Glanza ups and downs?

Duff

I'm well aware of the roads i'll be driving on and i know that the car will handle it perfectly well, the coilovers aren't much stiffer than the OEM springs and shocks anyway. If not i'll learn from my mistakes..

Atomic Pineapple

SaxoDuff wrote:

I'm well aware of the roads i'll be driving on and i know that the car will handle it perfectly well, the coilovers aren't much stiffer than the OEM springs and shocks anyway. If not i'll learn from my mistakes..

tein coilovers can be very stiff, you'll feel everything from the road and the ride will be brutal on the way to sligo, the car will handle better though

Duff

draffodx wrote:

tein coilovers can be very stiff, you'll feel everything from the road and the ride will be brutal on the way to sligo, the car will handle better though

Do you mean in general? one of my mates has a set in his gt starlet and i didnt think they were that stiff. Although another mate has them in his evo 4 and they are pretty stiff, I think it depends more on the car/chassis..

Wibbs

It'll also depend on the bump and rebound settings as to how stiff it'll feel. Suspension and handling setup is a black art. Just dropping the car to the ground and stiffening up the springs/shocks will give the impression of better performance. It's not always the case. Not by a long shot. Coilovers have certain advantages in terms of actual suspension travel and fine tuning, but setup is critical.

Also it's only one part of the equation(but the one most commonly changed). Different stiffer(or strangely softer) bushings, thicker anti roll bars, toughened and braced suspension points etc can often have a bigger real world effect than shocks and springs when it comes to roadholding and handling. Also changing one part of the setup generally requires changes elsewhere to get the full effect.

It also depends on the base car's setup. The solid beam axle on the Glanza brings problems. It's never going to get close to an fully independent rear end. Much cheaper to manufacture though. I can be done though and without sacrificing ride quality too much. Cast your mind back and look at a car like the original peugeot 205 Gti. Quite a soft(and old ) car by comparison to many, but I would bet good money it would still out corner a dropped and stiffened up Glanza. Had a go of a mint original one a month back and was shocked how well the thing handled for it's age. Actually sod it's age, just shocked how controllable and well in handled, full stop. That said, peugeot have always been the masters of suspension design.

IMHO, I don't mind Glanzas, regardless of some's opinion(and I'm an old fart too ). I've driven one (very short run though) and I found it a bit of craic. It is what it is. I did find the handling or as much as I was prepared to try it, to be a weird mix. It kinda reminded me of an update to old renault 5 turbo in many ways. Weighs nothing, plenty of grunt, handled OK, good fun at low enough speeds, but had the distinct feeling it would bite you in the arse real quickly without warning. I wouldn't like to test it's limits at even low speeds. that was just me though. It was fun though. I think the kid who let me drive it was surprised I liked it.:D

nastysimon

Wibbs wrote:

It'll also depend on the bump and rebound settings as to how stiff it'll feel. Suspension and handling setup is a black art. ...

I generally agree with your comments, but suspension is not a black art, it is very much a science, but one which even many car manufacturers understand less than they should. The problem is that vechicle dynamics is a very complex area and one where the single most important part, the person, is often ignored or little understood. The problem is that as little as many manufacturers understand, modifiers know even less and often rely on trial and error and gut feel, often ignoring fundamentally important issues and resulting in really bad setups (too much noise, too little signal through the steering or a setup which just snaps away with little progression).

P.S I know a guy who was doing a doctorate in this stuff, or more precisely, what made a car fun to drive.

Wibbs

No I totally agree with you. I used the black art description as there is so much confusion among people, especially modders about the whole subject. It is a science and should be approached that way. Slapping on a pair of coilovers in isolation usually isn't worth a damn and may actually make the car worse.

Also as you say the person behind the wheel is often left out of the equation and what I may find a nice setup others may not, regardless of whether the car is better or not. Many seem to equate a stiff unforgiving ride as being the best for handling, feel and roadholding. The idea that if it's like a track car it must be better. Not always the case in real world road conditions. Indeed on uneven surfaces it makes the car far too skittish and uncontrollable and likely to snap back with little warning. Road conditions, wet or dry road surfaces all play their part and trying to get a useful compromise is hard enough.

You can also get into the arena of expecting far too much from the basic chassis. A case of polishing the turd. You have to go with the limitations of the chassis and take it from there. You're going to be disappointed if you try to make a glanza as an example, handle like an Evo or a Type R. Yes you can make it better, but there does come a point of little return. That said the peugeot 106 rally is a little beauty in the handling dept. It'll put to shame many of the flasher cars out there and it's a good example of how a really good suspension setup can make a hell of a diff, even with a basic chassis that wouldn't immediately jump out at you as being great. Bloody great fun they are.:D

PS I'd be interested to read your mates conclusions.

Quint

ando wrote:

Quint dont bother commenting if your contribution is going to be a comment like that

But no problem with half the posts in the first couple of pages taking the piss out of the OP's car is fine!

nastysimon

Wibbs wrote:

PS I'd be interested to read your mates conclusions.

I'm sure that he'd love to be able to show them to the world, but not quite yet (maybe never).

Volvoboy

Always remember my first experence of a 'lanza, when i first started out as a appentice one of the lads in the job had one and brought me on a spin in one, and they are a quick as a snot off a pikeys sleave!! really quick (not really my cup of tea) but i can see why they are so loved here, its more a starter modder / tuner car. But what turns people off about them is lads racing the arse out of them on Dollymount and Ind estates, and the Booom-tis dump valve!!



-VB-

rjduffell

better than a saxo

Duff

rjduffell wrote:

better than a saxo

lol, dont drive a saxo anymore man!:D

Duff

Just bought my glanza today, 97 with 80,000kms on the clock, spotless inside and out!! A few tastefull mods done to it already! I love it!!:D

Atomic Pineapple

SaxoDuff wrote:

Just bought my glanza today, 97 with 80,000kms on the clock, spotless inside and out!! A few tastefull mods done to it already! I love it!!:D

any pics?

5500

best of luck with it

Duff

Cheers Eireal!!


Heres the only pic I have..

Atomic Pineapple

atleast its not white

good luck with it indeed, let us know how it fairs on the round trip to sligo

Duff

draffodx wrote:

atleast its not white

good luck with it indeed, let us know how it fairs on the round trip to sligo

Yep, wouldmt buy a white one if some offerd me itfor 50 quid! way to common in that colour! was holding out for a red one but this came up at the right price and was too good to miss!

5500

What mods are done on it or whats yoru plans for it?

Duff

Mods so far are HKS SSQV, HKS mushroom air filter, HKS FCD, HKS super dragger exhaust, Tein adjustable coilovers, Cusco strut braces, RX-7 top mount intercooler, TRD plug leads, TRD short shifter,Blitz turbo timer/boost gauge, 15'' lightweight alloys (some jap make)

Mods to come are, HKS front mount intercooler, carbon fibre bonnet, 15'' rota grid alloys, bride bucket seats, clear lenses up front and 98 spec rear lights, de-cat and maybe a hybrid turbo. Also gonna be replacing the mirror tint with 75% limo tint.

Getting the alloys next week and then hopefully the front mount at the end of the month!! Just enjoying driving it for now though!!

EDIT: Draffodx- It managed the Dundalk-Sligo trip surprisingly well!!:D

AlanAhern

nice bus. my plan if i had it would be; hks actuator, manifold,decat, relocate air filter off turbo. hks fcd, rrfpr and tune her then to run 1 bar. add also a panhard along with those coilovers. The rx7 top mount will be able to handle the 1 bar but a front mount might be better suited.

projectgtr

congrats man fair play on the car, did you buy it from farraley that looked brand new,Some really nice parts on her!!

nearly bought one myself but last week i bought a Civic SiR2 from japan now just the horrible wait to get it over :mad:
sorry to thread jack, heres a quick pic (lots being changed on her when she arrives)

BobTheBeat

FMIC's look very well on Glanza's. Top choice dude!

Duff

Cheers for the comments guys!

Projecgtr, yup bought it of farrelli, car was unbelievabley spotless when i went to look at it and i just couldnt pass it up at that price!! Love the siR2 dude, facelifts FTW!!
If your selling the alloys let me know!!:D

projectgtr

Yeah man that looked like some clean ass glanza allright some very very nice parts included aswell (try adding up how much they would cost you here, its funny:D )

Sorry to disappoint you but its a pre-face lift , i prefer them any who , the amount of parts as standard i got is down right rediculious and all top quality stuff.

Not sure on the wheels ill let you know when she arrives might need some money for a full set of recaros (ill have my passengers giving out only the driver has one:D )

Heres a better pic so you can see the pre-face front, the other was pretty blurry

PS any one got a civic 1.4 badge for sale?

Duff

Might take the recaro off ya too!!:p get a set of blue dc2 teg recaros in her!! *drools*

Anyway back to topic!!lol...Bought a dvd headunit and laguna splitter for the Glanza today, gonna spray the splitter and fit both next weekend!!! whoo I love my car!:D