2014 Fiesta OEM+ build

[Volumetrik]

Vermont's approach is to salt the least amount possible, but they don't require mandatory winter tires, which can lead to some interesting situations. They use a combination of salt + brine + sand.

In Québec, winter tires are mandatory between December 1st to March 15th (and they check). We also spread around 1.5M tonnes of salt each year, no brine, but some sand.

The ecological impact of the use of road salt is well documented, so I'm glad some regions are lowering their use. It also has the benefit of less rust and wear on cars, trucks & machinery!

 

[Volumetrik]

I was interested in testing shorter bump stops with the Koni orange dampers I installed a while back. The goal was to increase linear spring travel before engaging the bump stops.

I swapped back to the 2014-2015 springs and installed shorter bumpstops from Professional Awesome Racing. I ordered the 111 for the front and the 555 for the rear.


Here are the replacements for the front.


They sit perfectly well into the OEM top hat bearing.


Side by side you can see the gain in bump travel with the short 111 bumpstops.


As for the rear, the difference is quite drastic with the 555 bumpstops.


And the stock cover fits into the grooves.


However, the inside diameter of the rear top mount is larger than the OD of the 555 bumpstop. I had to use thick 3M double-sided tape to make up the difference. Plus, at full droop, like demonstrated, the cover is free and can jam up against the base (silver part) of the shock.

After 3 months of driving this setup, I would not recommend you use shorter bump stops without first increasing the spring rates all around. The larger bump travel actually rubs into the fender well on hard bumps and getting into parking lots at low speeds. I think this may be a better combination with the rally spring setup @Dialcaliper has presented in his thread. 171lbs/in front spring rate is simply not high enough, and it will rub on big bumps at stock ride height! I think a minimum of 200lbs/in or 225lb/in front spring rate would be a great combo with the shorter bump stops. It is interesting that I did not feel or hear any rub at the rear, and those bump stops are almost 2 in shorter than the stock ones.

 

[foodtruck]

Hmm, I thought you were on B14s now? Could've swore you said you kept one of them in that comparison between ST / non ST versions

 

[Volumetrik]

Hmm, I thought you were on B14s now? Could've swore you said you kept one of them in that comparison between ST / non ST versions

That's the topic of the next post!