Sounds like an early 911 could benefit from a retrofit of the Syncro setup,
in order to capitalize on that weight shift forward when the driver
inevitably lets up on the throttle in turns, eh?

I just got back from a drive through town in my Audi Quattro, and I sure
love that smooth predictable AWD handling.  I still think my sorely missed
67 split window van was the best "low-tech" vehicle I've ever driven in
snow.  Lots of weight out back and low-low gearing.

On Wed, Dec 17, 2008 at 5:07 PM, dhanson@gorge.net <dhanson@gorge.net>wrote:

>  Someone mentioned shocks dictate how stiff your suspension is.  Wrong,
> actually.  Shock rates (as
> in very stiff aftermarket shocks) are almost always speaking of the Rebound
> rate, or how quickly the
> shock will re-extend after it hits a bump.  Springs are what supports the
> vehicle, keeps it up.  Do
> a google for hypercoil..they make any spring you could ever want, though I
> have not looked for
> springs specifically for a van, they can make custom rated springs to order
> at a very reasonable
> price, if you think it worthwhile trying to improve the "handling" on a
> vanagon.
>  The 911s notoriously quirky handling is a function of polar moment (as
> mentioned)  The motor is
> hung on the back of the car, and is a big percentage of the over all weight
> of that car.  So in
> order to make that one stick to the road, they put big rear treads on it.
>  Works ok, but if the car
> ever loses traction and starts to spin...you MUST not let up on the
> throttle (which takes some
> getting used to) because if you do that, you make the weight shift forward
> to the front
> tires....exactly the wrong thing to help control a rear wheel (oversteer)
> slide.  Plus, once you
> start that heavy lump (the motor, way out back behind the wheels) toward
> the outside of the turn, it
> is difficult to catch it...911s are very easy to pass going into a
> turn...because they have to go in
> slowly enough to avoid having to let up during that turn (causes the weight
> to shift forward, making
> them spin out)  They exit turns well, since they have most weight over
> their drive wheels,
> especially accelerating.
>  Don Hanson
>
>
--
Casey
'87 300TD
'94 100CSQ Avant
'89 Bluestar

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