Report time.
So, I've got one of these CSLs parked in the garage and I thought I'd try some spring settings for it. Cunningly I now have two different setups to try, thanks to No_OBsT33R and Rotary Junkie.
As this is No_OBsT33R's thread, I started with his setup. Let me just state from the word go that I only have one of these cars, and I do have future plans for it. As I've not seen another one in the UCD yet, all I'm going to do is test suspension and LSD settings. I'm not taking any weight off of the car, nor adding any extra power. If I see another CSL in the UCD, then I'll maybe build the car as specified here. In the meantime, and just to recap, all I've done to the car is oil it, rebuild the engine and chassis, slapped on a set of S3s, FC suspension and FC LSD, that's it.
As is fitting for this car, I took it to the Green Hell. I applied both builds to the car and took it out for three 1 lap A-Spec One-Make races. All aids off bar ABS 1, grip set to 'real' and tyre wear enabled.
No_OBsT33R. As has been commented on further up the thread, these two builds seem to share some commonality. Don't be fooled however, these two builds drive very differently. No_OBsT33R's build has the pivot point around the centre of the car, leaving it well balanced. It turns in nicely and pivots smoothly and allows you to get on the power quite quickly. There's plenty of grip in the corners and it pulls nicely. My only real problem was braking. Most of my 'offs' were due to over doing the braking. It is possible that tightening the brake strength will assist with this. I was unable to put in a clean lap, although I did do slightly better than with RJ's build.
Rotary Junkie. My word, how to polarise a car..!! The pivot point is now the front, with the rear moving around it. The swinging of the rear is induced either with braking or acceleration. At first it completely unnerved me, I was unable to slow the car down going into a corner without the rear overtaking me!! Eventually, as I eased up on my braking I was able to post my fastest laptime. But my god was I hanging on by my fingernails the entire lap, and I wasn't able to replicate it after that.
The levels of grip are comparable between these builds. The biggest single difference between them is the centre of rotation and the braking. RJ's build is unequivocally faster, but No_OBsT33R's is easier to drive, for me. The other noticeable difference is that No_OBsT33R's build 'pulls' the car along, whilst RJ's 'pushes'. Both of these builds only serve to show just how good this car is, it's been a while since a car has made me grin like this.
No_OBsT33R
7:48.363 - 1 x big off
7:40.823 - 1 x small off
7:41.051 - 1 x small off
RJ
7:37.798 - 1 x tiny off
7:42.705 - 1 x medium off
7:48.350 - 2 x medium off
Just before I sign off, I thought I'd try this car with some spring settings that I've been working on for the E92 M3. I wasn't sure if they'd work with an E46 M3. Turns out they work brilliantly. Not only was I able to set fast lap times using them, but I was also able to make clean laps. My spring settings are a lot more in line with real world settings, with the bias to the rear. My dampers are still experimental and on the E92 car have undergone some significant change.
Is there any chance that No_OBsT33R or RJ (or anybody) would be willing to look at a rear biased build..??
CyKosis
7:41.975 - Clean slow
7:38.119 - Clean fast
7:43.318 - 2 x small off
LSD: 6/14/6
Suspension:
-20/-10
7.6/10.2
6/7
6/7
1/5
1.4/2.0
-0.03/0.12
Brakes: 7/6