That wider slower tire still went 1-2 at the ProSolo
And wear on these have not been so bad. I believe Dan said he was getting 70+ runs per set.
Yep you got me there.... That Prosolo finish makes up for the 1.6 sec they were behind at natls.
Then there were those really small tires on the Miata that was ahead of your car. Yes that is right, the fat tire Sol could not even beat a Miata.... Oh that is going to leave a mark.
That wider slower tire still went 1-2 at the ProSolo
And wear on these have not been so bad. I believe Dan said he was getting 70+ runs per set.
And for {dual course} ProSolo, the courses are shorter and slightly slower where you may not run out of second gear as fast and a shorter tire isn't as much as a detriment. Who knows what the 2007 Mirrorkahna/single course changes to the format will do to the courses. However, the Finale should still be the classical dual course format.
Hey I'm the first to admit that the 245 Kumho "might" be the way to go. But I do believe that for all their simularities, the ZOK and GXP sols are going to be different beasts and what works for one will not necessarily work for the other. I'm sure we'll try the Kumhos at some point this year.
Don't be surprised if the top AS GXPs are different in set up than the Top ZOKs...
__________________
If you can't be a good example, be a terrible warning!
---------------------------------------------------
Current Stable:
1998 Toyota FJ62 "Bruce"
2006 VW Mk5 GTI DSG "Ingraine"
2007 Mean GXP, Team Zissou!
Well I don't post much, but since the wear of the Hoosier 285/30s has been discussed I'll chime in. My first set of Hoosier 285/30s have 79 runs on them and not close to corded with a lot of concrete events on them. Of course I ran a different set at Nationals. Earlier in the season I tested the 245 Kumhos and the 275 Hoosiers. I corded one 275 Hoosier at 101 runs.
I am in the camp that believes that either the 245s or the 285s will be fine on the NA Solstice. Having tested them both, I like certain aspects of each of the sizes. I agree with those that state it may come down to driver preference. I don't recommend the 275s mainly because of the increase in diameter and loss of torque.
Dan
Well I don't post much, but since the wear of the Hoosier 285/30s has been discussed I'll chime in. My first set of Hoosier 285/30s have 79 runs on them and not close to corded with a lot of concrete events on them. Of course I ran a different set at Nationals. Earlier in the season I tested the 245 Kumhos and the 275 Hoosiers. I corded one 275 Hoosier at 101 runs.
I am in the camp that believes that either the 245s or the 285s will be fine on the NA Solstice. Having tested them both, I like certain aspects of each of the sizes. I agree with those that state it may come down to driver preference. I don't recommend the 275s mainly because of the increase in diameter and loss of torque.
Dan
Don't you feel the increased diameter may be a positive for the GXP?
Don't you feel the increased diameter may be a positive for the GXP?
Jack,
Sorry, my thinking was too narrow. I didn't give any thought to the GXP application. Your comment probably has merit. The extra gearing will probably help. I also liked the width compromise of the 275. Nice feel between the 245 and 285.
Dan
Gearing is one of our biggest concerns, although we might find third gear to be short enough, and that the GXP has enough torque to make this a non-issue. Again, we're initially going with the 285s; I'm certain we'll try a few other sets before we hit the set up we like.
__________________
If you can't be a good example, be a terrible warning!
---------------------------------------------------
Current Stable:
1998 Toyota FJ62 "Bruce"
2006 VW Mk5 GTI DSG "Ingraine"
2007 Mean GXP, Team Zissou!
Nope, you have that right. Using the above example, the first half of the turn when there is no power being applied, the Z0K and the GXP should handle exactly the same given similar alignment. Same car, same weight, same suspension specs, and all that. If you have both cars set up for maximum turning (skidpad), the alignment specs will be the same.
Actually at this point in time the suspensions would not be identical because of the TSB that allows '06 Z0K owners to remove the spacers in the suspension which would not apply to the GXP at this point. Of course that's assuming that the '06 Z0K FE3 package is the same as the '07 GXP's suspension. Does anyone know if the same spacers come with the GXP and if so whether there is a TSB that allows them to be removed?
I hear constantly that the s2000 is difficult to drive at the limit. I think a few minor changes in the suspension would work wonders for that car and make it an absolute monster. It is still on my list for my next car.
This is certainly true of the early S2Ks. I've driven several and only the Gary Thomason (later Joe Goeke) S2K handled anything near benignly, the rest were quite a handful. IMHO it's like driving a unicycle, once you get the hang of it you can do some amazing things but you're going to fall off a lot of times before then :-).
What spacers? This is the first I've heard of that.
Alan, what shocks are you planning on running?
__________________
If you can't be a good example, be a terrible warning!
---------------------------------------------------
Current Stable:
1998 Toyota FJ62 "Bruce"
2006 VW Mk5 GTI DSG "Ingraine"
2007 Mean GXP, Team Zissou!
BTW does anyone know the spring rates for the NA/ZOK/GXP? I think that would be helpful.
MR
__________________
If you can't be a good example, be a terrible warning!
---------------------------------------------------
Current Stable:
1998 Toyota FJ62 "Bruce"
2006 VW Mk5 GTI DSG "Ingraine"
2007 Mean GXP, Team Zissou!
Location: Wilds of Canada, or the Pac NW, or the Upper Penninsula of MI...
Quote:
Originally Posted by MemphisReighns
BTW does anyone know the spring rates for the NA/ZOK/GXP? I think that would be helpful.
MR
http://www.solsticeforum.com/forum/s...660#post259660
these are the SPRING rates, not the ride rates - there's a difference. Geometry (the motion ratio) needs to be taken into account to estimate things like wheel rate and ride rate. Luckily, most SLA suspensions are generally no lower than 1.25 and can be as high as 1.6 (that's inches or millimeters of WHEEL travel for shock travel - AND spring travel if your system is a coilover).
Location: Wilds of Canada, or the Pac NW, or the Upper Penninsula of MI...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Red Devil
...-Spring rates - the ZOK package is rear spring biased - he commented how unorthodox this setup was, and how much it shocked them that Pontiac would go this way, but that once dialed in it is fantastic...
With my background in vehicle dynamics, my experience is this is not unorthodox at all. Many cars have a higher wheelrate in the rear than the front. The S2000 is only slightly biased to the rear, and the MX-5 is just plain too weak in the rear (you can feel this just by driving it), and in my experience are prolly more the exception than the rule. But I know of MANY cars that are set up with ratios of ride stiffnesses that are biased to the rear.
This does some things for handling -
1) it reduces the need to augment the rear with a very large stabilizer bar, the natural roll distribution from springs is already helping you to achieve turn in and create a stable "pivot" for the vehicle. Remember, in autox stock classes, you're not allowed to play with the rear bar.
2) it creates a more natural pitch feel for weight tranfer, especially in corners. The result is better transient stability when utilizing braking and acceleration while turning
there are other benefits of which I won't continue to bore you with... a simple explanation is the stiffer the rear, the better the "anchor" or "pivot" that the vehicle relies on. Understanding the 'anatomy of a turn' is key here. The front initiates everything, and tho it sounds weird, the rear actually "stops" everything. You need stiffness in the rear for it to "stop" everything that the front is initiating.
Many of the people who think 'drag racing' tend to have lower rear wheelrates - supposedly for 'bite' or a myriad of other reasons. But you're not turning if you're drag racing, and drag racing is never done on chop, transitional tracks that are pavement between concrete reinforcement in corners, or low-lying water seeping areas where the pavement is 'chattery'.
