Hey guys,

When I started my build I did not intend to autocross but the more I've put on the car, the more I'm thinking it would be a waste to not. What do you think of my set up, specifically, did I screw up on shocks and springs?

UMI:
K-member
A-arms
SFC's
Wonderbar
LCA's (adjustable)
LCA relocation brackets
Panhard (adjustable)
Torque Arm (adjustable)
Torque Arm Relocation cross member

Hotchkis:
Front and rear sway bars

Tokico Blues and sportlines


What do you think?

 

That sounds fine. More can always be done of course. With more money. Then again my stock v6 with wonder bar, wide tires and no back seats is fine too! It's about the fun of driving first.

 

Thanks! I have never done autocross so I guess it really doesn't matter much. I'm sure I will not be able to drive the car to its limits anyway!

 

Heya,

I had Tokico blues and they were a decent shock/strut, although my Koni yellows are much better now, the blues did a decent job.

The sportlines however, I've heard are soft and bouncy, which is not good for handling, more for the low look.

 

I hope your just aiming to autocross for fun. With all the mods that you have made you're going to be classed in with the really fast cars.

Go and enjoy yourself, learn and see if this is something you want to get competitive with. How you mod to be competitive depends on who your going to autocross with, NASA, SCCA or some independent club.

Again, go and have fun.

 

Very true. Takes good advice and practice to get as good as the car. Then if you improve the car you have to get to be a better driver again! Just time and money.

 

You haven't mentioned a thing about the most important part of your suspension, which I find strange.

TIRES????

It also seems like you have cheaped out on the shocks and springs to pay for everything else. I would skip everything else and buy the best tires - stocks/struts - springs you can afford, in that order.

Buying sway bars is a waste of money until you drive the car.

 

^^^ what he said


Sway bars are a tuning tool and I've found that the stock selection of bars is more than adequate.
Setting up a car for handling is about tuning. You can have all the best parts in the world but without a tune, you won't have a good handling car. It's the same with engines. It takes some running time to get things dialed in.

To get to where you know what you want to change you need to know what you are doing while driving. To give you an example, many novice drivers find that their car pushes a lot. You put that same car in skilled hands and the advanced driver may find that the car is neutral or oversteers. The difference is that the novice is "over driving" the car. If you can do some homework and learn what you are supposed to be doing behind the wheel, you'll be able to discern the difference between a suspension issue and a driving issue.
It doesn't mean you'll be able to execute everything you know you should be doing - that takes practice. What it does mean is that you'll be able to know when you did things correctly or didn't. You'll also know what goes wrong when things don't go according to plan.

Get this book if you can, I highly suggest it. Lots of great info.

 

Another thing I would suggest is when you go to an event, talk to people. In Dayton there are two major clubs that have regular autocross; Miami Valley Sports Car Club and Western Ohio SCCA. Both have knowledgeable people that are more than will willing to help new comers. Specially the Weavers, husband and wife team that used to run a 'stang in ESP and now have a Vette.

There is also the Cincinnati Region SCCA and the Central Ohio SCCA in Columbus.

To affirm what has been said above. Tires and shocks are the two best tools for tuning a car to a course. Sway bars and springs follow. I believe springs are better to tune with but they in most cases harder to quickly change. For my self I have Koni Sport shocks, 3 front bars, 3 rear bars, 2 sets of front springs and 4 sets of rear springs.

For competitive autocross there is really only 2 tires to choose from; Hoosier and Kumho V710s. Both are R-comp tires and are only good for competition. Too soft for street driving. I've liked running V710, they don't have all of the stick of Hoosiers, but the are a little cheaper and last twice as long.

That is another thing, if you get your car tuned for street tires and then switch to R-comp tires you need to re-tune the suspension. Because it all boils down to the classic line, "Tires are everything".

 

That's not true. What about the STx classes that have a minimum treadwear of 140?

 

I previously purchased the shocks, struts, and springs when I intended to drive the car to the golf course, the office, and to local shows. The project just snowballed once I got started. Tires are 275/35/18 NT555 front and 305/35/18 NT555R rear on Rushforth Rated-X's. 18x9 5.25" bs front and 18x10 6.25" bs rear. I did just realize that I have put this car into a class that is entirely out of my league. (Especially with my tire choice) but again, purchased previously. This is just for fun. I don't have the time to get competitive. (2 young children). Thanks for your responses guys!

 

I agree ST classes are an option, but a F-body will never be truly competitive when your running against BMWs, STIs or Evos. The only really competitive class for a 3rd gen is ESP. CP is the only real second choice, but to build to that is building a true race car.

I do plan to run my ESP car in a local street tire class since ESP has dried up locally, Street Tire Street Mod. For a 17" wheels there is only 1 good ST tire, Kumho XS. None of the other ST tires get wider than 255. There are a few more choices for 18" wheels, but then you talking more money and more weight in the wheels.

If your going to just have fun it really doesn't matter what your suspension is setup like, as long as it is safe and not spongy as a 1970s Caddy.

 

i agree with the people above. Hold off on the K-member and a-arms and spend the money on better springs, shocks and struts. I'm fairly new to autoX (this will be my third year), i run with a private club with their own classifications. I've run completely stock up until this year and done very well. I'm doing a major overhaul on my suspension this spring and my list is very similar to yours. I recommend ground control weight jacks for racing, and Koni yellows.

but Tires, yes tires are huge. i read once that all your suspension mods only purpose is to maximize the traction of your tires. Since your just getting started, maybe just buy good tires(maybe wheels too), SFC's, a wonderbar and try that for a season.