MRGTX

I am loving my '09 GT... one of my few complaints is that it can feel a little bit loose in some situations.

In previous cars, a stiffer set of sway bars helped with this...but when I was under the car for my first oil change this past weekend, I noticed that there seem to be some good sized bars under there already..

...so do stiffer bars make a difference? Which ones would you suggest? Can they be installed without a lift?

Thanks, guys!!

Argonaut

When you say "loose" what exactly do you mean? The term normally implies oversteer, i.e: at the limit the rear end will loose traction before the front and the rear will step out, or worse case come around and spin the car. This car is naturally prone to understeer (front weight bias does that) and comes from the factory tuned to cause understeer (stiff front sway vs rear). This is on purpose for safety reasons, understeer is much easier to control for the average driver. So if your car is loose it makes me wonder what you are refering to, in general the car should not be loose unless you have already done extensive modding...or it could be your driving style (i.e I can easily get the rear end loose by cutting a corner sharp and stepping on the gas, but that is driver induced oversteer, something you can do on virtually any rear drive car that has decent HP).

If you can better describe the problem, perhaps with a few scenarios, we could better answer your question.

In general, aftermarket sways are used to reduce body roll and "tune" the front to rear handling balance. But usually guys want to make the car more "loose" than stock because stock is so heavily prone to understeer (aka: its "tight").

socalwrench

You could install a larger diameter front anti-roll bar; which will help tighten up the car.

I agree- the stock setup will slightly oversteer when pushed.

MRGTX

Thanks for the great info...

I was using the term "loose" incorrectly (or loosely!)... I meant that the car seems to wallow a little bit when transitioning...like there is some slop in the suspension. A scenario might be if I were to do a quick lane change, the body of the car takes a moment to settle down after... does that make sense?

Would sways help with that....or maybe its a tire issue? My car is completely stock, btw.

What you say about using them to tune balance make a lot of sense...so the above issue aside, would just adding a stiffer rear bar be a good solution to balance out the factory understeer?

Thanks so much for your help!!

jayel579

That is a damper issue. The stock dampers are Ok, but after market ones are better. If you uprade to a better set of dampers you will fix this wallowing issue. There are about a thousand threads and heated debates on which dampers to use so I will not suggest any specific ones, do a search.

Sam Strano

Exactly.... that is a damper issue. It's not the amount of roll that bothers you (or most folks really), it's the fact the roll is not well controlled and the car tends to flop. Also float and bob and generally feel like it's a waterbed on 4 wheels at times instead of being nice and taut and stuck....

Seems pretty clear to me the OP isn't using the term "loose" like racers would, but in the sense that the car feels loose on it's suspension (which they do).

There are a number of good damper options. Some are better than others. The Koni STR.T's have been a great help in getting a cost effective, but very well controlled damper on the cars when folks don't want adjustables or the cost involved. In fact I just posted a quote by PM from one customer who just installed his STR.T's... here it is publicly:

"The new Koni STR.T Shocks/Struts are installed, and so far, they're just what I wanted!

First impressions:

Firm, but not hard, jarring, or harsh.
MUCH better ride than stock parts.
Overall, very composed and predictable.

I still haven't had a good cornering sequence to enjoy them fully in that regard."

foolio2k4

sway bars will give less swaying from side ot side or during cornering as well. I noticed a HUGE difference with my adj stillen one. Set it on stiffest and havent looked back.

Sleeper_08

A couple of good threads about dampers

https://mustangforums.com/forum/s197...5-mustang.html

https://mustangforums.com/forum/s197...nis-again.html

socalwrench

Agreed- the stock dampers are good for daily use and the occasional spirited trip.

I would like to point out though, that the stock S197 GT suspension is the best factory setup to date.

I still recommend the Eibach/FR dampers and springs. Nothing against the Koni dampers, I just prefer the dampening rates of the Eibach components.

jayel579

Sleeper_08, links are no bien!