The M100 is a fantastic car. Great value for money and really under rated. I would love an AWD one. Do you know it the AWD is constant or is it like the Suzuki which is part time AWD as the viscous kicks in (delayed) when the rear slips? The only thing I would need to do to a std one if using it daily would be with the driving postion: lowering the driver’s seat, pulling the fabric cover off and adding a bit more bolstering (the seats are a bit wide for me) and moving the steering wheel lower and closer (I like the seat back a lot for my long legs but steering wheel really close).
I have some M100 struts so I should be able to help out a bit with measurements. In fact, I am making some custom M100 right now to go into my L200 (stopped the project for a few weeks while I get onto my last [big] uni paper or the semester). The internals that I am using come from a Honda with a strut front (can’t remember the model so would have to look at the part number one the leg).
There is very little information available about the awd system, the only thing I’ve found that comes close is a forum referring to the storia x4 which is the same chassis but unsure if its the same trans. Here they say it uses a viscous coupling with a 60/40 split favouring the rear (although with my understanding I fail to see how a car with front motor, east west configuration, awd could get any more than a 50/50 split using a viscous coupling, but I may be wrong, I am defiantly not an awd expert by any means)
Here is the link; http://www.automotiveforums.com/t239399-do_you_own_a_daihatsu_storia_x4___.html
It would be awesome if you could keep me updated with anything involving your sirion strut modifications either here or by posting a link to the topic where you make all your posts about it!! It would be awesome so have a solid idea of where to spend my money making improvements before I even have the car, so as soon as I get my hands on one I can get stuck into it straight away! At the moment this is looking like a solid, couple of hundred bucks on springs and strut inserts to get a system that functions as good as or even better than a grand or more worth of coilovers!!
Also I like the idea of the inserts that slot into the leg with a bolt at the bottom holding them in, seems like minimal amount of work, and seeing as I’ve never rebuilt struts before or swapped internals seems like a pretty safe place for me to start.
Will keep you in the loop when I get back onto working on the struts. I’d rather be tinkering on the car than this study, so I can’t wait.
Mitsubishi EVO ACD does 50/50, but I’ve heard of aftermarket stuff that will let them do 35frt/65rr - no idea how? But that East/West layout would be the exception since they are popular enough for extensive development. Here’s a pic of a Daihatsu Move transfer box that turns a fwd into AWD. pic credit goes to the Keicarshop
It takes drive off of the RHS supplanting the long drive shaft with a short one about the same length as the LHS. As you say “50/50” is the theorhetical limit".
Jeez that looks like a terrible system, there would be times when you only have drive going to the front left wheel unless you had an LSD in the front…
It’s deceptive. If you saw the other side you’d see it has two outputs on the same centre. So there is a centre shaft/spigot that is splined that is surrounded by an outer shaft with dog type gears. How they mesh into the diff centre equalises drive. The front wheel drive LSD on these is the same - it’s outside the gearbox and not inside.
That’s the online one I use. It gives a good estimate. The only really accurate way is with a load cell and press. I have access to one but it’s only set up to do closed end springs.
To really understand pitch you’d have to do some physics or a course in statics (and then a course in dynamics). But think of it like this, pitch is angle, assume a 300mm spring, the more angle of the less coils of wire wound to fill the space, less coils more rate/stiffer. Dual rate has one section wound with a small amount of pitch. This gives the spring a soft section and the spring will have a rising rate - that soft section will coil bind and then the rest of the spring, with more rate, does its job. Having a soft section of spring early in travel gives a bit more initial bite as one turns into a corner (on the rear such will promote understeer). I never use such a spring, but I have used helper springs which are super soft and stay compressed when the car has full weight on the suspension, these type of springs are to keep the main spring captive. A better solution to having a progressive rate spring is one wound with wire that tapers from a large to small diameter along its full length. These get really expensive if you need custom ones.
I’m worried applause discs may not fit an awd m100? Im just assuming the 2wd and 4wd have a different rear suspension set up, so I’m not sure how backing plates/caliper mounts from an applause would fit. As for the applause and mx5 bore sizes I’ll take a look while I’m at work today and let you know what I find. Also quick question, running applause rears does the handbrake attach to the caliper or does it run a smaller drum inside the disc?
And finally the springs, I can wrap my head around everything you’ve explained but I’m still curious, once you know the pitch is there any way then to calculate rate?
Also would be awesome if you had a standard m100 front spring you cold grab some measurements for me from, like length and dia. across the top and bottom so I can start scoping out the springs from each car I work on to see if I can find something the same size with possibly a better spring rate.
FYI I have found a listing for applause caliper dia. 30mm and there is a listing for mx5 caliper with dia. 35mm.
Please let me know if you would like part numbers
Correct. Issue in my case is not the main master cylinder but the inline hand brake master cylinder. I can’t seem to get one with a bore smaller than 0.625. Plan is to go to really big fronts so backs will end up pretty big too.
pic credit goes to the Keicarshop