|
I've loved the UZZ32 since I first heard about it. It's like a complete clusterfuck of Citroën's insanity and Toyota's tech wizardry, it's glorious.
|
#
¿
Aug 21, 2015 13:05
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 13:37 |
|
|
Citroën were deep into hydropneumatic suspension since the mid 1955s, first on the Traction Avant and a few years later on the magnificent DS. They weren't really active systems as such, all they did was provide a progressive nitrogen spring (the green spheres), linked suspension front-to-rear (so in essence, when the front hit a bump, the rear would rise lessen the impact and vice versa), self-leveling and adjustable ride height. It gave a supremely smooth ride that feels completely effortless and is extremely comfortable, but the handling is less than ideal, to say the least. It was made for cruising, not for racing (although the DS did reasonably well in desert rallying due to its ability to soak up bumps. Active hydropneumatic suspension was introduced on the XM in 1989 in the form of the Hydractive system, which will sense body roll and pitch due to acceleration/braking and cornering, and counteract it by sending more pressure to the relevant parts of the system, or couple in additional spheres to stiffen up the suspension, for instance on the right side of the car during left turns. The Hydractive system has seen several generations, most famously on the Xantia Activa from 1994, which featured active anti roll bars, much more aggressive programming and the almost complete elimination of body roll. An Activa-equipped Xantia V6 still holds the record for the fastest time through Teknikens Värld's infamous moose test, faster than a Porsche 996 GT2. Unfortunately it didn't sell particularly well, since most Citroën buyers want comfort above all and don't really care too much about body roll or handling on the limit. The latest (and possibly last) generation system on the C6 and current C5 is something that has to be experienced to be believed. Apart from being fully active, with the ability to change damping profiles on the fly, the system works in two modes according to the driving situation. "Sky hook" mode for normal driving, where the car is as decoupled from the road as possible, and "road hook" mode for stability during cornering. I know I sound like a Citroën marketing pamphlet, but it is actually slightly disconcerting just how smoothly and seamlessly it goes from absolute comfort to confident cornering and back. But in my mind, the real party trick is how the car acts when you hit a bump. The suspension registers the bump and since it knows the exact wheelbase of the car and how fast it is traveling, it will then prepare the rear suspension for the bump, lessening the impact to almost completely negate the impact. Unfortunately, Citroën are probably going to drop the hydropneumatic active suspension from the next generation C5. They say it's because conventional suspension has finally achieved the same comfort level at a much lower price and with lesser maintenance costs, thanks to progressive spring rates (one of the big advantages of air suspension) and magnetic ferrofluid dampers. But us true Citroënists know that's bullshit, and that no steel spring will ever match a nitrogen-filled sphere 
KozmoNaut fucked around with this message at 21:20 on Dec 28, 2015 |
|
#
¿
Dec 28, 2015 21:16
|
|
|
ShittyPostmakerPro posted:It would be a lot harder for me as to retain the touch functionality (actually a matrix of LEDs and photodiodes) system does not exist in any modern devices - trying to convert the output from that panel would be very difficult. A conventional touch monitor would not work as the plastic front 'glass' on the EMV units would get in the way. There is very little clearance around this to mount a monitor flush to the front panel. The actual LCD sits about 5mm behind the plastic. The only solution would be a non-touch LCD with an external touch panel. I've actually used an in-car computer system that used this technology for touch. Unfortunately it was a custom-made $10,000 apiece navigation system built primarily for ambulances, and it was 10 years ago.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2016 18:02
|
|
|
ShittyPostmakerPro posted:I'm now looking for compact diesel V6 engines around the 230hp mark. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_AJD-V6/PSA_DT17 It would have to be the 3.0, or you'd be limited to ~205hp in stock form. Maybe 230-240hp realistically with a remap.
|
|
#
¿
May 5, 2016 20:25
|
|