Thread: Koni's rock
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Old 07-24-2005, 10:16 PM   #8
JST
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Join Date: Oct 2003
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Re: Koni's rock

Quote:
Originally Posted by clyde
Quote:
Originally Posted by JST
Quote:
Originally Posted by rumatt
Quote:
Originally Posted by JST
You could get a cheaper, longer lasting set of R comps.
Yeah, that's not a bad idea. I thought about mounting a set of Victoracers on my 17x8 wheels once the Azenis wear out. But if I'm going to have compromized grip, I'm wondering if I might as well just use streets and avoid needing to swap tires. Both seem like reasonable options.

JST, Now that your ZHP is legal in D-stock, we need to get your car setup too.
There's a big spectrum between the grip available on street tires like Pilot Sports and even "weak" R compounds. I've been pretty happy with the Dunlops, which offer A LOT more grip than street tires, though not as much as Kumhos or Hoosiers.

I'm not spending any money setting up the ZHP. That car either goes back at the end of the lease or gets turned into a family truckster. Either way, big money on the suspension isn't happening.
Well, the ZHP isn't legal in DS yet. But I do believe that the proposal will go through.

For the amount that JST autocrosses, a set of 710s should have no problem lasting a full season. For rumatt, a full season might be stretching it...but not by much.

Suspension mods for the ZHP... there's no reason that you couldn't find a used set of Konis and a used front bar that you could resell for close to your purchase price when the next car comes along. In the meantime, you'd have a car that would probably even feel a little more fun to drive on the street than with the OE stuff.
I haven't been paying attention--do Konis for the E46s come as full struts? You don't have to cut and weld like you do with the E36s, right?

710s might be on the radar next year, depending on what happens, but I'm concerned about cording them. Does my stock camber setup have enough camber to keep them wearing evenly?

Honestly, for street driving the ZHP setup is about as close to perfect as I can ask for. It has nice, solid handling and a firm but very livable ride; it is, IMHO, much better than what you get with an M3. As far as autocrossing goes, the car has a good deal of body roll in transitions, and I'm sure Konis would dial that out. With the same size tires all around, I don't find understeer to be an issue, and the tail has a decent bit of rotation (not RX-8 level, but not bad).

The big problem that I have with autocrossing the ZHP has nothing to do with the suspension or handling. It's the power (or lack thereof). After getting used to the rip the tail sideways power of the M3, the 330 just feels slow.
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