410 road suspension settings

[EX16FUN]

Evening all ... guessing this may have been covered a fair bit, but wondering what owners who want to find a more GT approach for ‘her indoors’ for the longer journeys in the 410 have changed from factory settings?

 

I have no real experience so any guidance very welcome.

[nordschleife666]

The stock setting is a pretty good base for that, i found dialing up one click on the rebound is better tho 

[Jcx]

I wrote about it here. Hope it helps. Tuning Nitron 3-Ways for personal taste.

[EX16FUN]

2 hours ago, Jcx said:

I wrote about it here. Hope it helps. Tuning Nitron 3-Ways for personal taste.

Thank you - nice and clear for me to work with. Having driven only 534 miles so far in the car, the main comment is not when pushing in, but more the 35/45mph that we all end up driving at so much of the time when travelling distances, so I’ll report back.

Again, nicely presented JCX.

[Jcx]

Happy to help. 

[cuprapw]

When I move both high and low compression to the hardest postion to adjust and from there I first adjust the high speed compresión (big one) the slow speed compression (small one) is also moving but somehow not counting towards the slow compression adjustment , is that normal ???

 

Also my factory adjustment was not like the one in the booklet , in the front I had +1 in hard for both high and low speed compression 

Edited February 14, 2021 by cuprapw

[Jcx]

Hold one to stop it moving while adjusting the other.

[cuprapw]

25 minutes ago, Jcx said:

Hold one to stop it moving while adjusting the other.

In the front that is ok, not sure if that is doable in the back (due to lack of space ), in any case it is really weird as when both where spinning at the same time the low speed adjustment was not being taken in account , I will see if I can grab both in the back 

Thanks !

[EX16FUN]

Just now, cuprapw said:

In the front that is ok, not sure if that is doable in the back (due to lack of space ), in any case it is really weird as when both where spinning at the same time the low speed adjustment was not being taken in account , I will see if I can grab both in the back 

Thanks !

Yeh, small hands needed 😀

[nordschleife666]

When I turn the high speed knob the low speed knob follows it tuning, but if you then turn the low speed knob it is exactly the same no. of click as before, I though it is not changed while you adjust the high speed.   I wonder if LS would change or not if you don't hold the LS knob steady while adjusting your HS.

[EX16FUN]

Pretty sure you have ensure rotation of high and low speed controls should be independent. Tears are awkward, so practice on the fronts?

[Tex]

The rears high and low compression adjustor knobs are a complete pain in the arse, with the near side the worst. 

Getter rid of the OEM airbox and putting in a Carbon Komotec will make it much easier.

But in any event I tend to put on gloves in order to get a better grip, but you still occasionally get both knobs turning simultaneously 

 

[Jcx]

Indeed.  Also making adjustments in a warm engine bay was a cause for minor discomfort.

[cuprapw]

On 17/02/2021 at 05:30, nordschleife666 said:

When I turn the high speed knob the low speed knob follows it tuning, but if you then turn the low speed knob it is exactly the same no. of click as before, I though it is not changed while you adjust the high speed.   I wonder if LS would change or not if you don't hold the LS knob steady while adjusting your HS.

This is exactly what I observed, there's no change in the number of clicks whatsoever , I've tried both ways , both turning at the same time when adjusting HS and holding LS while adjusting HS, the result in terms of oosition (clicks) is exactly the same 

[nordschleife666]

6 hours ago, cuprapw said:

This is exactly what I observed, there's no change in the number of clicks whatsoever , I've tried both ways , both turning at the same time when adjusting HS and holding LS while adjusting HS, the result in terms of oosition (clicks) is exactly the same 

I have asked Nitron and they said when you turn the HS knob the LS knob will move with it but the LS adjustment isn't affected.  

[cuprapw]

3 hours ago, nordschleife666 said:

I have asked Nitron and they said when you turn the HS knob the LS knob will move with it but the LS adjustment isn't affected.  

Great, thanks for confirming with them 

[EX16FUN]

3 hours ago, nordschleife666 said:

I have asked Nitron and they said when you turn the HS knob the LS knob will move with it but the LS adjustment isn't affected.  

May I ask, what you’re aiming for... road manners or track focus?

[nordschleife666]

2 hours ago, EX16FUN said:

May I ask, what you’re aiming for... road manners or track focus?

hill climb type fast road

[Sotirios]

That rear intake side adjustment is a pain in the ass......both times ive played with adjustment i was left with a bruised thumb tip for like a week, especially when u get paranoid and not hearing a click properly snd doubtinf urself and then turning back all the way to hard to start over.

 

Good thing u checked with nitron, i was curious about both knobs moving together but realised the number of clicks werent affected anyway 

[phrankeee]

Hi Guys, I have a 420 with the Nitron 3 way, and I have been following this thread to get a better understand our suspension. I have a few questions wondering if anyone could help:

1. When I turn the LS knob independently, it doesn't seem to have an end to it, how do I know if I have reached the hardest or softest setting? The HS knob can be turned until it cannot turn anymore.

2. Does any one know how many clicks there are for both knobs?

3. I drive it mostly for road use, so I am trying to give it a softer setup to tackle all road conditions. Wondering if anyone had experience with adjusting the rebound? Does clicking towards the softer side make the ride more compliant?

Thanks

[Jcx]

Since I posted above I have changed my settings again. I’d never checked that my settings were correct when I got the car new. As it happens they were not to factory spec. Rebound was out from factory and I’d adjusted the compression settings myself. So I returned all to factory and the car was improved giving far better stability on turn in and retaining a good ride. With advice from a supremely talented Lotus dynamics engineer at Hethel I modified it further to sharpen it for the track and it’s never been better on all roads. Biggest lesson is that all settings need to be set in harmony. Changing one can reduce performance of all. 

[phrankeee]

Hi, Jcx, thanks for the reply, I just realized that my 420 wasn't delivered to me on factory setting! It was set on a way harder setting (both compression and rebound), that's why I always wondered why the ride was so hard...

I have now managed to set everything to the recommended spec in the owner's handbook, and the ride seems much much better now...

BTW, is there any chance to get me in touch with the Lotus dynamics engineer? I would probably need some more professional advice to tune the Nitron... Thank you

[nordschleife666]

Hi Joe, mind to share your setting with me?

[Jcx]

Off the top of my head I dont recall my settings. I do recall that it is only a bit more track focused than the stock settings. I will take a look over Christmas and report back. 

[implus]

Any update on your settings?