Carter

Whilst waiting for the new front pair of Koni FSDs to arrive I wrote to Arnold Clarke about the trackrod end and n/s front tyre that had worn prematurely due to this fault. I suggested that they, out of a gesture of goodwill, replace the tyre free of charge as well as replacing the track rod end.

Arnold Clarke got in touch and agreed that this was a serious issue and they would replace the n/s front tyre for free, and as I wanted to change from Michelin Pilots to Pirelli Pzero Neros, they also agreed to fit a new o/s front tyre at a discounted rate of £120 (this tyre, 225-40 18inch is about £135 from blackcircles.com fitted so this was a very good deal). Arnold Clarke have responded very well to my complaint and have been very efficient in dealing with the problem. When I went to collect the GT Arnold Clarke only charged me £113 for the tyre which was cost+Vat, they didn’t charge me for fitting either. The difference between the Michelins and the Pirellis is marked. The Neros improve ride comfort and offer better grip, how much of this is down to them being new, I wouldn’t like to say, but I can’t believe the Michelins are a more expensive tyre.

That was early last week. On Friday the GT was back at McLennan's Garage to have the replacement front FSDs, 4 wheel alignment and also braided brake lines fitted. Unfortunately the brake lines supplied direct from Goodridge were for a GTV and it turns out that they will have to make some up especially as they don’t stock them for a GT, McLennan’s have provided Goodridge with the correct pipe lengths, so they even may add them to their stock list.

The half hour drive back from the garage was a pleasant surprise.

I have been driving around for the last 2 weeks with standard dampers on the front and the new Koni FSDs on the rear and I couldn’t really tell any difference, so it shows how isolated from the rear wheels a driver is in normal driving as now the front FSDs have been fitted, the whole car feels different.

Comfort:
The standard dampers made the car feel very unsettled and over normal roads (normal being patch-worked with repairs and rippled surfaces) would have the car wobbling and bobbing around, and any potholes would send massive crashes through the chassis leaving me slightly stunned and also concerned as to whether I had just lost a wheel!

With the FSDs fitted, the car feels more rigid, well planted and stays level on braking and accelerating, what you’d expect from uprated dampers. Comfort wise the FSDs soak up road imperfections better, pot holes and broken tarmac are noticeable but are not felt with the same crash through the chassis. The car still feels slightly unsettled on ripply, uneven tarmac, but overall ride quality is smoother.

Handling:
I took the GT out to one of my favourite ‘A’ roads on Sunday afternoon, the A70 from Edinburgh was the original road that showed up the limitations of the GT’s setup. Stability on this type of road with bumps and uneven/inconsistent camber, sharp crests on fast straights is very very good. Before I’d have been backing off the accelerator after going over a crest at speed as the car would feel flouty and unstable, but the FSDs now stop the GT’s mass from creating a weightless moment before the car sits back down on the suspension causing instability which really hammered my confidence. The FSDs keep the car hunkered down at all times and I can’t remember any nervous moments at all. Throw the car into a tight bend and roll has almost disappeared, which means corner grip is better (this will also be down to the new Neros) and steering feel and turn in are improved as well.

The 4 wheel alignment carried out at McLennan’s showed that 5 out of the 6 settings (Total Toe, Toe L+R, Camber L+R, Cross Camber) for the front wheels (5 out of 7 for the rear) were outside of the tolerances. Arnold Clarke had fitted the new track rod end last Monday and said they had really struggled getting the tracking etc right. It seems like they must have just given up as the n/s ‘Toe’ setting was -5.3 and the tolerance is between -0.6 and -1.8. McLennan’s corrected this to -1.1 which is midway between the tolerances and how it should have been from Arnold Clarke. Now the front and rear wheels are correctly aligned, the steering feels 100% improved, like a brand new car, tighter and more direct.

So all is good and I would definitely recommend fitting Koni FSDs. 4 wheel alignment is a must and upgrading the front pads (brake lines will have to wait) to anyone that owns a GT 3.2. It is now the car I had hoped for when I first purchased it back in October, albeit with a couple a squeaks and rattles here and there, I can put up with them for now. But don’t forget that the new front tyres, new n/s track rod end and 4 wheel alignment have undoubtedly improved things as well, so unfortunately this hasn’t turned out to be a straight forward comparison with old and new dampers after all.

One thing I have noticed is that the GT is now about ½” higher at the front (it now clears speed bumps with ease!!). I was hoping that it would settle over the weekend, but it hasn’t, so I will be asking McLennan’s to take a look at it when it goes back to have the brake lines fitted. I’m hoping there is something they can adjust, otherwise it looks like Koni may have got some dimensions wrong!!