I think a lot of these misconceptions come from the fact that a lot of current car enthusiasts grew up in the Underground/Fast & Furious era, and thus with an assumption that a car which went fast would also look fast - with "fast" in this case meaning "flashy". So when it comes to tuning, they may be thinking more in terms of checking boxes than fixing problems: you get your strut tower brace, your coilovers, your body kit (optional with most post-2008 cars unless you're going all the way to widebody), your larger wheels with low-profile tires (already included with many modern cars), your cold air intake, your catback exhaust, your Stage Whatever reflash, and voila, your car is officially Tuned. Thinking like a video game, where you install a new suspension kit, the "handling" bar goes up, and now you can take corners faster. Another part of this mentality is that shiny name-brand parts are assumed to be well-tested and proven, because after all, some reputable brand was willing to put their name on this so obviously it must be really good at what it's made for, whereas a homebuilt solution is assumed to be "cheap & dirty", inferior, and possibly dangerous, the last resort of the poor person trying to keep up. So people will still gravitate toward the Big Shiny Chrome Thing with a brand name on it over the homebuilt version that works just as well for less money. To add to this, some people may just not have, or not think they have, the time & money to test and iterate, or may not trust themselves to get it right even if they probably could. To further add, people sometimes take their cues from racing teams, and past a certain level, those are rarely found trying to economize by, for example, buying a single anti-roll bar rather than a full suspension kit. Rather they will try to run as much adjustable gucci gear as the rules allow. I also think that a lot of people just don't realize that, for example, an airbox actually adds power (because, again, games and movies have made it look like it's the other way around), or believe (I myself am not sure how correctly) that something about coilovers makes them inherently better than the stock spring & damper arrangement even if both are equally well set up.
Just ordered a bunch of your books and am very impressed. Its hard to find good information like this these days all in one place and especially this well produced. Thank you!
Great video. I have gone my own way and got it completely wrong in terms of spring rates and modifying dampers befote, I still feel the pain in my wallet but I learnt alot! It is also hard to judge someone else's "handling problem" when their problem might be them😮 a person's experience and ability plays a huge part in identifying problems.
These videos are excellent. My fad Focus got a decent improvement from just adding solid swaybar end links. Like you say, one at a time. You saved me a lot of money buying stuff I didn't need.
Thank for all your work, im 23yo petrolhead and im modifying my first car, toyota Paseo. I learned mechanics by internet, self mistakes and some practical knowledge from my uncle. I was learning about engines overall in recent times, so im just finishing rebuilding my 5e-fe(+) engine. Too much stuff to write it down but i did a lot of upgrades to push the engine for max efficiency. Next stuff i want to do is aero, and you providing me knowledge, to futher understand the laws of physics and improve my car, so im thankfull that you are reducting your books. Cheers
Do you offer any ebooks or pdf? I bought both the aero and suspension books. I've just started out the suspension one. So far, so good. I will be on vacation in a few weeks and won't be able to take the book with me.
I think a lot of these misconceptions come from the fact that a lot of current car enthusiasts grew up in the Underground/Fast & Furious era, and thus with an assumption that a car which went fast would also look fast - with "fast" in this case meaning "flashy". So when it comes to tuning, they may be thinking more in terms of checking boxes than fixing problems: you get your strut tower brace, your coilovers, your body kit (optional with most post-2008 cars unless you're going all the way to widebody), your larger wheels with low-profile tires (already included with many modern cars), your cold air intake, your catback exhaust, your Stage Whatever reflash, and voila, your car is officially Tuned. Thinking like a video game, where you install a new suspension kit, the "handling" bar goes up, and now you can take corners faster.
Another part of this mentality is that shiny name-brand parts are assumed to be well-tested and proven, because after all, some reputable brand was willing to put their name on this so obviously it must be really good at what it's made for, whereas a homebuilt solution is assumed to be "cheap & dirty", inferior, and possibly dangerous, the last resort of the poor person trying to keep up. So people will still gravitate toward the Big Shiny Chrome Thing with a brand name on it over the homebuilt version that works just as well for less money. To add to this, some people may just not have, or not think they have, the time & money to test and iterate, or may not trust themselves to get it right even if they probably could.
To further add, people sometimes take their cues from racing teams, and past a certain level, those are rarely found trying to economize by, for example, buying a single anti-roll bar rather than a full suspension kit. Rather they will try to run as much adjustable gucci gear as the rules allow.
I also think that a lot of people just don't realize that, for example, an airbox actually adds power (because, again, games and movies have made it look like it's the other way around), or believe (I myself am not sure how correctly) that something about coilovers makes them inherently better than the stock spring & damper arrangement even if both are equally well set up.
Just ordered a bunch of your books and am very impressed. Its hard to find good information like this these days all in one place and especially this well produced. Thank you!
Great video. I have gone my own way and got it completely wrong in terms of spring rates and modifying dampers befote, I still feel the pain in my wallet but I learnt alot!
It is also hard to judge someone else's "handling problem" when their problem might be them😮 a person's experience and ability plays a huge part in identifying problems.
Excellent video, thank you! I am really enjoying your vehicle aerodynamics testing modification and development book, such amazing information
Thank you.
When skilled car enthusiast talks in general about everything that fits everybody, be ready for problems.🎉
These videos are excellent. My fad Focus got a decent improvement from just adding solid swaybar end links. Like you say, one at a time. You saved me a lot of money buying stuff I didn't need.
Thank for all your work, im 23yo petrolhead and im modifying my first car, toyota Paseo. I learned mechanics by internet, self mistakes and some practical knowledge from my uncle. I was learning about engines overall in recent times, so im just finishing rebuilding my 5e-fe(+) engine. Too much stuff to write it down but i did a lot of upgrades to push the engine for max efficiency. Next stuff i want to do is aero, and you providing me knowledge, to futher understand the laws of physics and improve my car, so im thankfull that you are reducting your books. Cheers
Brilliant 🙌
Do you offer any ebooks or pdf? I bought both the aero and suspension books. I've just started out the suspension one. So far, so good. I will be on vacation in a few weeks and won't be able to take the book with me.
No I don't offer those formats. They're pirated within weeks.
@JulianEdgar Yeah, I understand. If only there is any other mean...