F1Fan

It's made by J&M, all of which I've seen for the S197 is of modest quality which is being very generous.

DocSnickers

Well your entitled to your own opinion, not going to argue that.

F1Fan

Yes this is true, you can lower a car for looks without regard to improving handling for less than $1,500. But if you want to actually improve your lap times and increase your smiles per mile $1,500 is a very modest sum to spend to that end. Koni Str dampers make very solid OE replacement dampers but they are not going to give you an improvement in handling over a stock 2011 GT damper in good condition. To get better damping you need to buy the better dampers with better valves and damping curves.

Blindly throwing parts at the car is not going to help the OP meet his goals or his budget, $1,500 is not really quite enough of a budget to buy and install a solid good quality basic suspension even if he installs it himself. The OP really needs about $2,500 to get there. Sure the OP could do it in stages but the time and cost increases if he is revisiting suspension that has already been installed to install more parts. This suspension is really just the basics for a good riding and great handling S197 chassis. It is very easy to sharpen the steering and correct the handling issues that will be created by lowering the chassis ride height but these gains are smaller, more for finesse in handling and feel. But these changes can easily cost as much as the entire $1,500 budget.

$650 Koni Sport dampers
$250 Sport Springs, don't go too low or you will cause other handling ills
$450 Adjustable anti roll bars, adjustable front & rear, better handling
$250 Adjustable panhard bar w/PB brace, 4130 alloy is lighter and stiffer, the best
$75 4-wheel alignment, mandatory!

$1,675 before shipping and taxes (if any)

But, IMO the OP is missing the budget for two very important parts needed for a good basic suspension, good camber plates and an adjustable UCA and mount.

$450 GC or Vorshlag camber plates
$325 Steeda Comp adjustable UCA kit w/HD mount

$775 before shipping and taxes (if any)

All that having been said, for a street car I would trade the anti-roll bars, panhard bar and panhard bar brace and add $300 to the budget for a Steeda or Griggs Watt's link. I'm a long time handling junkie (I'm pushing 60 and I also drive an M3 I built with TCKR D/A coilovers) and I have installed and used virtually all of the suspension parts Steeda offers for the S197 on my S197GT. And yes, I do mean all of the parts including their coilovers which are nice, but not curved for springs over 300-350lb/in.

Anyway what I have learned in the last 8 years of installing, driving, tuning and driving my own (and many other local) S197GTs is that after wheels/tires and dampers the Watt's link is the next most important item needed to improve handling, grip and oddly ride motions for the S197 Mustang. Handling balance is largely done with springs and alignment and down the road a 36mm adjustable front bar will allow fine tuning of that balance. But as shipped the handling balance is good and you can tune out most of the understeer with some additional camber in front hence the camber plates.

HTH!

Sam Strano

This, right here... maybe add a set of spring (I would recommend it). In fact Koni Sports, a set of Steeda Springs, AND my sway bars (which are adjustable) comes to $1259, well under the $1500 mark.

Compared to Eibach, you get Koni's with a lifetime warranty AND useful rebound adjustment to tune the response and feel of the car. You get what are IMO superior springs in rate and driveability. And you get bars that are both hollow, and both 3 way adjustable. We could sub in Koni STR.T for the Sports and put you in at just over $970 and you get the same springs and bars as before, but with Koni dampers that still have a lifetime warranty (just no adjustment, and neither do the Eibach Pro-dampers which IMO aren't valved as well either).

F1Fan

O.K. How about you argue how Whiteline S197 suspension products are worth the extra money for lower quality materials and manufacturing?

Here is my take:

After inspecting and installing a few Whiteline S197 suspension parts it is my opinion that Whiteline S197 suspension products are not a particularly good value. From my inspection and installation experience of Whiteline S197 suspension products I have determined that in fact the S197 suspension products Whiteline sells are not made of the highest quality materials and that their production quality is mediocre. From an engineering POV there are many products that are objectively superior to Whiteline products. Many of these objectively superior S197 suspension products cost less.

So, IMO Whiteline S197 suspension products are not S197 products that I would suggest anyone buy and install on their S197 Mustang if actual performance, durability and value are important to the potential buyer.

Obviously YMMV.

Sam Strano

F1Fan and I have butted heads over things over the years, but on this one I 100% agree. Now, I sell Whiteline products but they aren't my first choice, and largely I was forced into it because they did a hell of a marketing job (by giving a lot of things to a lot of people who would rave about it, even when they didn't have much to compare to or base things on). In fact yesterday a customer asked me about some stuff for his 350Z which I set him up with because that's what he wanted and those particular parts have no issues (diff bushings).

I've never seen a UMI or Steeda upper control arm break, I've seen that with Whiteline. I've never had a Steeda or Fays2 Watts link fail, but I know a Whiteline Watts failed on a car who's owner tends to run his mouth a lot, but nothing was said (probably because it's one of their poster-boys, literally).

There isn't anything that special. I won't say all the stuff is junk, I run some things on my FR-S, but very little. And frankly they have nothing that interesting to me for the Mustang. LCA brackets that you can't adjust. Watts link with basically no roll-center adjustment. Swaybars that are massively heavy (solid) and the rear adds a lot of unsprung weight to boot.

F1Fan

LOL! Sam we have we have had some differences of opinion, I'll give you that.

It is not that Whiteline is truly bad so much as there is a lot of other stuff that is made so much better for so much less money. I like a lot of the Strano brand parts which are designed simply and often offer very good values. Hey I have two kids at high-end private colleges and even though is it costly to send them, I know a good deal is when I see one. A top college education is one of the best lifetime enhancing values you can buy.

Sam Strano

Hey there Fast Droptop... got your PM, but cannot respond. Something with your mailbox being full or not able to accept messages.

Call me @ 814 849 3450, there are details we'd probably want to discuss in person anyway.

Fast droptop

PM box is cleared. You can shoot me a message or I can call you tomorrow.

Sam Strano

Call me, that's best anyway. Besides the entire message I had written is long gone now.