Lowering and its effects on handling
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heres the way i see it.
i agree that the handling being improved is MAINLY psychological (it will be improved a bit though), however, most cars are more capable than their drivers, so, when u lower it, you trust it more, and drive it harder than you normally would, therefore thinking its handling better, either way you are still going to be quicker round the track. WIN/WIN!
i agree that the handling being improved is MAINLY psychological (it will be improved a bit though), however, most cars are more capable than their drivers, so, when u lower it, you trust it more, and drive it harder than you normally would, therefore thinking its handling better, either way you are still going to be quicker round the track. WIN/WIN!
thats the way i see it too, lowering your car on avos wont make your car be able to take corners at a much higher speeds on normal road conditions because you shouldnt be taking corners at high speeds anywayheres the way i see it.
i agree that the handling being improved is MAINLY psychological (it will be improved a bit though), however, most cars are more capable than their drivers, so, when u lower it, you trust it more, and drive it harder than you normally would, therefore thinking its handling better, either way you are still going to be quicker round the track. WIN/WIN!
however as you say on the track you will have more confidence in your car and as a result push it further to its limits.if your car is purely a road car then avos are only really an aesthetic mod imo since you shouldnt be pushing your car to the limits on public roads anyway
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Try explaining that to a few on here
what people should and shouldnt be doing isnt in question thought
andy many many people DO push their cars hard on the road, even more so round corners, because u dont need to be speeding to take a corner faster than usual most of the time. i drive my car hard, and i could "feel" a difference, psychological or otherwise.
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7,532 Posts
Sorry, but I am going to disagree. Fitting lowering springs does make a BIG difference to the handling the reason being that it stiffens the susspension. The suspension on a car is a trade off and a compromise between comfort and handling. By lowering the car you are effectively stiffening the suspension and lowering the centre of gravity (C of G). By stiffening the suspension you are reducing body roll and by reducing body roll you reduce the detrimental effect it has on suspension geometry.
This is a massive subject and also includes other factors such as dampening both on compression and rebound and spring rates. Coilovers are a good example. They were designed primarily for track use and allows the driver to dial in different spring rates (and in some cases damper settings) depending on the track and the weather condidions. Some tracks favour harder settings than others as not only does it affect handling but grip as well.
Anyway, dont take my word for it, have a look round on google. Here are a couple of sites I found
Wikipedia
http://www.torquecars.com/tuning/suspension.php
This is a massive subject and also includes other factors such as dampening both on compression and rebound and spring rates. Coilovers are a good example. They were designed primarily for track use and allows the driver to dial in different spring rates (and in some cases damper settings) depending on the track and the weather condidions. Some tracks favour harder settings than others as not only does it affect handling but grip as well.
Anyway, dont take my word for it, have a look round on google. Here are a couple of sites I found
Wikipedia
Try this site for some good info
http://www.torquecars.com/tuning/suspension.php
oh dont get me wrong, i do think it makes a difference, but whether it makes a big one or not is going to depend on how u define BIG. for example its not going to be as much of an improvement as if u fitted matched shocks at the same time etc.
+1the way i see it is that as long as your happy with it yourself it doesnt really matter
i love my car
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7,532 Posts
I guess it all depends on your definition of big. For me the handling has been vastly improved by the addition of avos (the older and original black versions). I really do need to change the dampers as well as on bumpier roads the rebound damping is not sufficient and it gets a bit 'bouncy' to put it lightly. That said on track and normal roads the handling and cornering is much better although less predictable now. On the original set up, the onset of understeer was very predictable and gave lots of warnings and lift off oversteer was rare as the car would understeer way before you could get near the limit of lift off oversteer. Now I find that the onset of understeer is less predictable and gives less warning and I have had several occassions on track where ambition has been greater than ability and I have had some 'interesting' experiences of lift off oversteer.
There is massive room for improvement but it would cost lots of money and TBH I am happy with the way things are as it is not a competition car and is done for fun and aesthetics. My main point is that lowering although done normally for aesthetics, can and does improve handling (at the loss of ride comfort) and is not purely psychological but is actually physical and can be measured.
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5,063 Posts
i noticed a big difference on my mk1 with red avos the handling went from amazing to even more amazing lol!, but it could also be due to the way i drive.
I am getting coiles soon so will let you know then lol!
I am getting coiles soon so will let you know then lol!
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