Searching questions from a nomadless wonderer

[Antong]

Morning all,

It's sunny, I'm dreaming of soon to be Nomad ownership and whilst musing on what juicy upgrade may lie ahead I thought it would be interesting to enquire of the hive mind.

So as the search function was lacking, hive mind please share:

Nomads are light and standard brakes are small. Are the Alcons really just for bragging rights?

Has anyone owned or test driven the Bilstein dampers against the Fox ones? My understanding is that the fox are now second gen and more improved, as someone who will do 60:40 road to offroad can anyone share some wisdom?

Taaaaaaa,

[phil4]

I think Karl can help you with the dampers, as I've not got/had either.

Alcons. I think they help massively on the front. As there's no servo or assistance, you have a much better connection with what occurs, and since the fronts do most of the work, you can tell and feel this.

Also, don't be under any illusion that the Nomad is slow. It might not accelerate like the atom, or feel like the atom, and the windscreen you'll likely get does isolate you, but it's still a sizeable chunk of metal going at fair speeds. Anchors that work are a good idea, so I'd not call them bragging.

All IMHO though, so open to discussion.

[Karl V]

Hi Antong.

Your timing is impeccable because by becoming a Full Club Member (welcome aboard!), not only do you have access to the Events details section, but also the Technical section of the forum.

As [mention]phil4[/mention] said, I got a bit obsessed with the Fox suspension soon after getting my car and wrote up a few notes - https://www.ariel.club/forum/viewtopic.php?f=79&t=17188. I believe [mention]Mutley[/mention] did the same earlier this year.

This may be worth a read with regards brakes - https://www.ariel.club/forum/viewtopic. ... ns#p293097 - although it focuses mainly on the rears. I had standard brakes in my Atom 2 and they were adequate for normal road driving, even when pressing on. The Nomad though is quite a bit heavier. I went full on windscreen, front and rear bumper bars, winch, heavy 15" rally wheels etc. etc. and really didn't feel comfortable without the 4 pot fixed callipers on the front at least. I have recently upgraded the rear Sports brakes to Alcons too and while the Alcons do take longer to warm up than the standard/sports brakes, the car does feel more balanced now. And by that, I mean I don't have to have the rear bias wound all the way to the back to 'compensate' for the weaker rear brakes. Plus... the rears lock up instantly now with the hydraulic handbrake regardless of speed. With the Sports brakes, it would only lock when cornering, never in a straight line. Probably not a fundamental requirement, but... well, just because...

Anyway, welcome again. Hope access to the Tech forum will help pass the time until you get a car!

Karl.

[phil4]

One final bit to say on Karl's brake mention above. If you're halfway tempted by the rear Alcons, and intend to keep and MOT the Nomad in 3 years time, add the boring handbrake and Alcons now to save money. It's a lot of work (and so cost) to add it later.

[Karl V]

One final bit to say on Karl's brake mention above. If you're halfway tempted by the rear Alcons, and intend to keep and MOT the Nomad in 3 years time, add the boring handbrake and Alcons now to save money. It's a lot of work (and so cost) to add it later.

Yes! Good point. Anyone want some second-hand Sports brakes

https://www.ariel.club/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=17890

[Antong]

@Karl V Thanks for the link to your write up on the suspension an interesting and informative read.

[phil4]

Anton, I’ve shared this elsewhere and it’s an ad for a driving instructor, but features the Nomad reasonably well.



It’s one daft car that makes you smile a lot.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mutley]

Hi [mention]Antong[/mention] , As [mention]Karl[/mention] mentioned I upgraded my Nomad from standard Bilsteins to Fox suspension last October. It was a toss-up between the Fox suspension and a supercharger - about the same price. I've driven a N/A Nomad and a s/charged one. And I've driven with Bilstein and Fox. To me the suspension upgrade is the best bang for the buck. The car is a revelation on the Foxes after the Blisteins. The Blisteins were a bit crashy on road but way to firm for off-road and with nothing to adjust. It's much sweeter on-road with he standard setting on the Foxes, steering ride and grip are all better. Even the missus said 'Wow' and she wasn't even driving it. With the same settings it floats over off-road bumps and ruts. I'm hoping to soften it further for our forthcoming Salisbury hoon and see how it goes. I have the bigger brakes but haven't experienced the standard ones so I can't compare. However, the Alcons are perfect as far as I'm concerned with an amazing range of modulation. You can feather them or get the tyres squeeling which takes a good push. Takes a bit of getting used to after a normal road car, but feels like a well set-up track car esp. as you can adjust the front-rear balance.

[TBev]

Hi, my spec started off with Ohlins and N/A with Alcon front and standard rears.
Whilst I can't help with the suspension question I can help with the brakes.

I upgraded almost immediately to a Supercharger as I felt the car wasn't what it needed to be without. Once this was upgraded and had the wife crying with laughter at the pure shock of the car I turned my attention to the handling.

The handling is really what ever you want it to be with a Nomad, and thats really the fun of it.
I got told by the factory that the rear brake upgrade would make a huge difference, and I was very skeptical, however after I got them fitted I can confirm it really does.
Its not the obvious improvment in braking its the grin factor. If you have standard on the rear you have to tug the hydraulic handbrake pretty hard, or unbalance the car first. With the Alcons, you can simply feather the handbrake, turn in and boot the throttle. Its just easier and more predicatable.

If you want a sideways machine, get the mud terrain tyres as well, although be very very careful in the wet, soften the suspension and pretend your Ken Bloc. If you want something more precise, tighten up the suspension and put on 18 Inch AD08 tyres and the thing will grip and be a precise as a sports car.

Just FYI generally I leave mine 1/2 way between road and off road settings and run the mud terrains virtually the whole time, apart from track days or to get to the factory and back in a day (6-7 hours of driving).

You will love it