First event with coilovers - how to approach adjustment?

[nickyoobatz]

Hey guys - so this weekend I'm running my first autocross with my new suspension set up (KW V3's, Vorshlag C/C plates, new track aligment/corner balance). I am not looking to be super competitive but wouldn't mind playing around with it to see what gets best feel/better times.

KW V3's you're able to adjust both rebound and compression, just looking for a simple explanation or good starting point of what to adjust for autocross events. I know every car is different and its largely trial and error, but looking to see what matters more as far as adjustments go. Right now I have both rebound and comp set to KW's recommended settings. Car rides great and doesn't ride that stiff at the moment.

Appreciate all the input!

 

[blacksheep-1]

Hey guys - so this weekend I'm running my first autocross with my new suspension set up (KW V3's, Vorshlag C/C plates, new track aligment/corner balance). I am not looking to be super competitive but wouldn't mind playing around with it to see what gets best feel/better times.

KW V3's you're able to adjust both rebound and compression, just looking for a simple explanation or good starting point of what to adjust for autocross events. I know every car is different and its largely trial and error, but looking to see what matters more as far as adjustments go. Right now I have both rebound and comp set to KW's recommended settings. Car rides great and doesn't ride that stiff at the moment.

Appreciate all the input!

My first move would be to call KV, or find a similar car as yours and go measure ride heights.

 

[nickyoobatz]

My first move would be to call KV, or find a similar car as yours and go measure ride heights.

I actually reached out to them via email, and they told me “we have no recommendations being that everyone has different desires when it comes to ride quality.” Lol

 

[blacksheep-1]

I actually reached out to them via email, and they told me “we have no recommendations being that everyone has different desires when it comes to ride quality.” Lol

Srsly?!
I hate it when.a manufacturer builds and sells something then gives the consumer no help whatsoever.

 

[Mad Hatter]

I can just imagine KW would say that!! Its only the shops like Cortex etc that give you real feedback since they are more focused on one type of car. Would suggest you drive the car and then see what you feel and then start adjusting. Dont go crazy lowering the car too much as that will create all kinds of weird handling. As a first guide, Lower the front until the A-arms are horizontal with the ground but not any more, for the rears dont let the rear control arms down below horizontal to the floor as a max. I like mine with about 2 degrees down towards the axle. Squat and Anti-squat has several useful threads here in TMO.

Coil overs are great but they add a huge amount of variables to the suspension setup!!! The wrong setup will be slower then stock!!!

 

[nickyoobatz]

I can just imagine KW would say that!! Its only the shops like Cortex etc that give you real feedback since they are more focused on one type of car. Would suggest you drive the car and then see what you feel and then start adjusting. Dont go crazy lowering the car too much as that will create all kinds of weird handling. As a first guide, Lower the front until the A-arms are horizontal with the ground but not any more, for the rears dont let the rear control arms down below horizontal to the floor as a max. I like mine with about 2 degrees down towards the axle. Squat and Anti-squat has several useful threads here in TMO.

Coil overs are great but they add a huge amount of variables to the suspension setup!!! The wrong setup will be slower then stock!!!

I’ll check this before event, I got the cars height adjusted when I got it corner balanced/aligned, so I wasn’t planning on touching it.

 

[JAJ]

Hey guys - so this weekend I'm running my first autocross with my new suspension set up (KW V3's, Vorshlag C/C plates, new track aligment/corner balance). I am not looking to be super competitive but wouldn't mind playing around with it to see what gets best feel/better times.

KW V3's you're able to adjust both rebound and compression, just looking for a simple explanation or good starting point of what to adjust for autocross events. I know every car is different and its largely trial and error, but looking to see what matters more as far as adjustments go. Right now I have both rebound and comp set to KW's recommended settings. Car rides great and doesn't ride that stiff at the moment.

Appreciate all the input!

I had KW V3's on my 2008 E92 M3. I set them up following the procedure described on this page: https://www.koni-na.com/en-US/NorthAmerica/Racing/Road-Course-Tuning-Guide/

I had good results with them set that way.

 

[nickyoobatz]

I had KW V3's on my 2008 E92 M3. I set them up following the procedure described on this page: https://www.koni-na.com/en-US/NorthAmerica/Racing/Road-Course-Tuning-Guide/

I had good results with them set that way.

Thank you for this! Lots of great info and explains it easily enough.

To be honest, this is my first event since May 2022. My 2 year old takes up all my time and money lol. Being that it’s autocross I’ll probably only have 6-7 laps, I probably should just focus on driving as is, I’m sure I’ll be a bit rusty.

Planning on doing a track sprint next month, will be able to follow these notes and fine tune a bit then.

 

[Mad Hatter]

Most important part is having fun!! If you have a chance, go to a track day as the longer lap sessions and bigger tracks help you find your limits more comfortably. You can post your videos here on TMO and all kinds of experienced drivers will give you helpful tips.

 

[Apexpny]

I second what Mad Hatter said, go sign up for a track day. One step better would be find a local track that has an open test day. That way you will get plenty of track time to try different set ups and be able to test them back to back. Typical 20 min hpde sessions spaced hours apart make adjustments harder to measure.

 

[noldevin]

+1 for track day (been trying to get him to go to one lol)

 

[modernbeat]

We get this occasionally. There is -NO- one size fits all setting that will actually work correctly for everybody.
As a starting point I'll usually put the compression adjustment right in the middle and the rebound adjustment up from full soft/fast by 1/3 of the range. Then start testing.

If you need dial-in procedures I can highly recommend the book "Think Fast" by Neil Roberts. I recommend it to any customer that purchases MCS dampers from us so they can get the most out of them.

Think Fast: The Racer's Why-To Guide to Winning: Roberts, Neil: 9781451558753: Amazon.com: Books

Think Fast: The Racer's Why-To Guide to Winning [Roberts, Neil] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Think Fast: The Racer's Why-To Guide to Winning

www.amazon.com

 

[nickyoobatz]

We get this occasionally. There is -NO- one size fits all setting that will actually work correctly for everybody.
As a starting point I'll usually put the compression adjustment right in the middle and the rebound adjustment up from full soft/fast by 1/3 of the range. Then start testing.

If you need dial-in procedures I can highly recommend the book "Think Fast" by Neil Roberts. I recommend it to any customer that purchases MCS dampers from us so they can get the most out of them.

Think Fast: The Racer's Why-To Guide to Winning: Roberts, Neil: 9781451558753: Amazon.com: Books

Think Fast: The Racer's Why-To Guide to Winning [Roberts, Neil] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Think Fast: The Racer's Why-To Guide to Winning

www.amazon.com

Thank you! Yeah I figured everyone has different set-ups, preferences. I just wasn't sure if the S197 chassis itself does better with softer/stiffer settings of any kind. Was just looking for a general starting point, if there was anything different compared to KW's settings.

 

[blacksheep-1]

Thank you! Yeah I figured everyone has different set-ups, preferences. I just wasn't sure if the S197 chassis itself does better with softer/stiffer settings of any kind. Was just looking for a general starting point, if there was anything different compared to KW's settings.

soft.. very soft

 

[nickyoobatz]

soft.. very soft

Yeah? Both comp and rebound?

 

[blacksheep-1]

Yeah? Both comp and rebound?

do what @modernbeat tells you to do for now. Omce you get some experience you can mess with that, it's not an easy road to go down.

 

[nickyoobatz]

do what @modernbeat tells you to do for now. Omce you get some experience you can mess with that, it's not an easy road to go down.

Sounds good - thank you

 

[stevbd]

Some good general suspension tuning advice I've seen here on TMO, I think it was @Fabman, is to start with big adjustments towards the extremes so you can better see and feel the differences and then start fine tuning towards the middle.

 

[xr7]

Lots of good info here. The link below is a video on setting up double adjustable coil overs. May be my winter project.

WATCH: How To Adjust Your Shocks Like a Pro and Go Faster | PART 2 - Two-Way Adjustable Dampers - MotoIQ

In this second part of our “How to adjust your shocks like a pro series we’ll show you how to set up two-way adjustable shocks! If you liked the…

motoiq.com

 

[TWF]

Srsly?!
I hate it when.a manufacturer builds and sells something then gives the consumer no help whatsoever.

Try ordering main seal from them