nova handling question

[richi]

hi all after a good setup for the nova on the track, did well at the weekend but seemed to be a bit off body roll going round corners, not sure how low to go for a start as it is on coilovers but thinking it might be to high so what drop would people recommend? also thinking some new bushs all around to stiffen things up, is it worth polys? anything else people can recommend

[MK1_Ben]

Rear welded in strut-brace makes a noticable difference (well mine did on crappy suspension). Rear ARB can be helpful too but some people find it causes the rear to be too stiff and sometimes "skip".

Drop I would say 40-60mm depending on how smooth the track surface is. 40mm is good for fast road use aswell.

A full set of Bushes will stop the car flexing as much if you're still using worn standard ones :thumb:

[richi]

got front and back strut braces fitted, tracks are all good tracks, just been blyton and silverstone and felt the handling was not very good, so got another track day in october for anglesey car not really used on road either so more a track setup so 60mm? or lower than that?

[MK1_Ben]

Lower than 60 starts to go the opposite way with handling. Well, my Nova is 100mm on Bilsteins and handles really nice on smooth roads but ripples/bumps in the roads cause it to be slightly unstable. But at the same time I'm sure a Nova wide-tracked, 100m lowered with all the bells and whistles would handle brilliant.

[paul james]

Rear ARB can be helpful too but some people find it causes the rear to be too stiff and sometimes "skip".

Having recently taken off my Nova's rear beam and then taking the anti-roll bar out of it - I noticed how much flex the beam has without the bar - a scary amount! After seeing that I wouldn't want to run a Nova without one.


car not really used on road either so more a track setup so 60mm? or lower than that?

Are you getting more body roll at the rear? Perhaps go -40mm at the front and -60 at the back.

[richi]

i just felt like general body roll rely, went out in my friends car on the same track and realised the difference where it would stay flat mine would be flexing all over, did get use to it but would like to improve it good to know the arb does work though, any advise on bush,s? should i just use new standard ones, poly are they worth the extra money or can you get roller bush's?

[MK1_Ben]

Polybushes are what you want, major improvement over standard. I think you can get a set for the whole car for under £100 on the 'bay

[Rich]

Get some poly bushes from rally design, choice of 2 compounds. Came to about 35quid delivered i think it was

What coilovers have you got?

[Edd]

Nova without a rear ARB is a big no no IMO

[richi]

Get some poly bushes from rally design, choice of 2 compounds. Came to about 35quid delivered i think it was

What coilovers have you got?

they are spax rsx prob not the best coilovers in the world but will do, no front arb from what i can see, reading on other threads for track cars most recommend not running a front, how do you check if it has a rear arb?

also on the polybushes which ones would you recommend getting, a full kit insists of

Front Control arm, inner bush
Front Radius arm to chassis bush
Front Anti-roll-bar to radius-rod bush (dont think i would need these)
Rear Beam axle to chassis bush
Rear Beam Mounting Bush x 2
Front Wishbone Inner Bush x 2
Front Tie Bar To Chassis Bush x 2

would i need everyone?

[MK999]

That's a very odd list as it suggests novas have a control arm, a radius arm, and a front wishbone. Of which it can only have 2 of those. I would suggest getting them from rallydesign as said above.

[paul james]

how do you check if it has a rear arb?


Easy enough, just stick your head under the rear beam, if theres a metal pole running right through it, then thats the anti-roll bar. Unless I'm mistaken every Nova had one, and if you see how much a beam will bend without it, it makes sense that it would be the case.

Its worth trying a front anti-roll bar on to see if you prefer it. They just bolt on to the tie bars with clamps and bushes, so are easy to put on.

[fastcar1cars]

My merit doesnt have a rear arb! May be time to get one! Lol!

[Nova_Sean]

Not everyone had one! Only GSi/GTE models and the diesels iirc

[fastcar1cars]

Cool! Might buy one now! Lol!

[richi]

That's a very odd list as it suggests novas have a control arm, a radius arm, and a front wishbone. Of which it can only have 2 of those. I would suggest getting them from rallydesign as said above.

they where mostly individual ebay items, i imagine you would want to replace the front inner wishbones and the tie bar and Rear Beam Mounting Bush

i went on the rally design website but its abit poor, the ones that i found where

Nova 1.3 SR / 1.6 GTE, Rear Beam 2
Nova 1.3 SR / 1.6 GTE, TCA 2
Nova 1.3 SR / 1.6 GTE, Tie Rod (Front)

[Rich]

Thats all you need, just remember to order 2 of each as they are listed as singles.

[MK999]

Only other thing I would consider polybushing is the steering rack, or go for solid alloy mounts. But as said, that's all you need, most of what you posted from ebay is duplicates under a different name imo. Plus it will most likely be floflex or the other company that produces toss, rallydesign have always been spot on :thumb:

[richi]

Nova 1.3 SR / 1.6 GTE, Rear Beam 2
Nova 1.3 SR / 1.6 GTE, TCA 2
Nova 1.3 SR / 1.6 GTE, Tie Rod (Front)

so just these 3 then and buy a arb for the rear as i checked and not got one thinking that will help the handling alot