Suspension tuning for drag racing

[kingstang5oh]

This might be an area pushed aside by the casual gt5'r but when it comes to drag racing every little thing helps or hurts you in a straight line. When you have your tranny set perfect you have to look other places for more speed.

So what are the ins and outs of tuning your suspension for drag racing. If i am using a RWD car do i want my rear high and front low like RL, What about spring rates and anti roll bars etc, Do these things have any effect at the strip.

Can someone give me a definitive answer on how i want my cars set up to maximize traction?

I am NOT asking for a tune, I have my own secrets but I would like a suspension guru to school me on this.

I guess i am asking about the extremes. Spring rate, Damper Compression and Extention, Toe in/out etc. I realize some of this stuff might make no difference at all but if it does please share.

 

[DLR]

Biggest differences in performance come in Spring Rate and Dampers IMO. The rest will just give you a fine edge.

 

[Slash]

Hard suspension seems to be key from what I've learned. It's HOW MUCH hardness to apply that is key. Every car is different.

 

[kingstang5oh]

Biggest differences in performance come in Spring Rate and Dampers IMO. The rest will just give you a fine edge.

Ok now what is the best way to utilize them properly. Can you go in depth on whats best where.

 

[Slash]

In depth isn't going to help much if at all, every car is different as I said, there is no 1 way of doing things. Your best bet it to scavenge the forums for information just like everyone else.

 

[kingstang5oh]

In depth isn't going to help much if at all, every car is different as I said, there is no 1 way of doing things. Your best bet it to scavenge the forums for information just like everyone else.

I mean what is the norm when it comes to the suspension. Do cars react better in general when you have high dampers vs low dampers etc.

To be honest sometimes i question the knowledge of gt5 drag tuners, It's like noone REALLY knows what effects things have when it comes to drag racing yet everyone online seems to think their tune is so worthy to keep a secret.

 

[200MphFord]

Typically IRL you would have a stiff rear suspension and soft front for weight tranfer to the rear. That would mean stiff springs, shocks, and a lower front ride height higher rear. Roll bars are neglectable because they are used mostly for side to side motion control. Camber is a no no and toe is debatable. Its all about getting the right launch and enough weight to the rear end or wherever your power is routed, typically the rear.

 

[DLR]

Ok now what is the best way to utilize them properly. Can you go in depth on whats best where.

What I do is go in my lounge by myself, get a car and start the spring rate at about half. then I go out and launch it. Move it up by .5 each time until I hit the "sweet spot". Then do the same with the other settings. This is very tedious but once you get it....

 

[Slash]

Typically IRL you would have a stiff rear suspension and soft front for weight tranfer to the rear. That would mean stiff springs, shocks, and a lower front ride height higher rear. Roll bars are neglectable because they are used mostly for side to side motion control. Camber is a no no and toe is debatable. Its all about getting the right launch and enough weight to the rear end or wherever your power is routed, typically the rear.

This is the logic I go by.

 

[kingstang5oh]

Typically IRL you would have a stiff rear suspension and soft front for weight tranfer to the rear. That would mean stiff springs, shocks, and a lower front ride height higher rear. Roll bars are neglectable because they are used mostly for side to side motion control. Camber is a no no and toe is debatable. Its all about getting the right launch and enough weight to the rear end or wherever your power is routed, typically the rear.

Good post 👍

 

[Slash]

Also, toe can be useful depending on the car and the amount of wheelspin your getting. If I'm really hitting the powerband and I'm spinning like crazy without good acceleration, I add a significant amount of toe, anywhere between .60-.75. Then I adjust from there. Sometimes it can cause wheelspin. Other times I will decease it by that much. Usually I find decreasing it slightly can really help with traction. Bottom line is you just don't know until you experiment.

 

[200MphFord]

Also, toe can be useful depending on the car and the amount of wheelspin your getting. If I'm really hitting the powerband and I'm spinning like crazy without good acceleration, I add a significant amount of toe, anywhere between .60-.75. Then I adjust from there. Sometimes it can cause wheelspin. Other times I will decease it by that much. Usually I find decreasing it slightly can really help with traction. Bottom line is you just don't know until you experiment.

Yes positive toe can have a "positive" advantage no pun intended. It can help the tires hook up at launch but its not the holy grail of rear suspension tuning. Some cars really benefit from it and it can definitely help with wheel spin.

 

[Slash]

Yes positive toe can have a "positive" advantage no pun intended. It can help the tires hook up at launch but its not the holy grail of rear suspension tuning. Some cars really benefit from it and it can definitely help with wheel spin.

Exactly, but in order to get the full benefit from it, you have to tweak the rest of your suspension first.

 

[200MphFord]

Exactly, but in order to get the full benefit from it, you have to tweak the rest of your suspension first.

Prcisely my point, you know your stuff.

 

[kingstang5oh]

Prcisely my point, you know your stuff.

So what are the rules of thumb when it comes to getting the advantage from toe? Stiff, soft or something more specific?

 

[DLR]

So what are the rules of thumb when it comes to getting the advantage from toe? Stiff, soft or something more specific?

Toe is the angle of the wheels parallel to each other. Some cars work best with very little while others need 1.00 in rear. It all depends on that car and how it reacts to toe.

 

[200MphFord]

So what are the rules of thumb when it comes to getting the advantage from toe? Stiff, soft or something more specific?

Like i posted earlier, toe is not the end all be all setting for a drag tune, it can only benefit you slightly. If you hav a car with loads of power and spins the wheels excessively at launch then i would add more positive rear toe. As a general setting i would leave it at +.20 when you ad the FC suspension. If you get too much wheel spin then add more. If its not too bad i would add maybe +.05 and leave it there. Some cars are just killer on rear tires so rear toe can help with hooking up but not necesarilly being the only setting you need to tune.

 

[Slash]

And at some points, toe may not change anything. It all depends on the car. There is a good chance that it may not have any noticeable results if everything else is done properly in the first place. No tune is the same for each car, even though there can be base tunes.