Following the success of the HSV Owners Club tech night (see here), we prepared another technical night, this time for the popular new Toyota 86. Again, our workshop was full of eager 86 owners, and in true Heasmans fashion we showed them the ins and outs of making a good car even better!
Not often will you find such a large aftermarket support base for a new car, but already being such an iconic platform, the Toyota 86 sets a standard for new compact sports cars. With handling being a main selling point of this vehicle, we showed owners how to get the most out of a great chassis.
Heasmans carry the full Bilstein range for the Toyota 86. The range starts at the the Bilstein B6 and Bilstein B8 high-performance shock absorbers to the Bilstein B14 height-adjustable coilover system and at the race end of the spectrum, the full-adjustable Race Spec Bilstein B16 coilovers.
Equipment is all good and well, but learning how it all works was the aim of the tech night. A legend in his own right, Doug Heasman explained to the group how the classic wheel alignment machine worked. Sometimes old school is best, and is shown by Doug’s preference to use it to this day – even with the latest ‘TRON’ aligner right next to him!
After explaining the importance of having your wheels aligned properly, a few of our professional technicians were explaining the other variables in wheel setup. Namely camber, castor and toe, these settings impact how your vehicle drives, corners and reacts in different situations.
Upstairs, our technician Paul explained the inner workings of a Bilstein shock. What people don’t see on the inside is the oil passing through the pistons and shims within the shock. The quality in different oils internally sets apart Bilstein from the rest. With quality in design and materials and also attention paid to things such as oil viscosity and frothing characteristics, there’s no wonder why Bilsteins are a cut above the rest.
Paul also explained the difference in different shocks for different uses and also how Bilsteins are designed for complete rebuilds if need be, prolonging the life and value of them. Having the ability to be repaired in case of adverse conditions, rather than having to buy a whole new set, is definitely an advantage. Bilstein allow for a 10% degredation before advising an internal rebuild, meaning your Bilsteins will never run at less than 90% of its full capability in its lifetime! How cool is that?
Doug was out and about on the night chatting to owners, and giving them all some great advice on handling with his long experience in the business and also his experience in racing! From race engineer to a group of daily drivers – that’s the kind of advice you can expect from Heasmans. It’s quite rare a workshop will share its secrets, but it seems to be a feature of all our tech nights!
Feel free to drop by and have a chat with the legend Doug himself, or any of our other technicians about what we can do to make your car even better! Also stay tuned for our next technical night and some get some tips from the professionals! Enjoy the rest of the photos.
Photography by SELECTNINE.