Fixing extreme bump steer on my Fiesta ST180.My greatest fix ever maybe?

[@charliehd6870]

Absolutely brilliant video. Getting bored of other KZbinrs that buy an ST, pay for someone else to fit a turbo, spoiler risers and some stickers and say it's track ready. This sort of stuff is what makes for a proper track car.

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thank you. And I agree. 😉

[@bunabuna9287]

Thanks Steve great video very interesting never knew what bump steer was I've learned a lot there. Thanks again steve and stay safe amigo.

[@K20MKV]

Just watched this. Extremely helpful as will be correcting bump steer and doing some roll centre adjustment on my build soon too. Will continue to watch these through as I’ve got all the time in the world atm. Keep up the good work!

[@Kenny_P_abz]

To have the dedication to do this in your drive is fabulous. Well done.

[@wallacemassey1371]

If I understood or not ,the home made gauge impressed the shit out of me Steve good vid.

[@rhiantaylor3446]

Nothing as frustrating as all the work you had invested actually taking you in the wrong direction but relocating the rack seems to have delivered exactly as intended. The pleasure and relief on your face was obvious. Thanks for the video !

[@stuhollyhead4294]

*fart loading* absolutely creased me, cheers for the entertainment in this bad times appreciate it 😷

[@mallratt25]

Phenomenal job explaining everything. I am not smart enough to figure this kind of stuff out on my own, but you made it so easy to understand and follow. Well done!

[@jssimracing101]

Really interesting learning about geometry correction. Very well thought out steve. Great viewing!

[@davidsimpkin7221]

Nice one Steve, loved your homemade bump steer geometry measurement set up! As an engineer I like your thinking outside the ‘box’ to solve the problem. If you would like me to make you some 17.5 spacers FOC let me know.

[@robsmith7430]

Steve back to his best, you explained it so well can’t wait to see the results on track and the best thing is I own the same car 😁

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thanks. 👍

[@IanFarmer]

Every day is a school day! Looking forward to seeing it back on track and the differences I lap times after all the mods

[@gordonlarson0]

Amazing video Steve - so informative! And well done for doing a better job than the factory with just some spacers and a bit of gumption. I think you should also look at developing your bump steer measurement tool!

[@ScottPC]

I never ever understood bump steer, all makes sense now!

[@tonyjones7372]

thanks for a informative vid, something I have never quite understood, which is why I never stray away from factory fittings on my suspension. back in UK, so having a good play with my own spanners!

[@grahamefreestone5309]

It kept me very interested because I didn't know what bump steer was when you mentioned it in the previous video, but after watching this one, I still have no idea.. Lol. Joking apart, I definitely learned from this one and I know what bump steer is now.. 👍

[@paulrichardson1417]

Nice one, Steve. What a result! Look forward to the test on how it drives. 👍🏻

[@vinnie5519]

Am not going to pretend like I no what your on about but I loved it well done...so much information 👍

[@sparkplug964]

Suspension setup really is a black art and just goes to show how difficult it can be. Will be great when where allowed on track again to see the results.

[@grahamrowland6681]

Great video I have learned something new. Thanks for taking the time to explain and film it all

[@reececrook9390]

These are the videos I love! Interesting stuff, keep it up steve!

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thank you 👍

[@chrisyoung5573]

Compulsive viewing Steve, if anyone thought it was a case of engine mods then race the crap out of it on the track think again. Great video. Look forward to the performance comparisons on the track. (if any of us get anywhere near a track this year)

[@ResurwreckAutosUK]

Nice one Steve great video are you off work now some of us are still going to work loving the st videos 👊👊

[@Sparkplugsteve]

I'm not working at the moment sadly.

[@ResurwreckAutosUK]

Spark Plug Steve as long as you and your family are safe that’s priceless hopefully this mad World gets back to normal soon

[@michaelanderson2689]

Why not put steering arms on, so they connect from the top! This not the same as raising the rack?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

No that would work opposite and make it worse. The aim is to level out the tie rods and take the angle out of them.

[@lloydjones7590]

Great technical vid Steve very well explained, I used to work on Formula fords back in the 80s. I had tubes offset welded on the bottom of tracking gauges For Bump Steer and clamp the disc to hold it, I could never remember which way to get it right ,so I always put a washer under the rose joint that's connected to the upright arm if it right great if not I used shave down the upright if I was going in the wrong direction. A lot easier on the Formula Fords alot better access , than a road car. Anyway great vids thanks.

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thank you loyd

[@gerryhayes6385]

Good work Steve 🔧🔧😀😀

[@symonsugden1351]

No idea what you are talking about Steve but as usual really intresting

[@WhiskeyGulf71]

My mind is properly blown now ! Before watching your video, literally the video before was from another channel, DannyDC2 & he was doing alignment on his Toyota MRS.

[@samturner3204]

So In my st200 when i go to move into another lane under full throttle as I'm crossing over the white line my car feels as though its pulling me left to right and I feel as though I'm having to correct it constantly to stay in the intended direction , it feels like torque steer but I'm guessing it cant be as I'm already doing some speed, could this be bump steer? Great video btw wish I had the knowledge you had on this stuff be grateful for a reply, cheers 👍

[@mickiedean4506]

I had this on my fiesta st I dropped the front tyre pressure down to about 28 a lot better

[@samturner3204]

@@mickiedean4506 interesting I'll try it thanks

[@lascar48]

Great work Steve.

[@philipnewton7524]

Very interesting stuff Steve when you test drive the car it should hold the corners better more control full marks to you mate for having the bottle to do this and showing everyone else these things can be done by a DIY mechanic Phil from stoke

[@jamie-hb8gy]

"Fart is loading" I nearly choked on my haribo😂😂😂

[@Hunter-gq9er]

Brilliant video. Very interesting I've learned a lot about bum steer.

[@burgerpeach]

well done mate, very well done...i actually cheered 👍

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thanks burger.

[@krismason3568]

Sum boy sparkplugsteve.😎

[@hibbs79]

You sir are one clever s.o.b. respect to you for going with your gut. Top video... Obviously I still don't understand it lol. 👍

[@chrisblay]

Ford probably spent thousands in r&d setting the original factory suspension up. You have made bespoke adjustments for a few quid. I like the home made measuring kit.

[@stevesracingbits]

Ford built a road car not a track car, a track car is a complety different setup to a road car

[@stuwillis7710]

Excellent videos keep them coming. Use a breaker bar on the tight bolts not your ratchet. I know it’s a quality ratchet but over working it on tight bolts will damage the ratchet mechanism. Keep up the good work

[@stuwillis7710]

Steve. Do you think now you adjusted the bump steer, and got the measurements down lower than standard that the steering might now be a little neutral ? Obviously it had to be adjusted after your upgrades but I just wonder if the setting nearer to stock might of been the one. Gives you the ST feel, maybe your new setting might take away the fun. I could obviously be very wrong and the fun factor may of doubled. I just been thinking on it be interesting if you could make up spaces for the two size adjustments and drive it on both to try it out.

[@garymatthews8970]

Very well explained Steve 👍

[@stuartwest1236]

Great work pal, abet your head was fried trying to work it out 😜

[@charleskay1663]

well that worked out well didnt it i can see your chuffed with yourself . most of all it was a fantastic bbc basic explanation with the hand gestures ive had to explain this to eng students and its not easy to get over i think you did it justice . when you do your first test drive let go of the steering and you should notice its self centres much less if not at all which is correct road cars have self centre built into there steering geometry race cars dont how many turns lock to lock ? ime wondering if theres a quick rack available for it just thinking while it s waiting for the spacers to be made you could just whip one in there ?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thank you very much. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. I don't know of any quick racks but it's pretty good standard really.

[@x8dudtrackdaytoy]

Brilliant video, I’ve been advised to raise my steering rack up around 10-15mm but not sure I can do it while subframe and rack is on the car (Astra h Vxr). Shall be looking at it for sure after watching this 👌👌

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thanks

[@celtos255]

can i ask, whats the point of the upgraded ball joint?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

It's to raise the cars roll centre. 👍

[@alanunknown8932]

Spark Plug Steve you could of just raised the rack in standard ball joints

[@Sparkplugsteve]

@@alanunknown8932 that won't do nothing for the roll centre though.

[@alanunknown8932]

Spark Plug Steve ah got ya, Someone will start making these rack raisers to sell on due to this video. Get in there first

[@tedwhitehall2540]

Great video, love your enthusiasm.

[@karlclaxton8446]

Amazing mate well done

[@brandonmorris995]

Watch this man you will actually learn something so intresting love it when my phone says he's uploaded

[@jaynethell4330]

Steve mun, just had a thought, would lowering the track rod end give the same affect as highering the rack? My rack is fixed on the bulkhed so no way of lifting it cheers mate

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Yes if you can get extended rod ends you will get similar results.

[@enrobsorussell]

Outstanding technical info, Steve...especially the `loading`. Lol.

[@brianmcfall3962]

Great video best explanation on here

[@JohnWill86]

Cool vid makes me want to do more to my ST150

[@otacon4065]

hi mate, just so I'm clear... your issue was because tour rack is mounted low not high up like say a EP3 civic and you fitted these extended ball joints to a car only lowered 10mm vs lowered a lot (excluding the fact you were trying to fix the stock bumpsteer) as I'm wanting extended ball joints without raising the rack for a EP civic thats going to be lowered 50-70mm but was a bit worried when I started watching this. but then I realised my rack is as high as the head of the engine and I'm going reasonably low ie I should be fine right and the extended ball joints would benefit me?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

The ep3 is know for bad bumpsteer anyway due to its location. But location of the rack isn't just a factor its a lot more complicated than that and due to the motion of all the moving parts. 2 cars cant be compared easily. There is a good video on the civic my moto iq channel on KZbin. It's a blue civic if I remember so go watch that and it will give you all the help you need.

[@James-ns6jm]

Yeaaa.... some great results there mate! Spot on those... okay i don't have a clue but i'm just pretending like i know those results are good. Only bit i got was the far loading bit! Either way i kinda wana know what you've done or how because i would want to improve my ride.

[@reefbloke]

Would you have been able to achieve similar results by lifting the rack by around 10mm on the stock set up or am i missing something?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

The goal was to make the extended ball joints work. They raise the roll centre which is one of the most important geometry aspect of a good handling car.

[@reefbloke]

@@Sparkplugsteve cheers, i thought i was missing something hence the question, i was right lol.

[@christophermason1574]

Steve, may I recommend you don't work on the drivers side front of yobbo, every video of you working on the driver side front wheel you go from spark plug Steve to skid pants Steve 😂 keep up the good work mate

[@Gachafamily_timee]

Love your videos mate very informative👌, have you ever thought about getting a type r for the channel?, would absolutely love to see you working on one

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Iv already done one. Check my playlists.

[@Gachafamily_timee]

Awesome!, will be giving that playlist a watch, thanks mate😁

[@TheGamingDevels]

This video is amazing I’ve no clue how you managed to do that Unreal maths ahahaha honestly think you should make up a kit and start selling them on Facebook pages and eBay it will still unbelievable quick you can’t let your creativity go to waste Steve people like me wont be able to work that out so I’d say defo sell kits on eBay

[@felixtan9908]

Awesome video Steve, talking about bump steer reminds me of my RC buggy days, I learned all the terms and understanding of geometry during that period, this video was a refresher. Just a clarification, on stock coils, the arms are pretty flat, and once lowered, the inner pivot point of the arms on the chassis would be lower than the knuckle, which is not favourable. So when you changed to a longer pivot ball joint, on a lowered car, that would bring the outer pivot point lower, thus making the arms flat again, which how it should be. Did i get it right? So a lowered car with a longer pivot ball would be beneficial?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Yes the ball joint does do that to the lower arm correct. Look up roll centre for a more detailed explanation. Thanks.

[@felixtan9908]

Sorry i was babbling and forgot to mention, yes it effects the roll center. What you did raises the roll center, did i get that right?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Yes spot on. 👍

[@felixtan9908]

Thanks for the clarification steve, something for me to look forward to when i go full coilovers. Keep them videos coming.

[@opelmantamechanic8438]

better check the other side also ;-P . great technical stuff Steve very impressive , I'm surprised you are taking it that far !, i was skeptical that any of it would help anything .but it looks like you did it . Does it drive better now ? and can you avoid all them goats in the road ? tbh i wouldn't have done any of that . 450lbs front springs + adjustable shocks (no coilovers), 300lbs on the rear , remove the front anti roll bar . the idea being a harder spring controls body roll ,pitch yaw etc . and without the ARB it will turn in tighter and wont effect the other side all the time . then just a couple of poly bushes and soft compound tires .

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thanks. Roll Centre is probably the most important factor in car handling that barely anyone considers. I'm 8kg front and rear spring and already got the front arb disconnected. 👍

[@skodakatie7341]

Great video, how’s the lovely Citigo, hope your enjoying it?.

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Yeh it's going well. I need it make an update video on it soon. Thanks.

[@dixiedean2911]

I've started and will be there until the nd Steve 👍🤔

[@jamie-hb8gy]

I really messed up my car today,im lowered 30mm and have bump steer,tierods are at an upwards angle and i spaced the rack with 20mm spacers re aligned and has made it worse WTF🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

[@Sparkplugsteve]

The bump steer is bad in this video due to the extended ball joints.. you shouldn't be spacing the rack 20mm on oem ball joints so put it back to normal.

[@jamie-hb8gy]

@@Sparkplugsteve How can i get rid of the bump steer shall i try 10mm?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

@jamie-hb8gy have you measured the bumper steer? To do it properly you need to try different size spacers while measuring as you go until you find the correct size.

[@jamie-hb8gy]

@@Sparkplugsteve No i haven't in all honesty,i'm definitely getting bump steer though as i thought it was tramlining but swapped from a set of 225/40/18's to 205/50/17 wheels and it's still as bad.Maybe a 20mm spacer was too much 🤦‍♂️

[@dixiedean2911]

Right to the end epic results for you where theres a will you'll find a way.....🧐👍

[@cyrilmckinstry7863]

Happy days that you got it sorted good video good fart also good 😂😂😂👍🍺

[@neilobusk]

and when all this madness is over.... Steve will be offered a job in formula 1... :) N x

[@honestreview1043]

This is way over my head 🤯

[@elandrekok]

Fart plug Steve 🤣 dying

[@richardg290]

Be good if you made kits for these and out them on ebay for sale

[@nathanthomas8583]

Where you from Steve? 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@Sparkplugsteve]

South Wales.

[@nathanthomas8583]

Spark Plug Steve thought the accent was familiar 👍

[@Gofast1234]

M12x1.75 is standard pitch for m12, sure they are metric fine m12x1.5 🤔👍🏻

[@paulward9620]

Fart loading 🤣🤣🤣 but very interesting to watch and see the results

[@TheDevilVaper]

You could almost hear that droop creaking... 😂

[@alejandroklein1685]

loved the work, tha's fucking engeneering at home... i wll definetly study this to variations with my fiesta height here in Argentina

[@Gofast1234]

Your spacer is same length as the ball joints 🤔

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Their extended ball joints so their 17mm longer than standard.

[@Gofast1234]

Spark Plug Steve - jus intriguing that the length u needed was exact same as the uprated joints 🤔

[@Sparkplugsteve]

@@Gofast1234 it was more coincidence really. The aim of the spacers is to get the tie rod arm level. It just so happened with the ride height I'm at it equalled the ball joint extension. If your car wasn't as low as mine the spacer would be less and vice versa. Thanks.

[@Gofast1234]

Spark Plug Steve - fair 👍🏻, informative vid

[@alexaitkenhead6371]

Whats your day job

[@Marzaezone]

#FatherFiesta‼️

[@joshholmes2822]

Do you actually drive this car ?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

No never.

[@compokid1]

FART IS LOADING 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@opexo]

Im happy it turned out better for you but why didnt Ford make it better in the first place?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Safety is their main concern before handling.

[@motovlogger7198]

Fart loading that made me chuckle several times after love the honesty 🤣😎

[@r53leon6]

well i didnt understand what was going on there lol well above what my brain can take in great vid am sure thought steve 👌🏻

[@ronwilliams9691]

Interesting. Toe out under compression is not necessarily a bad thing as it'll contribute to dynamic Ackerman geo. Especially with your stiffer suspension, having more bump steer might not be a bad thing. Don't get me wrong, you'll have more braking stability. I don't know enough about the Fiesta's static geo to comment on anything other than hypotheticals, sorry.

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Thank you. Appreciate the input.

[@JC21x]

FFS Steve the fart again hahhaa!

[@stanelder9995]

This is really interesting - good practical engineering here - two thumbs up! One has to ask though - since this was so (relatively) cheap and easy to fix bump steer on the FiST (even at standard ride height), why the hell didn't Ford do it from the factory..........now I'm interested to check my FoST!

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Toe out on bump makes for a safe car. Ford also have to take into account Bush and ball joint wear and even when the parts are old they still want it to toe out.

[@stanelder9995]

@@Sparkplugsteve Well fair enough - I could see that approach being valid on a standard Fiesta, but the FiST has sport in it's DNA by definition - I suppose no car maker wants their customers going through the hedge backwards (remember Peugeot 205 GTi 1.9........ :)

[@filmboy18]

Cant the rack be spaced up a tiny bit without having extended ball joints? Or am i missing something. (edit) doesn't matter just referenced back to another video of yours. i understand now.

[@Sparkplugsteve]

It can but on a standard road car it's not really needed.

[@fasthracing]

F me I hope all this works!

[@richardsedorski1206]

fasthracing nice one.

[@Nor4x4Way]

Fart loading xD

[@stanelder9995]

Just hope this is not an April fool.........! :)

[@UltimateGamerLive]

Yeah Liverpool fc winning the Premier league this season 😭

[@englishrifleman6556]

I know this is old video.. BUT changing bottom ball joint CANNOT change ride hight. It will change angle of lower arm, but not ride hight. So all your comparison measurements mean nothing. you need to do all comparison with the wheel to arch the same for all.

[@Sparkplugsteve]

I think you have completely misunderstood the whole video. Maybe watch it again.

[@smokemirrors1531]

its just too damn easy to convince yourself its this or that part thats the problem and waste more money

[@cjmackay9804]

Sorry Steve I had to stop watching I didn’t understand a thing you were saying 😂

[@blackcountryme]

I didn't enjoy this episode, my maths teacher was a Welshmen, dai foster (or DIE Mr foster) I was having flashbacks... Ugh... (Shivers)

[@leerobinson4078]

Interesting as this is, Ford spends millions developing these cars and a guy in his shed messing about with ride heights and raising the steering rack. WHY? Can anyone really feel the differences?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

Ford didn't optimise the car for the race track but that's what I'm doing. Basically that's the difference.

[@leerobinson4078]

@@Sparkplugsteve I get that but what you racing in, Le Man 24hrs?

[@Sparkplugsteve]

What answer do you want from me?