Are All Aftermarket Shocks/Struts Created Equal?

[Muy_Pyro]

Well, I've decided that before doing more HP upgrades, I need to address my Brakes and Suspention. Rotors are warped (I assume just from being a 10 year old car) and the suspention is less than perfect. ... I just figure I'll go with the Cobra upgrades on the brakes (as I mentioned in a previous post).

Now, I've never really read up on suspention upgrades .... and there are alot of things you can upgrade from C/C plates to Ball joints, bump steer kits, etc, etc...

So what do you really need to improve the ride on our stangs? Would just Springs and Shocks/Struts be a good start, or should I get C/C plates, Bump Steer Kit, Subframe Connectors, Crontrol Arms??? Someone please enlighten me with some advice. I'd hate to waste money on parts I don't need or crappy brands that suck. Thanks for any help in advance!

 

[bimmertech]

remeber this is just my take on the situation, but here is what i would do. eibach pro kit springs, rubber insulators, no cc plates, tockico shocks/struts, 03 cobra control arms, good set of rlca/uca, cobra rear swaybar, panhard bar. if you watch your prices and wrench it yourself this can be done for around $2k and i liken this setup with the handling of a c4 corvette. oh yeah some good subframe connectors and strut brace are good too.

 

[Venom351R]

Im in the same boat I need to upgrade my brakes and my suspension. To really make your car ride/handle well Id go w/ some upper/lower rear control arms and a good set of adjustable coil over springs in the front.

 

[5.0_GT_kid]

Subframes would be my first modification to the suspension. After that throw some control arms on there and you should be pretty happy. If you want more get some springs (I prefer Steeda sport springs) and some shocks/struts (I prefer the Edelbrock IAS)

 

[Muy_Pyro]

Sooo .... Are most of the control arms the same? could I just go with MAC, or is there a prefered brand? While i think of it, what's the Eibach kit with the 2" drop up front and 1.5" rear drop??

Thanks for your input Bimmertech --- you seem to be right there with my questions! I appreciate it!

 

[5.0_GT_kid]

As far as I can tell they are all pretty close. Blue Oval Industires is selling a package of subframes and upper/lower control arms for $220 I think.

 

[V8SHME8]

The answer to your question is absolutely not. Alot of struts totally suck. Many struts like KYB Gr2s and Tokico premiums are the same length as the stock struts meaning they are ideally not designed for lowering. If you are lowering the car you want a shorter shock as well. Furthermore, Tokicos shocks have a weaker lower shock mount so coilovers in the rear will not be an option down the road.

Adjustability is something to consider also if this is a street car that sees the track from time to time. I like Bilsteins for the best bang for the buck since they are a monotube design. They also have internal bumpstops that can be adjusted and they can be revalved by a number of places. If money allowed, you could go with some Koni DAs. Buying parts twice is always sucks so try and buy the good stuff the first time around.

If you are not really looking for a performance minded setup, then just buy the Bullitt setup. The Tokicos are valved for the springs that come with the kit. It is 600 front 250 rear which helps point you in the right direction. Plus it is only like 450 bucks.

http://www.gefracing.com/Merchant2/...e=G&Product_Code=M5400A&Category_Code=BULLITT

 

[V8SHME8]

eibach pro kit springs, rubber insulators, no cc plates, tockico shocks/struts, 03 cobra control arms, good set of rlca/uca, cobra rear swaybar, panhard bar. oh yeah some good subframe connectors and strut brace are good too.

A panhard bar will cause the upper control arms to bind alot. If you run a panhard bar, you need to put on a torque arm or third link and deep six the upper control arms.

 

[bimmertech]

Sooo .... Are most of the control arms the same? could I just go with MAC, or is there a prefered brand? While i think of it, what's the Eibach kit with the 2" drop up front and 1.5" rear drop??

Thanks for your input Bimmertech --- you seem to be right there with my questions! I appreciate it!

the 2" drop eibach are the sportlines and you'll prolly need a good set of cc plates with those springs. with just a 1.5" drop you usually don't need cc plates. besides if you want a really agressive suspension geared for street driving a softer spring coupled with a bigger front sway bar will be much more streetable than a stiffer spring. i have a kenny brown med/heavy duty sway bar with adjustable rod ends and a pro kit drop and you will be hard pressed to achieve body roll before your nerves give out. as far as the panhard bar(phb) goes, it is a very worthy mod to a car, granted that a torque arm would be better if ou can justify the cost and all the custom work associated with it. if you think i'm bs'n just ask dark 5.0 what he thought when he drove my car. keep in mind i have a vert with no frame connectors or add on braces. oh yeah, i run the tockicos from a mach 1/bullit and really like them, hard to beat for the price.

 

[V8SHME8]

the 2" drop eibach are the sportlines and you'll prolly need a good set of cc plates with those springs. with just a 1.5" drop you usually don't need cc plates. besides if you want a really agressive suspension geared for street driving a softer spring coupled with a bigger front sway bar will be much more streetable than a stiffer spring.

CC plates are mandatory on any lowered mustang as they desperately need positive caster. If you lower a 94/95 more than about an inch, you have already gone into the red zone as far as front control arm angle. Unless you want to relocate the front control arms up, then I suggest you stick with a minimal drop. Furthermore, Mustangs respond better to more spring rate and less sway bar if you are really contemplating a more aggressive setup. I find that there is too much induced under steer from the stock sway bars and stiffer spring rates. Maximum Motorsports makes and adjustable rear sway bar and you can get a Bullitt front sway bar which is hollow.

as far as the panhard bar(phb) goes, it is a very worthy mod to a car, granted that a torque arm would be better if ou can justify the cost and all the custom work associated with it.

A torque arm and a panhard bar locate the rear axle in different ways. If you have a panhard bar, you need some kind of kind of third link/Torque arm to help locate the rear fore and aft. The Phb/ Watts link locates the axle laterally. Evolution Motorsports makes a third link which requires no fabrication to install, just a welder. The MM torque arm bolts right on as well (although some h-pipes require some modification to the cross over). I am not sure where you get your information, but your tech is off.

 

[bimmertech]

photo of my 95 with phb, stock style uca's NO TORQUE ARM. it works great!

 

[V8SHME8]

Based on the picture, you also do not have subframe connectors, are you going to recommend not running those too? Panhard bars and Watts links fight the ucas, and if/when pushed hard enough can cause damage if the ucas are left in place. The panhard bar locates the rear better than the triangulated uppers that Ford put on the car so the two will fight each other.

By the way, you do know that 03 cobra control arms are no different than stock other than a divit to allow for more clearance of a larger tire. They add nothing to the handling of the car.

Just because you think your car handles well does not translate into 1:25 second lap times at Leguna Seca. A complete lack of body roll will adversely affect traction resulting in the car skidding. You actually probably lost a lot of front end grip based on your setup (not that you could tell the difference). You need more spring to help offset the stiffer sway bars that you put on. The best thing to do is spend some money educating the driver instead of frivolously wasting money on your car.

www.corner-carvers.com/forums is where the big boys play, maybe you can learn something.

Some other food for thought.
http://www.maximummotorsports.com/panhard.asp
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...f=sr_1_1/102-3621474-4153726?v=glance&s=books
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...f=sr_1_1/102-3621474-4153726?v=glance&s=books

It is posts like your’s that make stangnet the no tech circus.

 

[91LX_5L]

I just ordered:

MM CC plates
MM LCAs
Steeda UCAs
MM Front Coil Overs
Tokico Illumina 5 ways

Ill let you guys know how I like it.

 

[bimmertech]

here is some food for thought: kenny brown recommends a stiffer sway bar with softer springs and a softer sway bar with stiffer springs. the 03 cobra arms come with stiffer bushings and a diff ball joint. since the phb releives the uca's from locating the axle side to side it has less chance to bind in an up and down motion which is where most of the so called bind is taking place. i don't have subs on that car cuz it's rare and i don't belive in decreasing the value of it. my 94 has a mm 6pt cage, full length subs. as far as educating this driver it has been done by chaffey college, uti, and school of automotive machinists. this is all i am going to argue with you on cuz you have obviously read way more magazine articles than i have, therefore much more an expert on suspension than anyone else.

 

[phils88gt]

Since when did mustangs become rare? Just in case you were unsure I looked up the information for you since it appears you are otherwise inept. In 1994: 123,198 mustangs were produced. In the following year Ford worked hard at holding back cars and allowed a scant 165,037 cars out of its doors. That is a sum of 288,235 cars. Congratulations you are one of the few to have owned the mighty 5.0L SN95. Just in case you try to pull some crap about having a cobra. They made 10,014 0f those. Just in case you become confused I included a link below to the color information too just in case you had to know.

http://www.mustangheaven.com/Production Numbers/sn95nums.htm
http://www.mustangheaven.com/Production Numbers/cobra9495.htm
-Phil

 

[bimmertech]

Since when did mustangs become rare? Just in case you were unsure I looked up the information for you since it appears you are otherwise inept. In 1994: 123,198 mustangs were produced. In the following year Ford worked hard at holding back cars and allowed a scant 165,037 cars out of its doors. That is a sum of 288,235 cars. Congratulations you are one of the few to have owned the mighty 5.0L SN95. Just in case you become confused I included a link below to the color information too just in case you had to know.

http://www.mustangheaven.com/Production Numbers/sn95nums.htm

-Phil

1995 cobra hardtop/convertible(in sig) only 499 made. all were black with tan interior and block soft top. oh yeah they made 8 gt's that were used for press brochures, they were yellow with white interior and white soft top.

 

[V8SHME8]

since the phb releives the uca's from locating the axle side to side it has less chance to bind in an up and down motion which is where most of the so called bind is taking place.

View attachment 509831


Look at that arc and tell me how the hell your incomprehensible jackassery makes any sense. The two wheels are mounted by a large stick in the center last time I checked, and so the wheels can not move independently of each other. Therefore when one wheel goes up, the entire axle must twist causing binding in the uppper control arms. This is why Ford did not box the ucas and used silly puddy for the bushings. Furthmore, this is the reason that maximum motorsports does not recommend urethane in the upper control arms.

"Do NOT use urethane in the upper arms to improve the side to side motion of the axle. Because of the three dimensional movement of the upper arms, severe binding will be induced as the suspension moves--with or without a Panhard bar." MM

You are just flat out wrong, I am speechless. It is like looking for an elephant in your backyard. I give you all this information and you are too obtuse to take 30 seconds and read. It is like you have an insatiable lust for stupidity. If you spent 2 minutes on www.corner-carvers.com you would find about 75 posts stating what I have already told you. I suggest you go back to school and try and listen when they are talking to you.

 

[phils88gt]

Ok, you have a 95 removable hard top. They made 500 of those, so what’s the problem? You don't think the future owner of your car would approve of the fact you whished to protect your investment and not have the car twist and distort all over the place. I’m sure the future owner of your vehicle will have a smile a mile wide on his face when he hits the open road in a 20 year old car that rattles like a cement mixer. Just as his smile reaches the point at which his face is about to burst open the car will leak water from its constant distortion from lack of structural support. Are you now going to tell me since the car has a removable lid that negates the fact it has no roof and all its loads are carried in the floor pan? Perhaps the added weight of the convertible components performs magic incalculable by science and negates the forces at work. Face it, the car would flex less with subframes and you are a for worrying about what the future owner of you car wants. It is painfully apparent you live in your own reality and do not take any suggestions at all even if you are totally wrong. I think someone else already pointed that out.
Phil

 

[Muy_Pyro]

TTT

Ok, So now that everyone nuked eachother this is what I'm thinking for a starting setup. Someone save me from my own stupidity and let me know if this is ok, or I'm wasting money and/or need anything else!

1) Eibach Sportline Springs (2"F, 1.8"R Drop) @ $209.00
2) Tokico Prem. Shock (Stock - 1.75" Drop) @ $54.00 ea.
3)Tokico Prem. Strut (At least 2" Drop) @ $99.00 ea.
4) MM C/C Plates @ $179.95
(http://www.speedconcepts.net/index.php?cPath=21_38)

This is about $695 + S/H

Would this be a better setup than the Bullit Pkg that has the Black Tokico's and 'C Springs' ?? (http://www.stangsuspension.com/store/comersus_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?idCategory=95)

... After I pay off this stage, I'm thinking some Subframes, and Control Arms.

 

[Muy_Pyro]

P.S.

Thanks for everyone who's helped thus far ... I appreciate your guy's input