Caster Discussion

[noone]

I'm interested by Caster.

On our car it is not adjustable (by wheel alignment), but there is some play in the subframe.

Does anyone know the stock Caster on the Polo? Any ideas what a good caster angle would be?

I know of 2 products designed to change the caster in our car:
- Eccentric rear control arm bushes (Superpro i think)
- K-Mac adjustable upper strut mounts (Camber / Castor adjustment)

So, is there a big benefit from added caster on our car and how much change is required?

[kaanage]

This is the best info I've found on the effects of caster so far (and good info on toe and camber too).

I was wondering myself how the caster increase for the MkV Golf with the Whiteline ALK effected the improvement in handling. The article I linked to stated that the effect of caster was fairly small (when within reason) vs other geometry factors like toe, camber etc.

[Evaded Motorsport]

I have about 6.5 degrees caster in mine.

[noone]

Seems like a bit more than average, have you done anything to alter it?

[Stuwey]

I've got the SuperPro eccentric bushings in mine, and I too have just over 6 degrees.

More turn-in is your most obvious change. That, and heavier steering.

[kaanage]

I know of 2 products designed to change the caster in our car:
- Eccentric rear control arm bushes (Superpro i think)

Here is a description of this product.

You mentioned that you had rear Superpro bushings - are they 2 piece as well?

I've got the SuperPro eccentric bushings in mine, and I too have just over 6 degrees.

More turn-in is your most obvious change. That, and heavier steering.

Is it also more stable in a straight line?

[Stuwey]

Not that i've really noticed. ALOT more direct feel through the car over little bumps, cracks in the road etc. Not pleasant, to be honest. Probably the one modification that ruined it all.

How hard are you driving it on the street????

[seangti]

I found the anti-lift kit on my subaru gave fantastic results and the polo is craving for increased castor, so will be following the feedback in this thread with enthusiam. The fellow on the gold coast (blue Pgti, does lots of track days, starts his posts with Hoy Hoy.. ) who's name evades me, I believe he fabricated an adjustable castor kit...

[vwthunder]

Now we are getting into this thread can we also talk about different setups, I know there is not much avaliable for the polo in terms of suspension setups.

How do you get the best out of the car, I have been thinking about the Ground control camber tops to get -2 degrees on the front
What else can be done and what prodults are there out on the market to get the best out of the polo

[philthy]

I found the anti-lift kit on my subaru gave fantastic results and the polo is craving for increased castor, so will be following the feedback in this thread with enthusiam. The fellow on the gold coast (blue Pgti, does lots of track days, starts his posts with Hoy Hoy.. ) who's name evades me, I believe he fabricated an adjustable castor kit...

That would be eddy.

[noone]

Here is a description of this product.

Wrong thread? That one is about Viezu...

[noone]

The road feel is likely caused by the bushes being Poly. I went from the whiteline ones to Seat for this reason.

Eddy has the K-mac adjustable strut tops. They look good but not cheap and likely pass more noise / vibration than stock.

The nice thing about the K-Mac's is they can provide castor and camber adjustment.

I've not seen any other products for altering the front end geometry (well, suspension height alters the camber).

It may be after I get my toe fixed (wheel alignment) that I forget about this one.

[kaanage]

Here is a description of this product.

Wrong thread? That one is about Viezu...

Whoops - cut and pasted wrong link. Now fixed (check it out - it's quite interesting)

The nice thing about the K-Mac's is they can provide castor and camber adjustment.

I've not seen any other products for altering the front end geometry (well, suspension height alters the camber).

It may be after I get my toe fixed (wheel alignment) that I forget about this one.

For road use, I agree - I don't see why you need more than proper toe.
For track, some negative camber at the front would be the biggest gain IMO.

[Bubu]

Negative camber can make quite a difference, had it on my previous car and I have also had a drive of a couple of other cars with neg camber. The turn in is great, so much grip! There are some down sides to it too. Tyre wear on the inside being one. The other which I experienced, was the front would lose traction when braking hard in the wet. And not because I was locking up the brakes. The reduced contact area with the road and the road being wet made it more slippery than it would have been otherwise. Though I should point out that the camber I had was a bit aggressive ( -2.5 deg or -3 deg , I cant remember now).

The Polo being a different car with different tyres and all the other variables may not respond the same. Also with less camber dialled in you probably won’t wear the tyres on the inside as much and you may not have traction issues in the wet.

[Eddy]

Eddy has the K-mac adjustable strut tops. They look good but not cheap and likely pass more noise / vibration than stock.

Hoyhoy.

WRONG, me don't have K-Macs #*+#.
These are custom by Extreme Motorsports brissy ( they are quality with the highest standard pillow ball) , gained a small amount of caster, but love the camber -2 degrees for the road & over -3 for the track.

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