Getting close on a suspension rebuild

Blatwurst · 09-09-2006, 08:57 PM

Greetings,

You StangSusp guys seem like the place to get stuff, so I'm hoping you can help me dial in my plans for my '97 GT so I can place an order with you.

My current suspension is creaky (makes lots of noise) in front, and I broke the sway bar in back. The whole thing is stock. It's really ready for some work.

I want to modify the look of my 'Stang and pick up some handling performance. I rarely see a speed bump, so I'm ready to go pretty low. I don't expect to do anyting except normal street driving and the occasional trip up the windy Calif. north coast.

I'm thinking of a basic lowering kit; sprints, struts, plates, etc. and I also want new wheels/tires. I'm currently looking at 18x9 Bullits in front, 18x10 in back.

My best guess so far at susp. parts after reading lots of posts is:

H&R Super Sport Springs
Tokico Non-adj. Struts/Shocks
MM Caster Camber Plates
Steeda Heavy Duty Rear Swaybar

Here are the questions I have:

It seems like the H&R SS springs and the Eibach Pro Kit springs have very similar specs, and I believe you said yourself in a post that either will lower both front and back about 1.5". Would you recommend one set over the other for my needs?

Is it crazy to think about the Eibach Sportslines for a '97? Is that going to be too low, even if I stay clear of gnarly speed bumps? What kind of reduction do you see in practice with those springs?

I could spend more on struts/shocks if there was really a reason to. It looks like the two most popular upgrades would be the Eibach non-adjustables or the Tokico adjustables. Is there any reason for me to consider spending the extra $ knowing I'm just talking street use? If so, which upgrade, and why?

Is there anything I should consider rather than replacing my rear sway bar with a similar-to-stock replacement?

What else should I get in terms of bushings, isolators, etc? If this is a fairly trivial issue (not a lot to decide), we can just work it out when I place my order.

I'm wondering about 20" wheels. What do you think about them in general for use on a Mustang? How much better will my lowered car handle with them, and how much harder will the ride be? I think they look cool. What do you think?

Any comments on the 9" front, 10" rear wheel combo?

Any advice on tires? I'm looking at buying wheels from MustangTuning. They only seem to sell Sumitomo, but it would be really nice to get the tires with the wheels and have them shipped to me ready to put on the car. (You folks don't seem to be the match for me for wheels/tires. I'd be happy to talk about this if I might be wrong.)

Answers to these questions, and any other general advice you might have to give would be greatly appreciated. TIA!

Steve
steve@equilibrium.com

STANGSUSPENSION · 09-12-2006, 08:48 PM

Steve,

The H&R Super Sports and Eibach Pro-Kit are not similar. The H&R Sports are more similar to the Eibach Pro-Kit than the Super Sports are. The H&R Super Sport springs have a stiffer spring rating, and will provide better handling and performance. The Super Sports will have a slightly stiffer ride than the Eibach Pro-Kit or H&R Sports, but they are still a progressive rate spring, so it will definitely be bearable. Eibach Sportlines are very low. They are softer than the H&R Super Sports but provide a pretty consistant 2 inch drop, which may be too low depending on your driving.

On the shocks. It is really a decision for you to make whether you need adjustable shocks or not. I usually say "if you dont know if you need them, you probably dont need them". Meaning that if you dont have a purpose now which requires you to have adjustable shocks, you can probably do without. Some advantages although for your driving may be stiffening them up for daily driving, but then softening them up for road trips or drag racing situations. In drag racing you may want to soften up the rear end for example to allow for better weight transfer. I highly suggest the Tokico HP's if you want a nice non-adjustable shock which is a good value for the money.

The Steeda HD rear swaybar is the best replacement swaybar out there. If your stock one broke I'd suggest replacing it with the Steeda HD bar. A broken stock swaybar is the most popular reason people buy our Steeda HD bars. We also sell the bars with new hardware kits as well if you need new swaybar mounting hardware.

20 inch rims are too big for any car in my opinion....

Here are the direct links to the products we have discussed...

http://www.stangsuspension.com/store...?idproduct=146 - H&R Super Sport Springs

http://www.stangsuspension.com/store...p?idproduct=62 - Steeda Heavy Duty Rear Swaybar

http://www.stangsuspension.com/store...?idproduct=938 - Tokico Complete Shock/Strut Package

Sincerely,