I'm trying to make a kind of dual purpose autocross/drag car. I'm making compromises for both, that's fine with me. I'm okay with being a jack of all trades, master of none. It's about having fun to me...

Even a 1 inch drop isn't going to be feasible with the exhaust Im rnning, so that rules out lowering springs. I have a wonder bar, subframe connectors, and a full set of IROC springs to go around.

I figure my list of mods from here is going to include a strut tower brace, good shocks all around (Tokicos are priced pretty nice... Koni prices terrify me), and some bigger (IROC?) sway bars.

It's my impression that LCA relocation brackets aren't a good idea on a non-drag car, is that right?

I'll also be replacing bushings as I go, and Im sure there iwll be an LS1 brake upgrade in there somewhere, what do you guys think about those? Would I be better off doing something else? After all, LS1 brakes are still just stock brakes...



Also, I want to point out that I am aware that sfc's put me into a pretty ridiculous class. I've been talking to the local guys and tehy act like they wouldn't care (Im sure it woudl be different if I started beating them...). Either way, Im going into this with the assumption that I'm going to be running in SM2 at some point. And ditching the sfc's is out of the question because I have The Crack on my roof at the corner of the window. I want to keep sfc's on to keep that from getting worse and to make sure it doesnt come back after I fix it.

 

Your tires are going to be the most important aspect of doing well at either function. If you are making less than 400 hp then a good set of drag radials or DOT slicks will hook up about any suspension setup.

For auto-x you can start out with just a decent set of street tires, I would suggest better tires but in SM you don't have a fart's chance in a tornado of winning so I would go with something cheap and consistent. When your buddies said they weren't worried about you running with them....it's because they know you won't ever beat them. Most competetive SM cars are barely street legal. It seriously won't matter, you'll have just as much fun and you can compare your times to any other class. If winning in auto-x is your goal then you need to get a miata.

Your parts list looks pretty complete, even though the koni's are steep they are worth it. The iroc springs are your best bet as they are just as stiff as the lowering springs out there. I would look to spend any of your extra money in upgrading your wheels and tires. A good set of 17x9's with sticky rubber will do more than anything you can do to the suspension.

 

IMHO the LS1 brakes are a good brakes. They have a little bigger pistons than the more price 1le.Or you could go with the vette's. Look over on the brake board and look up ebmiller. I got most of my stuff off him.

 

The place you don't want to skip out on is the shocks and tires if you are planning to auto-x. Save and get some KONIs and good tires. Also, don't forget an aggressive allignment.

 

After shocks and tires/wheels I would recomend for stock springs to look a Spohn's 34mm and 25mm sway bars.

 

Most people I've talked (as well as myself) seem to think that the 25mm is too much bar (unless you've lowered the PHB). Also, I think I remember reading that the stock 36mm hollow sway bar is a better choice than the Spohn 34 solid. Lighter, and just a lfuzz less stiff. Just my 2 cents.

 

your gonna need one of these:



gauranteed win i guess.

 

I have 1" V6 drop springs, KYB GR2 struts & Gas-A-Just shocks, TDS Wonderbar, 36mm hollow front sway bar and 23/24mm (can't remember which) rear sway bar with poly bushings and end links, and 275/40/17 BFS g-Force Sport rubber all around. I think my car handles fantastically. The tires probably made the greatest difference. I have some SFC waiting to be installed, hopefully this week.

As far as brakes go, C5s or go home.

 

If you run C5s on a 13" rotor, you'll have to run a 17 inch wheel....but, if you spend the extra money and get Ed Miller's WilWood kit (4 piston on a 13 inch rotor) you can run that in the factory 16s...

 

Yes, you need a 17" wheel to run C5s, but if you want to compete in Auto-X, you going to want 17" or larger wheels for the performance they'll give you.

 

I know. I just mentioned that because in some classes you have to run your factory wheel size. And, since my car is a daily driver and I use my stock 16s for about 2/3s of the year, I want brakes that I can run my stock wheels over.

 

FWIW, SoCal has successfully run the complete C5 brakes in a stock 92 5-spoke wheel by grinding down the stiffening ribs. Not sure I'd recommend it, but it CAN be done.

 

Lon at TDS has greaseable poly mounts for the swaybars. Also, might wanna drop that torque arm from the back of the tranny onto the tranny crossmember, and might as well use a spherical rod end there. Available from Spohn. They only need to be replaced every 30-50k miles, and it's an easy enough place to get to and change.