So i got new KYB gr2 and gas a just shocks/struts, eibach pro-kit, summit tie rods inner and outer, tie rod covers, moog ball joints and a handful of the evergy suspension parts for the tie rods and the ball joints and lower A arms, along with Hawk ceramic pads. can anyone think of anything I didnt cover thats important? or how much a pain in the A$$ some of this is gonna be? i plan to go to town this week and do this all. also what will a panhard rod do and what is the function of the LCA's/where do they go? any info would help out or comments. thanks.

 

Panhard and LCA's are parts of the rear suspension, so you *could* worry about those later. If you want the upgrade, you can get tubular parts, but be careful on the LCA's They need to either be "Single Adjustable" with a rod end, or be the Hotpart ones with the special bushings. Regular ones, with solid poly bushings on both ends, are dangerous in corners. If you do those, you should look into installing a set of LCARBS at the same time. Also, if you lower the car, you need an adjustable panhard rod to keep the rear end centered from left to right. LCA's keep the rear end centered forward-backward inside the wheel wells. The torque arm (stock is okay, but buy a new poly bushing) is the big thing that runs next to the driveshaft. It keeps the rear end from "rotating" around the axles during accel / decel.



As for the front end, I think you forgot to order a new set of rotors, the stuff to replace the wheel bearings, and new upper strut mounts. Also, look into a set of poly sway bar bushings all around, and a set of 1LE or poly endlinks. Depending on how loose they feel, you might need to replace your steering stuff, like the pitman arm, idler arm, and centerlink. Moog is good for all those. A poly tranny mount and possibly motor mounts couldnt hurt either.

With what I recommended, and what you already bought, it would be best to do the install all at once. Alot of these parts take alot of work to change, but by doing it all at once, you save alot of time and effort.

For example - to change the A-arm bushings and ball joints, you need to lower the A-arms which involves compressing and removing the springs. However, since you will need to change the springs, you can change them mid-swap before you put the eibachs in.

Also, to change the rear shocks, you need to support the rear end with a floor jack after disconnecting some stuff. If you dont, the rear springs will slam it into the ground when the shocks are released. However, to change the rear springs, you have to dis-connect all the stuff, and disconnect the shocks. See where I am going?

 

In addition to I highly reccomend that you install an adjustable panhard rod when you install the springs. Not doing so could force your rear end to not stay aligned. The length of the stock rod is no longer correct when you lower the car.

 

the panhard rod is just a straight rod right? is there even a stock rod on the 3rd gens? if so is it after or before the rear axle? and thanks for the info on that, but will it not be driveable if i do the springs and not the panhardrod for a few days and whatnot?

 

thanks for all that info. yea i was looking at it all in the chiltons and it would be common sense to do it all at once since everythings going to be un-****3d. so basically your saying since im lowering it to get LCA's with relocation brackets? and those bolt right on? or do i have to fabricate those things... also do i need just 1 on each side or 2 on each side? i was looking at the ones from hotchkis do they come with all the necessary harware like brackets? thanks for the helpful info and im sure she will ride like its on rails after im done with all this. im doing it tomorrow and try to knock it all out at once with the help of a buddy.

 

The panhard rod is the bar that is directly behind the axle. Yes, there is a stock one. It is not the sturdiest piece on the car. It is easy to change out. Especially considered the rest of the suspension work you're going to be doing. Have fun!

 

I can add that you should consider a new idler arm as well. If the car as a crap-ton of miles it could be worn out.

Just a thought. I'm looking at this on my car myself. I just replaced all the bushings on the front end as well as a brake kit and Wonder bar. Slow_90 hit on the important stuff.

 

I also recommended an adjustable panhard, along with a new pitman, ideler, and center link. And a bunch of other stuff.

Here is the lower control arms:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/82-02...spagenameZWDVW

Here is the Adjustable Panhard bar:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/F-Bod...em170197933392

Here are the relocation brackets:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Camar...em130200619578

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CAMAR...em170198098383

everything else, like the torque arm bushing and tranny mount, and steering stuff, and wheel bearings, is available either on summit, or at your local parts store

 

When choosing an adjustable panhard bar I would highly suggest getting a dual rod-ended bar. Most bars from places like Spohn only carry a rod/poly bar meaning one end has a poly bushing and the other end has a rod end (like a ball and socket kind of). The poly/rod ended bars tend to be more "comfortable" on winding roads only because they make less noise (double rod ended bars apparently make clanking noise but I've never experienced this with mine).

The reason I suggest the double rod ended bar is because mine was originally a poly/rod bar and in only a month my poly bushing was broken into little tiny pieces and the back half of my car was walking back and forth going down the road....VERY DANGEROUS. So I swapped out the poly end for another rod end (both rod ends are QA1 products, VERY GOOD quality). And I've never had a problem since, and I don't notice any "noise" from mine. It's very durable and keeps my rear end tight going through the turns.

If you have a hard time finding an aftermarket panhard bar that is double rod ended let me know. I had mine custom made using high quality parts including QA1 products, and it was only $150.





Also, another thing to consider is subframe connectors. I put them on my car and it made a world of difference.

 

ALRIGHT!!! Me and my buddy redid most of the front end (all the parts i ordered) and the rear. everything on there was toast, the struts and ball joints, inner and outer tie rods and the sway bar outer links were nothing but metal pieces so those got replaced also. and yea i got new center links from hotchkis theyre way better than stock and we put new rear shocks in. i saw the panhard bar and LCA's and those are coming out next becasue they look so weak and im sure its time for some new ones so that will happen soon. and also why would i need an adjustable pan rod and LACRB's? how would a one inch drop affect those? heck after all that suspension upgrades it sat higher! heh. and yes i got an allignment after that and she rides like a million bucks. thanks guys for all the info also. more to come...

 

Well, the LCARBS are a must for lowered cars. Even though it is higher now than it was before, it is still lower than factory height. That means that the lower control arms are not at the right angle with the ground, and you will probably get wheel hop. Thats what the LCARB's are for, the brackets change the angle back to where its supposed to be.

 

ok so your saying that it doesnt matter if i lower it or not i still need LCA's with RB? if i dont need RB then that will be great because i dont think i want to lower it anymore, not to sure but i have the eibach's sittin in the house for the front and back but i dont wanna drag A$$ with it being to low so i dunno. and if i do need RB's no matter what, do i have to sit there for an hour drilling holes for them? or do they bolt in to the rear then bolt up to the LCA's?

 

You dont need them per-say, but its one of the first things people do to make the car more drivable. The control arm angle is pretty bad from the factory, and only gets worse as the car gets older and the springs sag. Now you are gonna lower it even more, and its gonna be worse.

Imagine how the control arms work - one end attaches to the axle tube, while the other end attaches to the body. When you lower the car, the body comes down, but the axle tube doesent move. That is how the angle changes.

The ones I recommended were bolt in. They make weld in ones that are cheaper, but require welding. The bolt-in ones utelize the lower shock mount to keep from rotating. The mounting bolt goes where the LCA used to bolt in, and you put the control arm inside the bracket. The shock bolt keeps it steady without welding needed.







By the way, those are the UMI ones. I got the pics from their site.

 

OHHHHHHH ok i SEEE! man thats very nice im hopin mine will be lookin like that soon! whats that red bar running parallel with his drive shaft? jus wondering if ya knew. i see wha t you mean by the body gets lower but it looks like this guys body sits higher in the rear. maybe cuz of some big slicks. well do you think that (since the stock springs are saggy) that even the one inch drops's will still make it higher than now? i think i read somewhere about that actually being true with these old springs. i think im still gonna drop it an inch and then get an adjustable pan rod with the LCA's and the RB's the bolt on ones, thanks for the pictures and the info i think i got it down now..

 

In that picture, the car is lifted by the body, so the axle isnt under load. That is why there is so much gap there.

And the red thing that runs parallel to the driveshaft is the torque arm. You have a stock one that is made out of stamped metal, what it does is keep the rear end from rotating, because if it werent there, the axle would twist instead of the wheels propelling the car.

Your stock torque arm will be fine untill you make tons more power. Those aftermarket ones are problem ridden, but they are great at the drag strip.

You should still replace the stock rubber torque arm bushing with a poly one though. Also, like I said, get a poly tranny mount too.

 

So your saying that the adjustable pan bar is not good at all? what company did you get yours from? im thinking of going with a hotchkiss. and did you just call them and ask them to fabricate a rod for you or do they have them for our applications? thanks.

 

UMI offers a dual rod-end bar. Its also $150.

Actually, here is all their bars:
http://www.umiperformance.com/produc...ategory_id=107

 

Considered a non-wear item.

JamesC

 

so i can use this bar with those one inch drop springs right? thanks for the info and links. suspension is almost done! now i can put that power to the ground. time to make power...next up are a set of hooker 2055's!

 

you could call ryan at UMI and ask him any questions regarding his products.

Personally, even though UMI makes great products, I would rather have this bar:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/F-Bod...em170197933392

because it has double poly ends for comfort of driving, but is adjustable and still way stiffer than the stock one.

 

I am glad I found this post, it is quite helpfull. UMI has some great prices!! I've been looking at Spohn so far and other more known names such as Edelbrock and HOtchkis. UMI is at least 30% cheaper than Spohn.

One thing that nobody mentions on is that should you not also shorten your rear anti-sway bar end links when lowering? I calculated I need a 1" shank rather than the 2-1/4" shank that is stock. This lifts the leading ends to be more paralell to the pickup points on the cars frame.

What I did learn is I want LCARBs.