Modified Suspension
If you’re going ‘all out’ to mod your car, stiffened and lowered suspension will be near the top of your list! Lowered cars look purposeful and predatory, often enhancing a standard specification model to look like a racing version. It’s not all about the looks, though, as lowered suspension can also offer vastly improved handling.
Manufacturers design their cars with typical city roads in mind; this means they take into account speed humps and potholes when assigning settings to their suspension. Accordingly, most cars are shipped with relatively soft, bouncy suspension as standard - comfort is everything here, the purpose is to reduce ‘impact shock’ from bumpy roads.
However, these ‘comfortable’ suspension settings are not always a positive feature in terms of a car’s performance.
Key to improving a car’s overall handling is it’s centre of gravity; the lower the car is, the less it will roll in corners and the higher the level of traction will be. Lower ride height also leads to significant improvements in braking performance, with reduced nose drop and tail lift contributing to a much more responsive drive.
Achieving the ideal setting is dependent on the car itself as all cars have their own ‘sweet spot’ in terms of ride height, but the ultimate goal is to minimise the amount of air flowing under the car in order to maximise stability. So, when you see a suspension kit which promises to reduce your ride height by 35mm, ask yourself if your car will actually benefit from that reduction. Your car’s weight, it’s engine size and the size of it’s wheels all need to be taken into consideration.
Speed humps are a classic example of why some cars just can’t cope with a 35mm reduction in ride height. While your front bumper might make it over the hump, you run a real risk of your engine being ripped out by the concrete!
Another obstacle faced when lowering a car’s suspension is wheel size. If your car already has whopping 17” or 18” rims (and it probably has!), then the clearance between the tyres and the wheel arches will be reduced already. Taking off another 35mm might just lead to your tyres scraping against the wheel arches and causing expensive, not to mention unsightly, damage. This can be avoided in one of two ways: replace your alloys with smaller diameter versions, or have your wheel arches ‘rolled’ to increase the clearances.
An easier option, of course, would be to set your suspension slightly higher than you had intended. Some suspension kits are adjustable, which means if your car can’t cope with a 35mm drop, you can simply set the height at a less extreme level. Adjustable kits also give you the option to set the suspension to your own, unique driving style to achieve the perfect calibration between driver and machine!
There are numerous manufacturers, suppliers and installers of suspension kits out there so, as always, it’s highly recommended that you shop around for the best deal. Ask for specific advice on your car’s ideal settings; it may be a mistake to simply buy the cheapest and lowest!
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