Cascade Crew

townaj · Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 8:32 am Post subject: Suspension help

Ok so I'm working on my christmas list and of course its filled with car parts. But I'm running out of ideas! So I decided to upgrade my suspension since my car is nearing 200,000 miles. But I don't know a whole lot about the upgrades for it. What I'm basically asking is what gives the best bang for your buck, in your guys' opinion. Thanks for all yalls help. Idk what i'd do without it

iansane · Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 9:47 am Post subject:

Bushings.
Shocks/struts.

Those will be the two biggest differences in the way your car drives. Maybe springs too if you've got the california crawl going on. Everything else is extraneous for the street. Albeit, nice to have. Very Happy

QwkTrip · Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 8:23 pm Post subject:

What do you want out of suspension mods? Handling, looks, or all the above? How much money are you thinking of spending?

aaron_sK · Posted: Fri Dec 03, 2010 11:13 pm Post subject:

townaj · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 6:39 am Post subject:

Its a z28 so its got sway bars. I want looks and performance. My car leans to one side so I definitely need springs. What about panhard bars and lca's and stuff like that? My ultimate goal would be to have an all around performer. Street, strip, and road course. Not looking to spend a whole lot. Maybe 200 Ish dollars.

Al Hasse · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 8:58 am Post subject:

Not really suspension, but chassis, a set of sub frame connectors is a must if you don't have them already. They made the most noticeable difference after installation.

QwkTrip · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 9:09 am Post subject:

For $200 you can barely get a set of springs. Don't drop much or you'll need a different set of shocks to work within the new range of suspension travel. Before you replace the springs, make sure the rubber cups are still in decent condition. It could be that the cup has disintegrated and you just need a little lift back up with a new cup. You'll need good cups with the new springs, too.

You don't need a different panhard bar. Stock is fine unless you go down so much you can't center the axle under the car.

Rear lower control arms are relatively fine, too. You can weld a metal plate over the gap on the bottom to make them as strong as anything you can buy. That's almost free.

I might suppose that by now the torque arm bushing at the transmission is completely worn and sloppy. A new bushing will tighten it up and make the suspension work better.

Subframe connectors do good things for our cars, but probably isn't within your budget since you need to fix the spring issue.

At 200K miles, you need to question how smart is it to dump money in this car. You will get $0 return when you sell the car. You should have done this a long time ago so you could have enjoyed it and gotten your money worth.

iansane · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 10:59 am Post subject:

Budget $200? I'd probably do a budget front end rebuild. (bushings/balljoints/endlinks) If you can swing it get the del alum control arm bushings.

Everything else you suggested, like I said, is nice to have but at your monetary level those are down the list a bit. I know it's cool to get big shiny lcas or something but the bushings will be a bigger improvement.

chevymad · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 12:17 pm Post subject:

I'm at 293k I think at the moment.. maybe more. Car will be good for many many more miles.

rjmcgee · The Hammer Joined: 08 Jan 2004 Posts: 2328

'92 camaro boss · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 3:41 pm Post subject:

^^

Ha!

QwkTrip · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 3:54 pm Post subject:

I think he should know the potential downside. I did help answer his question. I've gone through a lot of cars. People usually do.

91RSVert · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 5:57 pm Post subject:

I agree that 200 wont get much for parts. Maybe a full bushing set like Ian suggested, and then install yourself, or a friend that will only charge you a case of beer.

To get an all around performer, not gonna happen unless you dump THOUSANDS of dollars into adjustible parts. Because what 1 use needs, is not what another use needs.

Ive got about 1500-1700 in my suspension alone, about half done for heavy street abuse.

blue89 · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 7:37 pm Post subject:

Just my 2 cents, but this is what I would do:
-junk yard springs from an IROC $30?
-junk yard sway bars from an IROC, at least a 32mm/21mm $30?
-Energy Suspension bushing kit $120
-Energy Suspension swaybar bushings $20
-Poly swaybar endlinks from parts store, $6

That's pretty much what I do to my cars and they handle awesome for street use. And I cut a coil or two out to get the stance I want.

aaron_sK · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 8:05 pm Post subject:

Get WS6 front bar if you can find one. Got Mike's WS6 bars in the shop next to my Z28 bars; rears are the same, front is way bigger.

Get new struts and shocks.

Agreed on cutting JY springs, though.

blue89 · Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2010 8:11 pm Post subject:

Oh, and make a wonder bar if you can't find one from the JY. See, lots of things to do and stay under a $200 budget.

91RSVert · Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 5:22 am Post subject:

travis, 32mm front bar is almost the smallest Wink

He would want 34 or 36. Which he said he had a z28, so I would think hes already got decent size bars.

Al Hasse · Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 2:28 pm Post subject:

My 92 RS has a 30mm front bar and an 18mm rear bar if I read the codes correctly here

http://www.thirdgen.org/techboard/faq-board/59687-questions-answered-sway-bar.html

I came pretty close to 30/18 by measuring them with what I had available and converting inches to mm.

91RSVert · Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 2:55 pm Post subject:

Thats why I said almost Wink

I think I have 1 of every bar as Ive been mix-matching to get it where I want it.

Ive settled on 36 front and 18 rear Shocked

Thought about going back up to 21 rear. But as uneven as these roads are where I live, Im affraid I'll pop a tire off the ground.

townaj · Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 6:51 pm Post subject:

I totally forgot about subframe connectors. I definitely need those. And a windshield. I'm not worried about selling it. I've already put 5 grand into the motor/trans and it isn't even painted yet. I know I'm gonna take a huge loss if I ever do. I'm gonna cut the front springs so it gets the stance I want. Poly bushings is a good idea. But I'm gonna do the subframes. Any particular brand y'all like? Forget about the price range.