KeneticEnergy

anybody tried this combo? ive seen some pics of the vogtland springs and they look pretty good. i'd like to match it with a shock/strut set and ive always heard great things about koni. the STR.T's price at sam's website is just right fo rme as well

Rubrignitz

Haven't tried it, but it definitely sounds like it could be an awesome combo. I've run H&R Race (too stiff for street duty IMO), Steeda Sport and Steeda Competition springs. I settled with the Steeda Comps but have wanted to try the Vogtlands. I believe Sam uses Vogtland as his personal "strano spring" supplier and I've wanted to give those a try. I don't think too many have tried the STR.T's yet but they must be a quality product coming from Koni. And to tell you the truth, adjustability is a bit overrrated on a street driven vehilcle anyway. I've tried many different configurations with my D-specs and threw the towel.. set them to something that worked well on the street and haven't touched them again.

KeneticEnergy

thanks man. im like you in that sense and i think the "infinite adjustments" would drive me insane. my old truck was easy. had my bilstein resevoirs valved to 255/70. bolt on. drink beer. this car thing is something else.

i saw your post about swapping out the H&Rs for the steedas. are the steedas much higher off the ground than the H&Rs?

Rubrignitz

The H&R's were low. So low that the suspension couldn't work like it should. I don't see how folks go lower than 1.5'' on these cars thinking the suspension is going to work like it should (or even work at all).

IMO, you don't want to lower these cars more than 1.2'' f/r and even then I had to get X5 balljoints and a bumpsteer kit to bring my steering back into perfect alignment.

I ran the H&R's with the HR rears/Steeda comp rears and preferred the steedas rear handling traits. At that point I just reinstalled the Steeda comp fronts, said goodbye to the chin spoiler/dragging/clearance issues and hello to optimal handling.

I wouldn't put too much thought into ride height/looks. The improvements in vehicle handling/ride will trump that quickly.

Rubrignitz

I would also recommend a swaybar kit. Some on here don't recommend a rear sway bar upgrade but in my case the hotchkis f/r bars (and probably more importantly) their hard durometer bushings made a huge improvement. Everything feels so much more tied together and firm.

IMO, the swaybars had as much of an effect as the dampers/springs on overall performance.

KeneticEnergy

im a big fan of swaybars as well, the first thing i did was buy a set of stillen front & rear adjustables since they were on sale. i am just now getting to the rest of the suspenion and then tires/wheels.

socalwrench

Larger anti-roll bars are a great way to provide better handling on a street car without making the ride overly harsh (such as with springs and dampers). Afterall, they're really just horizontal torsion bars that are only 'active' when under a moderate load, such as a turn.

You know, the S197 really isn't that high off the ground if you compare it to other cars of the same category.

Hey Rubrignitz, you say that you used the Steeda Sport springs- are they really that much stiffer than the stock springs?

KeneticEnergy

i agree one billion percent. now that i am looking at springs, i kind of eye a lot of other cars out there to see how they sit. our car is definately on the lower side of things. in my opinion, the large wheelgap makes the car appear to sit a lot higher.

i'm considering a chin spoiler as well. its mind numbing how it can fit without numbing (i went from a lifted truck to this car, its alien to me)

socalwrench

I think you mean "...without rubbing". But, I get your point.

siberian.mist

I'm obviously not Rubrignitz, but I have the Sport Springs, and they are noticeably stiffer than stock.