Hey guys.

I'm trying to solve a problem with my future suspension for my CRX, first of all, the specification:

'91 CRX with B16A1, upgraded cams, milled head, 175whp dynoed.
Weight ballance is 65% front, 35% rear, overall weight is 1700 lbs( all unneccessary sh*t taken out). HR springs, STOCK shocks, polyurethane bushing kit, Ferodo racing brake pads&brembo rotors.

The car is not daily driven, it's specifically for hillclimb racing /trackday usage. The problem I am having is when I go hard on brakes, the front of the car goes down too much and the car gest too oversteering. It's a real problem cus when I enter the curve, I almost have to put some throttle not to end inside the curve in an uncontrollable slide

I know the problem is in the suspension, but I'm not really sure which way to go.


Now my 2 questions are:

1) I have bought Racer Design coilover springshttp://www.prolightstar.com/co....html, but I don't know if that was a good step. The reason why I think so is that they use billet aluminium instead of steel for Perches and sleeves. I'm afraid it will brake under extreme conditions
what do you think ?

2) I have read through the forum, a lot of people recommend Tein, Omni, D2 full coilover kits. I have looked for these, but they cost a fortune I know I get what I pay for in the suspension world, but ...

I wanted to ask those <U>88-91 CRX&civic owners for their street/race suspension setups</U>, is there any other, cheaper way to buy a suspension that is height&damping adjustable ? As a lot of known brands offer suspension for 92-96 model, but not 88-91

Also, where would you start with the FWD CRX that has too much weight on the front and is really oversteering when braking ?

 

You have a number of issues working here against you. You are going on track with a high power CRX on stock shocks. You have bought some Brand X super cheap coil-overs that are probably inferior to the H&R springs you have now. You are making no reference to the alignment plus the majority of oversteer (especially surprise oversteer) seen by a relatively new driver in a car like this is often driver induced as the package that you refer to would generally be expected to understeer a fair amount 9until you tune it right).

You need to get rid of teh stock shocks immediatley and I doubt those cheap coil-over kit is going to be working in your favor either. A review of your tire and alignment situation is a really good idea to make sure they are not working agaisnt you. There is a lot of good set-up information here and on the RR/AX forum, it has been gone over a million times and not all of it takes a big budget. Finally, you didn't mention your experience but seat time and experience with smoothness is going to be likely the single biggest single perforamcne gain for you most likely as well.

 

Lee, thanx for a reply.

1) Experience.. well I had this engine in a Civic before which I had for 3 years and I was on a track with it quite often... but I damaged the car body in an accident so the engine went into a CRX body.
The suspension was THE SAME - stock shocks&H&R springs, and I did NOT have this problem, so altough it is possible it's my incorrect car handling, I don't believe so ...
The only difference from the previous Civic setup is that my CRX has polyurethane bushing set installed, so chassis is a bit stiffer now.

2) supercheap coilovers - you know that's a problem when you live outside USA - especially here, Central Europe. It's not so easy getting quality suspension parts here, and if I do get some nice shocks&springs, they cost double price comparing to US prices. That's why I am trying to find the correct parts that work fine and don't cost &gt;$1200 ...

 

Sorry, i didn't realize that you were in the Czech Republic but now I see Brno listed. I certainly understand that it will be more difficult to get parts there. Our Koni distributor in the Czech Republic is Auto prima in Prague. I don't know how far Brno is from there but I would be happy to give you contact info.

Since the CRX has a shorter wheelbase than the Civics, it is a little bit more willing to rotate and takes a bit less general effort to make it turn but I wouldn't consider them to be a nervous car. I still think the stock shocks are working against you and I would still probably stick with the H&Rs over a poor quality, cheap coil-over system which tend to be riddled with compromises like poor fit, low quality, etc.. So long as the polyurethane bushings are installed properly and aren't causing a suspension binding, they should not be causing oversteer. They can make the car react a bit quicker so if there are driver induced issues then they could be lightly magnified. I still think you may have an alignment issue (rear toe out comes to mind) and there is no doubt that a throttle lift at the wrong time entering a corner will make an otherwise well balanced car oversteer and the driver nervous.

I don't mean to be harping about experience but honestly at speed these cars aren't the most forgiving of driver issues so it is easy to blame the car and chase your tail going after things that aren't the car to begin with. Getting the driver to be as smooth and stable as possible is a huge gain and pretty necessary in getting the package to move quickly and consistently. It is also the most fun part of the equation...driving more. Definitely your car is well behind the 8-ball on a few suspension items that are not helping you and you need to assure that the alignment is working in your favor. Zero toe rear, about 1/16th total toe front and camber in the -1.5 to -2.5 range all around depending on the aggressiveness of the car, tires and wear, etc. Tidy these things up and the car should be a good platform to work with. Don't know if you have a rear sway bar but consider one once you have gotten rid of the snap oversteer issue. The way to make these cars fast on track is a neutral to light but very consistent oversteer situation where the driver has the confidence that the car will to the same thing lap after lap and thus can drive at the edge of his limits safely and consistently.

Have fun.