How Do I Make My 205 More 'planted'

[ashley peddle 3]

ok so im used to driving a nice comfortable 306 with big leather seats etc but i still cant seem to totaly adjust to my 205's handeling. it feels a bit skittish on bumpier roads - it feels like either sliding round or jumping round most corners when im giving it any stick.

 

i have koni adjustable suspension all round (not sure on what setting though ) and group n engine mounts all round. a safety devices 6 point bolt in cage, lowered 30mm all round with nearly new eagle f1's all round (about 1000 miles of use...) and the rear beam was rebuilt by anthony no more than 2k miles ago...

 

i have a few track days coming up but im worried that i still dont have the confidence in the car that i should

 

can anyone suggest what i can improve to make the car feel more sturdy?

 

thanks

[Butler 0]

if your rear dampers are too hard, that won't inspire confidence.

 

did you fit new beam mounts with the new beam?

[tagy 1]

I would check; wishbone bushes, trackrods, all the balljoints really.

[mfield 20]

Being stripped out and stiffened up it will feel skittish on the road, come going on the track it will be a different beast .

 

Just soften the dampers up for the road for a start

[ashley peddle 3]

I realise that being stripped makes it lighter, but the cage weighs as much (if not more?) than the rear seats?

 

is there a guide anywhere on how to adjust koni shocks? i think having a play with them for a start could have a bif effect... i want to try makin them softer (as this is something someone else has said to me before...)

[Anthony 1,003]

As I've told you on several occasions Ash, soften the dampers as they're currently set too hard for road use

[ashley peddle 3]

read up ^^^

 

what mounts are on the rear ant? did i go for standard in the end?

[Anthony 1,003]

what mounts are on the rear ant? did i go for standard in the end?

Think you had standard mounts, but I can't remember now. Certainly wasn't Group A anyway, as you wussed out on that one

[Batfink 201]

your rear suspension is too hard.

[mfield 20]

I realise that being stripped makes it lighter, but the cage weighs as much (if not more?) than the rear seats?

 

is there a guide anywhere on how to adjust koni shocks? i think having a play with them for a start could have a bif effect... i want to try makin them softer (as this is something someone else has said to me before...)

 

I meant the stiffness of the shell now more than the weight, surely the change of where the weight is makes difference ? e.g. more spread around the car ?

 

And im sure two taped together hub spacers would contributed to odd handling ? lol

[smckeown 1]

i've had hard koni's on my car with a cage before and it was never skittish

[ashley peddle 3]

i've had hard koni's on my car with a cage before and it was never skittish

 

any more details?

 

I meant the stiffness of the shell now more than the weight, surely the change of where the weight is makes difference ? e.g. more spread around the car ?

 

And im sure two taped together hub spacers would contributed to odd handling ? lol

 

yeah i spose - but even then seats dont weigh THAT much? although i think your right in the while 'stiffness' thing - which is why i think it may be a good idea to loosen the rear dampers a bit...

 

oh - and the 2 spacers were a quick fix on saturday night to get the car to the meet sunday not permanent i assure you!

[pug_ham 244 3 Cars]

is there a guide anywhere on how to adjust koni shocks?

Its available on the Koni website here.

 

Graham.

[ashley peddle 3]

thanks graham - thats well useful

[jonah 1]

I've got firm suspension and a cage in my car and I don't find it skittish or nervous at all, the opposite in fact, it stays really settled over bumps and doesn't get thrown off line.

 

Have you checked the wheel alignment? Tracking being out will certainly make the car nervous / twitchy. Also what tyres are you running? I've found that certain tyres on the rear (with thin sidewalls or tall tread blocks) can cause passive rear steering, especially if the front tyres are much stiffer. Can make it feel a bit nervous in the bends.

 

edit: ok ignore that, just noticed you said you've got the same tyres on all 4 wheels.

Edited April 4, 2006 by jonah

[PumaRacing 2]

Sell it and buy a Ford Focus. They stick to the road like spunk to a blanket.

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

Is that a scientific test you carried out yourself?

 

The rear Konis should be set on softest, thats what I always run mine on. I run my fronts at 1 & 3/4 turns out from softest though.

 

I find that whilst mine might feel nervous on some roads it tends to feel fine on track, a little soft if anything.

[ashley peddle 3]

I've got firm suspension and a cage in my car and I don't find it skittish or nervous at all, the opposite in fact, it stays really settled over bumps and doesn't get thrown off line.

 

to be honnest i feel it more when going round left hand bends - i know it sounds silly but the car does feel safer on right hand corners (by safer i mean less skitty)

 

plan is to take both shocks off and reset them to the softest setting and then wind them up a couple of clicks to make sure they are both on the same setting (as im not convinced they are!)

 

the car does handle superbly - its never let me down & when iv needed it to perform it has done so... but for some reason i just feel the one little twitch and id end up sittin in a ditch

 

Sell it and buy a Ford Focus. They stick to the road like spunk to a blanket.

 

sex & travel

[pug_ham 244 3 Cars]

to be honnest i feel it more when going round left hand bends - i know it sounds silly but the car does feel safer on right hand corners (by safer i mean less skitty)

Rear beam sandwich mounts, when they are starting to fail they cause this kind of feeling, like the back wants overtake the front on any corner above 30mph.

 

Graham.

[ashley peddle 3]

would it be wise to get a set of group n mounts (to match the engine mounts) to fit whilst im playing about with the dampers?

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

to be honnest i feel it more when going round left hand bends - i know it sounds silly but the car does feel safer on right hand corners (by safer i mean less skitty)

 

plan is to take both shocks off and reset them to the softest setting and then wind them up a couple of clicks to make sure they are both on the same setting (as im not convinced they are!)

 

Sometimes its because you sit on the right hand side of the car that right handers feel more planted??

 

I'd take both shocks off and reset them to softest. Restting them and then winding them back up a "few" clicks will just create a nodding dog effect

 

I've briefly run on setting "1" which was a bit skippy, then setting "2" which was awful on the road.

[ashley peddle 3]

i think im gona gave to find a happy medium because i do a mix of back roads / motorways / track / town driving so would prefer a happy medium to anthiing else.

 

anyone have any opinions about the rear beam mounts? worth getting group n or just standard?

 

cheers

 

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

Theres very little difference between standard and group N rear mounts IMO. Theres still flex in them. As a kind of medium you could just fit solid rear rear beam mounts but keep the front rear beam mounts standard. This will stop a bit of the flex but retain some comfort.

[Alastairh 47]

Maybe if you feel more comfy going a certain way around a corner, could it be the fact that one side is set harder than the other, and vice versa?

 

Alastair

Edited April 4, 2006 by Alastairh

[ashley peddle 3]

thats what i was thinking - im going to turn them to full softness and then use one or 2 click in (dont know how many 'clicks' you can get but im sure il figure it out!)