It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is?
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From: Snowwhitepillowformybigfathead
It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is?
The short story: Buy a set of scales and use them alot.
The long story: It's been a trying year. I scraped to race a few times. I faced and overcame challenges both off and on the track. I cut alot of corners.
I was looking over a few things on the car today, and noticed from under the hood that I've had some significant contact between the Skunk Upper Control Arm and the top of the inner fender on the right side of the car.
A quick check of the ride height at that corner read quite a bit lower than it should have...than I set it about 6 race weekends ago (that'd be last year). Maybe an inch lower. Well, that explains that. I'm running H&R 60mm springs, and they are sagging over time.
Readers of Carroll Smith will recall that he trashed most off the shelf springs (a long time ago). We are all probably pretty comfortable thinking that since then the quality of the big names is probably much better than that - Eibach, H&R, HyperCoils. I'm pretty sure that's a mistake - we can't take this sort of thing for granted.
Ultimately it's my fault. Watch the pro teams. They're not rolling the cars on and off the scales so many times each weekend to put on a show - it's that important. When I was able to quantify a click on a rebound clicker at 20lbs and was able to tell on the track, I effortlessly accepted also the idea that cornerweighting was critical.
I've had a set of scales on my list for a long time, but I've put it much higher on the list for 2004. You might consider it too unless you've got a convenient arrangement on somebody elses. That I considered it too much hassle to take advantage of a friends set more frequently is a poor excuse.
So, I'm a doofus who's been having understeer problems on a particular left hander because I've not been paying attention to some of the basics of setup and maintenance. AND, I've learned this lesson before. Shame.
Scott, who says "Don't be that guy"....
The long story: It's been a trying year. I scraped to race a few times. I faced and overcame challenges both off and on the track. I cut alot of corners.
I was looking over a few things on the car today, and noticed from under the hood that I've had some significant contact between the Skunk Upper Control Arm and the top of the inner fender on the right side of the car.
A quick check of the ride height at that corner read quite a bit lower than it should have...than I set it about 6 race weekends ago (that'd be last year). Maybe an inch lower. Well, that explains that. I'm running H&R 60mm springs, and they are sagging over time.
Readers of Carroll Smith will recall that he trashed most off the shelf springs (a long time ago). We are all probably pretty comfortable thinking that since then the quality of the big names is probably much better than that - Eibach, H&R, HyperCoils. I'm pretty sure that's a mistake - we can't take this sort of thing for granted.
Ultimately it's my fault. Watch the pro teams. They're not rolling the cars on and off the scales so many times each weekend to put on a show - it's that important. When I was able to quantify a click on a rebound clicker at 20lbs and was able to tell on the track, I effortlessly accepted also the idea that cornerweighting was critical.
I've had a set of scales on my list for a long time, but I've put it much higher on the list for 2004. You might consider it too unless you've got a convenient arrangement on somebody elses. That I considered it too much hassle to take advantage of a friends set more frequently is a poor excuse.
So, I'm a doofus who's been having understeer problems on a particular left hander because I've not been paying attention to some of the basics of setup and maintenance. AND, I've learned this lesson before. Shame.
Scott, who says "Don't be that guy"....
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From: Charlotte
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (RR98ITR)
I try not to be that guy... 
Looking at and working on your own car will help you in the long run [a lot].
Will
-who found two ruined suspension bushings on his ITR last night while 'looking around'.
Looking at and working on your own car will help you in the long run [a lot].
Will
-who found two ruined suspension bushings on his ITR last night while 'looking around'.
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From: Charlotte, NC, USA
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (Willard)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Willard »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Looking at and working on your own car will help you in the long run [a lot].
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Werd.
Remember, Only YOU can prevent forest fires.
Modified by XR4racer at 10:40 AM 9/24/2003
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Werd.
Remember, Only YOU can prevent forest fires.
Modified by XR4racer at 10:40 AM 9/24/2003
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From: Pacific Northwest, USA
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (RR98ITR)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RR98ITR »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">and noticed from under the hood that I've had some significant contact between the Skunk Upper Control Arm and the top of the inner fender on the right side of the car.
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Surely that couldn't have happened when you went completely air-borne at T5
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Surely that couldn't have happened when you went completely air-borne at T5
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From: Snowwhitepillowformybigfathead
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (johng)
"What?...That?...That was Nothing!"
Scott, who will now check for: Bent LCA's, Front Subframe mushed up into tub, and...evidence of Black Lectroids while he's at it...
Scott, who will now check for: Bent LCA's, Front Subframe mushed up into tub, and...evidence of Black Lectroids while he's at it...
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From: Springfield, Va, USA
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (RR98ITR)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RR98ITR »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Scott, who will now check for: ...evidence of Black Lectroids while he's at it...</TD></TR></TABLE>
"Bigboo-TAY! Tay! TAY!!!"
And for a transcript of the entire script
http://kumo.swcp.com/synth/tex...cript
"Bigboo-TAY! Tay! TAY!!!"
And for a transcript of the entire script
http://kumo.swcp.com/synth/tex...cript
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From: Houston, TEXAS, USA
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (Geezer)
John Lithegow likes to say 'Big-Booty' and get John BigBoo"tay" all riled up though....
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Scott, who will now check for: Bent LCA's, Front Subframe mushed up into tub, and...evidence of Black Lectroids while he's at it...</TD></TR></TABLE>
Scott just get yourself zapped while talking over the telephone and you should be able to "see" evidence of Black Lectroids...
Vracer111, who's going out to check if he ran over anything with his racecar in the 8th dimension...though my suspension is kind of like a Back to the Future conversion right now with the car suspended in the air without wheels...
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Scott, who will now check for: Bent LCA's, Front Subframe mushed up into tub, and...evidence of Black Lectroids while he's at it...</TD></TR></TABLE>
Scott just get yourself zapped while talking over the telephone and you should be able to "see" evidence of Black Lectroids...
Vracer111, who's going out to check if he ran over anything with his racecar in the 8th dimension...though my suspension is kind of like a Back to the Future conversion right now with the car suspended in the air without wheels...
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From: Charlotte, NC, USA
Re: It's the week before your race - do you know where your ride height is? (Vracer111)
I thought the Black Lectoids were the good guys (dude who jumps the fence) and Bigbootay, Yahyah, Warfhan (or was Warfhan a good guy??) were another 8th dimension type (not the good guys). Man, I need to watch that again, funny stuff.
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