VR6 Widetrack questions

[s1m0n 0]

Ah interesting we both reached the same conclusion in terms of feel without actually one of leading the other too much :)

 

I am going to accept the VW workshop manual figures as accurate, given the lack of overall changes in the bodywork of the Corrado, rear quarters for example, then any tweaks to track widths would have to be very minor and the longer VR beam is compensated for by the larger ET of the wheels. I do find the idea of fitting an entire plu setup onto a 4 cylinder car interesting, although I do prefer (and it is a preference) the 'edge-ier' handling on the 4 cylinder setup.

 

:D yea, though I would imagine there are not a large number of people who have tried "plus" on a 4cyl, and even less who have compared "like with like" i.e. they may have "plus" but they are running coil-overs or something which is hardly comparing apples with apples.

 

I think I know what you mean by "edge-ier" (technical term lol...) and I am inclined to agree but with the caveat that "edginess" can be engineered in and out of both the 4 and 5 stud systems.

 

Back in the 90's I worked for Spax and in the course of the two years I was there I carried out a number of fairly extreme software (Mitchell) and hardware (MK2 Scirocco) suspension experiments, one of which was to hack off the top of the front strut mounts and replace em with two pieces of 5mm angle-iron that I'd machined multiple holes in to take the top mounts. I then made up and fitted some coil-overs that had a bigger than standard clevis (the part that mounts to the up-right), this enabled me to change the angle (viewed from the front) of the strut without effecting the camber. Over the course of several weeks (I had a 56 mile a day commute) I experimented with a very wide range of strut angles, as I changed the angle on the car I then "ran" those angles in the computer in order to get some kind of correlation between the simulation and real world.

 

To cut a (very) long story short, it was my eventual conclusion that top mount position had quite a big influence (in both a positive and negative way) on steering "feel" and that VW's setting were/are actually quite good compromises (yea, shocking I know... lol), in the end I ended up with a strut angle that gave a scrub radius of about 4mm as I felt this gave the kind of "feel" I wanted. But please bear in mind that this was combined with other changes, not least of which was the caster increased to 5.5deg! Keyword here of course - "I wanted"

 

Cheers

 

Simon

 

Just for info then, the MK2 Scirocco spec: - KR(1.9lt), 2Y, plate type LSD, engine and box re-located circa 40mm left (and 20mm back), track increased by 15mm, custom drive-shafts, 5.5deg caster, 1/2deg neg camber, 0 toe, 4mm scrub, 325lb springs, custom valved Bilstein mono-tube's, 7x15 wheels, 195/50/15 tyres.