Suspension Design

Part 1

Rob Shanahan 11-15-05

Introduction

What is an Automotive Suspension?

An Automotive Suspension is the system of parts that give
a vehicle the ability to maneuver.
It is a 3 Dimensional Four Bar Linkage

What does a suspension do?

The job of a car suspension is to maximize the friction
between the tires and the road surface, to provide steering
stability with good handling
HowStuffWorks.com

Basic Suspension
Terminology

Ride Height
Bump / Droop
Camber
Caster
Toe In / Out
3

Ride Height, Bump &

Droop

Ride Height

Bump

The neutral /
middle position of
the Suspension
When the wheel
moves upwards

Droop

When the wheel

moves downwards
4

Camber

Tires generate
more cornering
force with a small
amount of
negative camber
Camber changes
as suspension
moves up (bump)
and down (droop)
5

Caster

Shopping cart
action
Causes selfcentering action
in the steering
More caster
results in more
camber as front
wheels are turned
6

Toe-in or Toe-out

Toe-in results is
inherently stable
Toe-out is
inherently
unstable
Race cars often
use front toe-out,
& rear toe-in
7

Common Suspension
Designs

Beam Axle
Swing Axle
De Dion
Double Wishbone /
Unequal Length A-arm
8

Beam Axle

Around since horse

and chariot days
Always keeps
wheels parallel
Often used in rear
Rarely used in front
OK on smooth
tracks
9

Swing Axle

Often used on VW
based off road cars
Simple and rugged
Camber curve too
steep
Only adjustment
you can make is
ride height

10

De Dion

Essentially a beam
axle with the diff
now sprung weight
Keeps wheels
parallel
Relatively light
weight
Better on smooth
tracks
11

Double Wishbone

Lightest weight
Lowest unsprung
mass
Greatest
adjustability

12

Basic Vehicle Dynamics

Part 2

What is Vehicle Dynamics?

The understanding and study of how

a vehicle and its components move
and react

13

Yaw, Pitch, and Roll

Same terminology
as aircraft
X is the
longitudinal axis
Yawing refers to
normal change of
direction
Pitching is dive or
squat
14

Understeer

Front end of the car

washes out or
doesnt turn in
NASCAR boys call it
push or tight
Safe, because lifting
off throttle reduces it
Most road cars have a
ton of it
15

Oversteer

Rear end of car slides out

NASCAR boys call it
loose
Excessive application of
power can cause oversteer
Throttle induced oversteer
is never the fast way
around a corner

16

Weight Transfer

Occurs anything the

vehicle accelerates or
decelerates
Cornering force Fc will
cause weight to transfer
from the inside to outside
tires
Braking and accelerating
forces cause a similar front
and rear weight transfer

17

Roll Center

A geometric construct
Represents the instantaneous
point about which the sprung
mass will rotate due to
cornering forces
Roll center moves as
suspension travels
Goal of any suspension
designer is to minimize Roll
Center Migration
18

Roll Couple

Distance from roll

center to CG is key
Low roll center results
in more roll for a given
lateral acceleration
Most designs use a
low roll center to
reduce jacking forces
19

Anti-dive

Purely geometric
method to reduce pitch
movement
Reduces suspension
compliance over bumps
No longer in favor with
formula car and sports
racers
Might work well for Baja
20

Bump Steer

Caused when toe

changes as suspension
moves up and down
Causes car to react
unexpectedly over
bumps and in roll
Sometimes used
intentionally, but be
careful
21

Tire Slip Angle

Angle between
the centerline of
the wheel and the
actual path
Tires generate
highest cornering
forces at a certain
slip angle
22

Slip Angle vs. Grip

Grip is highest a set

angle, then falls off as
the slip angle increases
Sharper peak will give a
less predictable
breakaway
Radial tires typically
have a steeper slope
than bias ply
23

Friction Circle

Plots the
theoretical limits
of adhesion in 2
axes
Great tool for
analyzing driver
to driver variation
G-analyst is a
cheap tool for this
24

Friction Circle, cont.

Illustrates the trade off

between cornering and
braking/accelerating
The driver that follows
the path closest to the
outside of the circle
wins

25

Car Balance

A well balanced car will

exhibit both understeer and
oversteer at different points
on the course and at corner
entry and exit
A good driver can change his
technique to change the
basic oversteer/understeer
balance
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