The dampers and rocker of the 2026 car, Centralia, April 2026

Subsystem 12 of 13

Suspension

Controls the race car's motion to maximize tire grip and achieve the fastest lap times possible.

Our capabilities

Wheelbase: 1550mm

Type: Decoupled heave and roll
Anti-dive / anti-squat: 10% / 10%
Ride height: 40 mm design

Suspension

Maximize grip, maximize speed.

A pushrod clevis and its bracket on the monocoque of the 2026 car

Joining Western Formula Racing’s suspension team creates opportunities to work in a fast paced environment developing one’s toolbox of skills. These skills include learning how to simulate the car in MATLAB, design of every suspension component in SOLIDWORKS, performing a stress analysis on critical components, and hands on manufacturing of components in our machine shop. Then, you will assemble all the components onto the chassis, and finally test the car on the track. This gives the opportunity to optimize the vehicle’s on track set up for various track types and conditions and collect data to improve the design for the following year.

01
Four-post rig testing
Multimatic four-post testing compared damper settings and revealed chassis compliance effects near 6.25 Hz.
02
Welding jigs
3D printed jigs held each bearing seat in place; welded arms measured within a millimetre of CAD.

WFR26E

The assembly

Drag to turn

Changing for 2027

Switching from 13-inch to 10-inch wheels

Entirely new suspension around the new monocoque

New aluminium uprights and spindles, checked with FEA

Dry and wet tyres chosen from tyre test data

Wheel speed sensors for vehicle dynamics data

Rear corner of the 2026 car at the shop door: tyre, damper and pushrod

In the making

How it works

The track width, which drivers found more stable near the limit, and the 1550 mm wheelbase were carried over.

Anti-dive and anti-squat went from 0 to 10 percent so pitch behaviour could be studied, and longer jackscrews widened the ride height range for testing softer springs.

Arms were TIG welded in 3D printed jigs and measured to within a millimetre of CAD.

Testing ran on track and on Multimatic's four-post rig, which showed the car needed roughly 12 percent more front and 20 percent more rear damping than expected.

Since 2021 the car has run decoupled heave and roll, which lets the two be tuned independently instead of trading one against the other.

That programme took five years.

Suspension

Our capabilities

Maximize grip, maximize speed.

Four-post rig testing

Welding jigs

The assembly

Changing for 2027

In the making

How it works

Testing ran on track and on Multimatic's four-post rig, which showed the car needed roughly 12 percent more front and 20 percent more rear damping than expected.

Build the next one.

Shopping bag

Suspension

Our capabilities

Maximize grip, maximize speed.

Four-post rig testing

Welding jigs

The assembly

Changing for 2027

In the making

How it works

The WFR26-E suspension is an intentional evolution of the 2025 car, prioritising predictability, tunability and validation over a clean-sheet redesign.

Geometry was built as parametric kinematic models in SolidWorks to track roll centre and pitch centre movement, bump steer and motion ratios through four major iterations.

A matrix-based force solver sized every member under worst-case loads with a tiered factor of safety, and FEA checked the rods most at risk of buckling.

Testing ran on track and on Multimatic's four-post rig, which showed the car needed roughly 12 percent more front and 20 percent more rear damping than expected.

The layout is double-wishbone with pushrod actuation.

The team also builds its own wheels: single-piece monolithic carbon rims at 1.7 kg each, replacing a 3.75 kg commercial three-piece.

Build the next one.