Lowering CG

[silversho89]

I just had a thought cross my mind to lower CG. What about having taller subframe bushings made to lower the cradle in the car a little bit?

I know you would need an alignment for sure as that would create more positive camber and if the subframe was dropped to much, maybe even just a little, i think that excessive wear would be created on the CV joints. Or maybe having longer subframe bolts would allow the the bolts to flex and possibly break?

Another thing that may pose a problem is over extending the strut when the wheel drops down or if the car comes up high enough. Im not sure on the maximum length of an extended strut but it might not be enough.

So this was just an idea. No need for flames if there would have been any. Just want to hear people opinions on this and if its a bad idea or good idea and why. Dont just say no or yes, give a reason please.

Id like to hear Shoaz's thoughts for sure since he seems to no a fair deal about road racing setup.

Thanks,

Rob

 

[laxmax327]

it is an interesting idea to look into. you should be able to get it to work, but your main concern would be the ground clearance i would assume.

 

[nc89sho]

would be a very bad idea for the suspension geometry. see: increased bumpsteer and increased positive camber when compressed.

 

[Shoaz]

The CVs can take quite a bit of deflection so I don't think that would be an issue, but it'd be really important to sort out the rest of the alignment and camber curve questions before deciding whether this is a good idea.

The steering rack would need to be shimmed to try to control bump steer, but since the lower control arm would be moving down this might get tricky.

It might also limit the travel of the strut rod a bit, but for a track-only car this might not be a big deal.

Bottom line, I wouldn't try it unless somebody with a lot more suspension knowledge than me thought it was a good idea. Screwing around with the geometry such that it affects the camber curves can make things ugly in a hurry, and the drop in CG wouldn't be worth it if it hosed the handling.

It's good to think about such things, though, as the drop in CG would be nice. I don't think you'd be able to get much of a drop, though, and the SHO motor is so tall that a small drop isn't going to make a lot of difference.