Car-development engineers are invariably discontented with the status quo. That?s especially true in ride-and-handling development, where twin-tube shock absorbers?more accurately called suspension dampers?are now under scrutiny. These 100-plus-year-old devices are finally prime candidates for replacement by more sophisticated hardware.
Twin-tube dampers are inexpensive to manufacture, serviceable for tens of thousands of miles, and entirely suitable for mainstream use. That said, they?re susceptible to wear, which deteriorates their performance over time, and they lack the tuning flexibility offered by newer damper designs.
Enter Multimatic, a Canadian enterprise that strives to be every car company?s problem solver. This suspension-systems and composite-body specialist is currently Ford?s ally for constructing its GT supercar. In addition, Multimatic’s Motorsports division has a lengthy history of designing, engineering, constructing, and campaigning race cars for top-series competition around the globe. In 2010, Multimatic applied for a patent on an innovative suspension damper. Code named DSSV, for Dynamic Suspensions Spool Valve, this design initially proved its merit by helping Newman-Haas Racing win seven of the 19 races and the driver?s championship in the 2002 CART series. DSSV hardware became mandatory equipment in five other major racing series between 2006 and 2015. Red Bull Racing used them to win four consecutive Formula 1 titles (2010?2013) and nearly ...