Lower lighter seats

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richgilb
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Lower lighter seats

Post by richgilb »

Hello All

Just joined today, having bought an 02 for 1000 quid that had been sitting under a tree for ten years. It has very low mileage at 38,000 but it looks like its done 138,000. It needs a full respray. The motor is very strong but the handling is all over the place. New tyres went on and wheel alignment and tracking has been done (it was really awful, you could even see one rear wheel was tipping in at the top). But it only improved things about 50%. Driving hard on uneven surfaces, it's like a cheap suit. No composure at all. Like a Spitfire, maybe worse.

So tomorrow, new front shocks and associated rubbers and ball joints are going on.

Also a stainless manifold is going on, as the precats look good and compression is at 200 on all 4 cylinders. So, a good time to prevent any issues later.

I'm not really interested in more bhp as much as I am aesthetics and losing some kg, so I look forward to comparing the weights of the two manifolds. I sense the car carries a bit more weight behind and a bit higher up than it might when doing sharpish turns. Like 43 / 57 is a bit too much. So I may get a stainless silencer and a lithium battery too to try to bring it down to maybe 47 / 53. And bring the cog down, that lead battery sits very high.

However, one thing that may be come an issue for long-term ownership is the wheel between my legs. Im 6'2" and 95kg and although the car is very comfy, the driving position is not quite right for a sports car. The wheel is 2" too low for me.

Are there any seats out there that drop the ride height significntly (oh, and are lighter than standard)?

Thanks all!


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jimi
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Re: Lower lighter seats

Post by jimi »

Without going to a race type seat nothing springs to mind, however someone may know of something.
Handling should be in a totally different league to a Spitfire, I've driven both and there was no comparison, something is wrong. What size wheels/tyres are fitted ?
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richgilb
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Re: Lower lighter seats

Post by richgilb »

jimi wrote: 27/10/21 23:18 Without going to a race type seat nothing springs to mind, however someone may know of something.
Handling should be in a totally different league to a Spitfire, I've driven both and there was no comparison, something is wrong. What size wheels/tyres are fitted ?
Standard alloys and tyre size!
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Re: Lower lighter seats

Post by jimi »

So wheels 15 x 6J front 15 x 6.5J rear & tyres185 x 55 x 15 front. 205 x 50 x 15 rear, they shouldn't be affecting the handling, so your probably on the right lines with bushes, shocks and springs, I'd consider doing the back as well.
The FL version had extra underbody bracing which seemingly stiffened the car up a bit
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Re: Lower lighter seats

Post by richgilb »

jimi wrote: 28/10/21 0:49 So wheels 15 x 6J front 15 x 6.5J rear & tyres185 x 55 x 15 front. 205 x 50 x 15 rear, they shouldn't be affecting the handling, so your probably on the right lines with bushes, shocks and springs, I'd consider doing the back as well.
The FL version had extra underbody bracing which seemingly stiffened the car up a bit
Budget constraints!

The back seems to damp immediately when it rises after pushing it down with hands. The front bounces all the way back up and then down a bit to settle when pushing.

Fingers crossed this will sort it...400 quid in bits nearly for the suspension parts. Didnt buy springs, though.
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Re: Lower lighter seats

Post by jimi »

:th: sounds like shocks/ bushes is the way to go, new springs might not be needed. Better doing it in stages anyway (IMO) hard to see what works (and doesn't) if you change everything at once.
I felt the MK3 handling was very similar to the MK1 and both different to the MK2.
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Re: Lower lighter seats

Post by carolineasb »

You haven't mentioned the rear subframe, have you checked it? It goes at the exhaust area and can have a bearing on handling. It is one of the Achilles' heels of the MK3. Also, do you have the three plastic pieces underneath at the front of the car one long in the middle and one to each side? They definitely make a difference.

Seat wise, there are many tall drivers of the MK3, Dick Sloan of MR2 Roadster Recycling in Carlisle comes to mind and he may have ideas for you. I think he is dick2ski on here but don't know how often he is on. He is definitely on FB.

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