Chapter 14. Dundon Suspension : Further Impressions

After the first drive in my car with MCS 3-way dampers and Dundon's geometry improvement parts I knew it was a fantastic start and I felt that with some tweaks to MCS settings and car's alignment I could make it feel even better than it already was.

Mike Kojima of MotoIQ is an expert at this and I watched several of his videos and read his articles and took notes as diligently as if I was back in school and preparing for an exam. The man is a wealth of knowledge on these matters and I followed his nuggets of wisdom to the letter. Went out for a few drives and made adjustments to various settings one at a time. Each time I would go drive a section of pavement where I felt the OE dampers and suspension were lacking and each time I made tweaks to either High Speed Compression, Low Speed Compression or Rebound. After about eight iterations, I felt I got it dialed in. 

So, today I went out again to drive my usual 60 mile twisty route. I drive this route very frequently so I am extremely familiar with it. My car just feels incredible now. There is much more mechanical grip and steering response and I am going through corners with much more speed and confidence. There is absolutely no bump steer - I can hold a line and don't have to apply more steering angle - at all. I am going through hairpins much more aggressively and with much more confidence. I feel I am connected to the car and the car is connected to the road. 

There is one section on the route thats like a slalom course, with a number turns in succession. I went through that section like it was nothing - in the past I have approached that section with respect and caution, since it is narrow with a hill on one side and a ditch on the other side. Today I abused it. 

I think this remarkable improvement is a combination of: 

  • Much more negative camber (on front and rear) resulting from front and rear adjustable lower control arms and the camber plates - I am currently -2.8° both front and rear.
  • Replacement of rubber bushings with monoballs just makes the car steer very true to inputs. No play whatsoever.
  • Tension arms and toe links make corrections for bump steer
  • MCS dampers and springs provide the control in aggressive transitions.
In terms of alignment, I feel I need to have a little bit of front toe OUT (instead of IN) and I need a little bit more more toe IN on the rear, for some safety/insurance and maybe a bit less caster - perhaps 7.5° to 8°. Not going to rush to make the alignment changes just yet but I think car would get even better whenever I do get another alignment.

Dundon suspension and MCS has throughly impressed me. Unlike many other upgrades that I have done that have made incremental improvements to the car's score, these upgrades have transformed the car. It is no longer the same car ..  it has graduated into a different category.

And one more thing .. somehow it feels more enjoyable even when not attacking corners, even when stuck behind traffic in the canyons the seat of pants sensations from the chassis and steering kept me entertained.



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