Curious what you guys would expect with suspension setup Options

[Superhawk996]

Perhaps I'm trying too hard to drive this car like I did my BMW 2002Tii.

A 914 isn’t a 2002

Here’s the rub. I’d rather not get into specifics because there are so many ways to skin the cat.

The other thing you need to keep in mind is safety on public roads. A mid engine car is amazing right up to the limit and then when it lets loose and spins it is very hard to recover - ie. Nothing like a 2002.

What you are asking for is to go a whole lot more toward neutral to slight oversteer but not knowing your driving skill limits, I want to you to be aware that your asking for a car that will have less safety factor and that becomes even more concerning on public roads.

Honestly I’d suggest hitting the book again and think about the basics of what it all means.

In the meantime - softening the front is basically (for this discussion) the same as stiffening the rear - relatively speaking.

Also consider the basics of proper tuning. Springs (ie front torsion bars) hold the car up. Anti-roll bars are used to tune roll stiffness. In your case both of these are too stiff so soften whichever is easier for you to accomplish quickly / cost effectively.

Start softening the front in reasonable steps. See where it takes you. When you run out of ability to soften the front further then start stiffening the rear.

An easy one: disconnect front anti roll bar - that will be a large change which will decrease front stiffness very quickly in one big step. See what that feels like. It will help you determine if you like that direction. Be very careful - you are getting a lot of front roll stiffness from that anti-roll bar. Not sure what drop links you have but if you can soften the car without completely disconnecting it - start with that 1st. I’m pretty sure you can accomplish softening with the Tarret bar without need to completely disconnect it though you will likely want to try that as you work up to a full disconnect.

Also think about weight management. Put a 40lb bag of ballast (sand bag, etc) in front trunk (low - below spare tire). See what you think of that. See if that doesn’t help your turn in and reduce on-throttle understeer. If you don’t like it - easy to remove. If you like it battery relocation could be part of the solution. If you can’t feel the difference - focus more on your driving and evaluation skills before undertaking more radical suspension mods.

[peteinjp]

All good advice- thank you very much. I'll have experienced flipping the front and rear ends in my 964 at Suzuka- many moons ago. I'm certainly not interested in doing that again and especially not with a mid engine car on the street. Even if you told me to add x to the rear and subtract x from the front I wouldn't do it right off the bat. I know the car as it is and will just take some baby steps.

I drive a 3.5 hour loop 2 times a month in either the 964 or the 914 depending no which on I'm working on. I push a bit but- well I'm very conservative on the street.

I drove 02's for decades- ever since I was a teen. I gave up on sports cars for awhile after having kids and moved into Land Cruisers because that was something we could all enjoy together. About 7 years or so ago I got a 964 and drove it then took it apart. Many of us know how that goes- and knowing that myself I picked up Dougs Snoopy car as a "non project" car.

Well It didn't quite work out that way because the shipping many totally screwed the car up (and as often happens the insurance company didn't come though.) No regrets though. I have the car painted and am putting it back together now that the 964 is back on the road. I need to drop to the motor on the 964 so I'm working hard to get the 914 back together.

During the 964 project I picked up a set of corner scales and hubstands, strings etc and really enjoyed setting up the car proper. I do measure and record all the tire temps as well. I basically have a setup that I could use for a race car but am really doing it just for the edification. Right now I'm going though all the settings on the 964 dampers (3way) and its a blast to make a change and see how that affects the car.

Once the 914 is together the 964 will come off the road for a 3.8 build that I have started. Then I plan to really get into the 914 with the scales etc. I'm considering getting some dampers with more tuning but- like I said Baby steps. Even with the current setup it's fun to drive!

Pete

[Superhawk996]

As you’ve laid it out, that is a wise path. Baby steps before radical change.

It’s good that you’re learning and playing with alignment. Small changes in rear toe can have a very noticeable effect. That will come in handy later.

The ability to alter front rebound damping would be beneficial but honestly that is fine tuning. You’re in the rock sorting phase right now to move the tuning in a direction that better aligns to your driving style.

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Note: since you have a 964 and are making comparisons to that . . . Keep in mind a rear engine car like any 911 or derivative has built in oversteer. Almost everything done to a 911 is to add understeer to counter the inherent oversteer. The mistake so many make is trying to copy and/or move 911 tuning over to the 914 which ends up adding understeer where it is not warranted. This was happening way back in the 80s and internet mythology has only made it worse.