yellowneck86

I'm planning on lowering my mustang about 1.5" all around by using the following parts from American Muscle;

-Koni STR.T struts and shocks
-SR Performance lowering springs
-Ford Racing GT500 strut mounts
-J&M aluminum adjustable panhard rod

Any good reviews, objections to these parts?

AMWill

Looks like a solid combo with everything you need. I have no doubt you'll be happy with the performance handling upgrade over stock. My only suggestion would be to check out the Koni STR.T struts/shocks over the KYB's for an even smoother ride and better dampening. Don't get me wrong the KYB's will work well, but they're a bit rougher all around than the Koni's. Plus, Koni is currently having a huge sale that may help the difference for you.

Other than that, I think you'll definitely be happy with this combo!

Shane

Norm Peterson

Another clear preference for the Konis here. GR-2's will work, at least for a while, but they're really just OE mass-market replacements, same stuff you'd buy for a minivan.


Let me suggest the Steeda HD strut mounts instead of the GT500 mounts. Most importantly this is because the Steeda HDs include some camber adjustability, which you will most likely need once you lower the car (camber will go somewhere near a degree more negative at 1.5" drop, and you'll need some sort of adjustment to drag it back). The HDs handle lowering better long term and with the camber adjustability really make them a no-brainer choice near as I can tell.

I'm not associated with Steeda, just that I've had their HD's on my '08 GT for about 4 years (they went on when I put the Koni yellows on) and I don't take corners gently.


Norm

yellowneck86

Last I checked the Koni shocks were out of stock on American Muscle, but looks like that changed over night. The car is only used for week end use but mostly as a daily driver. My goal is to only get rid of the huge wheel gap, other wise I would also get the anti roll and sway bars, UCA's and LCA's and strut tower brace.

yellowneck86

So what would be the difference between the Ford strut mounts vs CC plates? If I don't go the same route with CC plates, will the Eibach Camber bolts help when I do need an alignment?

l00kitzzlilcj

I have a similar setup that I just installed. The Konis, Eibach Pro's, and J&M panhard (no strut mounts) and I love it. The drop looks great with my wheels and the ride quality is so much better than stock. Its noticeably different over bumps. Since the ride will be stiffer youll feel the road a bit more, but its nice and stable over rough patches. No complaints.

Norm Peterson

The Ford strut mounts do not feature camber adjustability, so if you found you needed or wanted to correct camber you'd need to buy the plates and partially take apart what you just re-assembled.

Until Eibach makes a camber bolt strong enough to apply full strut bolt torque to (at least 148 ft-lbs in the early cars, 166 or so in the newer ones), I can't in good conscience suggest using them.


Norm

AMWill

Yes, we just received a new shipment of Koni dampeners recently! Either dampener will work as I stated above, but I promise you the Koni's will be superior by a good stretch.

Caster/Camber plates allow for both caster and camber adjustment, which allows you to dial in your alignment perfectly. The GT500 strut mounts offer a better camber than stock when lowering your Mustang, but they often don't do the job 100%. Sometimes you'll have to pair them with a set of camber bolts too. Particularly with the 05-10 Mustangs.

Since you're just trying to cruise your Mustang, using camber bolts is a much cheaper option. There's no need for CC plates if you're not driving the car very aggressively like on a road race course.

Let me know if you have more questions!

Shane

need4speed

Hey i would stay away from the generic Sr lowering springs, at the end of the day you do not want an upsetting suspension, my advice, spend the extra few dollars and get a nice set of eibachs or h&r's - Adir H.

AJ06GT

I used the SR springs on my car since they were $100 for black friday, I figured if I didn't like them I could sell them again for pretty much that again, but I've actually been pretty pleased. The drop is right where I want and they ride well, at least paired with Koni Yellows. I don't really track the car, but I do drive pretty aggressively and they've felt great, no complaints here yet. Now I've always heard the Oranges are like Yellows on full soft, so you might get a slightly more bouncy ride with Oranges but I've run full soft before and it seemed good enough to me.

And I agree with Norm. I wouldn't use camber bolts. You already have to buy new upper mounts for an 05-09. Once you've spent $150 for GT500 mounts and camber bolts, you might as well have spent a little more and gotten C/C plates that allow for better adjustment without questionable quality.