Chassis and mainly suspension design is a bit a black art and always a compromise between certain handling traits, it's a shame that Chris Gibbs is not available online to explain why certain decisions where made regarding the suspension design and setup. The main thing being that Martin Keenan formerly of MK Engineering had a large part to play in the design of the car and suspension, Martin has built a reputation in the Kit Car community for his design and car building skills - he is well respected in this area.
Certainly from my experience and other builders i have been involved with the handling of the roadster is not compromised in any way and handles, on road and track, in a balanced and very predictable way and definitely on a par with other brands of a similar nature.
The main thing is that the guide is intended exactly as that and if a builder is not comfortable with certain aspects then they can be changed to suit the builders preference, the philosophy of the self build concept which is why most of us are building to the guide so that we can have the satisfaction of a self built roadster at the end of the day not just a bolt together kit. I have seen most builders customise certain parts of their build for personal preference some more than others.
The above is not intended to defend the Haynes Roadster for the sake of Saturn but is plainly a personal opinion as to why the guide and roadster has been quite successful and we all love the self build approach to the car. A main reason why i put a lot of work into producing a guide to supplement the book for a change of donor car to the Mx-5, some people have amended this also to suit their own preferences, it certainly hasn't been done to generate lots of orders but to keep the self build culture alive.
Please don't take this the wrong way Dan, it's just my opinion that's all whether it be right or wrong.
Regards....AndyH
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