Lowering at different heights front and back?

[revere]

Is this purely for aesthetics or does it have some kind of difference for the drive?

The only thing I can think of is if it is lower at the front than the back then there is more weight going through the front, which I am guessing is good seeing as the car is front wheel drive. So does it give better grip & acceleration?

oh yeah, I am driving an LCR with stage one remap to 260BHP !

 

[JamJay]

I take that you're looking at suspension kits that give you say a 50mm drop at the front & 40mm at the rear?

The reason for this is that the Leon is known to lower itself more at the back when given an equal drop, this is due to the rear beam suspension setup and the wheel moving forward when lowered, which normally occurs when lowering the rear more than 40mm. As far as I know, there are no positives or negatives factors when compared to an equal drop package.

KW & Weitec both used to offer equal drop packages (50/50mm & 30/30mm) but replaced them with one equal drop of 40/40mm which should stop the rear sinking too much and a 50/40mm for those wishing to go low but have a level ride height front & rear.

 

[DamianPM]

As mentioned it is mainly for looks but some people feel it also give a sharper turn in with the front of the car slightly lower.

Damian @ DPM Performance

 

[james walker]

there is a suspension guru somwhere, maybe pm willie, that says higher on the front lower rear actually promotes better track handling... cant remember his name though, but willie will know.

 

[revere]

Cool, cheers guys. I was looking at the weitec 40mm/40mm set up as those are the best make avaialble to my price range.

 

[robertj]

I would go for 50mm front and 40mm rear if possible. Ideally the front wishbones will be horizontal for the best handling (I'm not sure if 50mm will achieve this though, maybe someone else can answer this?) and if the rear drops too much the weight shifts too much to the rear and you'll find the car losing traction when accelerating and understeering in the corners. (although rear wheel spacers can help this)
What ever you do the car is going to look much better

Hope this helps

 

[revere]

I would go for 50mm front and 40mm rear if possible. Ideally the front wishbones will be horizontal for the best handling (I'm not sure if 50mm will achieve this though, maybe someone else can answer this?) and if the rear drops too much the weight shifts too much to the rear and you'll find the car losing traction when accelerating and understeering in the corners. (although rear wheel spacers can help this)
What ever you do the car is going to look much better

Hope this helps

Lowering 50mm could be a prob, the roads in Scotland (like whole of UK are shite) plus I'll never get over speed bumps and have to make ridiculous detours to get places or just not get their at all !

 

[robertj]

Lowering 50mm could be a prob, the roads in Scotland (like whole of UK are shite) plus I'll never get over speed bumps and have to make ridiculous detours to get places or just not get their at all !

Fair enough. I suppose the point is that however much you lower it by you don't upset the balance and handling. Good luck with it anyway, and post up some pics once you've done it and all the "experts" on here can have their say

 

[james walker]

or if you want the perfect balance buy some quality coilovers, adjust the height individually then

 

[Azza_]

dam a thread just for a problem im kinda haveing, after lowering 40/40 ive noticed the nose of the car sits noticably higher than the rear.

i can get two fingers just between the back arch and wheel and almost four in the front arch, i searched all over yesterday and never came to a full conclusion.

so i put it to you suspension gods, is there anyway to combat the nose high front?.

any help would be super appreciated.

 

[wayne lcr]

is it poss just to lower the back? cos my front end is low on standed suspension.or will it unbalance the car or lift the front?

 

[robertj]

dam a thread just for a problem im kinda haveing, after lowering 40/40 ive noticed the nose of the car sits noticably higher than the rear.

i can get two fingers just between the back arch and wheel and almost four in the front arch, i searched all over yesterday and never came to a full conclusion.

so i put it to you suspension gods, is there anyway to combat the nose high front?.

any help would be super appreciated.

Only by lowering the front more or raising the rear. As JamJay said earlier I think, a 40/40 lowering kit tends to drop the rear more than the front because of the geometry of the rear suspension.

 

[revere]

or if you want the perfect balance buy some quality coilovers, adjust the height individually then

As much as I'd love coilovers I just cant afford to spend the money on them !

I could maybe stretch to either of these if I save a bit longer;

V-Maxx (Never heard of before)

http://www.dpmperformance.co.uk/vmaxx-coilover-suspension-kitbr-leon-1m-cupra-r-18t-1199-p-2341.html

Weitec (Know they're a good brand)

http://www.dpmperformance.co.uk/wei...i-19tdi-cupra-19tdi-fr-19tdi-0999-p-1587.html

Any advice?

 

[robertj]

is it poss just to lower the back? cos my front end is low on standed suspension.or will it unbalance the car or lift the front?

The front will come up if you lower the rear. As for unbalancing the car, not really, it will just change the handling characteristics, ie, you'll get more understeer. But how much you notice this will depend on your driving style.

 

[james walker]

vmaxx are decent budget coilovers, i know damoegan has them with good reports on his ibiza, with a bit of track use aswell..

weitec are top notch, made by kw. coilovers id be looking at are either ap coilies, weitec coilies if you can stretch

or if not then weitec springs and shocks or koni springs and shocks.

weitec hicon gt coilies have excellent reviews on here (circa 450quid i think)

out of them 2 you listed the weitecs are ten fold better quality

 

[robertj]

As much as I'd love coilovers I just cant afford to spend the money on them !

I could maybe stretch to either of these if I save a bit longer;

V-Maxx (Never heard of before)

http://www.dpmperformance.co.uk/vmaxx-coilover-suspension-kitbr-leon-1m-cupra-r-18t-1199-p-2341.html

Weitec (Know they're a good brand)

http://www.dpmperformance.co.uk/wei...i-19tdi-cupra-19tdi-fr-19tdi-0999-p-1587.html

Any advice?

Coilovers might not be necessary if you can just get the correct springs. There's a big debate on the suspension and handling part of this forum about whether coilovers are really necessary.

You should probably speak to someone like Bill at Badger 5 to find out what's available for you.

 

[Muttley]

In this thread:

http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=258200


DPJ wrote
To quote **** Shine

There are two critical geometric points to consider when discussing suspension performance: the center of gravity, and the roll center. The distance between these two points (the roll moment arm) determines the tendency of the car to roll.

The center of gravity moves with the ride height of the car. Lowering the car one inch will drop the center of gravity approximately eight tenths of an inch (only the sprung portion of the weight moves downward). The location of the roll center is a function of the suspension geometry. Lowering the body one inch on a Mk4 VW lowers the roll center approximately one and a half inches.

As a result of lowering the car 1 inch, the roll moment arm has increased more than half an inch, making it much easier for the car to roll.

When a car is allowed to roll, the resulting weight transfer decreases the available grip and keeps the car from handling to its potential.

As I understand it, the downward sloping wishbones you'll get with a lowered LC will give a much lowered roll centre.


Willie wrote
For those that don't recognize the name **** Shine he's the man when it comes to setting up the suspension on the MK4 Golf GTI.
He posts alot on VW Vortex, if you haven't been on this site....what you playting at.....get your ass on there and get searching, and know his stuff.
when setting up for the best handling on a MK4 Golf GTI, same set up as the LC, he actually raises the ride height of the front of the car, lowers the rear and fits a 28mm rear ARB. It doesn't look pretty but handles very well on the track.

 

[revere]

vmaxx are decent budget coilovers, i know damoegan has them with good reports on his ibiza, with a bit of track use aswell..

weitec are top notch, made by kw. coilovers id be looking at are either ap coilies, weitec coilies if you can stretch

or if not then weitec springs and shocks or koni springs and shocks.

weitec hicon gt coilies have excellent reviews on here (circa 450quid i think)

out of them 2 you listed the weitecs are ten fold better quality

Cheers guys. I'm now worried about getting the 40/40 springs incase of what the person above has said and the back sinks but I'm too paranoid to get a 50mm drop at the front because of the roads around where I live. Damn the decision making. Think I may strtech for the Weitec Coilies and go for 30/35mm at the fromt and 40/45mm at the back. I reckon adding another 10/15mm off the standard 20mm drop at the front should be enough. I had my old golf lowered 30mm all round and it looked really nice.

 

[DannyC87]

Lowering 50mm could be a prob, the roads in Scotland (like whole of UK are shite) plus I'll never get over speed bumps and have to make ridiculous detours to get places or just not get their at all !

Remember the LCR is 15mm lower than the base model, so 50mm springs will only lower 35mm.

 

[revere]

Remember the LCR is 15mm lower than the base model, so 50mm springs will only lower 35mm.

I am aware of this. So your saying it a 15mm standard drop! I thought the LCR came factory lowered by 20mm?

That is why above I am talking about dropping it 35mm in total, then I would be adding a 15mm drop onto the already 20mm that is there.