Track Setup Help

[Doby]

Adding more compression is a bandaid fix for lack of spring rate. Shocks are to control the springs, not control the car...

And I'm guessing the original poster is talking about an E36, so Nick's setup isn't entirly ideal. Weight and tire size has a big deal with E46's acting differently then any other 3 series.

For the E36, I would look at the TCK if the car sees a good amount street duty, and the Gruppe N from Turner if it's mainly a DE car. To run a good ride height with the TCK, you're going to have to use much stiffer springs then he likes to use, and the width of the spring/strut combo in the front kills tire clearance. The Turner stuff uses a narrower spring and allows a lower ride height and normal tire sizes. If you want GC, then go through either edgemotorworks or MPact Motorsports. Do not bother even calling GC directly because their service is that poor.

[Nick325xiT 5spd]

If you're really serious abotu track shocks, Advance-Designs are a great option. They make a lot of noise (largely because they weigh 2lbs.), so they are not a good street solution. I liek them a lot on the track car, and they can handle a lot more spring than you'll ever want to use. I'd seriously consider them, given that they are in your price range if you're considering the TCKR setup.

FWIW, Doby, TCKR and Turner both use 60mm springs. The TCKR rear spring design works much better than the standard 60mm barrel with longer travel, though.

[Doby]

They have different perches, and the Turner ones allow more tire at the lower ride height.

[Pinecone]

The TCK perches are not any larger than the springs.

[Pinecone]

Adding more compression is a bandaid fix for lack of spring rate. Shocks are to control the springs, not control the car...

Not always. More compression can help transitions while allowing softer springs for better control in the bumps. Especially if you can set low speed comrpession separately from high speed compression.

Basic tuning is to set springs for bumpiness, sways for steady state cornering, shocks for transitions. YMMV.