Landracing Forum
Tech Information => Steering - Suspension - Rear End => Topic started by: Jack Gifford on June 04, 2012, 01:52:23 AM
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The lakester I purchased (but haven't run yet myself) has well-proven torsion suspension at all corners, but I'm considering going solid with the rear (due to possible lack of room for a driveshaft). Over the years since Bill Burke's 1946 runs, many, many lakesters have done without rear suspension. But having seen the old Maxton track, I fully understand why my car was built with it! Have any of you run a lakester on a smoother track (Wilmington? Loring?) with solid rear suspension, and would you care to comment?
[If it has any bearing on the suspension question: it will run in F/BFL where the SCTA record is 260-something MPH. It's a belly tank replica, and will weigh in the neighborhood of 2,100 lb.]
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On a concrete runway ours was hideous, there are scratches six feet or more along the belly and at one point when the Reverend was in the car he was about 10-12 inches in the air.
On the salt it's an entirely different gig, we don't have enough power to blow the tyres off it, It allows for tight tolerances on ride height too.
195mph smooth as silk......but like I said we don't have gobs of power.
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On the salt at Bonneville.... we have a 218w/b rear engined dragster style lakester.... NO SUSPENSION FRONT OR REAR!.... In C/GasLakester, it holds the record... 276+MPH.... fastest timed run - over 279 mph.... out the back door at over 282 mph....
It handles well too....
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I have had both, started solid went suspension went back, new car without Without really good instrumentation to check body lift at speed, I am not willing for the angle of attack to change at speed with suspension and me not be aware of it.
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I have had both, started solid went suspension went back, new car without Without really good instrumentation to check body lift at speed, I am not willing for the angle of attack to change at speed with suspension and me not be aware of it.
I have no hard and fast opinions one way or another on whether or not rear suspension is a "net" benefit....
I know that certain vehicles that went seriously fast in years gone by did have rear suspension.... whether or not that was why they went fast is open to conjecture.....
Personally, I agree with Sparky's comment....
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Thanks for the help. Given a free choice, I'd keep the suspension. I'm just hoping to "get away" without it, in the interest of conveniently fitting my planned driveline into the existing machine.
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Can you make the solid suspension a bolt in installation such that it could be resuspended if desired? You may be able to set it up so you could go back and forth.
Pete
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Can you make the solid suspension a bolt in installation such that it could be resuspended if desired? You may be able to set it up so you could go back and forth.
Pete
If you have a coil over rear you could replace the shocks with solid rods or you coud use a high spring rate.