Chapter 12. Let's Dundonize

In 2 years of ownership I felt that Boxster GTS 4.0 has a pretty comfortable suspension most of the time but whenever I encountered a road section with successive bumps/waves/ripples, the car would not feel planted and would become a bit unsettled/unpleasant even at 60 mph. Also even being moderately aggressive in tight hairpins would cause the car's rear to hop/skip/shudder sideways. Not a drift, just an unpleasant juddery behavior and my way to avoid this has been to be less aggressive in hairpins.

Boxster GTS is extremely enjoyable, but I wondered if these shortcomings could be dialed out to make it even more enjoyable. I shared these concerns with Dundon and they diagnosed bump steer being the issue with car's behavior in the rear. My car was likely steering the rear away from the direction I wanted it to go. They said their suspension setup package would help but the main fix would come come from the powerful MCS 3 way damper package.

Dundon recommended 3-way solution as being perfect for a daily/canyon/mountain car that would give me the chassis support and comfort I was seeking. 4-ways apparently have a narrower range of operation while 3-ways have a huge range of operation with MCS's Dundon specific valving. 3-ways would give the chassis a ton of control and confidence.

As far as spring rates are concerned Dundon offer two setups, a 80/100 N/mm for street/track and 100/120 N/mm for race.  I asked about custom spring rates and while they can supply custom spring rates, they advised me to try the setup as they have done a significant amount of testing and have the sweet spot pretty well dialed in. So, I chose the 80/100 N/mm springs since I do not track.

Dundon also recommended their Pro suspension package to get the alignment window the car lacks in stock form and would result in much more mechanical grip and steering response. Front and rear adjustable lower control arms would allow for more negative camber and wider track width while front tie rods, rear toe link kit and adjustable tension arms would safely provide a wider alignment adjustment range. Dundon controls arms and the camber plates would also remove rubber bushings which would improve steering feel and feedback, but also remove any slop that the flex in the bushings cause. I was also assured that removing rubber would make the car tighter and I'll feel things like pavement expansion joints a bit more, but not in a harsh way, just more of it transmitted through the steering wheel so I would feel what the car is rolling over. That sounded quite appealing to me. More steering sensations? Well yes, please.

As to weight savings when I weighed all 4 Dundon dampers (before installation) and compared to OE dampers (after uninstallation), the MCS stuff weighted 8.5 lbs less. Yay. But the collective weight of rest of Dundon parts like control arms, toe links etc. compared to OE parts is actually 6.5 lbs more. So, over all just a modest ~2 lbs weight reduction. But to be honest I am surprised there is not actually a weight gain. A 2 pounds reduction along with a significant suspension upgrade feels like a big win.

My experience with Dundon Motorsports and their customer support during the installation process was stellar. They are very helpful and very available for consultations and advise. They really stand behind their products and I think Dundon might be the single best company I have ever dealt with in terms of pre and post sale customer support. They have excellent products and their support is even better than their excellent products. Kudos to Jamie, Ted and Charles. I wish them and their company continued success.

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