Ride Heights....

[DDtB]

So... ride heights.

When the car is parked on a flat surface, with nobody in it, should the right height be the same at each side and where do you measure it from?

Just wondering if the front of the clam should be about the same height at each side when looking at the car from the front? And the same from the rear? Or is the clam a bit of a red herring and you measure the ride height from somewhere else?

Cheers!

Dave.

[tut]

Different opinions Dave. Some geo outfits do it empty, driver in, driver and passenger in. All are valid as that is the three possible configurations. A racing Elise will always be driver only, road and track can be either.

Height is measured below the sill just behind the front wheel and just in front of the rear wheel. All of this from Mark Hutchinson and not myself. Ride height can also vary from nearside to offside in getting corner weighting correct.

tut

[mwmackenzie]

Heights are measured from the chassis behind the front wheels and infornt of the rear wheels. I'd guess same side to side will be grand especially with stiff springs. That said I have read that they do say to set heights with a half tank of fuel and a 75kg ballast in drivers seat, not always possible though.

[mckeann]

Agree with mark about the heights being measured from the chassis behind the front wheels and the rear of the chassis, basically where the jacking point is.

Regardless of which method they used to set the ride height, there should only be about 2-3mm of a difference at all four corners.

[DDtB]

I think my driveway may not be as flat as I thought.

Measured 3 times now at different spots. Totally different results each time.

The only thing I can confirm is that the front is lower than the back...

Guess I'll just take the adjustment tool with me, let an 'expert' drive it and tell me if it's fine. What's the worst that can happen?!?!

[campbell]

Front lower than back is fine, it's called rake and it can help high speed stability. Also looks more natural than the other way around...which can help you take off on the m-way

I believe that corner-weighting will not in itself affect the ultimate ride height of the car, it's to do with pre-load weightings to ensure all four wheels exert an equal force on each corner. Lawrence once tried to explain to me but I glazed over a little as I couldn't get my head round the fisics...

Half a tank of fuel and a driver is the recommended way to set geo and ride height (note - set the latter FIRST) but for a non-race car this could be considered over-attention to detail...

[mckeann]

dave, the c spanner for adjusting the preload ring is useless on the elise as there isnt enough room for it to move when the dampers are on the car. A decent sized punch and a hammer to chap it with is much more useful. If you want me to sort it for you, bring it round tomorrow night??

[campbell]

Some interesting explorations here.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=corner+weighting

[tut]

I set 110/120mm Dave, or rather Robin and Craig probably did, but think it was after my 70th and they also set the geo with the string method, but both could have been still pissed so anything could have happened.

However I cut two blocks of wood, one 110mm and the other 120mm, and these are ideal for sliding under the sill to get the ride height correct.

tut

[DDtB]

dave, the c spanner for adjusting the preload ring is useless on the elise as there isnt enough room for it to move when the dampers are on the car. A decent sized punch and a hammer to chap it with is much more useful. If you want me to sort it for you, bring it round tomorrow night??

Might take you up on that.... will see how organised I get tonight

[campbell]

dave, the c spanner for adjusting the preload ring is useless on the elise as there isnt enough room for it to move when the dampers are on the car. A decent sized punch and a hammer to chap it with is much more useful. If you want me to sort it for you, bring it round tomorrow night??

Might take you up on that.... will see how organised I get tonight

We have a fairly level drive and floodlight not far from Neil's, if that is of use to you both - available from around 7.30pm tomorrow Let me know if required. Oh and I have a spirit level too.

[Sanjøy]

dave, the c spanner for adjusting the preload ring is useless on the elise as there isnt enough room for it to move when the dampers are on the car. A decent sized punch and a hammer to chap it with is much more useful. If you want me to sort it for you, bring it round tomorrow night??

Dry barn avail tomorrow night, you can pick up the cameras too.

[mckeann]

dave, give me a call tomorrow morning from 9-12

[DDtB]

Will do!

Cheers for all the offers of help folks. It's probably fine... but I may have a touch of "omg.. my car will never make it to the end of frolic without exploding" paranoia!!

[campbell]

In which case ride height is the least of your concerns.

!