----- Original Message -----
From: "Brad Cox" <COXB@tmfhs.org>
To: <autox@autox.team.net>
Sent: Wednesday, February 28, 2001 7:49 AM
Subject: Re: Do Monkeys fly in AS or GS?
> Yeah, what's up with that??! I can't figure out why Honda switched the
Civic/Integra to a Macphearson strut design.
I'll venture a guess. MacPherson struts are cheaper and consume less space.
> I really don't know much about suspension dynamics, but can anyone explain
the differences between this type of suspension vs. the current
(independant? coilover? dunno what to call it) suspension? Pros? Cons?
IIRC, the current Civic/Integra suspension uses double wishbones (or
unequal-length control arms if you prefer). The main advantage to such a
suspension over a MacPherson strut setup is a much better camber curve.
As far as the physical differences, in a MacPherson strut suspension, the
strut is used both for damping and to locate the wheel. The double-wishbone
setup uses the control arms to locate the wheel, so the shock only has to
damp out spring oscillations.
Performance-wise, the double wishbone setup is better, but unfortunately for
us we are a very tiny part of the Civic/Integra market. So we're stuck with
what Honda gives us along with the lowest common denominator.
Scot
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