[Vantage]

Rob, great story. Your patience in taking care of your family first was rewarded with getting one of most bad ass versions of the 111 chassis.

Though you have an Exige, I find these cars are a lot less tin can noisy with the top off. I'm not familiar with the Ohlins on the S260s, but with other aftermarket shocks like Penske or Nitron, these cars can be made relatively comfortable in ride by setting the shocks to softer setting.

 

[140422]

Yesterday, I had my first drive in my new to me S260 Exige and it was incredible. For those in Orange County, CA, I drove it up and down Ortega Hwy, and had soooo much fun. However, that road is pretty bumpy compared to when I rode motorcycles on it 10-15 years ago. I did wave to a Yellow Elise that was coming down and it looked like it may have been a series 1?

What worked really well was leaving it in 4th gear and just using the torque out of the corners and then sometimes braking into the next corner. I wasn't trying to set a world record pace, so I wasn't banging through the gears up to redline. I ended up driving it like a go kart and with left foot braking and right foot gas. I somewhat tried to practice what we called on bikes, "the pace". That is going the speed limit or close on the straights and then setting your speed without the brakes as you come into a corner and power out

I put in ear plugs, turned off the radio and enjoyed the entire drive.

That evening we went to a friends in San Clemente to celebrate my birthday, and I was surprised how even driving on the freeway, it is pretty uncomfortable and you feel every bump, reflector, etc. My wife thought it sounds like it is falling apart and wasn't too thrilled with it, but I didn't buy the car for her, she has a AMG Mercedes that she loves.

Congrats, enjoy.

 

[Racingrob]

Rob, great story. Your patience in taking care of your family first was rewarded with getting one of most bad ass versions of the 111 chassis.

Though you have an Exige, I find these cars are a lot less tin can noisy with the top off. I'm not familiar with the Ohlins on the S260s, but with other aftermarket shocks like Penske or Nitron, these cars can be made relatively comfortable in ride by setting the shocks to softer setting.

Yea, it seems that everyone has a hot street setup for the Penske, Nitron and JRI. I remember seeing the red S260 Sport like mine that a doctor owned, and Shinoo sold it for 69K with 99K miles, if I remember correctly. Anyway, I believe that one had Nitron suspension. It's funny, I came out of the motorcycle road racing world and Ohlins are usually considered the best. My son raced on Penske and Nitron before, but usually liked the Ohlins or K-Tech the best?

I don't really feel like spending all the money to try and re-valve and re-spring, multiple times, if someone else already has the specs that work on these factory Ohlins?

I may try to remove the top at some point, as that would easy getting in and out as well, although after watching the video of the fat guys guide to getting in and out of a Lotus Elise, it is much easier. LOL

 

[eldonz]

Yea, it seems that everyone has a hot street setup for the Penske, Nitron and JRI. I remember seeing the red S260 Sport like mine that a doctor owned, and Shinoo sold it for 69K with 99K miles, if I remember correctly. Anyway, I believe that one had Nitron suspension. It's funny, I came out of the motorcycle road racing world and Ohlins are usually considered the best. My son raced on Penske and Nitron before, but usually liked the Ohlins or K-Tech the best?

I don't really feel like spending all the money to try and re-valve and re-spring, multiple times, if someone else already has the specs that work on these factory Ohlins?

I may try to remove the top at some point, as that would easy getting in and out as well, although after watching the video of the fat guys guide to getting in and out of a Lotus Elise, it is much easier. LOL

Yes, I have gone through several revalves on these Ohlins and have a pretty good setup for them. PM me if you want to discuss.

Later,
Eldon

 

[billyz16]

nice car enjoy it

 

[Meli9874]

LOG in WV was amazing...

 

[Racingrob]

@eldonz , thank you for the offer. I sent you a PM.

 

[Racingrob]

I figured I should update this, now that @6TVRs+ brought it back to my attention. After about 12-18 months, I removed the Ohlins and had them rebuilt. @eldonz was kind enough to share some setup info, but it was for racing. I know I won’t race this car, and probably won’t even track it. For me, a go kart or motorcycle are a much cheaper way to enjoy the track and possibly more exciting. I’ve always had the opinion, the race vehicle may come back completely destroyed, and can I live with that?

I would be very upset if I went off track and scraped up the aluminum floor, let alone damaged some paint, and financially don’t want to write off a 80-125k car.

The rebuilder, replaced the seals, one shock had leaked some of the oil out. He replaced the oil, Nitrogen, and set it in the mid range on the different clickers. What a huge difference in feel. It sounded better, had better bump compliance. Previously, several times while accelerating and catching a bump, the front end would dance back and forth. On a motorcycle, that is called a tank slapper. Not sure what cars guys call that? That completely went away. Plus it seems quieter, with proper working suspension.

Just earlier this year, I took the advice of @Crisandres and @Vantage and removed the top. Surprisingly that does make it quieter too. However, it is now so much better with the rebuilt coil overs, I prefer to leave the roof on, since I like that look much better.