Ohlins: first impressions on 5th gen...

Rode the VFR for about 20 miles today when it dried out. Out from Castro Valley east on Crow Canyon Rd to I-680, then south to 580, and 580 back to CV. A mix of twisty road with street and freeway.

First impression was that it was very plush, not harsh at all. In fact, it felt like I wasn't running enough preload, and slightly fast on rebound. I stopped at the end of Crow Canyon in San Ramon and cranked some preload in with the adjuster as it was backed all the way out. Added a click of rebound, and headed on to the freeway. Felt better, more like in the zone of where it should be. Overall impression is that the Ohlins has a plush ride with control...more so than the Penske on the F4i. It's odd, in the sense that with a ride this plush, you'd think it would wallow and be mushy, but it's not...it's completely controlled. It completely soaks up the bumps on 580 but is completely under control...the harshness of the road irregularities is gone. I'll know more when I can get help from someone to measure rider sag, and can get the preload exactly where it should be, but first impressions are quite good.

 

Good day, PC. Sounds like all is as it should be, with the exception of me having a bad attitude every time I hit a freeway bump, and knowing what I am missing...

Out of curiosity, which Penske do you have on the F4i? (single, double, or triple clicker?)

 

Lgn,

Penske 8983. Double adjustable. This has proven to be an excellent shock, only got the Ohlins because it was only $50 more from Dan Kyle and had the built in preload adjuster.

Penske:
http://www.traxxion.com/store/detail.asp?product_id=P83

 

Thanks! I have the same Penske on my SV, and really like it. Since I will eventually modify the VFR suspenders, I was considering the Penske. Sounds like the Ohlins might do the job a bit better. It looks a lot better, too. That weird blue color on the Penske spring is just... weird.

 

Sounds familiar, now on to the front

 

Along these lines, a buddy at work helped me check the rider sag. We cranked a bit more preload in, now at 34 mm. The rear end seems pretty close to ideal, plushly firm if that makes sense. Kicked the rebound up one click from Sunday. All this points out now is how the front is over-damped on campression, under-damped on rebound, and way too softly sprung.

 

Ha, boy does this sound familiar, first I do the front only to find out how bad the rear was, then fix the rear, only to have to go back and dial up the front. It's all a work in progress, LOL now set, she rails. good job there PC

 

So, where can a guy get some hands-on help setting up aftermarket suspensions? Are there shops that specialize in setups? Maybe I need you guys to come over . . . .

 

Ooo depending on where you are at. Most tracks if you hit up some sort of event there's folks there that have the touch. some will even do it for free if the timing is right. Some shops if they are sort of in touch with the local race scene, not that racing needs to be, it's just the tuning of suspension is a trickle down from that. Then there are folks that run shops just for the specialty of all there is with setting up performance machine.