Handling
Posted By : Paul Bodiam, 16-Jun-2006, 10:14am
Hi Keith
If the car is bouncing a lot, first suspect the shock absorbers.
Has your Spitfire had any mods carried out by previous owners - especially to the front suspension?
It is the job of the springs and shock absorbers to soak up any fluctuations in the road surface and give you a smooth(ish) ride.
It is not uncommon for people to fit uprated (stiffer) springs and adjustable shock absorbers in the name of "handling" - whatever that may be. If the springs are stiffer, they will transmit more of the road bumps through to the car. If the shock absorbers are set to a stiffer setting they will react slower to bumps in the road surface and, again, transmit more bumps to the car. When carried out properly these mods can give you more grip, but it is usually at the expense of ride comfort.
The best handling mod I made to my first Spitfire was to carry a heavy toolbox in the boot (was also useful for when it broke down)
It is also worth remembering that the suspension system used in the Spitfire was designed around 50 years ago and is not nearly as sophisticated as those fitted to modern cars (my Saab 9-5 is as smooth as an armchair and can corner pretty-much as quickly as my Spitfire)
cheers
Paul
If the car is bouncing a lot, first suspect the shock absorbers.
Has your Spitfire had any mods carried out by previous owners - especially to the front suspension?
It is the job of the springs and shock absorbers to soak up any fluctuations in the road surface and give you a smooth(ish) ride.
It is not uncommon for people to fit uprated (stiffer) springs and adjustable shock absorbers in the name of "handling" - whatever that may be. If the springs are stiffer, they will transmit more of the road bumps through to the car. If the shock absorbers are set to a stiffer setting they will react slower to bumps in the road surface and, again, transmit more bumps to the car. When carried out properly these mods can give you more grip, but it is usually at the expense of ride comfort.
The best handling mod I made to my first Spitfire was to carry a heavy toolbox in the boot (was also useful for when it broke down)
It is also worth remembering that the suspension system used in the Spitfire was designed around 50 years ago and is not nearly as sophisticated as those fitted to modern cars (my Saab 9-5 is as smooth as an armchair and can corner pretty-much as quickly as my Spitfire)
cheers
Paul
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Handling
Posted By : Daniel James, 16-Jun-2006, 12:31pm
doesn&8217;t sound right at all to me (I had a spitfire for 4 years) I agree with what was said before (i.e. make sure what you have is standard and in good working order), I also assume you have the standard wheels/tyres fitted? (because the spit is so light an increase in unsprung weight will have disastrous effects on the cars ride). You could always do the old 'push on each corner, the car should go down, return to original height and stop' test for the dampers? or (and I know it's probably not possible) try another car/have someone experienced try your car and see if it's ok? If you like I&8217;ll gladly test your car for you, of course I might need it for a few weeks....
other then that is your rear spring OK? if it has sagged/broken/seized this will have the effect of lowering the car and making the ride less supple?
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Handling
Posted By : Keith Wallwork, 16-Jun-2006, 08:58pm
Hi Again and thanks for the comments, The front shocks were fitted new by myself recently.
When I say 'bounce' I dont mean in that respect I mean it sems to bodily judder, steering column creaks that sort of thing , As I say I intend to do the back end next, The toolbox idea sounds good I remember having to do that with a cortina years ago-
Handling
Posted By : Paul Bodiam, 16-Jun-2006, 09:52pm
Hi again Kieth
Ah... squeaks, rattles and judders are another thing altogether. Spitfires rattle - Leyland used to build them that way
Mine squeaks and rattles worse when the soft-top is up. Most of this comes from the hood frame itself.
If you are getting a lot of shaking through the steering column, it could be a front wheel balance problem, or possibly scuttle-shake.
Does your car still have the black padded H-frame fitted over the gearbox? This is not just a place to put the radio, but it is a structural part of the car (that is why it is bolted straight into the chassis rails by 4 big bolts at the bottom). At the top, it should be bolted into the dashbord frame. These top bolts sometimes get omitted/lost if the gearbox has been taken out at any time, and if they are missing then the middle of the dashboard/scuttle assembly can bounce around somethig terrible.
When I rebuilt my car, I found both the top bolts on the H-frame had been replaced by short no. 8 wood-screws that simply bit into the alloy casting and didn't secure the dashboard at all!
BTW: fitting a hard-top stiffens-up the body quite a bit and tends to eliminate a few of the shakes and rattles, but who wants a hard top in this weather?
cheers
Paul-
Handling
Posted By : Ian Mulford, 17-Jun-2006, 00:50am
I quite agree, never ever have the idea that your spitfire will drive like a modern car. It will rattle, it will be noisey and it will make you feel a lot more of the bumps and things in the road that you would otherwise do. After you've driven it for about 20 minutes you will have a huge smile on your face and wonder why modern cars are so soft
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Handling
Posted By : Willie Cameron, 17-Jun-2006, 10:31pm
Hello Keith
My spitfire 1500 would also bounce and wobble around and at speeds above 60mph it was quite scary, so i wouldnt go over that speed ,car last week went for mot and failed on 2 shockers , so told the garage to fit 4 new shockers and 2 new front springs, they also fitted new trunnion bushes allround and re oiled the front trunnions, well, what a difference, they car has been transformed and i feel very confident when driving up to the national speed limit lol, in my humble opinion i would change your shockers, you will not regret it.
regards willie cameron
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