Sports suspension

The sports chassis is a car chassis in which the combination of shock absorbers and springs is designed to be “sportier” than the standard one. The term sports suspension is misleading because not the entire suspension is modified.

feathers

As a rule, the installation of a sports suspension is accompanied by a lowering of the body. Driving behavior - especially when cornering quickly - is positively influenced by the center of gravity shifted towards the road . The spring rate is also increased to avoid beating by using a somewhat thicker spring wire for sport springs. This results in a certain loss of comfort that is accepted.

Shock absorbers

The shock absorbers used play an important role in driving behavior , as they dampen the sprung mass (the car) on unevenness and when the body is tilted, for example when cornering . There are two versions of shock absorbers: on the one hand, there are the pre-assembled shock absorbers, i.e. the shock absorbers preset in rebound and compression stages, and on the other hand the adjustable shock absorbers. The latter enable the amateur racing driver to adapt the design of the damping of his vehicle to his own wishes.

Before installation, it is essential to ensure that the shock absorbers used match the springs. This means that in the case of shorter springs, shortened dampers may also be used. Otherwise, damage to the shock absorbers usually occurs after a short drive. Above all, the combination of spring and damper must guarantee sufficient preload for the spring. Without preload, a relieving spring could move out of its spring plate, which leads to catastrophic behavior.

Coilover suspension

Represent a special variant, the both preset and adjustable in hardness available Gewindefahrwerke represents in which a thread on the shock absorber housing, the axial displacement of the support plate of the spring and thus a variable level control enables the vehicle body. In the case of coilovers, too - with increased spring stiffness - a shortening of the spring travel is usually included, since the rebound travel is usually fixed by the vehicle manufacturer.

Airride chassis

A particularly complex variant of the lowering is the so-called Airride . It is a retrofitted air suspension and allows the vehicle to be lowered at the push of a button. A combination with coilovers or mechanically and electronically hardness-adjustable dampers is also possible. The steel springs are replaced here by air bellows.

Registration requirement

In most cases, modifications to the springs due to changes in the approved design are subject to registration for the vehicle documents or require an ABE to be carried . However, some modifications to shock absorbers do not require these entries.