Ok, so suspension wise… currently I’m all stock. I assume all 40 year old stuff, but idk really…the car feels bouncy over bumps, the roll when turning hard is severe…braking nosedives me etc…I assume the stuff is just old and tired, but my knowledge is mostly theoretical…I can see the k member and control arms and other suspension parts are all stock. The factory rivet is still there in the top of the strut tower so I assume pretty much everything is original.
Couple of things suspension wise I wanna address/understand better…
Lowering: my stance is ridiculously high, I’m not looking to drop it crazy or anything but I’d like it to look a little lower, like not have massive gaps above my tires. I looked at a bunch of comparison photos and didn’t come to any real conclusions because there were so few with the tiny 15” wheels. I’m running 235/60/15s currently. I was thinking 1 to 1.5 inches, but I’d be doing it kind of blind and hoping it looked good and didn’t screw my ride quality.
Ride quality: I really liked the way he said: pound the on ramps…not looking to race, drag or track, but there is a track around here where you can put the car through its paces with instructors and stuff, so maybe waaaay down the road, but for now like you said, gassing it for fun and feeling safe cornering, but nothing crazy…my risk tolerance is a lot lower than it was when I was 20 haha. This is where I assume I buy and install new springs and shocks/struts.
Bushings: I feel like this is something that I should probably replace all of them and it would have a big improvement and feel of the car yes? All of the shocks/struts/springs videos I’ve watched do not mention bushings at all. Is this something I should look to do?
Wheels/Brakes: I really like the telephone dial wheels and the mostly stock look. I hadn’t really considered stepping up to 17’s/5lug…but the brakes do suuuuck. Pretty crazy, I have to plan my braking probably more than in any car I’ve had (only one of which was a performance car)
Long-term plan wise: so I got the car around new years, it was 100% stock except the clutch was replaced. I mean, belts and routine maintenance stuff done over the years too, but otherwise nothing done.
I’ve been doing mostly piddling stuff, trim, seatbelts, badges, weatherstripping etc. Got the new tires put on, and ordered subframe connectors and while I was waiting for those to come in the water pump died and I’ve been sidetracked. So once I get those on I’ll be moving forward with upgrades.
My thinking there is suspension first. It feels like a 40 year old boat and I want it to feel like a new modern sports car. Maybe not track worthy, but solid, I’ve been looking at all of the packs on cj pony and lmr. So far I like the orange koni set with springs, but there’s like 5 reputable brands all in the same price range. Not ready to spend $ yet so need to learn more.
After that I want a better rumble. I think my options here are mufflers, or cat backs if I wanna hopefully get some HP gains with it…haven’t really deep dived here yet, but from the videos I see the flow master series 40 is what I’d like. I mean…headers would also be cool at some point too, again, way down the road
Next I was thinking gears, again, no experience but I think I’m going to be looking at 3.73 gears.
Hadn’t thought about wheels/brakes cause I like the wheels I have, but maybe I should. I did just spend like 800 on new tires, so again, down the road…
Interspersed with all of this I’d like to be doing cheaper per-job stuff…more cosmetic I think…cold air intake looks relatively inexpensive and easily doable by me, so that’ll get worked in somewhere.
Overall I’m looking to make it look pretty and mostly stock…and drive more like a new car, both power and handling wise.
Thanks for listening! It’s helpful to at least articulate all this. Sorry I’m so long winded!
for "progress' or 'build' threads, I have a thread you can link from the bottom of my posts (self promotion) that I hope members find amusing and informative on things I've done, Others here have done WAY more better stuff than me so look around.
