AC Schnitzer suspension - worth it?

I've only heard good things, other than the price!

The only BUT being the chap I spoke to said you probably don't feel much benefit on the road but on track at the limit would be a different story. He struck me as a relative novice so without belittling him I guess it was pretty easy to spot the difference.

He was talking E30 M3 by the way.

IMHO I believe the billy/eibach kit is probably a more cost effective improvement.

I'd recommend talking to someone like Nigel at Moseley Motors (01952 503992 )or Barney at Munich Legends (01825 740456) as a minimum, they've tried them all I would imagine.

Lancelot,

I was wondering where you got your coil-over kit from. Could you tell me what it consists of, and also what you have at the front.

Thanks.

Nick,

How's tricks? I have the ML Trackmeister stuff on my car. It has negative camber at the front, but just looking at the car, it would appear there is just as much negative camber at the rear probably just due to the thing being lowered.

The reason I was asking Lancelot the question is that I have had a passenger ride in his car at Donington. His car has coil-overs and it really does the bends well, although he is a way better driver than me. He raves about the set-up. However, your point about messing with settings seems valid but this is what Lancelot likes doing. He has racing experience and therefore has experience of setting cars up properly. Me? Well my experience runs to arsing about with my tyre pressures.

For now, I'm happy enough with my set up. Chris Wadseley drove my car around Donington and he said it handled just fine. I'm going to think about big brakes though. As my car is now, I think this would get my car round the circuit quicker than any other development. What do you reckon?

As I though there's a wide variety of opinions on E30 M3 suspension choices!

I am not after a pure track orientated suspension - just something slightly tauter and more responsive than the standard (for the occasional track visit) without destroying practicallity or too much comfort for regular road use - basically what the ACS system is said to offer?

I tried the M/L trackmeister in the past and don't like the way it sits too low at the back.

As for big brakes does anybody know if you can fit 4-pot AP calipers with 300-315mm discs under std 16" wheels?

Mark

Okay heres my 2 pennyworth.  My car had standard (adjustable damping) suspension.  My changes have been

• Negative camber top suspension mounts. The change was dramatic, particularly at the hairpin at Donnington. Opinion - Value for money - fantastic - its a must.
• Next I binned my expensive adjustable dampers (well I still have them and they are for sale if anyone wants them (50k miles only)) and went for the schnitzer kit. Also had the bushes changed throughout to to polyurethane.  Opinion - Excellent - suspension is better on the road than any of the settings from standard.  The only adjustability is on the anti roll bars (which must be stiffer as the roll is reduced) which is enough. With sticky tyres (the very ones John W is now using) it lifted a front wheel far too much (like for 50 yards at Bedford by the pits) but I softened off the front which sorted it. The ONLY issue I had is that it feels like the car can pitch slightly for and aft and can feel flighty when going over crests. I am now totally used to this and think it is just that the left to right roll is tighter (ie less) then the dive/squat parameter. So its the only gripe and actually its just that one aspect has been improved more than another aspect.  The car flies very well - over hump backs etc it lands like some Finnish rally driver in a 1972 twin cam escort! 4 wheel touch down so smoothly.
• Big brakes.  I was convinced I needed big brakes. Donnington would kill my brakes within 3 laps and having boiled the fluid I would be driving around the problem all day.  once it had happened at Donnington it happened everywhere no matter how much I bled the brakes (Yes I use hi temp fluid and have decent pads with plenty of meat). 'Thats it', I thought - Brembos here I come. People like Roops told me it was unnecessary.  I thought - okay I'll do it in 2 stages - stage 1: big american air vents from fog light aperture to brakes (per John Ws comment).  Stage 2 : big brakes.  I've done stage 1 - There is no need for stage 2 - don't bother with big brakes!  My car can race all day and still get the ABS cutting in when the track is dry with sticky tyres - what more can you ask for? Roops was right, I was wrong. Take my advice and try the 2 stage approach - what can you lose? Also, a mate Tony (black M3 and Lotus- dont ask) sent me some email on how soem race mechanic has never seen warped discs.  his scientific study proposes that when we all (and I mean all M3 drivers) complain about and therefore change warped discs the reason for the judder is not warping but deposits of pad material on the disc.  Its all down to our impatience or lack of education in properly bedding in pads in the first place.
  

If anyone is interested in the brake article give me a shout and I'll try and find, then post it.

 

Hope I didnt blather too long - nice red wine....

Looks like it will be Schnitzer for me after all!

I'm not going to be buying it till the new year anyway. Even then it's not going to be fitted to my current car - I'm going to save it till I've bought a Sport Evo (and that's about 18 months away!) by which time I'll likely have bought the anti-roll bar kit as well.

I might consider the upgraded brake ducting as suggested by Jon W & Pottsy (together with the usual mods that I've had done to my current car: Super Blue flud, braided lines, Mintex pads etc.) Upgrading the master cylinder to 25mm variety might also help - anybody tried it?

From the description of this ducting it sounds like the same sort of thing I've seen fitted to ex-DTM racecars (tubing from duct to centre of brake disc) which should help with places like Donington.

Thanks for all the comments.

Mark

How do you know it's up for sale? It would be an excellent buy for someone. Your car was already superb, and with the Motec installed.....bloody hell. Buy it back, Nick. Make him a daft offer.

http://www.stoptech.com/whitepapers/warped_rotors_myth.htm

Here's the warped disc myth page.

Did he offer it to you before or after he installed the Motec kit? After reading the article in Circuit Driver, it sounded like he had decided not to bother with a 911 after all because the Motec conversion was so good. No doubt if he wants to sell it, he will not have to pay for advert space in his magazine!

The car would be an excellent buy for sure. Needs the cats removing though!