Recently my posts have been shorter, more frequent, and filled with pictures. It kind of reflects the ramped up rate of work on my Lil’ Red Wagon. I have either been at work, or working on the race car, every day for the past couple months trying to get ready for some racing before the season is over. Today I worked on gettting the car cornerweighted. It’s not a complicated process, you just need a good friend to loan you an expensive set of car scales (thanks Tim), a little patience, and an afternoon off in a quiet garage so you can keep track of the process. Here is an article from Grassroots Motorsports on the subject. The idea is to use your fully adjustable suspension system to create a neutrally stable car while cornering.
My garage floor is really sloped and uneven, so it took a while to get the scales level using lots of boards and shims.
Next I added weight around the car as it would be in racing conditions: 175 pounds in the driver’s compartment, 7 gallons in the tank, and a couple of yet unmounted components placed in their proper positions. Tire pressures should be equalized, and sway bars unhooked for accurate readings. The wagon weighed just under 2000# empty.
Next get some inital readings, take lots of notes, and start adjusting your spring perchs until your crossweights are as close to 50% as you can get.
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