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Re: Autox Sprite Handling Questions

To: Jackson Zimmermann <JZIMMERM@exch.co.albemarle.va.us>
Subject: Re: Autox Sprite Handling Questions
From: Ulix Goettsch <ulix@u.washington.edu>
Date: Tue, 27 Oct 1998 08:21:07 -0800 (PST)
Cc: "'spridgets@Autox.Team.Net'" <spridgets@Autox.Team.Net>
In-reply-to: <C735981EB58DD111921500A0C99D79894B9204@CMS1.co.albemarle.va.us>
Reply-to: Ulix Goettsch <ulix@u.washington.edu>
Sender: owner-spridgets@Autox.Team.Net
Jackson,

I am surprised you don't get bad understeer with your current setup. With
a
3/4" bar in the front and with the rear springs actually softened.  But I
am not too familiar with 1/4 elliptic cars.  Your negative camber probably
helps too.
To keep the rear wheel on the ground you need to reduce body roll in the
front or increase wheel travel in the back.  On a later car, you could
probably remove the axle strap to keep the wheel on the ground, I don't
know if you can do something like that on an early car.  I would think
that a rear sway bar would make matters worse on the wheel lift.

In the front, I have tried a 3/4" Addco bar with stiff center and end link
bushings with an otherwise stock suspension and wheels.  This was way too
much, heavy understeer.  Using rubber bushings on the end links helped
some.
But again, I wasn't using negative camber.  A lowered front with lots of
negative camber (2 deg ?) might work with a big front bar.

I currently use 340# front springs that are 1" lower, with PU bushings and
5" wheels with 165/65 tires.  The springs are just fine for the street.  I
do get some sharp bangs than can be felt in the steering wheel when I go
over potholes, but I think this is due to the stiffer bushings not the
springs.  I don't have a sway bar right now (mounting ripped off), but
will try the stock bar first when the mounting is fixed.
I might go back to the 3/4" bar in combination with the Addco rear bar if
it fits with the Mini Mania axle stabilizer bar that I use.

I think in your case I would try stiff sway bar bushings and more wheel
travel in the back first, both cheap.  

Now I want to know how you fit 5.5" wheels and 185/60s in your fender
wells!  If you had to make some modifications to your fenders that you are
embarressed about, you can email me privately :-)
I would like to know which rims you used and their offset if known.

    Ulix                                                    __/__,__        
.......................................................... (_o____o_)....
                                                           '67 Sprite


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