I recently went on vacation, and a slight anomaly caught my attention.
A bit of detail before we get to the point. I'm a homebrewer. I brew my own beer. I then take this beer to various and sundry events for myself and my friends. This past event was the Amelia Island Concours D'Elegance in Amelia Island, FL (side note - what a freakin' awesome show). I brought 5 minikegs of beer, each with approximately 5 gallons of beer for a total weight of about 225-250 pounds or so. This does not include any of the weight from our clothes, suitcases, cooler, food, etc, but provides for a significant amount of weight in the trunk of the car.
All the weight in the trunk practically had the fender lip resting on the rear wheels. I might have had a finger's width of space - maybe. Frankly, the weight distribution was altered so heavily that A.) I felt like I was now driving a tank and B.) the car no longer nose-dived under heavy braking - the entire car squatted. Now, I've also noticed that when I pack the back seat with 3 friends, the same thing happens. Occasionally, taking a corner hard (as I certainly often do) causes rubbing. So do large bumps.
But it's not just my car. I have two other friends who also own Gen IV Taurii, and they have he same problems - though, they don't drive their cars as hard as I do mine.
So I guess my question is two-fold, and this is why I am cross-posting this between Maintenance and Suspension, Handling, and Brakes:
1.) Is the car REALLY supposed to be this way? If not, why is it, and what can I do to fix it?
and
2.) I've been seriously considering moving to Eibach springs and KYB struts. My understanding is that the new springs will lower the car, but that they are progressive rate springs, meaning that the more they compress, the harder they are to compress further. If I make the move to Eibachs and KYBs, will I still have the same problems? Because if so, that's a serious waste of money.
Question, comments, and wild-a** guesses are welcome.
A bit of detail before we get to the point. I'm a homebrewer. I brew my own beer. I then take this beer to various and sundry events for myself and my friends. This past event was the Amelia Island Concours D'Elegance in Amelia Island, FL (side note - what a freakin' awesome show). I brought 5 minikegs of beer, each with approximately 5 gallons of beer for a total weight of about 225-250 pounds or so. This does not include any of the weight from our clothes, suitcases, cooler, food, etc, but provides for a significant amount of weight in the trunk of the car.
All the weight in the trunk practically had the fender lip resting on the rear wheels. I might have had a finger's width of space - maybe. Frankly, the weight distribution was altered so heavily that A.) I felt like I was now driving a tank and B.) the car no longer nose-dived under heavy braking - the entire car squatted. Now, I've also noticed that when I pack the back seat with 3 friends, the same thing happens. Occasionally, taking a corner hard (as I certainly often do) causes rubbing. So do large bumps.
But it's not just my car. I have two other friends who also own Gen IV Taurii, and they have he same problems - though, they don't drive their cars as hard as I do mine.
So I guess my question is two-fold, and this is why I am cross-posting this between Maintenance and Suspension, Handling, and Brakes:
1.) Is the car REALLY supposed to be this way? If not, why is it, and what can I do to fix it?
and
2.) I've been seriously considering moving to Eibach springs and KYB struts. My understanding is that the new springs will lower the car, but that they are progressive rate springs, meaning that the more they compress, the harder they are to compress further. If I make the move to Eibachs and KYBs, will I still have the same problems? Because if so, that's a serious waste of money.
Question, comments, and wild-a** guesses are welcome.
