Shane361
06-01-2006, 10:32 AM
From a friend of mine... :gt4her: Once again..this is his opinion yet its educational
this mainly only applies to fox body to 04 mustangs
Firstly, i'll address the good and bad companies. There are some to stay away from...and some to trust with quality time after time, and you cant go wrong!
My top 5 suspension companies:
1) Maximum Motorsports
2) Griggs
3) Global West
4) D&D
5) QA1
My top 3 to steer away from:
1) UPR
2) BBK
3) MAC
The first rule of suspension is, you get what you pay for..much like any consumer based product. 2nd rule, know what you want out of your car, and then taylor your car to those wants/needs. If your one who likes to do it all, you cant "have your cake and eat it too". A great autox setup is not going to be sufficient at the drag strip. That is the battle i fight in all the cars i've had so far.
Weight is a key factor in any suspension setup. In an auto x setup, its truely preferable to get the weight distribution to a 50/50 state, and lighten the car at the same time. Aluminum radiators, aluminum blocks, battery over the back passenger tire, aluminum flywheels, and driveshafts will all help this despite what your setup is. At the strip, weight on the back tires of a RWD car is good, all of the things mentioned except for maybe an alum flywheel is good for drag racing. Light is good, balanced is better. It is also not a bad idea if you have an adjustable suspension to tune it with the extra driver weight in that front/left area of the car, it will help if your that **** Every 10 lbs of rotational mass (flywheel/driveshaft/ect) is like removing a 100 lbs of free standing weight (seats, ect). Every 100lbs is equivalent to about a .1 in the 1/4 mile
Corner Carver:
Springs-
There are quite a few nice setups. It really depends on how agressive you want to be. Springs are normally the first purchase made for any mustang. In corner carver, i'd recommend H&R springs. There are many spring rates/ride heights to choose from. A 650# front spring/220# rear is perfect for the solid axle v8 cars, and 650$ front/rear is great for the IRS equipped rides. If you have the extra money, the best setup is coil overs. They are more popular in just a front application and matched to a set of rears. Coil overs change the geometry of the front end, giving it a better handling feel, and some say better ride quality. I have a set of MMR (modular mustang racing) coil overs going on the saleen, so whenever i get it back, i can confirm or deny such an allegation. Eibachs are an inferior product to the H&Rs, i believe they sell mainly b/c of name recognition. They are to soft up front, to stiff in the rear, and sag over time. Some worse then others. They are ok, they are far better then stock, but if you had to pick...go coil over or H&R's. Steeda springs are also a great buy, but most people prefer the look of a 2inch drop, and they only drop about 1.25 inches.
Shocks/Struts
There are alot of different products out there, and alot are pretty much the same. The 3 that stand above the rest for taking the turns are Bilstein, Koni, and Tokico. If you prefer a non adjustment combo, then Bilstein is the way to go. Typically about $500 for a set, they are progressive, meaning they are soft when driving normal, and stiffen up as you get more aggressive with the driving. This is a perfect setup for a person who doesnt want to mess with tuning. Bilsteins match up great to the H&R super sport springs, race springs, and steeda springs. Koni's are heads above the rest, but they cost about $700 for their set of double adjustables. You can adj. stiffness and rebound, making it perfect for any combo you decide to run. Tokico D Spec are adjustable as well, and come in just a shade over $600, they provide the same adjustability the Koni's have. Tokico also has a cheaper 5 way adj which is fairly nice, and a "premium" which is non adjustable, and come stock on the Bullitt mustang.
Control Arms
In a stand alone application, the Global West arms with the delrin aluminum bushings on the chassis end, and spherical bushing on the other end are heads above the rest. Their design works perfect with the factory uppers, and handling actually gets worse with anything other then stock. In a upper/lower combo, its hard to beat the steeda billet series, but they come in at about $600 for the set, not the best investment. If your willing to spend $600 on a set of upper/lower arms, then the Maximum Motorsports 3 link rear with torque arm/lca's/panhard bar is the way to go from what im told. However i do not have any direct driving time on this setup, but people swear by it
C/C plates
Maximum motorsports, hands down, the best. Buy anything else, your wasting your money. Thats all that needs to be said. However if you feel so inclined to be different, Steeda 4 bolts and Global West also make a quality product. C/C plates that have spacers to allow the shock to not be as compressed at normal ride height is key. When you lower a car, the shock/strut compresses more, and stays that way permanently. This wears a shock/strut out faster. A good c/c plate will allow the strut to extend fully like in a stock application. Allowing them to last longer, and work better. C/C plates also allow you to get your vehicle in perfect alignment, even better then stock. It is also preferable to get one which has a spherical bushing so it allows the strut to move freely.
Subframe connectors
Get a full length subframe, not a standard. This is kind of self explanatory, but Global West, Kenny Brown, and Maximum Motorsport make the best subframes. Global West and KB have a "matrix" style which does alot more stiffening then your normal full length style. If i had to pick 1 for my car, a Global West Tri Ladder would be my pick at $330. However all 3 companies make a standard full length for about $130 if one does not want to go that route.
K Member/A Arm
Replace that big bulky K member, with a lightweight version from reputable companies such as D&D, Maximum Motorsports, AJE to name a few. This is the structure for the entire front of the car, no need to skimp financially on something some important and buy something cheap. If your going to do this, do it right. A Kmember typically shaves a fair amount of weight off the front end, allowing for a better 50/50 distribution of the weight. It also does this by moving the front wheels foward about an inch, putting more weight behind the K member.
Strut Tower Brace
Most people say that these are a waist of money, however, i've had them on 2 cars. My 96 saleen vert, and 98 cobra. When i took them off for one reason or another, i noticed a huge increase in front end slop. This brace helps keep the front end true, and with a $150 price tag, and ease of install, its a great investment to keep that heavy front end of the mustang true in the corners. maximum motorsports and steeda make a really nice STB for all different styles of mustangs. These are not interchangable between cars like most suspension parts. These have to fit around intakes so one which fits a bullitt, wont fit an 03 cobra and so on.
Tires
If you set your car up to be aggressive, then all of this hard earned money spent wont mean anything with cheesy tires. Stock tires suck, Kuhmo's suck, most tires are made for a regular old car, with no emphasis on performance or to put power to the ground. Some great corner carver tires for a daily driver that sees rain is BFG KDW2 and KD's, Pirelli Asymmetrico, Michelin Pilot Sport, Brightstone S03 and Potenza, and Goodyear D3's are all great choices. If your more series and dont see the rain...then Pirelli Corsas are the ones to go with. Nitto, Dunlop, and Yokoham all make a great competition radial for taking the turns
_________________
this mainly only applies to fox body to 04 mustangs
Firstly, i'll address the good and bad companies. There are some to stay away from...and some to trust with quality time after time, and you cant go wrong!
My top 5 suspension companies:
1) Maximum Motorsports
2) Griggs
3) Global West
4) D&D
5) QA1
My top 3 to steer away from:
1) UPR
2) BBK
3) MAC
The first rule of suspension is, you get what you pay for..much like any consumer based product. 2nd rule, know what you want out of your car, and then taylor your car to those wants/needs. If your one who likes to do it all, you cant "have your cake and eat it too". A great autox setup is not going to be sufficient at the drag strip. That is the battle i fight in all the cars i've had so far.
Weight is a key factor in any suspension setup. In an auto x setup, its truely preferable to get the weight distribution to a 50/50 state, and lighten the car at the same time. Aluminum radiators, aluminum blocks, battery over the back passenger tire, aluminum flywheels, and driveshafts will all help this despite what your setup is. At the strip, weight on the back tires of a RWD car is good, all of the things mentioned except for maybe an alum flywheel is good for drag racing. Light is good, balanced is better. It is also not a bad idea if you have an adjustable suspension to tune it with the extra driver weight in that front/left area of the car, it will help if your that **** Every 10 lbs of rotational mass (flywheel/driveshaft/ect) is like removing a 100 lbs of free standing weight (seats, ect). Every 100lbs is equivalent to about a .1 in the 1/4 mile
Corner Carver:
Springs-
There are quite a few nice setups. It really depends on how agressive you want to be. Springs are normally the first purchase made for any mustang. In corner carver, i'd recommend H&R springs. There are many spring rates/ride heights to choose from. A 650# front spring/220# rear is perfect for the solid axle v8 cars, and 650$ front/rear is great for the IRS equipped rides. If you have the extra money, the best setup is coil overs. They are more popular in just a front application and matched to a set of rears. Coil overs change the geometry of the front end, giving it a better handling feel, and some say better ride quality. I have a set of MMR (modular mustang racing) coil overs going on the saleen, so whenever i get it back, i can confirm or deny such an allegation. Eibachs are an inferior product to the H&Rs, i believe they sell mainly b/c of name recognition. They are to soft up front, to stiff in the rear, and sag over time. Some worse then others. They are ok, they are far better then stock, but if you had to pick...go coil over or H&R's. Steeda springs are also a great buy, but most people prefer the look of a 2inch drop, and they only drop about 1.25 inches.
Shocks/Struts
There are alot of different products out there, and alot are pretty much the same. The 3 that stand above the rest for taking the turns are Bilstein, Koni, and Tokico. If you prefer a non adjustment combo, then Bilstein is the way to go. Typically about $500 for a set, they are progressive, meaning they are soft when driving normal, and stiffen up as you get more aggressive with the driving. This is a perfect setup for a person who doesnt want to mess with tuning. Bilsteins match up great to the H&R super sport springs, race springs, and steeda springs. Koni's are heads above the rest, but they cost about $700 for their set of double adjustables. You can adj. stiffness and rebound, making it perfect for any combo you decide to run. Tokico D Spec are adjustable as well, and come in just a shade over $600, they provide the same adjustability the Koni's have. Tokico also has a cheaper 5 way adj which is fairly nice, and a "premium" which is non adjustable, and come stock on the Bullitt mustang.
Control Arms
In a stand alone application, the Global West arms with the delrin aluminum bushings on the chassis end, and spherical bushing on the other end are heads above the rest. Their design works perfect with the factory uppers, and handling actually gets worse with anything other then stock. In a upper/lower combo, its hard to beat the steeda billet series, but they come in at about $600 for the set, not the best investment. If your willing to spend $600 on a set of upper/lower arms, then the Maximum Motorsports 3 link rear with torque arm/lca's/panhard bar is the way to go from what im told. However i do not have any direct driving time on this setup, but people swear by it
C/C plates
Maximum motorsports, hands down, the best. Buy anything else, your wasting your money. Thats all that needs to be said. However if you feel so inclined to be different, Steeda 4 bolts and Global West also make a quality product. C/C plates that have spacers to allow the shock to not be as compressed at normal ride height is key. When you lower a car, the shock/strut compresses more, and stays that way permanently. This wears a shock/strut out faster. A good c/c plate will allow the strut to extend fully like in a stock application. Allowing them to last longer, and work better. C/C plates also allow you to get your vehicle in perfect alignment, even better then stock. It is also preferable to get one which has a spherical bushing so it allows the strut to move freely.
Subframe connectors
Get a full length subframe, not a standard. This is kind of self explanatory, but Global West, Kenny Brown, and Maximum Motorsport make the best subframes. Global West and KB have a "matrix" style which does alot more stiffening then your normal full length style. If i had to pick 1 for my car, a Global West Tri Ladder would be my pick at $330. However all 3 companies make a standard full length for about $130 if one does not want to go that route.
K Member/A Arm
Replace that big bulky K member, with a lightweight version from reputable companies such as D&D, Maximum Motorsports, AJE to name a few. This is the structure for the entire front of the car, no need to skimp financially on something some important and buy something cheap. If your going to do this, do it right. A Kmember typically shaves a fair amount of weight off the front end, allowing for a better 50/50 distribution of the weight. It also does this by moving the front wheels foward about an inch, putting more weight behind the K member.
Strut Tower Brace
Most people say that these are a waist of money, however, i've had them on 2 cars. My 96 saleen vert, and 98 cobra. When i took them off for one reason or another, i noticed a huge increase in front end slop. This brace helps keep the front end true, and with a $150 price tag, and ease of install, its a great investment to keep that heavy front end of the mustang true in the corners. maximum motorsports and steeda make a really nice STB for all different styles of mustangs. These are not interchangable between cars like most suspension parts. These have to fit around intakes so one which fits a bullitt, wont fit an 03 cobra and so on.
Tires
If you set your car up to be aggressive, then all of this hard earned money spent wont mean anything with cheesy tires. Stock tires suck, Kuhmo's suck, most tires are made for a regular old car, with no emphasis on performance or to put power to the ground. Some great corner carver tires for a daily driver that sees rain is BFG KDW2 and KD's, Pirelli Asymmetrico, Michelin Pilot Sport, Brightstone S03 and Potenza, and Goodyear D3's are all great choices. If your more series and dont see the rain...then Pirelli Corsas are the ones to go with. Nitto, Dunlop, and Yokoham all make a great competition radial for taking the turns
_________________