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| Sorry about the crappy pic, but here you can see the tab we welded in to move the mounting point inboard. On the opposite end you can see just how far we moved it over – there was a lot more metal to work with on the backside so we were able to get away with just drilling a new hole. |
After installing all of our suspension goodies, we set the ride height as close as possible and took it down to Brice Anderson at Rose Automotive in El Cajon, CA. Brice’s attention to detail and service to the customer have really impressed us. Although Rose Automotive does not have cornerweighting services, we felt that his alignments alone were worth the trip. Brice meticulously set the front alignment to -2.75 degrees of camber with 1/8” of toe out and set the rear to zero toe, while rear camber worked out to a perfect -1.75 degrees without resorting to camber plates or crash bolts. As with any car you plan on taking to the track, make sure to have it aligned as it would run. Try to have a full tank of fuel (if you run with a full tank) and sit in the driver’s seat while the alignment is being set. Make sure to remove anything that would not usually be in the car on the track as well. This will ensure your alignment is as it would be on the track.
Unfortunately, getting 2.75 degrees of negative camber out of the front of our G20 proved difficult with our Koni 3011 shocks. To accommodate this combination, we had to grind away material from the inside of the suspension upright, as well as relocate the bottom mounts for the shocks. To move the shocks inboard 3/4″, we welded 3/16” thick preformed tabs available at just about any metal supply store to the rear of our uprights, and drilled a new hole in the front of the upright, and welded on a 1/8” thick washer to reinforce it. Since the car still beats up the outside shoulder of the front tires more than we’d like, we plan on relocating the upper shock mount to allow for additional negative camber. Since this is a multi-link car, moving the shock has little effect on suspension geometry except for motion ratio and will make the shock not sit at the optimal 90* to the lower control arm at full bump.
We sourced our wheels and tires from fellow racer Tom Paule at Wheel Studio in Santa Fe Springs, CA. We bought 6 15×7 Team Dynamics Pro Race 1.2s with a +35mm offset. Wheels and tires take a severe beating on the track, and Team Dynamics’ rally history made this wheel an excellent choice. While not the lightest wheel at 13lbs each, they are extremely strong and are relatively inexpensive to replace.
For tires, we’ve run the gamut of tires, depending on available sponsors, contingencies, availability, etc. We’ve stuffed as wide as 225-45-15 Hankook Ventus Z214s in the C51 compound, 205-50-15 Nitto NT-01s, and 225-45-15 Toyo RA-1s. All tires for the car have worn fairly evenly, and have all lasted at least 3 weekends.
Now that our car handles like a racecar, we need to make to go like one. In the next installment we will cover our modifications to the engine and related components.
Sources:
ProParts USA – Koni Rebuild Center
G Spec Performance – Exclusive Custom Steel Distributor
