Help--> Suspension... What to Do?!?

[Super Jew]

Hey guys,

My DD is a 2002 V6 Stang, It is mostly stock and has a little over 180k. I'm looking into doing the suspension, since the shocks and struts are bouncing too much on the road. I'm looking to change the springs (lowering) and struts and shocks. Does anyone have any recommendations of brand or model of suspension parts? I've been looking at Eibach and Tein, but im open to any brand that won't sag after a couple weeks. Id also like to keep a happy median between race springs and street springs. Also, are there any other suspension parts worth changing, such as anti-roll sway bars.


Any suggestions are welcome!

Thank you,
-Matt

 

[domRican82]

Hey I'm selling brand new in the box. Eibach shocks n struts lemme know if interested

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[Super Jew]

how much did you want for them?

 

[Grkstang]

I'm personally going to go with Tokico HP Struts & Shocks and Ford Racing C- Springs. It will give you about 1" drop and the quality for both items is excellent. All comes to $500 from American Muscle. This will be my next project for the upcoming months.

As far as i know Eibach is also another excellent choice ...a little bit more expensive though.

 

[onlycodered]

I ended up going with the Eibach Pro-Kit for mine and I love these springs. I got the Tokico HP struts and shocks as well. Keep in mind when you change out the front struts or springs you will need new strut mounts or you can get caster/camber plates. With a mild drop that the Pro-Kit gives you, it's not required that you adjust your camber up front. Mine is about -1.4 degrees which I actually find better for handling.

The Tokico HPs will be your cheapest option for struts and shocks but just make sure your springs don't lower your car more than 1.75 inches otherwise your warranty will be void on the struts and shocks and you'll end up wearing them out quicker.

 

[domRican82]

Ill let my set go for 400....in nyc pickup. Brand new never opened

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[dsblk93gt]

KONI Str.T shocks/struts are a great deal.

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[Super Jew]

I finally finished my suspension! Here is the list of parts:

-Kyb struts shocks
-Tein springs
-Max. Motorsport camber plates
-BBK bumpsteer
-new inner/outer tie rods
-bbk rack and pinion bushings
-steeda x2 ball joints
-'03-'04 cobra style front lower control arms w/ stiffer bushings
-strut tower brace
-new wheel bearing hubs

The cars handling is 1000x's improved!! unbelievable difference. The ride is obviously rougher, but its definitely worth it. If any one needs a great alignment shop and in the area of central NJ, The Front End Shop in Farmingdale is the most honest shop I've seen yet, and the log your car and all the work they've done to it online, in an account you can log on to.

I think my next move it to get front and rear swaybars, probably eibach. I figure this will eliminate any role I still have in the car.

 

[neilarango]

could get gt rear and front sway bars for the same performance of eibachs at a lower price a sway bar is. just a bar

 

[modularmustang]

I finally finished my suspension! Here is the list of parts:

-Kyb struts shocks
-Tein springs
-Max. Motorsport camber plates
-BBK bumpsteer
-new inner/outer tie rods
-bbk rack and pinion bushings
-steeda x2 ball joints
-'03-'04 cobra style front lower control arms w/ stiffer bushings
-strut tower brace
-new wheel bearing hubs

The cars handling is 1000x's improved!! unbelievable difference. The ride is obviously rougher, but its definitely worth it. If any one needs a great alignment shop and in the area of central NJ, The Front End Shop in Farmingdale is the most honest shop I've seen yet, and the log your car and all the work they've done to it online, in an account you can log on to.

I think my next move it to get front and rear swaybars, probably eibach. I figure this will eliminate any role I still have in the car.

The outter tie rod is what a bumpsteer kit is.:smash:
Also, your lower control arms arent that much different then the cobra ones...(i think a better turn radius or something?) and since you plan on replacing the ball joint with an upgraded one anyways you might as well get poly control arm bushings from MM for about 40 buck, save money and have better performance!

KYB GR-2's? They are a good replacement strut for sure, I ran them for two years before switching to my koni adjustables. Something I ran across that you may or may not find is that once you lower your car down you'll lose strut travel. You can gain it back by switching to a fox body strut though. Same damper besides its 1 inch shorter. So if you are lowering more then an or so id say go with the fox strut

 

[Super Jew]

The outter tie rod is what a bumpsteer kit is.:smash:
Also, your lower control arms arent that much different then the cobra ones...(i think a better turn radius or something?) and since you plan on replacing the ball joint with an upgraded one anyways you might as well get poly control arm bushings from MM for about 40 buck, save money and have better performance!

KYB GR-2's? They are a good replacement strut for sure, I ran them for two years before switching to my koni adjustables. Something I ran across that you may or may not find is that once you lower your car down you'll lose strut travel. You can gain it back by switching to a fox body strut though. Same damper besides its 1 inch shorter. So if you are lowering more then an or so id say go with the fox strut

My bad, I wasn't thinking when I wrote bump steer and outer tie rod. They are the same thing. I was actually supposed to get a set of tokico blues from a fox body, figuring it would help my suspension travel with the steep drop, but the deal fell through. The kyb gr-2's are fine, I have nothing to complain about with them but I would eventually change them to tokicos, probably within the next few years.

Did anyone notice their turning radius take a hit when you lowered your cars? Even with the cobra lower control arms, which are supposed to improve turning by 10%, I can only turn the wheel about 2.25 times before I hit wheel well... although I do have 18"x9" in the front, so that def. Isn't helping the situation.

 

[modularmustang]

My bad, I wasn't thinking when I wrote bump steer and outer tie rod. They are the same thing. I was actually supposed to get a set of tokico blues from a fox body, figuring it would help my suspension travel with the steep drop, but the deal fell through. The kyb gr-2's are fine, I have nothing to complain about with them but I would eventually change them to tokicos, probably within the next few years.

Did anyone notice their turning radius take a hit when you lowered your cars? Even with the cobra lower control arms, which are supposed to improve turning by 10%, I can only turn the wheel about 2.25 times before I hit wheel well... although I do have 18"x9" in the front, so that def. Isn't helping the situation.

Oh, oops, when i first wrote I was assuming this list was the parts list you were thinking about getting, my bad. tokico blues are a good choice, better then the GR-2 for sure. Anti-bars should be last on your list, they shouldnt be used to fix handling they are fine tuning of your suspension characteristics such as under steer/over steer. So when you are all set with your struts and springs take it around a parking lot and see how it handles under gas and without. It'll most likely under steer since its the nature of the beast.


anti-roll bar adjustments:
under steer (soften the front or stiffen the rear)
over steer (stiffen the front or soften the rear)

Sorry if im repeating information you already know, just try to help

 

[larquitte]

I went with the eibach pro kit in mine and was not pleased with it. the handling was improved but i ended up having to adjust and retighten the exhaust twice from the axle dinging my exhaust at even the smallest of bumps in the road. ended up having to add rubber dampening bushings to the spriings to prevent it.

 

[the5.ohh]

I went with the eibach pro kit in mine and was not pleased with it. the handling was improved but i ended up having to adjust and retighten the exhaust twice from the axle dinging my exhaust at even the smallest of bumps in the road. ended up having to add rubber dampening bushings to the spriings to prevent it.

I read somewhere that when S197s are lowered, you need to get an adjustable panhard bar to center the axle because it shifts.

 

[Super Jew]

I read somewhere that when S197s are lowered, you need to get an adjustable panhard bar to center the axle because it shifts.

Thats interesting, I haven't heard that before, but I'll have to look into it. It sucks if its true, because I just passed up on a great deal for the rear panhard.