I have been setting up my car for some nice back road driving and I think I have my suspension right where I want it but I tend to get this floating feeling from my tires on long sweeping turns or on quick transitions. My specs are 18in rims F=225/35/18 and R=245/35/18 all inflated to 32psi. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can make a better "foot print" on the roads surface?

 

additional details on your suspension setup? what tires? what width wheels? what are your spring rates and alignment like? 32psi isn't very high at all, but it depends on the tire.

 

The suspension is Tokico Illuminas 5way with front set at 3 and rear at 2, springs are Eibach. The wheel width is 9in all the way around and my tires are Yokohama S drive. Hope that helps.

 

your on 35 series man. id rock 40. Do you have strut bars? but those should be harsh,.. id say its ur springs/shocks that make you think it feels floaty. Eibach's spring rates arent really too aggressive.

I could deal with floaty, as long as it was nutural balance with no tendency to understeer or oversteer, which you can simply dial those out with chassis stiffening via strut bars

 

32psi sounds low on your tire / wheel set-up.
Do you know what the tire manufacturer recommended is?
It has to be at least 35psi...

What is the max pressure printed on the tire sidewall?


-Ted

 

I have front and rear sway bars. The balance does seem to be pretty nutural, but the "floaty" feeling can almost be compared to body roll, kinda feels like Im riding on the tires side wall at times.

 

The max tire pressure is 50psi

 

I would run them at least 40psi...strictly according to the max tire pressure.
Try 40psi and see if you like it.
You might need to drop the damping on the shocks if you can.
If you like it, run it up to 45psi and go for a ride.

IMO, you're running too little pressure.
That "floaty" feeling is your tire wall squirming due to not enough pressure.
Get the pressure up properly, and the tire will will stiffen up, and it should be a lot more responsive.


-Ted

 

Could the flexing of the side wall make it feel like your riding on the outer edge of the tire? I do have a bit of negative camber, so it seems like they would have to be really low for me to ride on the sides.

 

yah i would say so since your running your tires soft. Just increase the psi and try it out. Remember tho, cold reading will differ from a reading when the tires are up to temp.

 

What are your camber at toe set at? What type of tires?

 

Do you have rear steer eliminators? Some of the mush could be from the 20 year old bushings which tend to soften and crack up not to mention the suspension mods adding grip will make the DTSS worse.

~Mike...........

 

Ideal tire pressures vary wildly from tire to tire, so unless someone here has run your exact tire, wheel, and suspension setup, I would suggest doing some experimentation of your own. That being said, there are a few general guidelines that can get you in the ballpark.

Typically, the lower the pressure you can run, the better. Also, the taller the sidewall the better, but you kind of threw that one out the window with the 18's.

For a full on street tire, (I used to run BFG g-force sports) I used to like around 34-36psi for autocrossing and hard driving.

For a sports street tire (like the Azenis) I like at the very most 28 psi. 22-24 psi gripped a little bit better, but the feel with 26-28 was nicer. But also the Azenis have an abnormally stiff sidewall.

A good place to start is to put some white shoe polish or something of the sorts on your sidewalls, and then do some hard turns. If the polish comes off, your tire is rolling over and you need to bump up the pressure a bit. 2psi increments is the norm.

For crap tires, the pump it up to the max usually works out pretty well, but then I think you need to rethink your tire choice.

If you really want to get exact, measure the tire temps in three places on the tire. Inside of the tread, middle of the tread, and outside of the tread.

If the outsides are hotter, you need more pressure. If the middle is hotter, you need less pressure.

You can also use the temps to determine camber needs. If the outside is warmer than the inside, you need more negative camber.

Sorry for the novel...