2006gtmike

My car felt much more balanced with what I had done to my suspension before I got the Whipple installed.

Obviously, the weight of the Whipple is the cause of this, but what can I do to get back to that balanced front end and rear end feeling, or is this not possible anymore?

My car feels a little better now that I have driven the car a couple thousand miles and learned how to manuever/steer it and negotiate turns but it just is not the same. It's fun though, to relearn how to drive the car because it isn't the same car it used to be. My car doesn't feel as confident and I cannot toss the car into curves like I used to, haha. I know I can't expect to take turns under full boost, but if I try to turn the steering wheel a little my car seems to keep wanting to steer more than I intended. It's just not as precise!

I have tried different air pressure in my tires but I haven't noticed much difference.

I have tried adjusting my KONI's but anything more than the absolute softest setting in the front feels too bouncy with the pot-hole-ridden roads. Maybe I am adjusting the shocks/struts in the improper manner, but it feels as though the extra weight of the Whipple and company makes the front end bounce more on stiffer settings.


I still have stock swaybars and I would also like to make twisty turns feel more crisp so maybe different bars is what I should research?

Are any of these front and rear swaybar combinations a good start?

http://www.steeda.com/products/swaybar_kit_s197.php

Would the Ultimate Sway Bar Kit-GT500 (Part#555-1066) do any good on my GT?

I have also read that I should consider purchasing the Steeda Billet Swaybar Mount (Part #555-8113).

I'm being told that the Steeda Lightweight Radiator Support (Part#555-5075) is a popular upgrade for those with an aftermarker supercharger added to a stock GT.

Your thoughts, ideas, and expertise would be much appreciated!

Texotic

I think I'd do a battery relocation to the trunk first. That would take over 50lbs off of the front end and should redistribute the weight more evenly. You basically put 90-100 lbs on the front, so moving 50lbs to the rear would take 50 off the front and add 50 to the rear... basically put your weight ration (front/rear) back to what it was before you added 100lbs to the front. It's not saving any weight, but it would be rebalanced.

That would be my first step... Unless you got the cash to start doing some serious weight saving mods to offset the added weight all together.

tx_zstang

A little stiffer front springs perhaps? Or slightly taller?
Is it that much heavier up front now?
I probably added about 40-50 lbs with my blower setup, but that was on stock suspension and when I went to springs/struts, the handling got better. I did have a 'bottoming-out' issue on the back that made for rougher riding until I figured it out (bump-stop small mod).

Otherwise I suppose if you do remove some weight up front with lighter components, you might et closer back to pre-blower weight and that might help.

good luck Mike!

Texotic

I was under the impression that most of the twin screw setups add close to 100lbs. The centri s/c's don't add as much weight.

Legion5

I think I heard somewhere that some one made a light supercharger that weighed 45 lbs. I know the Saleen one weighs around that much because I weighed it. Anyways don't make this harder than it needs to be. Just add weight to the rear and weld it down. You can compensate for the inefficiency to the handling by switching up a class of tire, ie to a summer tire or to a DOT track tires you can use in the rain like Dunlop Direzza.

From all season to summer you get about a 3% increase in grip, from summer to DOT rain slicks you get a 3% increase also (I've measured a 3.2% increase from the best tires in summer to the best in DOT slicks). By adding 200 lbs you'd reduce your handling about a similar amount as either those two gains so the end result is you'll have them cancel out.

Sam Strano

The extra mass is no help, and frankly it's in the worst place. Up high and not fully contained within the axles.

I agree with adding a bit more rebound damping as you added more weight to control. Rebound damping higher makes for a quicker reaction. However it's not a substitute if you need more spring rate and/or roll control. You can keep trying more, but eventually you will "pack" the softer springs down and hurt ride and compliance as you overdamp the spring rate.

If you like how it rides, and don't want to lower it, then I'd start with more roll stiffness via swaybar. Seems your main complaint is that is just isn't as crisp and feels more ponderous as you turn. Stiffer, lower springs--and in particular ones meant for a GT500 will also help but of course they ride lower and effect ride more than bars do (which have next to no effect on ride quality in most cases).

I like Eibach bars, I sell Steeda, I sell Hotchkis. I sell the Steeda mounts (and have some in stock because they are a good thing to upgrade for durability but not really a big help for performance--until the stock ones break. I have bars from Progress, Hellwig too.