Overkill for lowering?

[Mstg05]

I'm prepping for the winter (looking through catalogs, determining my next move with the car so it'll be ready for next summer). I'm gonna lower my 04 GT and install a set of ford motorsport 3.73 gears. The gears are pretty much straight forward. Car only has 24k on the odo, so bearings at this point aren't a priority, but i'm sure i'll be puttin them in anway along with clutches and seals. I'm also thinkin 1.25 lower. The way I see it, with that and 18" wheels, it should have a nice stance. I figure anything more won't look good, plus i'll run into problems with parking lots and having to roll my fenders and all that crap. So here I am just getting a list together of what i'll need to acomplish this, but looking at it, I think I went overkill. What do you think i'll need to successfully lower my car 1.25"?

-Ford racing "c springs"
-Steeda or maximum motorsports (not sure yet, maybe some insight here would be helpful?) caster/camber plates
-Steeda bumpsteer kit
-Steeda (x-2) ball joint kit
-Offset rack bushings

From what i've read when lowering mustangs, the offset rack bushings, bumpsteer kit and ball joints are a must, is this true?

As always, any and all advice is appreciated! :SNSign:

 

[Kilgore Trout]

If you are lowering less than 1.5" you should be fine with just lowering springs and dampers that are matched to them.

 

[mity2]

i lowered my car 2.25"(Sportline w/o Isorater), and i did not need bumpsteer kit, offset rack bushings, X2 ball joints or none of them bs.
I'v not heard many people complains about bump steer on our car m/b lowering it beyound 1.5".
I have heard in the past that some of the above mentioned stuff infact created the bumpsteer, however.
i did needed to get C/C plate tho.
What i would do - and its totally up to u - is that go ahead and get spring of your choice. Get new shocks/strut(IMO more important then joints and bushings and all that). C/C plate is not needed if drop is less then 1.5" theoraticaly, but get it anyway, because if you needed afterwords, then you 'll have to redo what you did to install springs/struts.

Then get the car aligned, and drive. If you need bumpsteer kits, you'll know right away after you take first corner. then go ahead and get them.
Bushing, balljoints, and bumpsteerkit is easy enough to install afterwords.

 

[ToplessStang]

i lowered my car 2.25"(Sportline w/o Isorater), and i did not need bumpsteer kit, offset rack bushings, X2 ball joints or none of them bs.
I'v not heard many people complains about bump steer on our car m/b lowering it beyound 1.5".
I have heard in the past that some of the above mentioned stuff infact created the bumpsteer, however.
i did needed to get C/C plate tho.
What i would do - and its totally up to u - is that go ahead and get spring of your choice. Get new shocks/strut(IMO more important then joints and bushings and all that). C/C plate is not needed if drop is less then 1.5" theoraticaly, but get it anyway, because if you needed afterwords, then you 'll have to redo what you did to install springs/struts.

Then get the car aligned, and drive. If you need bumpsteer kits, you'll know right away after you take first corner. then go ahead and get them.
Bushing, balljoints, and bumpsteerkit is easy enough to install afterwords.

TOTALLY agree. After reading Maximum Motorsports article on bumpsteer, I went with the C/C plates and their alignment settings. No bumpsteer.

 

[HoustonGT]

I'm prepping for the winter (looking through catalogs, determining my next move with the car so it'll be ready for next summer). I'm gonna lower my 04 GT and install a set of ford motorsport 3.73 gears. The gears are pretty much straight forward. Car only has 24k on the odo, so bearings at this point aren't a priority, but i'm sure i'll be puttin them in anway along with clutches and seals. I'm also thinkin 1.25 lower. The way I see it, with that and 18" wheels, it should have a nice stance. I figure anything more won't look good, plus i'll run into problems with parking lots and having to roll my fenders and all that crap. So here I am just getting a list together of what i'll need to acomplish this, but looking at it, I think I went overkill. What do you think i'll need to successfully lower my car 1.25"?

-Ford racing "c springs"
-Steeda or maximum motorsports (not sure yet, maybe some insight here would be helpful?) caster/camber plates
-Steeda bumpsteer kit
-Steeda (x-2) ball joint kit
-Offset rack bushings

From what i've read when lowering mustangs, the offset rack bushings, bumpsteer kit and ball joints are a must, is this true?

As always, any and all advice is appreciated! :SNSign:

My car is dropped with H&R SuperSports and no isolators in the front. Its alot lower than 1.25", more like 1.75 in front and 1.6 out back. I also have a chin spoiler and run 275 BFG's out back.
I barely ever scrape or rub on anything and no need for a bumpsteer kit. Of course i have different shocks/struts and c/c plates, but all that extra stuff isn't necessary if it rides fine. I get nothing but compliments and mustang guys always compliment me on the drop, so go with something that drops it more than 1.25". Go with the Eibach Pro-Kit if you don't want it too low but want it to look good.

 

[GT12207]

From what i've read when lowering mustangs, the offset rack bushings, bumpsteer kit and ball joints are a must, is this true?

First off, take a step back for a moment and just try to do a little research on suspension geometry in general for a little bit before you whole-heartedly take anybody else's advice. I say that because 90% of mustang owners buy mustangs for their straight-line acceleration abilities.

As for springs, either Steeda or MM is fine because I think the German company of H&R is the manufacture for both those companies anyway. The MOST IMPORTANT thing about spring selection is the spring RATE (front and rear). Height is only important for looks. I think the Steeda Sports is a nice compromise; a little stiff in the front (for good handling) and the rear is soft enough that you'll get a decent launch.

As for c/c plates, bump steer kit, offset steering rack bushing, ball joints, etc...it all depends on how close to the OPTIMUM point you want to be.

your car could be SLAMMED to 1/10th of an inch off the ground with stock c/c plates, stock tie rods, etc. and you'll be able to drive it from point A to point B just fine. But you are faaaaaar from the optimum setting that came from factory.

everytime you move your suspension up/down an inch, you moved a bit away from the ideal/optimum setting. you move your suspension up/down 2 inches, you're even further from the ideal setting. get my point?

this is where aftermarket parts like c/c plates and bump steer kits come in. they allow you to ADJUST your suspension geometry. With these aftermarket parts, you'll be able to adjust your suspension back to the optimum level. it's all relative

my point is that for people to just come out and state that bump steer kits and such are a complete waste/bs when your car is lowered to a certain point is just very irresponsible.

For you, i think you should get the Steeda springs, 4-bolt caster camber plates, and a bump steer kit. your car will handle nicely with those three parts.

HOWEVER, the stock springs and the stock height are NOT the biggest problem our cars have in terms of suspension. the four-link rear suspension is the biggest problem, specially how it was designed. believe it or not, the best suspension mod is not lower springs, but rather a panhard bar, torque arm, and a pair of lower control arms.

i don't have an engineering degree or anything, but i've read/research A LOT about how to get our cars to handle better. and oh yeah, i've spent $5,000+ on suspension parts alone...

 

[YardSpecial]

Qoute:
my point is that for people to just come out and state that bump steer kits and such are a complete waste/bs when your car is lowered to a certain point is just very irresponsible.


IN most cases it is ..............BS

I also agree that crap just causes more problems on a STREET car. The tie rods are for the track only and would not last a very long on the streets in WA. CC plates are a MUST if droped more then 1" due to adjustablity reasons. (tire wear is less)
The front end alignment is SO important. I went 2 1/4 on my 02 GT with no bump steer. Dropped my 97 GT 1 1/2 and have it. WHY ?? Bad alignment spec's.

Bunmpsteer is a racing term and not that noticeable at OUR speeds on the street.


This comes info comes from my customers rides, no complaints as of yet after many years............

 

[ToplessStang]

i don't have an engineering degree or anything, but i've read/research A LOT about how to get our cars to handle better.

No one else on this board has ever read or done ANY research .

 

[Mstg05]

First off, take a step back for a moment and just try to do a little research on suspension geometry in general for a little bit before you whole-heartedly take anybody else's advice. I say that because 90% of mustang owners buy mustangs for their straight-line acceleration abilities.


my point is that for people to just come out and state that bump steer kits and such are a complete waste/bs when your car is lowered to a certain point is just very irresponsible.

i don't have an engineering degree or anything, but i've read/research A LOT about how to get our cars to handle better. and oh yeah, i've spent $5,000+ on suspension parts alone...

Well, I appreciate your advice, and thank you for taking the time for your input. Take it however you want, but you sound like a real dickfor. I know plenty about suspension geometry considering its my job to know, in fact, i'm willing to bet I know more than you, and have had more hands on experience, but thats irrelevant and not what we're here for. There is a big difference in your every day suspension, and performance suspension set ups and seeing as how I've never lowered a new edge mustang, I figured I'd ask for opinions since I don't know what I'll be running into. I also would love to get into a mustang that is built for "straight line acceleration". I have 2 mustangs, an 04 GT and an 89 turbocharged 5.0 lx and neither one have this so called straight line acceleration, they both do more wheel spinning than anything (typical of stock suspension mustangs). Neither one came off the showroom floor with any decent power, lets face it, the meesily 260HP the 4.6 puts out doesn't exactly put you in the seat. People buy mustangs for the name and the fact that its a good starting point; not expensive (compared to other cars, example: corvette, GTO, etc.), has the potential to be faster and of course the signature sound. Again this is irrelevant, but I still think its funny that you spent "$5,000+ on suspension parts alone" Either you like to waste money, or your getting bent over.

So that being said, I'd rather "whole heartedly" use my time reading someone else's advice.

 

[Doc GTO]

My buddy did the H&R springs and Tokico shocks and the car fells great. I've driven it and have not noticed any bumpsteer and it does handle nice and looks great!