xxDerek

So, I know there is a lot of posts about this, but here's for me. My stang is a DD, and I'm going to be lowering it with the eibach pro-kit soon. I already know i need new shocks/struts, however, I was told by a lot of people that I don't need something as flashy as the tokico D-Specs ( expensive ) because I don't hit the track at all, I may one day, but never a lot. I'm thinking purely about street use. I've had some people suggest the Tokico HP's, and the FRPP shocks/struts. Anyone have any good things to say about these, or which one I should get rather than the other, and where is the best price for them? Thanks!

Stoenr

For the little more the Dspecs will run its waaaaaaaaay worth it. And I bet others will tell you the same thing.

F1Fan

Hi xxDerek,

I'm gonna tell you that for a DD your choices are most likely going to be better met with taller ride height springs and double adjustable dampers. Seriously, you should consider the Steeda or H&R Sport springsunless you live where is does not snow and the roads are really smooth and you never have to drive through sharp driveways or dips. Even if you have a stock sized full height 27"+ tall tire you will bepretty low on Eibach Pro-Kit springsand your doors willhave a hard time not scraping on the curb. Trust me I had a set of them for many months and was swaping different springs in and out to see what was possible.Ultimately I came to the Steeda Competition springs and found them tohave a very good spring rate and pretty good ride but too much ride height for the spring rate. While I liked the handling feel of thevery low CG of the Pro-Kit springsthe spring rate curve designhas the spring rate rising too late inthe suspension travel to prevent the car from bottoming out on a regular basis. It's not too bad but it happens none the less.

Anywho, whoever told you that you don't "need" D-Specs is very short sighted. There is nothing "flashy" about the D-Spec dampers if you are serious about handlingand or having the ability to adjust your car's ride for street duty or longdistance driving. A lot of people I have consulted with have simply installed D-Specs along with a set of Eibach Camber boltskeeping their stock springs and found a tremendous improvement in ride, handlingand body control with no other changes other thana more sportingalignment. The difference between a set of D-Specs and the less expensiveblue Tokico dampers is not just money. The lower model Tokico dampers are not just non-adjustable they are also not made as well nor are they as well finished and use a simpler internal design. Why try to save a few bucks onsomething you have to use every day for the next several years? The difference in cost per day is nothing so why suffer inferior dampers that cannot be adjusted to meet your present and future needs? That isvery short sighted and represents apoor value in my opinion. But of course they are cheap and if cheap is important to you by all means buy the less expensive dampers and try to rationalize your unhappiness with them for th next few years while you save up to buy what you needed in the first place.

The FRPP performance dampers are very poor riding. The FRPP dampers suffer fromsome the same issues the stock Mustang GTdampers do, way to heavily damped in compression which is the cause of the poor ride and tire chatter overany sort of rough surface. For track use they are O.K. but still not as welldevelopedas I would have imagined given the information and technical resources they have access to.The FRPPsprings are simply the Eibach Pro-Kit springs and anti-roll bars put into a box labledFRPP. They are even marked with Eibach's logo and regular catalog part numbers. The FRPP Suspension Pak is not any less expensive than carefully selected suspension parts from other vendors and comes with parts you get to pay for that you really don't need or want like the Strut-Tie-Bar. Pick carefully and you can build up a good suspension kit that is better then the FRPP kit and no more expensive to buy or install.

HTH!

VerginaStang

^^^^ this man knows what he is talking about.

Based on his recommendations I went with the following:
Steeda Sport Springs
Tokico D-specs
Steeda Adjustable panhard bar and brace
Steeda upper strut mounts.

I LOVE the way the car looks, and handles. I couldnt be happier. The above parts cost me about $1200 shipped+ $300 for installation. I went through someone who was running a special on another forum (themustangsource), his name is Gus & he works for Steeda (steedagus on the forum I think)- hes a great guy, and I wound up saving a few hundred bucks I will be posting pics and some sort of review.

Car handlesexcellent with myugly stock 17's, and now that I have my 18" Nitto's, it handles and rides even better!

xxDerek

Well, I live in the Bay Area, no snow here, and the roads are semi-smooth if that makes sense. I'm mainly going for looks with the lowering springs, but also like the improvement in handling. If you're saying on a daily basis my car will bottom out from just normal driving from using the pro-kit, that definitely brings up some concern. I do like the way the stangs look with the pro-kit, and have heard many people say how much they liked it. Comparing the pro-kit to the steeda comp springs, whats the major difference in the way they perform? As far as the struts, what you say makes sense, and definitely makes me believe I will need the D-Specs. I definitely don't want to go cheap on quality, if I have to spend a little bit more cash to get the right parts, I will do so, I just want to make sure I'm not overdoing it. So basically what I'm getting out of your post, you're saying for a DD, to get the drop in height I want, and still have decent ride quality and a nice improvement in handling, I should go with the Steeda Comp Springs and a set of Tokico D-Specs?

Sam Strano

D-specs or Koni's are all I'd recommend. Nothing less, as shocks make or break how a car actually works in the real world. Skimping on dampers leaves you with a half-assed setup.

The "FRPP" shocks were the first thing I dumped off the Shelby I autox. I have since changed that car to Koni's and have Koni's on my Mustang GT w/stock springs.

Impact harshness, response, stability are all shock items and those are usually the biggest complaints about a car on stock shocks with, or without lowering springs. While springs help response, the ride generally gets more harsh due to a decrease in working travel combined with an increase in spring rate, but no increase in spring damping rate (firmer rebound from the shocks). Having adjustable shocks allows you tune the feel to suit what you like best.

F1Fan

Hi xxDerek,

I'm in SoCal and run up PCH a couple of times a year to see the Historics in Monterey andto visit my relatives upin the city. They live out in the Avenues near the park so I'm familar with the roads up there. If you install a set of Pro-Kit springs you likely won't be too happy with the ridedue to the bottoming out problems you will have. If youprimarily drive around theBay Area you probably want to go no lower than a set of Steedaor H&RSport springs.The roads up there are often pretty smooth but in the cityyou don't so much have bad roads as grossly unmatched pavement and lots of patches and differering pavements. Here in SoCal we have a lot of smooth roads that are aligatoring from the sunand in need of sealing with fewer patches involved. If you stick witha Sport spring that lowers the carno more than1" or so like Steeda or H&R Sport springs you'll retainastock likeor better than stock ride with a set of TokicoD-Specs under the car.

The Steeda Competition springs are a 230lb.F/175lb.R linear rate spring and reduce the stock ride height by about 1"F/1"R or so. Steeda's regular Sport springsmeasured 200lb.F/165lb.R and also lower the car about1"F/1"R or so. The Eibach Pro-Kit springs are a progressiverate spring design with a working rate of about 225-230lb+.F/200-215lb.R and lower the stock ride height about 1.5"F/1.7"R or so. I measured these spring ratesusing a custom German madehigh precision (0.000000N) load cell spring testing fixture. The ride height was measured on the same car using the same D-Spec dampers on a level garage floor with the stock 17" wheels and tires.

The Steeda Competition and Eibach Pro-Kit springs behave very differently on the car even though they appear to have similar spring rates. The Steeda Competition springs areeasy to findgood damper settings for, ride very welland have more suspension travel and do not bottom out in normal DD use. They alsoreduce pitch and yaw motions noticably.The Eibach Pro-Kit springs are reasonably well behaved and very smooth riding on very smooth roads where the limited suspension travel does not cause the suspension to get into the bumpstops. When the Pro-Kit springsget into the bumpstops the car obviously starts to have issues with ride and handling quality. I was surprised to find that the springs were allowing the car to bottom out so often given the spring rates but the problem is the progressive nature of the springs causes thesprings to be too soft too long with not enough spring rate due to the placement of the heel in the spring rate curve. In other words the springs are too softfor too much wheel travel before thesprings get stiff enough toprevent the car from bottomingout. It's a case of too little spring force too late in the travel of the springs. They almost had it but it's not quite right.This mismatched spring rate and curve also causes the problems Ihad with findinggooddamper settings front or rear. But for most folks whocan tollerate the low ride heightthis is an O.K. setup as long as the roads are reasonably smooth and they don'tloadup the springs all the time.

But I think the better springs for you might be the regular Steeda Sport springs. They have a better ride than theComps obviously due to the lower spring ratesand do notlower the car excessively. TheSteeda Sports are a good choice for anybody who sees bumpy roads and wants to keep some of the stock ride traits.But anyway that the staight poop on these springs.

HTH!

SlideWRX

Compared to Stock V8 dampers, the Konis ride better and handle better on the softest setting. Even when turning them up a bit, they still feel better than stock, ride-wise.

mac10chap

i have a pro kit and my car goes in the shop to get my new d-specs put on today. i will let you know tomorrow how it rides...

i went with the d-specs b/c they were not much more than the other non-adjustable shocks/struts out there and i can leave it on an aggressive street setting for DD...but, if i decide to hit the track, pop the hood, turn the strut to race setting, and there i go...

better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it

F1Fan

Hi mac10chap,

So what do you think of your car now with the D-Specs?

Cheers!