Shelby Drop/560lb Coils/Roller Perches Review!
11-05-2008, 10:59 PM
#1
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Elk Grove, CA
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Shelby Drop/560lb Coils/Roller Perches Review!
I finally aligned my car today after installing my new front suspension stuff on Monday. I figure it's about time I do a review on the job now that I've had time to test it out with a proper alignment.
What I did:
New OE-style 3-bolt ball joint UCA's from Mustangs Plus (I got a deal, otherwise I would've gone elsewhere)
560lb 1" drop coil springs from OpenTracker (which they apparently source from Mustangs Plus)
Roller spring perches, courtesy of Day @ www.dazecars.com (awesome guy)
Shelby drop (template and 17/32" bit courtesy of Day, again)
Alignment (1/16" toe in, 3.8* caster, -.6* camber)
How the job went:
Painfully. Well, it wasn't really all that bad, but I wasted almost 2 hours trying to make a pair of external mcpherson strut coil spring compressors work on my coil springs. They don't, so don't try. Stupid, dangerous pieces of crap. They were the only things I could find at the shop (I did all of this at the shop at the local junior college I attend). A couple times I almost lost a finger when they slipped and smacked together. Fortunately one of the lab instructors dug up an internal hook-and-plate style coil spring compressor that made short work of the coils. It wasn't the external fork-style I was told we had, or the twin-plate style I should've borrowed from a friend, but it worked and didn't kill me or remove any digits.
The rest of the job went fairly smooth. I spent a bit of time and most of a can of PB Blaster drilling progressively larger holes for the Shelby drop. I'm lucky the shop had a drill that accepted up to 3/4" bits (even though it was a freaking huge electric), because my drill and the shop air drills only do about 7/8".
The only problem I had during reassembly was with the lower shock bushings and washers, and Day warned me about that beforehand. With the big tube for the bearings in place, there's not a lot of room for the lower bushings and washers. I ended up having to grind down the washers and cut the bushings on one side to clear. No big deal, but something to keep in mind.
How it works:
FREAKING AWESOME@#%$!!!! It's seriously like driving a different car. Before, the front end would roll during hard cornering, understeer, and generally keep my cornering speeds down. Now, the front end stays flat and planted. It actually wants to go where I point it, and the limiting factor during cornering seems more to be how fast I can turn the wheel (stupid low ratio m/s box) rather than body roll. The rear still rolls a little, which I attribute partially to the unibody flexing, but that can be dealt with later by subframe connectors and possibly a rear sway bar. The front still understeers a bit, but that's to be expected considering the sloppy rear, and can be corrected to some extent by my right foot
Ride height is much better than before. I've got M+ 4.5 leaf mid-eye (1" drop) springs in the rear to snug the tires into the wheel wells. The stock front springs left about a 3" gap in the wheel well up front and left the car looking like it was sitting with a backwards rake (basically how the car looked from the factory). The new front end setup dropped the front about an inch, maybe an inch and a half, and I'm hoping the springs settle even more in the next couple months. The car looks much more level now.
Ride quality is excellent. The new springs are firm, but not jarring. They're definitely stiffer than the old stock springs, but not so stiff as to be overly jarring. I attribute part of this to the Edelbrock IAS shocks that soak up bumps and dips, and the roller perches Day made for me that allow the suspension to respond more quickly. I still think the ride might be on the stiff side for many daily drivers (driving on sections of freeway where the cracks are tarred over is slightly uncomfortable and annoying), but it's great for a weekend car or for someone like me who doesn't care quite as much about ride quality.
Moral of the Story:
Do it. Do it now.
Seriously, the Shelby drop does amazing things to your handling, and there's no reason not to replace the springs and perches while you're in there.
What I did:
New OE-style 3-bolt ball joint UCA's from Mustangs Plus (I got a deal, otherwise I would've gone elsewhere)
560lb 1" drop coil springs from OpenTracker (which they apparently source from Mustangs Plus)
Roller spring perches, courtesy of Day @ www.dazecars.com (awesome guy)
Shelby drop (template and 17/32" bit courtesy of Day, again)
Alignment (1/16" toe in, 3.8* caster, -.6* camber)
How the job went:
Painfully. Well, it wasn't really all that bad, but I wasted almost 2 hours trying to make a pair of external mcpherson strut coil spring compressors work on my coil springs. They don't, so don't try. Stupid, dangerous pieces of crap. They were the only things I could find at the shop (I did all of this at the shop at the local junior college I attend). A couple times I almost lost a finger when they slipped and smacked together. Fortunately one of the lab instructors dug up an internal hook-and-plate style coil spring compressor that made short work of the coils. It wasn't the external fork-style I was told we had, or the twin-plate style I should've borrowed from a friend, but it worked and didn't kill me or remove any digits.
The rest of the job went fairly smooth. I spent a bit of time and most of a can of PB Blaster drilling progressively larger holes for the Shelby drop. I'm lucky the shop had a drill that accepted up to 3/4" bits (even though it was a freaking huge electric), because my drill and the shop air drills only do about 7/8".
The only problem I had during reassembly was with the lower shock bushings and washers, and Day warned me about that beforehand. With the big tube for the bearings in place, there's not a lot of room for the lower bushings and washers. I ended up having to grind down the washers and cut the bushings on one side to clear. No big deal, but something to keep in mind.
How it works:
FREAKING AWESOME@#%$!!!! It's seriously like driving a different car. Before, the front end would roll during hard cornering, understeer, and generally keep my cornering speeds down. Now, the front end stays flat and planted. It actually wants to go where I point it, and the limiting factor during cornering seems more to be how fast I can turn the wheel (stupid low ratio m/s box) rather than body roll. The rear still rolls a little, which I attribute partially to the unibody flexing, but that can be dealt with later by subframe connectors and possibly a rear sway bar. The front still understeers a bit, but that's to be expected considering the sloppy rear, and can be corrected to some extent by my right foot
Ride height is much better than before. I've got M+ 4.5 leaf mid-eye (1" drop) springs in the rear to snug the tires into the wheel wells. The stock front springs left about a 3" gap in the wheel well up front and left the car looking like it was sitting with a backwards rake (basically how the car looked from the factory). The new front end setup dropped the front about an inch, maybe an inch and a half, and I'm hoping the springs settle even more in the next couple months. The car looks much more level now.
Ride quality is excellent. The new springs are firm, but not jarring. They're definitely stiffer than the old stock springs, but not so stiff as to be overly jarring. I attribute part of this to the Edelbrock IAS shocks that soak up bumps and dips, and the roller perches Day made for me that allow the suspension to respond more quickly. I still think the ride might be on the stiff side for many daily drivers (driving on sections of freeway where the cracks are tarred over is slightly uncomfortable and annoying), but it's great for a weekend car or for someone like me who doesn't care quite as much about ride quality.
Moral of the Story:
Do it. Do it now.
Seriously, the Shelby drop does amazing things to your handling, and there's no reason not to replace the springs and perches while you're in there.
11-06-2008, 09:59 AM
#3
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Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Ramona, CA
Posts: 2,682
Thats awsome! Can you post a pic so I can see your ride height? I have the same rear suspension and was thinking about cutting my stock springs to get the 1 inch lower, I really want to get the front lowered for cheap..
11-06-2008, 12:08 PM
#4
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Elk Grove, CA
Posts: 5,896
I'll see if I can steal my roommate's camera. I'll put up a different post when I get some pics uploaded.
Those 1" drop springs from Opentracker are only $80, so you may keep that option in mind. Until I realized that, I had been planning on cutting my stock springs as well. Either way, I'd strongly recommend the Shelby drop while you've got everything apart.
Those 1" drop springs from Opentracker are only $80, so you may keep that option in mind. Until I realized that, I had been planning on cutting my stock springs as well. Either way, I'd strongly recommend the Shelby drop while you've got everything apart.
11-06-2008, 01:58 PM
#6
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Connecticut
Posts: 1,839
Tad,
Excellent review, thanks for sharing. I have roughly the same set up to install, but will be installing a TCP R&P set up. Do the roller spring perchs make any perceptible difference? It may be hard to tell, but I am interested in your perspective.
Excellent review, thanks for sharing. I have roughly the same set up to install, but will be installing a TCP R&P set up. Do the roller spring perchs make any perceptible difference? It may be hard to tell, but I am interested in your perspective.
11-06-2008, 02:33 PM
#7
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Elk Grove, CA
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Boogerschnot, I'm running 14x7 rims with BFG Radial T/A's (ugh), P225/60R14 front, P235/60R14 rear. They're short, but they work with the 14" rims. I think the wheel wells will fill out a bit more when I get around to 16" rims and taller tires.
Fakesnakes, yes, I believe they do make a noticable difference. I actually broke a shock (one of my almost brand new Edelbrocks) earlier this year, and I partially blame the stiff rubber-bushing spring perches for not rotating and putting a side load on the shock. I think that without the roller perches the suspension would be less responsive, meaning that road shocks would be more easily transferred through the suspension to the vehicle rather than being absorbed by the springs. With the roller perches, the suspension is allowed to more easily respond to road shocks, keeping the ride smooth and the tires on the ground. Ride quality really is better than what I thought it would be with the new, beefier coils.
Fakesnakes, yes, I believe they do make a noticable difference. I actually broke a shock (one of my almost brand new Edelbrocks) earlier this year, and I partially blame the stiff rubber-bushing spring perches for not rotating and putting a side load on the shock. I think that without the roller perches the suspension would be less responsive, meaning that road shocks would be more easily transferred through the suspension to the vehicle rather than being absorbed by the springs. With the roller perches, the suspension is allowed to more easily respond to road shocks, keeping the ride smooth and the tires on the ground. Ride quality really is better than what I thought it would be with the new, beefier coils.
11-06-2008, 02:53 PM
#8
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Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Cork, Ireland
Posts: 6,417
thanks for the review Tad. it's great to know. I was always humming and hawing about the drop, but my front end squeaks the crap out of me so I got new ball joints and that thingie where the UCA mounts to. I plan to put it all in in the winter. I'll have it all apart anyway so I guess why not.
Maybe you remember my post about how to grease those things on the UCA, I couldn't find grease nipples. The 64 1/2s don't have grease nipples there. as simple as that :-]
I checked with a friends 65 and he has them. one on each side ...
Maybe you remember my post about how to grease those things on the UCA, I couldn't find grease nipples. The 64 1/2s don't have grease nipples there. as simple as that :-]
I checked with a friends 65 and he has them. one on each side ...
11-06-2008, 03:24 PM
#9
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: San Diego, CA
Posts: 2,990
Sounds sweet, I should check it out sometime since I'm up in SLO now. I need to save up money to redo my suspension this summer before I bring my car up here, I plan on doing the shelby drop, some dropping springs, and who knows what else. I might just do new bushings or maybe go all out with new UCA's and stuff depending on what my budget allows. I think I'm going to buy new 16" rims and tires first though so I can drop it to fit my new setup, but I don't know if I'll have that kind of money.
11-06-2008, 07:46 PM
#10
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Yeah Kalli, the factory UCA's don't have grease zerks. Great idea, huh? When you install the new shaft, add some 90* zerks to the caps.
4reboy, I'd recommend just replacing the entire UCA's. It's simpler and easier, and new control arms can be had for under $80ea. I've heard that it's very easy to screw up the shaft threads while trying to rebuild them. I would recommend doing the suspension before the rims/tires, though. You really need to get that thing lowered; it sits like a truck right now:P It'd look pretty slick with a 1-2" drop all the way around.
4reboy, I'd recommend just replacing the entire UCA's. It's simpler and easier, and new control arms can be had for under $80ea. I've heard that it's very easy to screw up the shaft threads while trying to rebuild them. I would recommend doing the suspension before the rims/tires, though. You really need to get that thing lowered; it sits like a truck right now:P It'd look pretty slick with a 1-2" drop all the way around.