Chris06GT

Good day,

MY 2012 GT has the FRPP Handling Pack installed (M-FR3-MGTA), and although I like the drop and the stance, I find the ride a little on the harsh/stiff side.
I remember seeing a thread (I can't find it now) about a guy in the same situation, but I can't remember what he did. It might have been something about different springs or different shocks/struts.

Do you have any suggestions on how I can soften the ride a little bit, but still retain the drop and better handling/feel that the Pack provides? This is my summer daily driver.

Thanks,
Chris

jRaskell

While it may seem counter intuitive, the typical problem with a harsh ride isn't that it's too stiff, it's that it's too soft. The harshness is almost always the result of spending too much time on the rear bump stops. Increased damping goes a long way in keeping the suspension off the bump stops in all but the roughest roads.

I drove SRA muscle cars for nearly a decade with lowering springs and cheaper aftermarket shocks and tolerated the harshness. Then I finally coughed up the cash for some Koni Yellows and discovered that my suspension both firmed up AND became less harsh. Now I don't even think about putting lesser dampers on my car.

Sam Strano

The crappy ride is the crappy shocks... I can help there. You don't need to change springs, you could and it would help a little but as long as the FR3 dampers remain you won't be happy.

A set of Koni's, even the STR.T's will improve the ride greatly. Sports offer you the chance to play with the level of damping and how the car reacts and drives. But STR.T's are the kind of shock that the FR3's should have been for the masses. $420 for the set, got them in stock. Sports are more @ $770/set, worth every penny if you can swing it.

CMcNam

+1 for the Konis.

Chris06GT

Thanks for the answers. It never occurred to me that the problem was too soft rather than too stiff.
I've heard good things about the Koni's, it seems to be the go-to option for a lot of people on here.

Thanks Sam..no sugar coating in your answer, I like that. I'll check out the website and make an order in the next few days.

Chris

Sam Strano

Yeah, I'm not big on the sugar-coating. I'm here to help you guys... I find that being honest in the long run makes my life a lot easier because I don't have try and wiggle out of a full of crap sales pitch.

The issue is that the dampers are too stiff on compression. I promise that you put a set of Koni's (either ones) on it and it'll ride markedly better than it does with FR3's.

A few things I must mention. You have a 2012, I assume you already put on the Gt500 mounts to have installed your FR3 shocks (or some mount that will accept the older strut), and the Koni STR.T's are the same way.. the older strut design. You can get Koni Sports either way and HAVE to make sure you get the correct struts to fit the stuff on your car. In this case that'd be the older struts unless you switch back to your stock 2012 strut mounts or a camber plate that will adapt things are needed.

Finally. We're a little old-fashioned. The site isn't fancy, but it works... however we do NOT take CC payment info on it. I just don't think any internet site is secure enough for that. Soooo, you submit the order and we will call you back for payment arrangements, like a CC# via phone. Just thought I'd mention that.