03) 04/23/2012 Suspension and Handling
It's been a while since the site has been updated. I've enjoyed about 800 trouble free miles driving the eBugeye, but there is one behavior that really had me concerned. At around 50-55 MPH the front end tended to lift and it could be pretty spooky driving with the steering wheel feeling disconnected. That made my drag race times at EVCCON seem slow even though I was leading every race up to about 50 MPH when I had to back off. Also the ride was pretty harsh and you really felt every bump. I turned the car over to Ron Shimek, THE Austin MG and British Car specialist for diagnosis and remedy.
Ron is the tall guy here, turning the eBugeye back over to me with all its ride and handling issues sorted out.
Ron discovered that the 50+ year old rear leaf springs couldn't handle the extra battery weight in the boot of the car and as a result the rear axle was resting on the rubber bump stop. That meant the only rear suspension was tire flex. That explains the rough ride that my friend Mike Brown said he figured was part of its quirky Englishness.
Ron installed a new set of heavy duty rear springs and raised the ride height by two inches, getting the axle off the bump stops and making for a very smooth ride.
To counter the effect of all the battery weight in the boot, Ron added 100 pounds of ballast to the front of the car and installed an anti-roll bar to stabilize the handling. The results are astounding! The eBugeye can blast down the highway feeling solid and secure at speed with the bonus that it rides more comfortably than I ever remember. Thanks Ron Shimek - well done!