Stage 1 (pics to come):
The scrubbed and unevenly worn RE050As were changed for RE-001 Adrenalins. Initial thoughts are that these are softer in the sidewall, however once scrubbed in I found these to be a very close match to the stock tyres in terms of outright grip. For just over half the price of the stock tyres, they are a cost effective alternative.
Tyre pressures maintained at 42/40psi cold front/rear.
The following parts were then fitted:
- Whiteline 20mm adjustable rear swaybar BSR39Z and set the stiffer of the two settings.
- AVO Heavy Duty rear swaybar mounts
- Whiteline antilift caster bushes KCA334 (front control arm rear bush)
- Whiteline front control arm front bush W0506
Wheel alignment revealed that the toe settings were all over the place as anticipated. RR was +5.0mm and RL was -3.0mm, fronts had about 3 or 4mm of cross toe as well. No wonder the tyres were stuffed! Rear camber is -0.5deg on one side and -1.0deg on the other. Front camber is -0.5deg on both sides. I will leave these for now until I have the car lowered. Toe has been set for 0deg front and rear.
At stock ride height, I found that the caster bushes added 1.0degree of positive static caster to each side as compared to Whiteline's rated +0.5degrees per side. Fitment and orientation of the bush was double checked and Whiteline consulted and this is indeed correct. Perhaps Whiteline's advertised ratings are conservative. The more the better!
First drive around the block revealed instantly noticeable improvement in the handling. Turn-in is improved substantially and the back of the car just follows where you point the front. Fixing the wheel alignment no doubt played a part as well.
A few hundred Kms later, the lasting impression is that the front is much more willing to go where you point the wheel, however it is still noticeable that the front swaybar is inadequate as the uprated rear bar makes it much more pronounced. Straightline stability is noticeably improved due to the increased caster. It is much easier to start feeding in more accelerator earlier in the corner on exit. Road/steering feedback is also improved due to the cushy stock rubber bushes being replaced. I would say that it feels like I am running RE050A again.
NVH levels increased a tiny bit at the front end on coarse roads. Liftoff oversteer is very rare even when pushing the car relatively hard. I feel this is due to the stock springs/dampers.
If on a budget I would recommend that the mods in my Stage 1 are the most cost effective as it is how I invisage a "sports edition" of this car to handle.
Notes:
I chose to install the AVO heavy duty swaybar mounts as I have read many reports that the stock mounts are inadequate when using uprated bars. They can bent or snap when driven hard. I have not upgraded the swaybar endlinks at this time as I honestly do not find any of the aftermarket items to be acceptable given their price.
I.e. Rose joint/ball joint endlinks are notorious for drying up and causing play/rattles on cars that are daily drivers. Solid endlinks which use urethane bush designs all appear to have the common problem of splitting bushes. Copies of the OEM design (ball joint enclosed with rubber seal) do not appear to be durable and I have seen lots of reports of stripped threads or broken balljoints. For now it appears that the OEM ones are a decent design for now.
The following Whiteline endlinks appear to be a good design by all accounts and are reasonably priced: