imaredtuna

I have the Koni Sports on my daily driver now. My commute to work is 100 miles round trip every day, with a mix of country roads (old uneven pavement, broken sections), interstate highway (pretty smooth), and city streets (lots of patched pavement). I am very happy with the ride comfort with the Sports. I am not a spring chicken any more, so the quality of the car's ride has a higher priority for me than it did when I was in my 20's. I love being able to adjust the shocks on the soft side for my daily drive during the week and then firm them up for driving the twisties on the weekends. No matter what setting you choose on the Konis, they are a huge improvement over the stock struts and shocks.

smokievol

If the STR are full soft on the Yellows then I would get the Yellows. I never set my Yellows at full soft and they feel good at most settings. If you really dial them in, yeah you will get a very firm ride, don't hit a pot hole. Mines a DD and I still like changing up the settings and testing out what the car will do.
I just added LCA after running stockers for 2 years since my suspension upgrade. I would have done it sooner knowing what I know now. Launches are more controlled and it adds a more firm feeling when you hit expansion joints and rough pavement. I got the Extreme Joint LCA, and there is more road noise for sure.

Xeremeh

Keep trying to call, but can't get ahold of Sam. Damn deployment time differences. I want to take advantage of this sale though.

Looking through Sam's advice, as well as others, and my own thoughts...

Koni Yellows - yes, convinced

Steeda Sport Springs - yes, convinced

Strano Sway Bars - yes, but not sure which set to get, and also if I should get endlinks?

Watts Link - Just not really sold on it. Is it that important for/worth the money for a DD non-racing setup? And if truly necessary, something that can be added later/last?

Steeda HD Upper Strut Mounts - yes, convinced

Any thoughts on those few questions?

Also, planning on getting a 1pc driveshaft. I've been reading that it may be necessary to adjust LCAs once installed, so should I get a set of adjustable LCAs as well, or are they necessary at alll?

Thanks!
Jeremy

Whiskey11

Is the Watts link necessary? Nope, you could just get an adjustable PHB. You may be leaving something on the table. I just installed mine last night and the difference with the stock springs and bars is night and day. The rear end is more lively, and I don't mean that in a bad way! It's PLANTED to the ground and responds very well across bumps, what I mean is, I placed the center bolt in the 2nd to bottom hole. That drops the roll center probably 2.5" from the stock position. Maybe further. That drop added to body roll at the rear, substantially, which is why I understand why Sam pushed me to the 25mm rear bar. I'll have to work around it since the bars haven't shown up at my door yet! Like I said though, it's planted, and the car is balanced. I did take it to a parking lot last night and did a rather aggressive turn around and at about 3/4 throttle and a 40' diameter circle there was plenty of grip and most importantly zero understeer (the same trick with the PHB would have resulted in power oversteer or if it gripped, copious amounts of understeer). Some of that is the new tires that don't suck (Star Specs).

As for what bars? It's going to depend on your choice in the rear. If you do get the Fays2, I can understand why Strano says to go for the 25mm bar so you can use the bottom hole in the Fays2. Otherwise, talk to Sam. He may still recommend the 25mm bar with an adjustable PHB, I don't know.

I got the competition endlinks, not because my factory ones are "bad" by any stretch (25k miles on the car), I just can't stand the factory endlinks. They look cheap and they are a PITA to get tight enough to not make noise. I haven't put mine on yet as I would have to take them off again when I swap the front swaybar and springs but they are nice pieces of kit.

You don't want adjustable LCA's unless your car has a dogtracking problem (also known as crab walking). Yes you can change the pinion angle with adjustable LCA's, it's just a heck of a lot harder to do and if you do it wrong, it will cause crab walking! A single, adjustable UCA with a new mount (Steeda Competition with poly bushings is what I plan on going to when I get there) wont contribute to crab walking and allows you to adjust the pinion angle for the 1pc driveshaft.

My $.02 (which isn't worth much FWIW :P)

Stuntman Mike

Well if your $0.02 isn't worth much then mine isn't either, but I agree. I can't even speak from 1st-hand experience because my parts are still en route from Sam. I already have a new set of Steeda HD Mounts and Steeda Sport Springs (8215's) NIB. Sam's hooking me up with Koni Sports all around, Strano sway bar package 3, and a Fays2. Sam confirmed the 25 mm rear bar / Watts Linkage combo with me too. The place where I drew the line was the endlink upgrade. For as much as I agree with you about the OEM endlinks, I thought I was reaching diminishing returns on my money. I can always get them later if I change my mind.

I had ZERO interest in an adjustable PHB. Why spend good money on something to maintain the status quo after spending the money to alter the suspension in the 1st place? For me, it was Watts Linkage or nothing. Reading your impressions makes me want the Fed Ex / UPS guy to show up that much sooner.

OP, it took me some effort to get in touch with Sam too. But patience is a virtue and it will be rewarded. :-)

BTW, I'm no longer a lurker. First post!!!

Whiskey11

Congrats on your purchases, I'm waiting for my bars to arrive from Sam then I'll have basically the same suspension as you except I have D-Specs instead of Konis.

I did run the Watts today at the autocross with the D-specs and basically stock everything else (including bars) and it was well worth the upgrade. I'm willing to bet it will be even better with the rest of the suspension components!

Xeremeh

Hm, at this time, I'm planning on getting the Yellows, Sport springs, and the 25mm bar, and tossing the watts on there later when I can get in touch with Sam.