Transformer arrives in Colchester

[Lancialulu]

Hi Andrew. Yes I got the wrong page - how irritating is that! Calculated for front ARGHHHH. Having said that looking at the Stratos rear spec the spring is c12" whereas the LEDA strut takes a 9". The Factory spring is as you say c 125lb in....
Strange thing is the LEDA guy thought the 325 spring was in the right area and said other Hawk users were going a little bit higher.
I calculate I will get 2+inches of crush (625+kg rear axle when loaded) if I set the spring with zero preload. (Wonder what the ride height will go to...Need to aim for 175mm). The LEDA strut has 7 inches of travel. Looking at the Stratos tech book it seems the rear damper only has 5.75" travel. Not sure what to make of this other than wheels will dangle as early as my set up??? The setup I got for a Gp4 ashphalt Stratos works car (from Gianni Tonti) had a spec for "Molle" of 17 to 14 % for the rear and 40 to 35% for the front. Can anyone interpret this??
I am aiming to set the car up as sporting rather than comfort (I have other Lancias that fit that GTouring bill!!!) We will see but if I have to go softer its not big deal. The debate goes on.

[Strat Fan]

Strange thing is the LEDA guy thought the 325 spring was in the right area and said other Hawk users were going a little bit higher.
The LEDA strut has 7 inches of travel. Looking at the Stratos tech book it seems the rear damper only has 5.75" travel. Not sure what to make of this other than wheels will dangle as early as my set up???

Have you considered CV joint articulation with 7" of damper travel?
The Stratos had a central differential so the drive shafts were much longer & consequently the angles the CV joints ran through were less. An Alfa V6 is quite wide across the drive flanges and therefore has much shorter shafts which leads to more extreme CV joint angles. If you have too much droop on the suspension then you will run out of motion on the CV at full droop or at the very least the CV boot could pull off of the cage. 5.75" of travel is more than adequate for a tarmac car even taking into account the bumpstop. Too much bump & you'll be rubbing the arches before you hit the bumpstops. 7" of travel will be fine for a full gravel spec car but I am struggling to see how you can use all that travel knowing the limits on the CV joints & wheel arches. You have got a smaller tyre than some which will certainly help with bump travel.
175mm is quite high for the ride height but does help with the rear geometry & camber gain.
Obviously its fine for Roger to give out advice on springs and travel but unless he's actually owned or driven a car then there is only so much theory & calculation you can apply. There is no substitute for bum in seat testing. 325lb or 350lb springs will yield quite a high spring frequency. A 325lb will be around 2.2Hz, a 350lb will be more like 2.3Hz.

[Lancialulu]

Have you considered CV joint articulation with 7" of damper travel?
The Stratos had a central differential so the drive shafts were much longer & consequently the angles the CV joints ran through were less. An Alfa V6 is quite wide across the drive flanges and therefore has much shorter shafts which leads to more extreme CV joint angles. If you have too much droop on the suspension then you will run out of motion on the CV at full droop or at the very least the CV boot could pull off of the cage. 5.75" of travel is more than adequate for a tarmac car even taking into account the bumpstop.

I have this issue!!! At least one drive shaft has just pulled through the circlip retainer when I have "drooped" the suspension on a jack. Will have to think about this. What does a Hawk Gaz strut travel??

[Strat Fan]

I have this issue!!! At least one drive shaft has just pulled through the circlip retainer when I have "drooped" the suspension on a jack. Will have to think about this. What does a Hawk Gaz strut travel??

That one I can't answer I'm afraid, you'll have to find a Hawk owner with current spec dampers to check for you.

[colin artus]

Cheap solution is to fit some sort of limiting strap; a droop limiting cable from lower spring pan to chassis or (depending on spring length) tie wrap the springs to lower and upper pans.

[LM mic]

If damper if correctly determined ; its the shock absorber piston to be the stop to full extended stroke (to prevent CV and spherical bearings issues)?????


And probably as soon as springs are becoming stiffer and stiffer some "spring helper" will be need to leave residual pressure on main spring for centering it

As stated choice of springs have been always a "compromise" and a scratch head in beetwen "calculations"( so many sophisticated formulas existing )and "realty" ( only test can seriuosly help)

[Lancialulu]

Cheap solution is to fit some sort of limiting strap; a droop limiting cable from lower spring pan to chassis or (depending on spring length) tie wrap the springs to lower and upper pans.

I think I will be going for a correct damper extension. My research says the Gaz dampers have a 6 inch extension. I have spent the afternoon checking and measuring. Beyond 6 inches the drive shaft has no further play and starts to pull out of the inner CV joint at 7 inches it is possible to pull it right out due to the free movement gained in the inner joint. I am quite satisfied the installation of the engine is correct with shafts being horizontal with weight on the axle, and angled slightly back from the engine to rotate the cv ball bearing.

With 325 lb in springs they compress 2.5inches laden but without driver/passenger. I am happy with this as approximately the midpoint on a 5.75inch suspension travel.

[Lancialulu]

Sad day as Shades is now destined for France under new ownership and duties.

This should not mean another Strato’s project will turn up in Colchester sooner or later.....

[ProtoTipo]

This should not mean another Strato’s project will turn up in Colchester sooner or later.....

'Glad to hear that Tim.
Did you get a lot of interest on Car and Classic?, and where do see secondhand Hawk prices these days?
Obviously without disclosing any actual selling prices.

[Lancialulu]

Did you get a lot of interest on Car and Classic?, and where do see secondhand Hawk prices these days?
Obviously without disclosing any actual selling prices.

C&C was quite until end Jan then went a bit mad. Most but not all interest from EU including far away places. I think my price was realistic for the quality of the car. This is always the subjective part of pricing especially when there are few on the market. I could have got more if I converted to LHD but not necessarily more than the cost of doing so. My philosophy is to always leave something for future purchasers (of anything).