed Governor.... I had made deliberate attempts to 'map' the settling using donor cars in the hope this would deliver a true indication for other owners.... this involves 1: Lower, measure then recover . . 500 miles later . . 2: Measure, recover then calculate the change in the geometry positions . . 1000 miles later . . 3: Measure, recover and again calculate the change . . 1000 miles later . . 4: Measure..... and then their was no real recovery 5: Measure...... same 6: Measure...... same 7: ongoing So born from this i could establish the settling period. But there is a problem. If you go from stage one and recover the geometry, but miss two and three then the tyres would definitely wear. The next consideration is that if you were to complete each stage then this would cost you money each time! The process shown here was for LOC and the 'mapping' was free. In Business terms it would be wise to offer a settling fee, this would involve an initial higher cost but assume future corrections paid for until the car settles albeit five or ten measurements.

Un-bias customer feed back has been the Goodyear F1.... not the dearest by far but have a high recommendation vote.

OK, got my panhard rod today. When you say they setup coilovers, do they actually setup the damping and ride height etc? If I basically say "set me up for dast road use", will they set the damping, camber, toe etc? I also what the preload set to '0', would they do this? Yes.......... explain what you want, where you found the point of contact and they will deliver all. Drury are no1 on my 'Trusted centres' for good reason....... i would not recommend without 100% trust and Drury are 100% able.

And luckily apart from a scuff on one of them (wasn't me ) Who did the deed..... name and shame Twinkle Hehe...Whoever owned it in Japan before I got it That 'Whera ishthekerba' has no sence of direction........

And luckily apart from a scuff on one of them (wasn't me ) Who did the deed..... name and shame Twinkle

The Avon has one of the wost records for customer complaints... in fact for many years STS stopped selling them since the complaint always is reflected toward the company that sold the product.

It would seem that due to new 'pedestrian' impact legislation, there are 'low limits' placed on the likes of Mazda and so on.... the new NC has to be raised to comply for import... once in the UK many owners have the car lowered to the original height.... no data i can find supports the original geometry...... some snippets from the US look to aggressive so i am worried about using them. Autodata has informed me that the NB positions are overlapped directly to the NC.... again this worries me since the frame is very different. If anyone has the time to research the figures wim and the MX5OC would appreciate it.

..... still i don't understand, but hay you know me

This type of information i hope in time will make the wim forum a place to go when seeking 'advice or knowledge' .... similar to the wim web site but active.... and re-active, this i feel is good for everyone.

reads like a memorable experience 'Twinkle'..... with anticipation i have been watching the posts in LOC waiting for the picy's..... any chance you could give us a sneak preview ..... this dog 'Dorothy'?..... i have to ask?......... is this human or animal

I second this As honoured as i am toward your thoughts regarding my posts. I hope over time the whole wim forum will be considered a knowledgebase.... i just need to shake the cage a little to make you guys realise here is were you express your knowledge......you have more than you think!...

195-55/14 has the same RR but the cost belays any real benefit....... anyway.... off topic how was Germany

All new tyres have visible coloured markings forming a radial band on the tyre. Several of these markings represent destination between the manufacture and the recipient.... Cars like Lexus require specific compounds so the radial markings do indeed allow the process to become visible and act like a bar code. But there is also important information held within those lines that most consumers and tyre centres are not aware of, in particular the position of the outer line (colour does vary)..... Depending on how the belts are positioned during construction imperfections will allow the casing and the tyre tread to 'run out'. This disparity allows the compression to steer the tyre laterally regardless of any actions taken by the driver thus generate a pull. The manufacture measures the degree of run out and marks the severity onto the tyre by the position of the outer band, typically the colour is Red or Blue, if the colour band is central then the run out is considered 0, if the band is toward the outer edge the tyre will need a 'reactive' partner to belay any pull. So the positions are vital to you and your car.... example Realising this problem then it's easy to conclude if the tyres are symmetrical in tread construction, if the tyres are asymmetrical or directional then the centre will need to find a suitable match with an opposite reactive lateral partner....... Their problem not yours...... So next time you buy tyres have a look for the banding and decide what match you want..... remember most centres will have no idea of your request due to misunderstanding and lack of knowledge so you need to be wise.

Of even more value how about explaining the evolution of your cars, the when why and how much? many people would use this valuable information as part of the overall plan for their own car... the ups and Downs, what went right.......... or wrong?, Coilovers up and down, and why did you decide for a particular make? The Modifications to the engine displays very important (silent) consideration toward the Geometry. loads of stuff to evolve here 'Governor'

Sadly Dan only for the educated.... after that the barrier is the next test for some

Do you feel to much power in truth is a bad thing..... i like you would go for the maximum possible but it makes you wonder when even experienced people like yourself can be bittern what would happen it it were one of the Max power boys on a 'cruse trip' Not at all! 300bhp from a car that doesn't weigh 1300Kg comes in very handy sometimes Even more so when you have a 330 to burn

This topic definitely cannot be explained in one post so small informative increments will over time cover the whole picture. Scrub Radius ( SR ) is the point that all the Geometrical angles at the front are placed. When a Geometry is measured the figures suggest an area within the radii and careful positions conclude all the forces to ensure the car performs as desired.... but what are these forces? and what do they look like? This image displays three angles the other six would have made things even more complicated, we will work on them at a later date. Nevertheless you can see these angles in 3D, we have 'Longitudinal, lateral and vertical' And the 'SR' is the recipient, ( triangulate) The 'SR' is the contact area between the tyre and the road, these 'forces' need to be directed to specific areas of that patch...... To far to the outside with the Camber will make the car pull...... To far in will make the tyre wear, to much toe out will make the car bump steer and nervous, to little will make it lazy, both if incorrect will force the tyres to wear. The Castor will add/retract directional control, add/retract the Turing radii, all of this is the direct consequence of the positions within the 'SR' there are also indirect consequences....again this we will discuss later. Add to this any modifications then calculating the placement of these three angles becomes a nightmare. But not impossible

Oh my word i never know about that incident!..... with the known problems the Lex has with Geometry maybe you were not entirely to blame? Do you feel to much power in truth is a bad thing..... i like you would go for the maximum possible but it makes you wonder when even experienced people like yourself can be bittern what would happen it it were one of the Max power boys on a 'cruse trip'

Understeer is a condition when during cornering the circular path of the vehicles motion is greater than the circle indicated by the direction that the wheels are pointed. This circumstance allows the front tyres to lose traction during a turn, causing the car to either not turn as tightly as expected or continue in a straight line. Manufacturers today tend to configure Understeer into the design by default, seemingly it is thought that if the car Understeers slightly it tends to be more stable if a violent change of direction occurs, improving safety, this i don't entirely agree with Under all high speed conditions cornering with pneumatic tyres generates amplification of the slip angle (side slip) velocity this is in reply to the direction in which the wheels are pointed. If the slip angle of the front and rear wheels is equal, the car is in a neutral steering state, if the slip angle of the front wheels exceeds that of the rear, the vehicle is said to be understeering. All vehicles understeer or oversteer at different times based on road conditions, speed and available traction. The design of the vehicle, will tend to produce a particular 'terminal' condition when pushed to the limit of available traction, then the 'Terminal Understeer' refers to a vehicle which, as a function of its design, tends to understeer when cornering loads exceed tyre traction. Terminal handling conditions are a function born from vehical length and front/ rear weight distribution this is the polar moment of inertia and front and rear tyre traction. Further modified by the relative roll stiffness front and rear, which affects the outward weight transfer during cornering. A front heavy car with low rear roll stiffness albeit soft springs or insufficient sway tension will have a tendency for terminal understeer. The front tyres being more heavily loaded will reach the limits of grip before the rear tyres, and thus develop larger slip angles. Although understeer and oversteer can cause a loss of control, many manufacturers design their cars for terminal understeer in the belief that it is easier for the average driver to control than terminal oversteer. Unlike terminal oversteer, which requires several steering corrections, understeer can often be reduced simply by reducing speed.

Taken from the fact the car delivers a reply from your foot have you been caught out by this reply... what was your worst experience with the cars handling.... and how did you deal with this?

Oversteer is when the rear tyres suffer a lose of traction during a cornering situation, causing the rear of the car to head towards the outside of the corner. A more technically correct definition is that oversteer is the condition when the slip angle of the rear tyres exceeds that of the front tyres. Older rear wheel drive cars were generally more prone to oversteer, in particular when applying power in a tight corner. Contrary to popular opinion, modern rear wheel drive cars are much more user-friendly in this regard as they are set-up to understeer, the more powerful ones even have on-board computer systems which can automatically brake the car or override the drivers throttle inputs. This is because understeer is generally much safer for new drivers, whereas oversteer is much more difficult to correct when not prepared for it. The natural reaction of most drivers in the event of losing control is to try to slow down, either by lifting of the throttle or braking. Both of these will help bring an understeering vehicle under control but can have disastrous effects in the case of oversteer. This is because braking causes weight transfer toward the front of the car, reducing the rear traction even further. The correct oversteer correction is to gently steer into the slide then take the power away as needed. In fact cutting the power at mid-corner can induce oversteer even on front wheel drive vehicles. This is known as 'lift off oversteer' A car that tends to neither oversteer or understeer when pushing to the limit is said to have neutral handling. Most racing drivers prefer their cars set-up just on the oversteer side of neutral. This is almost always the fastest set-up as it helps the car on tight corners.

Dan Discount is the 'Access'

I have available access to machinery that will 'cold roll' compressed alloy wheels and re-shape the inner dish....Scarface would be a perfect example for compressed wheel damage aligner since two of his new wheels were ovaled after hitting Motorway debris........... anyway what do you feel about this new saviour of wheels?

They are 225-40/18 i know since i fitted them