[alcook]

I didn't want to hijack ZK1's thread re-M Sport Suspension, but it got me thinking;

Are there any suspension tuners out there offering different geometry setups? Has anyone gone for or tried a different setup, say, 'fast road'? Do you have the settings at hand or comments?

I ran a 'fast road' geo setup on my Scoob and the handling was immense and so much better that stock (and that's pretty good).

I'd assume a sharper more 'sportier' geo setting would both be possible and provide some handling improvements.... What about the M3 settings?

[dxb335d]

M3 has completely different suspension, not to mention the different tyres (larger profiles) and M/// Differential.

I think are cars are set up for a sporty drive/ride. Thats why there is so much negative camber which is wearing the inside of the rears.

Sure there would be more work to be done, depending on different circuits you may travel to with regards to set-up. But its a road car so i suggest leave it that way, even if yu do 10 track days a year.

[alcook]

Thanks mate.
Fair comment on the M3...

If there's no one else out there who's tried different settings then I will leave it alone. But like tuning the engine, tuning the suspension and other items such as brakes can give excellent performance and enjoyment gains... regardless if it's purely for road use. Plus, as I go on drives out with my Scoob mates, and there's a atrip to Stelvio coming up, then I'd like to see if there's another setup that can help give me some sharper handling..

I'd be surprised if no one's tried tweaking the geo, but I'm not about to go into a R&D mode to find out as the stock setup does work OK...

[dxb335d]

I think as far as anyone has gone on here is just spring changes and upgraded anti-roll bars etc.


Is anyone on here on coilovers I wonder?

[encee]

Alcook: I know what you`re saying here mate.

I once had a fast-road set up done on the supension on a Mk1 Civic Type R, and it made a major difference ! The handling was so much sharper.........!

[dxb335d]

I wonder how far of a fast road geo set-up goes in reality, cuz if its out anyway just rectifying it will provide an immense improvement.

[alcook]

Originally Posted by dxb335d

I wonder how far of a fast road geo set-up goes in reality, cuz if its out anyway just rectifying it will provide an immense improvement.

It's not for everyone's taste as your style has to be a little more aggressive to get the best out of it.. If you're used to a more leisurely handling drive, the sharpness (as Encee rightly says), or quicker turn in can be tiresome and hard work.

But very rewarding and a great deal of fun. The car feels more alive and, if done properly, can give you a lot more confidence in the cars ability on the edge or when generally pushing.

As you've hinted at, tyre wear can increase or be uneven so there is a downside.

Not sure if the 'M Sport' suspension extra's include a complimentary Geo setup or is down to simple spring changes....? it would be nice to compliment the harder and better sprung ride with a Camber and toe in change rather tna leaving it stock...

[E92Fan]

I have a slightly modified geo setup on my car, which I had done after changing over some of the front suspension parts to M3 items.

The M3 lower control arm is a few millimetres longer than the standard 335i items and use a solid poly bush as opposed to the sloppy hydraulic bushes. This extra length induces an extra 0.75 degrees of negative camber to the front wheels, which needs to be adjusted out.

However, I have found that once our cars, and that's any of our cars, have been used for a few thousand miles, they actually sit lower on the suspension due to the wear rate of the rubber bump stops and things like that. Consequently, in this worn state the car does not have as much negative camber as is normally specified when new from the factory. Hence why the front suspension turrets have knockout pins installed, so that when a geo setup is done several thousand miles into the car's life, the camber can be adjusted to bring it more into line with BMW OEM specifications.

Installing the M3 control arms brought the camber beyond BMW OEM spec, and my first thought was to have it adjusted out so that it was spot on in line with factory settings. However, on looking at the state of my front tyres I noticed that the outer shoulders were quite rounded (having been on the track a fair bit) and whilst the wear rate is very very even, the outside edge is worn ever so slightly more. So with this in mind, I went for an extra half degree of negative camber over standard, which on hard cornering gives a more stable contact patch on the front end, and increases initial turn-in sharpness and bite. It's not a huge difference over factory OEM spec, but it's a massive difference when compared to a car with say 15,000 miles and no previous work on the geometry setup.

And after 2000 miles with this front suspension setup, the front tyres absolutely no sign of uneven wear or abnormal feathering.

[mikem]

The trouble with geometry settings is that everyone has a different driving style and what feels better to some may not to others.

There`s only a limited amount of adjustment with the OEM stuff, which in my opinion doesn`t warrant the cost of a "testing session" at a track to get it exactly how you want it.

My advice would be to invest is some adjustable top mounts (about £300 for the TMS ones) then you can run standard settings when on the road to keep the car civilised AND provide MORE grip when your not driving at 10/10`s. At track days or very quick drives, you can simply jack the wheel up, undo a few bolts and line them up with the marks for youe track settings.

Here`s a link to suspension settings from the people who look after my M3 : http://www.simpsonmotorsport.co.uk/u...nsionSetup.pdf