I am a little confused on the suspension packages, i know there is WS6, Formula, 1LE, IROC, Z28 etc, or am i reading incorrectly?

I have a stock 87 IROC and was wondering how it would compare to a Formula or WS6 of comparable year. Or how would an 88 Formula stack up to a 92 WS6?

I see these late model 4th gen WS6 out there, are they the cream-of-the crop or would a 3rd gen still be able to hold up? (Suspension wise, not engine wise)

I know this may have already been posted, but searching did not really turn up anything releavent in terms of comparisons.

Thanks for the help.

 

The 3rd Gen Irocs were some of the best handling cars
out there. Have talked to alot of owners who had owned the
3rd gen and was the one thing they missed in the newer
camaros was the handling.
Not up on the Firebirds but think could be had with the same package.

New bushing, front sway bar back,shocks and a good tire package, (Hard to beat) even by todays standards.
Add SFCs and strut tower brace and improved even more.

Later

Irocing

 

The suspension on the IROC with the upgrade suspension is the same as the WS6. CHP did a suspension build a few years ago on a 3rd gen with all hotchkis setup (springs, bars, subframe and strut brace. The car pulled .94g on the skid pad and over 60mph in the solumn. It outhandled a NSX, BMW and vette. It went head to head with the viper which pulle .98g

The IROC was the second fastest in the solumn.

So...................we can hold our own..............later.

 

So sorry for the super late reply. I cant seem to find this article at CHP, they may have removed it.

Does anyone know of any scans or a link?

Im building up my IROC, I just installed UMI SFC's, Panhard rod and LCA's. I have new 245 Sumitomo HTR-Z tires too. Brand new rebuild front steering linkage and balljoints. (best imrovement so far!), New rear shocks. I just want to see where i stand and what I should do next.

 

I don't have a scanner. PM me your address and I will mail you a photocopy.

I also have a lot of UMI suspension stuff and love their product.

 

factory parts are all relative to what version car they were installed into. Everyone raves about the WS6- truth is the WS6 cars were heavy so they needed heavier spring rates to compensate for any performance value. Those springs in a lighter car do much better but the factory never sold that option.

Irocs had the big swaybars

None had good shocks factory

None had good tires factory (especially compared to what is availiable today 20 years later)

Factory woderbar was decent.

A-arms, control arms, TQ arm, bushings, tierod sleeves, strut mounts, track bar, roll couple, chassis flex especially due to fatigue, and mostly lack of adjustments are all problems with factory suspensions- aftermarket is far superior. Its not just what you bolt or weld on there, but more importantly how you set the geometry, balance the handling for the driving venue you choose, and control chassis weight transfer.

Weight bias is a harming factor and has been shown to be a major improvement to handling when these cars are brought more to neutrl bias front to rear. There was a guy running around on these boards with a V6 that pulled 1.07 g's on street tires.

THe quick ratio steering boxes weere good, but anything 20 years old is crap by now- go aftermarket for that also.

 

actually the trans am's and GTA's came with the biggest swy bars- 36mm hollow up front and 24mm solid in the rear and the IROC's came with the wonder bar (p.s. thats the set up i have on my 83 bird). the IROC's had 34mm front and 23mm rear bars if i'm correct.

i think T/A sway bars and IROC springs would be a good match

 

I have no experience with the WS6 suspension so I can't add anything useful in that regard. However, the hollow 36mm/solid 24mm sway bars were available in some Pontiacs long before some Chevys (Firebirds 86-92, Camaros 89-92). According the Camaro White Book, IROCs were equipped with special front struts and Delco-Bilstein rear shocks as well as Goodyear Eagle P245/50VR--pretty good for the day. The Wonderbar wasn't a performance piece, but a Bandaid to reinforce the steering box area of the IROC and its 16" wheels.

JamesC
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My 85 IROC was originally equipped with solid 34/24 combo.

 

As mentioned above - aftermarket is better and anything from the factory is ancient by now and needs to be replaced anyway.