NeilC Posted January 6, 2005 Share Posted January 6, 2005 Having had my car for a year now, I decided to measure the rake front to rear to achieve the 15mm difference front / rear, as the car has always felt a bit understeery. The front (measuring behind the front wheels) was 10mm higher than the back (measuring in front of the rear wheels), so I undid the adjustable platforms at the front and lowered the car. I haven't yet driven it, but looking at photos, the platforms on other SV's seem to be right at the top of the thread, where mine were, and they are now approx half way down the thread. Just looking for comments re how different is the car likely to feel and are there any reasons for the SV being set up differently that I don't know about? (and no jokes about fat owners, please ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevefoster Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Can't see why an SV would be significantly different. Measure the font from the ali covering the chassis tube (I use in between the engine mount bolts for consistency). Rear chassis tube in line with the rear wing. For De dion I would use 20mm rake. Rear higher than front. The other way around and it would be horrible. Unstable underbraking and probably out of balance in general when on the limit Hants (North) and Berkshire Area club site here My racing info site here Edited by - stevefoster on 7 Jan 2005 13:14:06 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil.cavanagh Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Steve flat floored my SV for me and set the rake up as he describes... it handles very nicely now as a result. It was initlaly set with virtually zero rake which made it nice and 'stable'. The increase rake has helped turn in and makes it more 'adjustable' on the track. *thumbup* *thumbup* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevefoster Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Neil C who posted. Come the spring, If you are near enough to me I will ride height and CW your car for you for a donation to NTL. Hants (North) and Berkshire Area club site here My racing info site here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeilC Posted January 7, 2005 Author Share Posted January 7, 2005 Steve Thanks for the offer, I am fairly local (Henley) so will get in touch in a couple of months. Neil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue Dinnim Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 I had my 7 flat floored late last year and it makes a hell of a difference. Even more so when Woolly checked the rake and found that the front was 20mm higher than the back. I used to think it handled alright with a little understeer until he spent two hours adjusting it for me. Now it turns in really nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adrain Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Caterham have flat floored my SV twice during last year as I upgraded the suspension, both times the rake was set at 15mm. The balance seems fine to me, particularly the first time when it was clearly out. Large viperblue/yellow 1.6 S/S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevefoster Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Yep, 15 - 20 mm is fine. Its all down to preference on how you like a car to handle. What tyres / grip levels you will have back and front, springs, dampers, roll bars etc you are using to get the type of balance you like. Hants (North) and Berkshire Area club site here My racing info site here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bertfatal Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Could someone please define " rake" for me? Thanks. Bertfatal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Gillet Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Rake is the difference of heights between rear and front. What has never been clear to me is if the rake value given by Caterham is for empty car or with driver and half passenger and half fuel as for corner weight. Pierre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 The latter, I'd have thought - after all, adjusting the rake will alter the corner weights, won't it? Project Scope-Creep is underway... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christian.v Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 DuncanP--Good to hear that the car is now doing what it should As a general observation, a lot of ride heights tend to be 'a bit out' after the Christmas period, but do eventually recover all by themselves once the new years resolutions actually take effect 😬 If any more needs doing in the way of fine adjustment/springs-just give me a shout-it's no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ster Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Can anyone tell me if the 15 -20mm of rake also applies to a live axled car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elie boone Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 old4art, It has more to do with the type of spring you have, progressive or not. 15mm for a live axle with non progressive springs and 35mm for a DD with progressive springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue Dinnim Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 woolly, to my knowledge everything is fine for now thanks. I have used the car since Christmas and it all seems ok. Thanks for the offer. Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronnie Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Hello from Athens. I am about to order my 7 from the Greek importer, and I am worried about the ride height in general. On the Euro-spec 7´s that are sold here, the catalyzed exhaust system exits on the rear. Having the pipework running under the floor severely lowers the ground clearance. Roads here are quite bumpy, and I also worry about sleeping policemen. Help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevefoster Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Hi ronnie, I ran a 2.5" bore pipe rear exit syst em on my 7. Had to try it some time, it came as part of the exhaust / FI kit I bought 2nd hand. It was QUIET compared to the side exit. Added about 10kg in weight. The only issue with that was that I could only run 6" wide rear wheels = not enough. The pipe passes next to the wheel / tyre. Ground clearance will not be a problem with a rear exit system verses a side exit. British roads can be pretty bumpy. I would take it easy on very rough surfaces / over the short/high sleeping policemen though. Hants (North) and Berkshire Area club site here My racing info site here Edited by - stevefoster on 8 Jan 2005 20:21:40 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bongomania Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 Steve set the rake on my SV as well and it transformed the handling from being understeery to very neutral. Front was about midway down the thread. BTW - some people have problems with exhaust fumes coming back in the cockpit with rear exhausts. Seven-Ecstasy.co.uk Fully revised and updated for 2005 including more Le Mans and Goodwood pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevefoster Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 Bongo... I didn't use reverse gear that much Hants (North) and Berkshire Area club site here My racing info site here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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