Are lowered cars better at cornering

wizzer

Road Burner
Points
202
Location
Lyndhurst, Hampshire
Car
VW Golf 2.0 TDi
Does it always follow that when you lower a car it is better at cornering?

How does this work, surely the car works the same at whatever height it is set to?
 
Harder springs reduce body roll stabilizing the centre of gravity under high cornering G's & gives you more direct contact with the road.

Well that's my understanding of it anyway.
 
A lower centre of gravity will improve handling. However, simply lowering the car can have a detrimental effect on handling unless the suspension is reset to take into account the change in geometry. This is something virtually no amateur car modder does.
 
I think spring rate is where the big changes occur, I doubt that dropping the height by few mm makes a huge difference, it just looks good.
 
Sporty versions of standard cars have stiffer springs but they don't always drop the height.
A lot of people talk about lowering the car, I don't often hear people talk about spring rate.
 
That's because they either haven't heard about and/or don't understand it.

Show me someone who states that new springs settle after a few miles and I show you someone who has bought cheap springs and doesn't have a clue.
 
I've never encountered spring settling. I do, however, prefer to have my car aligned after it's been driven a couple of dozen miles after being lifted for tyre replacement.
 
I bought cheep adjustable Ebay springs once & they were great! The one's that come with an adjustable perch & you slip them over the standard dampers.

I've also bought cheep springs which turned out to be quite rubbish. Hit or miss with cheap stuff.
 
How about anyone who buys a new car mod, write a review & post it up on here. Maybe Torquecars could offer the good reviews to the retailers for a few £.

"Reviewed by a trusted enthusiast club"
 
I'd be cautious with a commercial venture of that type.

It's very possible to be accused of slander or malicious falsehood by the maker of a competitive product.
 
Mines lowered with Eibachs & B8's, definitely noticed an improvement over the standard kit, but the biggest improvement was having the wheel alignment & camber sorted. Kicking myself for not doing it earlier :(

£60 well spent :)
 
Interested in how the lowering of a car does effect the overall drive :)

Curious as to what the best option would be, coilovers or lowering springs?
 
Generally coilovers are more subtle, and are often adjustable on the car letting you setup the car as you need on a drive it and tweak it basis.

Coilovers also IMO give a less bumpy ride compared to the usual lowering springs.

Please note that just altering the springs without uprating the dampers is a bit of a bodge if you go for a dramatic drop, both spring and damper should be matched for the best effect.
 
Firmer damping can be very effective with standard spring rates and standard ride heights. Lowering the ride height will always lower the centre of mass [centre of gravity]. But the geometric centre of roll - the axis about which the car leans during cornering is much harder to alter. This plays a bigger part in handling prowess than BMW's much stated 50:50 front:rear weight distribution. Front and rear suspensions need to work together, regardless of static weight disribution.

Keeping tyre tread in contact with the road is the only way to increase lateral grip.
 
most cars are not set up for fast road use let alone track use out the factory and this includes the road height which like most of the car is set at a compromise.
so yes lowering most cars will improve handling but only if........
the suspension etc is set up properly
the tyres are good enough
expect a trade off on the ride.

a note on coilovers
the principle of coilovers is that they can be adjusted for different circumstances.
but this is not how most people use them as they very rarely touch the settings once sorted.
in that case you don't need coilovers just decent suspension.
spring rates and lengh can be altered as can damping and quality suspension usually has height adjustment as well.
so if you fit the correct springs and set the height up right you actually don't need coilovers unless your racing on different tracks where changes are a must.
 
Please note that just altering the springs without uprating the dampers is a bit of a bodge if you go for a dramatic drop, both spring and damper should be matched for the best effect.

Some springs will find the limits of the dampers & you will have a car that does a second bounce when you drive over a bump.

Never tried uprated dampers on standard springs though.
 
Like fitting sticky tyres on a softly sprung car, it ends up producing heaps of body roll.

Best thing I ever did was poly bush the entire rear sub frame on an already lowered MR2, made the rear end hyper sensitive, it was great.
 

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