Ride height puzzle

[daytona600 0]

The distance between the bottom of the sill & the tarmac is a whopping 27cms on my VR. Having seen others I am convinced that mine is higher than standard.

 

I have had the car a year and the previous owner fitted 17" wheels with 205/40 Nankang's

 

Stupid question: would this have raised the height of the car?

 

Next puzzle, when I had the car serviced last year at a VW dealer they said that it was not standard suspension. The cars history shows that a different VW dealer fitted front & rear shocks & springs 3 years (2 owners) ago. Its is likely that a VW dealer would have fitted anything other than stock parts? Its alway possible that the previous owner changed it I suppose.

 

I have posted a sepearte question re a SPAX kit that I am considering fitting.

[StuartFZR400 0]

Not a stupid question. Should those 17" wheels have 205/60 tyres on, then yes it affects it. But in your case they are CORRECT.

 

So you know for future, 205 refers to the width of the tyre (which obviously dose not affect height) and the 40 refers to the height of the tyre wall as a percentage of the tyre width. So in this case it is 40f 205mm (which equals 82mm). Should you go back to a standard wheel of 15", then the tyre is usually a 195/50*, thus giving a much bigger tyre wall (98mm) to compensate for the smaller wheel diameter (ie 16mm difference, to both edges equals 32mm ~ 1.5" which is roughly there) If you work it out for 195/55 - that seems the same. Much easier to explain via a diagram.

 

Actual wheel & tyre sizes found in the Wiki.

 

You may feel like you're driving a high up rally car simply because so many people drop thier Corrados. Look at my gaping arches on standard suspension & wheels. A 30mm drop would be perfect (ie speedhumps no problem either)

[daytona600 0]

Hey thanks Stuart & thanks for not taking the p. You learn something every day!

 

Still, it just does not look "right" I can put my hand (handshake style) between the tyre & wheelarch, is that normal?

[andy 0]

The gap (wheelarch to tyre) is massive on later cars, post 94 I think. Its very unlikely a dealer would have fitted a non-VW part and its also very unlikely that anyone would fit higher than standard springs.. I reckon yours is standard. Post up a picture if you can mate.

[StuartFZR400 0]

Dear Triumph Rider

 

Check (click) this pic and see what you think. You could fit your foot in there...

 

[edit - as the above link doesnt seem to work] try copying this into your web address bar:

http://upload.the-corrado.net/files/74/ ... 10032a.JPG

[gaz the geezer 0]

lovely, i`ve just come into possesion of a std suspended vr and that `scrapes the clouds` as it goes along .........

[Phil K 0]

Sounds like standard/stoopid ride height to me :?

[Supercharged 2]

Late VR suspension was always stupidly high - just look at any standard Storms at shows...

[coolrado 0]

here you go,

 

reasonable drop on coilovers.

 

V's

 

g60 standard suspension which has probably dropped slightly over time anyway.

[Crasher 3]

Sit the car on a flat surface and measure between the dead centre of the wheel and the lower edge of the wheel arch where it turns under, what is often called the rebate. The measurement for a Corrado G60 is 340-mm and the normal VR6 is 360-mm but I lowered an exceptionally original Storm recently and that was 380-mm at the back and 370-mm at the front. It looked like it needed a "4x4" badge under Storm. Using a 40-mm Weitec kit that came down to 320-mm as the VW001GT kit is calibrated from a 360-mm ride height. A normal VR6 I did just after, came out at 300-mm at the front which is a little to low and I had to drop the rear on the adjustable rear spring plates. This variance in ride height happens with some spring sets but Eibach are the most consistent as long as you remember to order some early spring plates for the font if your car is a 94 onwards.

[DEL VR6 0]

here is mine ('94 VR6) with standard 15" wheels, and standard suspension...

 

and here it is after lowering with 16's...

 

was supposed to be only a 30-35mm drop, but it looks and feels much more than that. The front catches literally everywhere, and the rear tyres catch on the arches when the car has a passenger or heavy load in the boot. Takes corners like its on rails tho! Reckon it could bo with anti roll bars. just need to get off my ass about it and get it done!

[bristolbaron 11]

if the suspension was replaced only 3 years ago, the car will sit higher than a car with 15yo susp, due to sagging.

The height will be right for the age of the susp. They do look exceptionally high.

[Crasher 3]

Del, what is the ET number and width of the wheels and what section of tyre

[Henny 0]

Damnit DEL VR6, I thought that was J-DUB for a moment there! :crazyeyes:

 

Those wheels really do suit the 'rado in Aqua blue don't they? 8)

[daytona600 0]

Brought my camera into work, here you go

[daytona600 0]

Crasher, I just did the measurements. Rear 380mm - Front 360mm

 

So I guess it is standard. Looks to high so I may get the 40mm shorter springs for my SPAX kit.

 

Thanks for your help everyone.

[StuartFZR400 0]

Sit the car on a flat surface and measure between the dead centre of the wheel and the lower edge of the wheel arch where it turns under, .

ie - do you mean from the centre of the wheel (/hub) upto the arch (centrally)?

 

Daytona has given from the top of the tyre there; at a guess it looks like 100mm (10cm). Does this mean we gotta do the maths now? LOL

 

EDIT - sorry, he's posted again - me too slow.

 

And yes Daytona, it DOES look quite high. Nothing stopping you dropping it a touch !! But what do you think of the current ride? --- atall harsh?

[DEL VR6 0]

Del, what is the ET number and width of the wheels

Will have a look tonight and get back to you.

 

and what section of tyre

The outside egde along the tyre wall, just where it curves in towards the "tread". Might see if i can get a pic to show you what i mean.

 

Those wheels really do suit the 'rado in Aqua blue don't they?

I agree. (Only when they are clean. They can look real rough when they have brake dust all over them!)

[Colley 0]

Thats what mine was like, looks ok at the front but the rear is ridiculous.

 

When setting up suspension, why do people have the front a touch lower than the rear? Just a general question that was on my mind :scatter:

[DEL VR6 0]

When setting up suspension, why do people have the front a touch lower than the rear? Just a general question that was on my mind :scatter:

 

Can only speak for myself here...

 

When i had mine done, the front ended up looking lower than the rear (and still does). I can tell you that i was not happy about it one bit. I dont like cars that look like the front is lower than the back and vica versa.

 

I was then told that when you buy a lowering kit, there is a +/- of 10mm :shock: , and you cant guarantee how it will be. I was also told when it was done that you need to let the suspension settle.

 

I dont believe any of it. I reckon it wasnt set up properly when it was done, but for me to go back to the place would be almost impossible, so i ended up just living with it.

 

I just take the positives out of it (have no choice but to!) which is that it looks damn mean from any angle, and is a great thrill to drive.

[daytona600 0]

The ride is only harsh on uneven potholed roads and speedhumps. Does not like the rough stuff.

 

But have to say that I cant fault the handling. Its superb which is why I love the car I suppose.

 

Just dont like height. Everyone that sees it says the same "looks a bit high at the rear"

[Kevin Bacon 5]

If you want the tyre -> arch gap perfectly uniform all round, then the front will definitely be lower than the rear - visually. In reality the actual height of two fixed points from underbody -> floor might only vary by 5-10mm front to back.

 

It's all about roll axis and roll centre which is a long, complicated and frankly boring topic, but a lower front helps reduce lift under hard acceleration and reduces dive when braking hard.

 

At the end of the day, you'll set the suspension to what ever you feel comfortable with. Apart from toe, there aren't any right or wrongs with suspension....it's totally down to personal preference.

[DEL VR6 0]

Del, what is the ET number and width of the wheels and what section of tyre

 

Thats the bit that catches. I was told at the time that one option is to get the lip inside the arch "rolled" but i never bothered.

 

This is the state of the tyre due to catching when cornering hard at speeds, or just general driving when the car has a heavy load.

 

Makes a horrible sound. To be honest, it doesnt catch as much anymore. I think that is down to most of the rubber that could catch being removed already.

 

Front pics show what i mean about it catching at the front. Its not the wheels that catch. Its the spoiler. I know i could change it to the 50mm, but i prefer the look of the 90mm.

 

ET is 30, and the tyres are 205/45/16.

[Crasher 3]

That ET is part of your problem, it should be 35 at least.