F-40 Adjustable Suspension

I think none of the US cars had that, just the Euro cars....

I for one think it is a great feature.

 

Agreed.

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

All US F40s DO have an adjustment in the rear. It's only a two-way adjustment so if your car is high or low in the front you can compensate by adjusting the rear.

 

Comrade 512 ... aaah ... understood. Thanks for the clarification. There is one US F40 I know of that does have the adjustable suspension on it, however, I do believe he added it.

 

couldnt you just buy the adjustable suspension components from Europe, ship em here, and install them yourself??

 

I've not driven one with the system; but somehow I had the impression that they were fairly unsophisticated, compromised the handling significantly and added a fair amount of weight??? Is that untrue?

Mark

 

False, added very little weight, and made the car more livable.
Did not effect the handling at all....hence why all the Euros had them.

It was a great feature!

 

Thanks, I was mistaken. Furthermore, I did not realize all Euro cars had them.

I did find the post here that gave me the impression, although I don't know how to link to a single post, from Ferrarifixer:
"For me, quite the opposite. I MUCH prefer (and would only have) the non adjust. A std car can ride over most irregularities, its ONLY exceptional kerbs and bumps that cause a problem.

If you're used to single seater driving, the adjust cars will feel very "disconnected" in comparison, while a non adjust car communicates better than any other car I've driven... except a 288!

For example... the springs in an adjust car are incredibly soft. The hydraulics prop up approx 80% of the weight.... which makes it feel plain weird.

At full height, the springs in an adjust car do NOTHING AT ALL. The spring collars are slack."

Mark

 

I think you misunderstand what it is exactly....

It is just a system that raises the front of the car a few inches to clear driveways etc....

The suspension was otherwise unchanged....

As I said, it was a great feature of the Euro cars....

 

I know the specialist that serviced local owner Richard's F40 prior to his selling it. He has a few extra parts including a NOS adjustable height ECU. Any interest PM me.

Scott

 

All 4 corners adjust to 3 levels. The mid height and low setting adjust according to the speed of the car. The max height is set by a switch on the dash. When parked, the car should be lowered to the min height using the manual switch so there is no pressure in the system. I have one in the shop now.

 

All Euro cars DO NOT have this feature. It was an otion towards the end of production. I'd hazard a guess and say 20% of Euro cars have the ride height adjustment.

 

Humm, that's not what I have read....I thought it was the majority of the Euros????

 

What you have read SSINISTER is not always correct just because you can locate it in print. Remember, there are lots of errors regarding these cars that have been published.

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

LOL. Priceless!

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

Joe, your totally right about that....

For some reason I thought most, not only some Euro F40's had the adjustable suspension.

Anybody have the exact % that had them?

 

My notes tell me they were specified on later Euro cars and Birel's estimation of 20% cannot be far from the mark.

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

Thanks Joe....for some reason I thought it was more then that.


Anyone have any shots of a car w/ this system in its "up" and "down" positions? I can't belive it to be that much of a difference.

 

Beleive me it looks really silly when its "up"and Ive heard stories of the system jamming in that position and the owner having to drive to the dealer with the car looking like an F40 SUV. LOL. I would not want this system. Most owners report it as a real PAIN and many have had it removed by their dealer.

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

I do not know the exact production figures for the adjustable suspension but I can tell you they were a pain ... Apart for the fact that at high speed the car went light at the front because the rear dropped too suddenly (nothing u want in a bend) There was also the hassle of needing a special tool hand held computer to reset it and not every dealer had one ... There was also apparently a midlife software upgrade but it didnt help ...

In short if u are ever in a position to buy a F-40 ... I personally would recommend the non active one

 

From what I have been reading, very few had this anyway.