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Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Wed May 09, 2018 4:51 pm
by wasp47
Hi
A mystery, to me at least
I have fitted a set of V-maxx xxreme to my SE.
I checked before fitting, both front units are identical and are correctly fitted. To get the front at the same ride height 12 1/4 inches left and right, the right hand unit,drivers, has 18mm more thread exposed measuring down from the lock ring to the bottom of the threads,WHY ??
I appreciate there will be wear in bushes "etc".
The ratio for arguments sake is approx 2-1 so if I had set them up evenly on the bench, as per instructions, one side would be roughly 32mm higher.
Does all of that make any sense.
Cheers
Steven
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Wed May 09, 2018 5:01 pm
by ManiacLachy
My car is the same, the chassis isn't always strictly square.
From 949's website:
949/Supermiata wrote:My Miata isn't symmetrical!
The unitbody of the Miata nor the Exocet is rarely perfectly symmetrical. This means one side might have pinch weld heights that are not even with the other side. In this case, average out the measurements to reach your target. Test drive then determine if you need to make further adjustments. We see particularly large dimensional discrepancies on the Exocet chassis. Don't attemp to get it dead even left to right without using corner weight scales. Pay closer attention to the physical preload distance on each shock left to right. This is a better method to ge the suspension level left to right, assuming you do no have access to scales.
https://supermiata.com/miata-race-alignment-info.aspxThey write from a racing perspective, I prefer to make the ride heights even, but I post it to show that it's not uncommon for the corners to be different.
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Wed May 09, 2018 5:03 pm
by manga_blue
Yeah, mine has always had about 15mm less thread showing on the left front, even after corner weighting.
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Wed May 09, 2018 5:56 pm
by Spac
Manufacturing tolerances, bind in bushes, different weight on each corner.
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Wed May 09, 2018 6:24 pm
by wasp47
Well, there you go
Thank you all
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Wed May 09, 2018 8:11 pm
by greenMachine
Incorrectly seated spring(s).
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Thu May 10, 2018 7:30 am
by ManiacLachy
wasp, another thing to be careful of when installing coilovers, if you weren't already aware:
You should jack each control arm up so that the cars weight is resting on it (the car should lift off the jack stand slightly) before torquing all control arm bolts. Rubber bushings twist and contribute to your spring load, you want them neutral at resting heights. If you tighten them while drooping they will bind further than designed when the car settles.
This could contribute to ride height differences, and can also alter suspension dynamics slightly.
Other than that, I wouldn't stress too much
Re: Adjust Coilover Ride Height
Posted: Thu May 10, 2018 8:15 am
by project.r.racing
Driver weight while sitting in car also effects each corner.