HELP MY SUSPENSION

do you have an anti-sway bar up front?

stang2841 said:

if I fool around in my car it feels like im driving a boat, I got BBK specific lowering springs and competition engineer subframes and still no such luck.


I think it could be my shocks that makes my car fly everywhere, you go to fishtail and it flys one direction then when you counter steer it flys back, thats normal though for the fox what isnt normal is the front of the car in the air it feels like its in the air......



well heres the thing I want a kit that takes care of everything but I got springs and subframes......


I want a great handling car, dont care if I got to spend 1000 dollars I want a SOLID CAR , another thing is I want 4 Wheel Disks and 5 lug, where would you buy this?

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It sounds as if your struts are worn out and/or your shock/strut valving is not matched properly to your spring rates. I'm not sure what spring rates your BBK's are, but I am going to assume that they are a bit more than stock.

With regards to your other handling issues, you are correct that the Fox-body Mustang suspension is prone to "snap" oversteer due to excessive rear roll bind and a high rear roll center. There are a couple of ways to address this, but first let me say to avoid the hard polyurethane bushings in the rear control arms, especially the uppers...it makes this snap oversteer situation worse because these bushings allow it to occur at a higher speed, often with devastating results. There are control arms with a special soft polyurethane bushing at one end to reduce bind...like the Maximum Motorsports pieces. With a street car, you're just better off going with a Steeda 5-link, or Griggs Racing or Maximum Motorsports torque-arm/panhard bar rear suspension, all of which address this roll bind/snap oversteer issue. Pick and choose carefully, for what you don't know about two seemingly similar control arms can put you into the safety wall at the track or into a ditch on the side of a highway.

Other than that, I would use polyurethane bushings (PST, Energy Suspension) in other parts of the suspension and chassis (front control arms, sway bars, struts/shocks, motor & tranny mounts, etc.). However, I would further install grease fittings onto the movable parts so that you can grease them up periodically...they will squeak and wear quickly if allowed to become dry.

Brakes: Let's just say that the fastest cars on the road course are not the ones with the largest engines, but the ones with the largest brakes. That said, get the best system your budget will allow. They can be quite expensive, but truly worth every penny...and you do get what you pay for. Not many mods fall into that category. Baer, Ford Motorsport, Wilwood, Stainless Steel Brakes, and others offer kits for the Mustangs. As a general rule, the larger the rotor diameter and the more pistons on the calipers, the better. Now, you can do a budget-minded 5-lug 4-wheel disc swap utilizing parts from other Ford vehicles and different year Mustangs...and that may be fine for a strictly street-driven vehicle. It's up to you.

Read some of the other "Suspension" threads on this site for further information.

autoXr1... You da man! If you happen to disappear before I'm ready to work over my syspension, I'll have to hunt you down and stalk you to get my suspension questions answered. I think I've pasted and printed just about everything you've typed about suspension over the last month. Primarily, due to your ability to put something I know very little about into plain english. With luck, I'll be hitting you up soon to run a few combos by you.

Edit: Not to hiijack the thread but: What do you think of the new Steeda Billet Adjustable Control Arm with spherical bearings and Delrin bushings as a first suspension mod preceeding the 5-Link 2 Suspension?

Daggar said:

What do you think of the new Steeda Billet Adjustable Control Arm with spherical bearings and Delrin bushings as a first suspension mod preceeding the 5-Link 2 Suspension?

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They appear to be good pieces, but I have no knowledge of their durability on the track or street, or whether they are of a slightly different length than the stock piece, altering the pinion angle.

Delrin plastic is about the best material for a bushing designed to rotate in two dimensions (up/down). It's very firm, but is not brittle, and virtually eliminates deflection. That said, before ordering, make sure they have grease fittings. Like polyurethane, once the lubrication is gone, it will wear quickly and squeak. BTW, use a teflon-based grease used for marine applications...it won't wash off in the rain or trips through the car wash. Go to your local boating supply outlet. Usually, once or twice a year I get out the grease gun and top them off.

Spherical bearings are about the best in terms of reducing suspension bind and eliminating deflection, but the downside is that they can transmit a fair amount of road vibration, are likely to pull the welds out of non-reinforced torque boxes, are prone to sudden failure from large pot holes, rough railroad crossings, etc., and require a regular cleaning/lubrication regimen. This will depend upon your application, how much mileage you put on the vehicle, and if it will see dirt roads, and such. For me, it means clean and relube every 200-400 miles, and certainly before any event. I use a teflon-based spray lubricant used for bicycles (local Schwin bicycle shop)...a few quick sprays and wipes and you're done.

If the Steeda control arms are like the ones offered by Maximum Motorsports or Griggs Racing, then I think you'll be happy with them, assuming you take the responsibility for their regular maintenance.

autoXr1

Thanks,

I don't mind climbing underneath once in a while to spray some "stuff" up in there to keep everything working well. What I think I'll do is buy the thing then put them on in the srping time instead of riding them all winter. I'm anxious to see if they will do away with my need for the quad shocks. I've heard good things about the 5 link 2 and will probably buy the upper control arms from that kit at the same time so that I can replace all 4 at once. I really like the Griggs setup but WOW! Lots of money they get for the complete package. I may end up going with at least a partial kit from Griggs, or rather, everything that I need to do the front end of the car.