Suspension I Have About $600 For A New Suspension, What Do You Make Of This Setup?
- Thread starter James.Little
- Start date
I don't consider the quads to be useless junk. They serve a purpose and they do it pretty well.
Here's the thing...
If you have a HIGH QUALITY set of lower control arms along with some stout upper control arms, then the quad shocks are usually not necessary.
Take a little time and read through these two articles. I think it will answer a lot of the questions that you're asking and they do a pretty good job of explaining it clearly:
http://www.maximummotorsports.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=514_21_98
http://www.maximummotorsports.com/store/index.php?main_page=tech_rear_susp_rlca
@Gearbanger 101 I'm surprised to see that you're not running the Steeda lowers. How do you like to MB Jrs? I have a set of those out in the garage but wasn't finding a lot of feedback on them. What notch did you install them in?
Here's the thing...
If you have a HIGH QUALITY set of lower control arms along with some stout upper control arms, then the quad shocks are usually not necessary.
Take a little time and read through these two articles. I think it will answer a lot of the questions that you're asking and they do a pretty good job of explaining it clearly:
http://www.maximummotorsports.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=514_21_98
http://www.maximummotorsports.com/store/index.php?main_page=tech_rear_susp_rlca
@Gearbanger 101 I'm surprised to see that you're not running the Steeda lowers. How do you like to MB Jrs? I have a set of those out in the garage but wasn't finding a lot of feedback on them. What notch did you install them in?
cobra10494
Founding Member
My setup is tokico blues frnt n back, bbk gripp upper n lowers, torque box reinforcement kit,eibach springs,m.m fr n rear sway bars,no quads,m,m,full length subs,m.m. k member brace,m,m, strut tower brace,m.m. end links and hotchkis castr/cambers on my 90 gt vert..handles incredibly well and you can feel the additional stiffness/strength in the chassis..plus as a vert the cowl shake is non existent.If your going to do the suspension Imho you must do the chassis bracing..that ties it all toghter.My next move is a m.m. 4 point roll bar.
To be frank, I came across the Steeda uppers by accident at a local swap meet. I initially had no intention at all of swapping the stockers out, but I couldn't say no to their $60 price tag.
I also cam across a great deal on the Megabites. Another member had come across a large quantity of the arms, brand new in the box and was selling them at a substantially discounted price. A quick search told me that they were solid arms and a visual inspection of them confirmed it. I also liked the fact that between both the upper and lowers, I had complete adjustability. For what I paid for these arms, I couldn't have bought a set of low quality, non adjustable units for, so I jumped on them.
Zero wheel hop, the car tracks straight and I now have the ability to adjust my pinion angle. I'm happy.
I am keeping my quad shocks, I have done tons of reading about them and I decided I would like to keep them and maybe find a decent replacement. I have decided to go with Tokico HP Series Structs and Shocks. I think I am going to change up rear control arms at a later time. I am now looking into a decent pair of springs and camber plates. Any suggestions? Mind you, I don't mind lowering the car just a bit, but not too much where I bottom out over everything. This is my daily driver, with the occasional race. I like what I see with the SR Lowering Springs and Camber Plates.
IMO, if you're only looking for a slight drop, you're best off just knocking half a coil out of the stock springs and calling it a day. It won't hurt your ride any measureable amount and it gets the job done. You wanna drop the car much more than an inch, then I'd look into a set of proper springs, CC plates, tie rod ends, etc. Otherwise, none of that stuff is necessary.
As for the quad shocks. Keep them until you don't need them. Once you've got the control arms in place, remove them and see if you've still got hop. If it's gone, they're really useless at that point. Controlling wheel hop is their only function. I removed mine long ago...even before I had the aftermarket arms in there and still had no hop. Each car is different.
My current stance seems like 1.25 - 1.5 inch from the fender to the tire in the front and rear. I wouldn't mind going to an inch. I just want to worry about hitting a speed bump and bottoming out.
Slamming the car looks cool, but IMO if you're not able to get it over a speed bump without dragging your exhaust, it's not worth it. We've got terrible roads where I'm from...so getting rid of the 4x4 stance was all I was after. I can get over just about anything without making contact and it still looks good....and I'm running longtube headers.
Our roads are not terrible, if anything I wouldn't mind a slight drop or stock replacement.
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I have a question, do I even need to replace my springs if I don't want to lower my mustang? Do springs wear out like structs and shocks? If I don't change my springs, do I need camber plates? I am trying to spend my money wisely. Thoughts?
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No, you don't need to replace them. They'll settle a little over time (more so the rear than the front) but they generally do not "wear out". Don't be surprised if you've got a harsh ride, if you've got a broken one. My car rode like a tank when I got it. It was already slightly lower than stock, but I assumed it was just cut, or aftermarket springs. Turned out that one of the front spring was broken, but hidden in the isolator where you couldn't see it.
Like I said...I knocked about 1/3-1/2 a coil out of mine, just to drop the front end a slight bit, to match the settled look of the rear. With that little of a drop, you won't need caster/camber plates. The stock plates should work just fine up to about 1" drop.
Stock springs have a drop rate of about 1:2. So for ever inch you remove from the coil spring, you'll lower the car approx. 2". I chopped just about 1/2" out of my spring to drop it 1".
The Tokico's will work with either way.
Sharad
ALWAYS choose the V over the P!!! Wait... what?
Actually, for some reason, I have seen factory springs sag if a car has sit stationary for a long time... but for some reason, they don't seem to wear out from driving. Can't explain that, but I've seen it!
Thanks for the information guys! I am so glad to able to have these concerns address, I am still learning! So a body that probably has more than 100k miles on it (I don't know, its been rolled back due to previous owner restoration). I should replace at the very least:
* Struts and Shocks
* Rear Control Arms
* Sway Bar Bushings & End Links
* 8.8 Bushings
That sounds like a decent upgrade. Unless anybody wants to convince me otherwise I am going with:
Tokico HP Shocks and Struts
BBK Rear Upper and Lower Control Arms (are these pretty good?)
Generic 8.8 bushings and Sway Bar Bushings and End Links
* Struts and Shocks
* Rear Control Arms
* Sway Bar Bushings & End Links
* 8.8 Bushings
That sounds like a decent upgrade. Unless anybody wants to convince me otherwise I am going with:
Tokico HP Shocks and Struts
BBK Rear Upper and Lower Control Arms (are these pretty good?)
Generic 8.8 bushings and Sway Bar Bushings and End Links
As far as "bang for your buck" I think that setup will be fine. I personally would rather have maximum Motorsports controll arms or Team Z Motorsports. That's what I'm doing at least 
And def get subframe connectors!
And def get subframe connectors!
As far as "bang for your buck" I think that setup will be fine. I personally would rather have maximum Motorsports controll arms or Team Z Motorsports. That's what I'm doing at least
Those control arms are a bit out of budget. I want to eventually get a sub frame connector and a struct tower brace.
I would weld in a set of full length sub frame connectors before doing any of the above, personally.
cobra10494
Founding Member
The BBK gripp upper/lowers are a good product.I would go with the arms,strut tower and subs.You will immediately feel the stiffness and solidity of the chassis.Makes driving feel 100x better!
strut Strut S-T-R-U-T...
Sorry... I kept seeing it didn't know if you noticed or not.
Please pardon my rudeness and carry on.
Haha, thanks!strut Strut S-T-R-U-T...
Sorry... I kept seeing it didn't know if you noticed or not.
Please pardon my rudeness and carry on.
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