Well....

I started my suspension upgrades today!!!!

I fitted my new IROC wonderbar...nice easy job and has stopped alot of the groans and creaks from the front end!!!!



This next week i'm getting the Hotchkis SFC's and Panhard rod installed.....so she should handle like a good 'un!!!

This is just part of my rejuvenation program..,.i've already started to tidy up the engine bay etc



What do you think so far guys?????

Cheers

Phil

p.s How did the drag racing at Shakespeare county go???

 

Phill my man how's it hanging? Shakespeare was cool, posted on the CA link for more details.

Mate the car is looking fine. Interesting to hear the improvements from the Wonderbar were so noticeable. Have you checked the steering box for any hairline cracks that may have appeared? The way I hear it the bar is an excellent mod for anyone else that hasn't done this. Good to hear it got rid of so much noise as well!

Are you going to tack weld the sfc's in yourself? Your car will be transformed after all these crucial mods. Where did you get them all from and what did you pay? (you don't have to answer that of course)

What are you doing with your old Panhard Rod? Damian, who has just bought a 3rd Gen wants one as his is bent.... He should be registering on this board real soon.

Cheers mate
Felix

 

Felix,

From what i can see i have no cracks in my box!!!!!! ;-)

A mate of mine who owns a garage is helping me fit them...so it should be pretty easy to do them on a drive on 4 post ramp!!!

The panhard rod should be fitted tomorrow as well - i'll take my digicam and snap some "work in progress" pictures!!!

If Damien want's the old one he can have it FOC just let me know.


I got the SFC's, Panhard rod etc from Summit Racing...i think they cost about $330 + shipping all in all.....

Also, looks like i may have some wheels lined up....i'll keep you posted!

C-ya

Phil

 

And for those of you that are interested..........

Heres some pics of the SFC's and panhard rod b4 installation!!!





Hopefully they'll be fitted tomorrow so i can post some "installed" pics!!!!!!!!!!!

C-ya

Phil

(Whoops!!! pics were a bit big....i've shrunk em down!!!)

 

Those Hotchkis parts look awesome. Just as handy as ornaments around the house Would the Misses agree?

Mate, I spoke to Damo last night and he would love the spare bar so he will be in contact with you soon (big thank you for that).

With the adjustable bars, how will you set it up? Is there a set way of doing this or do you do it by 'feel'? Look forward to hearing your drivers feedback after the install now you are one of us with SFC's

$330 seems decent- did the dreaded customs sting you? That's where it cost me with my Southside Machine connectors...(£100) or something stupid.

Better go see a Doctor about that lack of crack- could get you in trouble

Felix

 

Felix,

Personally i think they make lovely ornaments!!!! But obviously she doesn't agree!!!!!

I thought i'd got away with the customs charges - but i've just opened my mail and theres an invoice for £63!!!! B***ards!!!

Mind you the total cost worked out to be about £300 including everything so can't really complain ( as you've mentioned b4 it normally works out to the same price pound to dollar! )

As to the adjustable rod, when it's adjusted all the way in it's the same length as stock.....so i would assume (feel free to correct me people!!!) that when you've got modded suspension the stock bar "twists" itself out of whack to suit the revised geometry so with the adjustable one the length of the bar can be changed so it can bolt straight up without the twist! I would of thought that it would be easy to see what length the bar should be in this case......

I'll box the old panhard rod up today awaiting Damo getting in touch!

C-Ya

Phil

 

Phil,

Looking good. I have that wonderbar sitting in my shed, along with a new pair of endlinks. Unfortunately, no garage..and it hasn't stayed dry for long enough for me to fit the buggers.

Paul

 

Paul mate...

you've got to fit that wonderbar asap!!!!! Honestly...if your car is anything like mine was whenever i was doing a 3 point turn etc....i would get all manner on groans & creaks from the front end...now they're gone!!!!!!

Well the SFC's and Panhard are fitted......

What can i say?

OH MY G0D!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bear in mind its been precipitating it down all day and the roads are a "bit wet".........

Well, i pulled out of the garage, floored it and absolutely cacked meself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The power was straight down onto road!!!!!! Absolutely amazing!!! And when i went home down the potholed road i came in on ( Which was a very bumpy horrible ride ) I could not believe how the car handled.......handles just like a new car!!!! It's as if the suspension is doing the work - not the frame.......

To anyone that hasn't got any of these bits, i don't care what you have to do ( Sell your Wife/girlfriend/mother etc )You've got to have them, honestly, it takes a lot to get me fired up about something like this 'cause i never believe anything till i've done it myself.But trust me ----- well worth every penny (cent!!!)

Piccies coming up next!!!!!!!!!!!!

C-ya

Phil

:rockon:

 

Phil,

I already put a STB on, and was amazed at the difference that made to handling. (Mind, I have a coupe..so not a huge amount of flex anyway.) Also put on the Hotchkiss Panhard and LCA's, and now I can smoke it with the best of them, even in the dry with the good old 305.

As soon as it's dry, I'll put the wonderbra and endlinks on the front, I promise.

 

Ok pics of the Hotchkiss SFC's and Panhard rod........


Not forgetting my mate Shaun covered in chassis grease!!!!! (Bless) in one of the pics!!!!!!!!!








Enjoy

Phil

 

You can just see the LCA over by the far wheel.

 

Phil,

Get it back on the ramps and take a decent picture of the SFC's will ya'? I've never seen a decent underbody shot of them babies.

Cheers,
Paul

 

p.s. What are those rims?

 

Paul...

Ok...i promise i'll get it back on the ramps and take some pukka pics.....i know what you mean though i've spent hours in the past trying to find some pics of these installed!!!!!!!!!!!

Wont be till next week though - ramp time (even though he's a mate) - costs money!!!!! So i have to do it out of hours so to speak!

The rims are American racing eagles........they're ok but i'm changing them soon.........so if you know anyone that wants 'em let me know!!!!

C-Ya

Phil

Oh yeah.......the SFC's are a swine to fit on the passenger side!!! Requiring specialist fabrication to make them fit as i'd like.....luckily Shaun is a trained welder/fabricator!!!!! I'll post pics of the mods we had to do when i get it back on the ramps!!!!

 

Anyway my T-tops don't rattle half as much!!

( And they don't leak!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! )

 

have to admit to not being sure what a standard Z28 feels like since I bought mine all modded... what I can say is it seems to handle a lot better than the '95 Firebird I owned previously... as for creaks and groans not sure I can hear any... mind you it would be hard over all the crashes and bangs since the suspension seems to be quite stiff... FYI I have SFCs and also (apperently) poly bushing everywhere... BTW should finally be able to give the full engine spec shortly am in the process of finding out what cam has ben used with the 383...

One further point if anyone in the UK is after a set of refurbed Z28 alloys please drop me a line since have 4 for sale (including 4 v.good tyres)

 

Looking good Phil.

Which company is your rear anti-roll bar from?

 

Good start to a balanced and profound roadtest LOL

Sounds awesome, I know I'm glad I had it done too. Seems nobody makes them that fit without any modification though. I had all sorts of exhuast problems with mine too. Nothing a hammer couldn't fit but still!

That is a job well done- one of those jobs that you can feel the difference!:lala:

 

Dr G

The panhard is a Hotchkis - must say i'm well impressed with the quality!!!

Felix,

Yeah the cackometer test is a good indicator of how well a jobs been done!!!!

In fact i took her to work today and had another play in the wet!!!!!!!!!! Is it illegal to exit a roundabout sideways??

Plus i got a Y-pipe today............i got in touch in the end with John Woolfe Racing and spoke to a guy named Lee there, what a great bloke.rang me back when he said he was gonna etc.....

The y-pipe was 100+vat and they've made me up a cat delete pipe to go with it for £13!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Awesome customer service!!!!!!!! If you need anything try these guys.........they were the only ones that didn't just want to sell me the y-pipe!!!!!

C-ya

Phil

 

i want to drop the front of my car a little, anyone know how much lower iroc springs were than stock?

PS, Phil, how much for the wheels?

 

I believe they were half an inch lower than the standard models. Check with Robert (RMK) or Felix, or do a search.

Gordon

 

hmm, 1/2 inch. can anyone recomend some good (not too hard) springs?

remember, my car is a sport coupe, so sits higher than an iroc / Z28, and i want to drop the front about 1 - 1 1/2 inches.

is that 1/2 inch lower than a Z28 ?

anyone have a set of IROC front springs they want to sell?

 

IIRC it was only 1/2". Phil, the best thing to do is to cut off half a coil. Damian did it on his 2nd Gen and it made a big difference. Cheap and relatively easy to do!

 

Phil

I was looking for somewhere in the region of £200 ( or near offer) for the alloys.........now i've sorted out my 16's they'll be available from next week!!

Cheers

Phil

 

200, hmm, good price. just trying to picture them on my car. think they would look good?

 

Phil,

I do like them personally, i think they're different as well as i've never seen another car, let alone a thirdgen, with them on.....post a side picture of your car and i'll photoshop 'em for ya!!!

C-ya

Phil

 

Just a quick word chaps. The Mods. do not like classifieds on the boards. You'll see there are two posts already locked for that reason. Might be better doing the trading by PM. Just my $0.02. And I needed my 600!

 

Paul's right, please keep the haggling to PM's and e-mail please guys.

Cheers,
Felix

 

Well, I fitted my wonder bra today, along with new endlinks. I can feel about another 15-20% improvement, having fitted the STB first. I wonder if fitting the wonder Bra first would have had the same impact as the STB?

I also fitted a long oil filter. I was suprised to see a rise in oil pressure of about 7 psi. Should I be suprised?

 

Paul

Glad to hear you've fitted the wonderbar!!!

I don't know about you but i noticed more improvement at low speeds/parking etc............tell you what though - i bet she handles like a good 'un now

C-ya

Phil

 

It has obviously made a difference, as the first couple of runs around known roads, I'm having to keep re-adjusting the steering. Much more understeer, than oversteer as before. jeez, maybe I can actually drive this thing properly now.

 

Which endlinks did you go for?? Were they the standard ones or poly???

 

The endlinks are standard, as I couldn't get poly at the time of ordering. I did fit new poly sway bar bushings though. Just need to fit the SSBC discs and braided lines, in standard trim this thing needs a fairly big push to stop quickly.

edit : the standard endlinks cost me all of £3.50 for the pair from Usautomotive.