Lowering your 05/06 Mustang GT
07-20-2009, 01:15 AM
#401
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Italy
Posts: 2
Thanks for the input
Thanks for the input fellas,
Looks like I could advise ditching the STB at least, the area we live in is at the base of the alps, very twisty mountain roads and when we go on road trips we are constantly owned by the euro guys in the BMW, Mercs, Audi's ect...We have more power most of the time but are not able to put it to ground. Is it wrong that I want to use his car as a test bed for my suspension
....Anyway, strait line performance is important, but the twisties is where we need it. Tires and wheels are stock now and I'm open to suggestions. All that being said, I also value your thoughts on the 7/8" rear swaybar with endlinks/poly bushings and stock front swaybar combo in combination with a watts.
Willie
Looks like I could advise ditching the STB at least, the area we live in is at the base of the alps, very twisty mountain roads and when we go on road trips we are constantly owned by the euro guys in the BMW, Mercs, Audi's ect...We have more power most of the time but are not able to put it to ground. Is it wrong that I want to use his car as a test bed for my suspension
....Anyway, strait line performance is important, but the twisties is where we need it. Tires and wheels are stock now and I'm open to suggestions. All that being said, I also value your thoughts on the 7/8" rear swaybar with endlinks/poly bushings and stock front swaybar combo in combination with a watts.Willie
07-20-2009, 06:43 AM
#402
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: The Gump, Alabama
Posts: 240
19" Y rated tires = instant handling and a little firmer ride, These cars will surprise you how well they handle if you just put sports car tires on them, I've still got some body roll but hoping the steeda sports will take care of that
07-20-2009, 08:28 AM
#403
6th Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: state of confusion
Posts: 7,635
19" wheels/tires are primarily appearance-driven. Just get wider 18's/17's in a lower profile than stock.
I know the 2010 Track Pack has 19's. BUT . . .don't you think that the fact that the Challengers and Camaros come with 20's has something to do with that? Competition for sales does not necessarily mean that all of the changes represent forward progress in the hardcore performance sense. FWIW, the Track-Pack performance numbers can be matched with 18's or 17's, assuming that everything is chosen at least as carefully.
Norm
I know the 2010 Track Pack has 19's. BUT . . .don't you think that the fact that the Challengers and Camaros come with 20's has something to do with that? Competition for sales does not necessarily mean that all of the changes represent forward progress in the hardcore performance sense. FWIW, the Track-Pack performance numbers can be matched with 18's or 17's, assuming that everything is chosen at least as carefully.
Norm
07-21-2009, 09:19 PM
#404
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1,692
19" wheels/tires are primarily appearance-driven. Just get wider 18's/17's in a lower profile than stock.
I know the 2010 Track Pack has 19's. BUT . . .don't you think that the fact that the Challengers and Camaros come with 20's has something to do with that? Competition for sales does not necessarily mean that all of the changes represent forward progress in the hardcore performance sense. FWIW, the Track-Pack performance numbers can be matched with 18's or 17's, assuming that everything is chosen at least as carefully.
Norm
I know the 2010 Track Pack has 19's. BUT . . .don't you think that the fact that the Challengers and Camaros come with 20's has something to do with that? Competition for sales does not necessarily mean that all of the changes represent forward progress in the hardcore performance sense. FWIW, the Track-Pack performance numbers can be matched with 18's or 17's, assuming that everything is chosen at least as carefully.
Norm
I was perusing the Porsche web site and see that the GT2, GT3 and Turbo all now come with 19" wheels. Does this mean that they too have succumbed to the "bling" factor
07-22-2009, 06:00 AM
#405
6th Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: state of confusion
Posts: 7,635
If the brakes will fit inside 18's, there's already a mild argument for saying so. If they will fit inside 18's without significantly reducing the rate of heat rejection to airflow through and out of the rotors, the argument for saying so gains strength.
Norm
Norm
Last edited by Norm Peterson; 07-22-2009 at 06:02 AM.
07-24-2009, 11:53 AM
#406
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Washington
Posts: 419
Adjustable shocks adjust the amount of damping (think either "stiffness" or resistance to movement) that the shocks provide, not the car's ride height.
Set stiff, they might reduce car movement enough to keep your car from crashing down into a few of the obstacles that you'd hit if they were set soft. But they won't protect a side-exit exhaust with 3" of ground clearance against 3.25" tall speed bumps no matter how slowly you drive over them.
Norm
Set stiff, they might reduce car movement enough to keep your car from crashing down into a few of the obstacles that you'd hit if they were set soft. But they won't protect a side-exit exhaust with 3" of ground clearance against 3.25" tall speed bumps no matter how slowly you drive over them.
Norm
07-24-2009, 12:26 PM
#407
6th Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: state of confusion
Posts: 7,635
Geometrically, the difference amounts to only about 1/32" shorter. 40.25" long with the chassis side 1.5" higher than the axle side with the car empty is 40.22" measured horizontally.
From there you still get to adjust for how well the axle is/was centered to begin with. There may be some optical exaggeration going on with respect to an axle that's not completely centered to begin with - as the car gets lower and the visual gap to the tire gets smaller, lateral shift probably becomes more apparent.
Ride height changes at the front would not have enough effect on PHB chassis side height (and from there, axle centering) to matter at all. It could be calculated but you'd never be able to reliably measure it with any reasonable level of measuring equipment.
Norm
From there you still get to adjust for how well the axle is/was centered to begin with. There may be some optical exaggeration going on with respect to an axle that's not completely centered to begin with - as the car gets lower and the visual gap to the tire gets smaller, lateral shift probably becomes more apparent.
Ride height changes at the front would not have enough effect on PHB chassis side height (and from there, axle centering) to matter at all. It could be calculated but you'd never be able to reliably measure it with any reasonable level of measuring equipment.
Norm
Last edited by Norm Peterson; 07-24-2009 at 12:28 PM.
07-24-2009, 02:40 PM
#408
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Washington
Posts: 419
Geometrically, the difference amounts to only about 1/32" shorter. 40.25" long with the chassis side 1.5" higher than the axle side with the car empty is 40.22" measured horizontally.
From there you still get to adjust for how well the axle is/was centered to begin with. There may be some optical exaggeration going on with respect to an axle that's not completely centered to begin with - as the car gets lower and the visual gap to the tire gets smaller, lateral shift probably becomes more apparent.
Ride height changes at the front would not have enough effect on PHB chassis side height (and from there, axle centering) to matter at all. It could be calculated but you'd never be able to reliably measure it with any reasonable level of measuring equipment.
Norm
From there you still get to adjust for how well the axle is/was centered to begin with. There may be some optical exaggeration going on with respect to an axle that's not completely centered to begin with - as the car gets lower and the visual gap to the tire gets smaller, lateral shift probably becomes more apparent.
Ride height changes at the front would not have enough effect on PHB chassis side height (and from there, axle centering) to matter at all. It could be calculated but you'd never be able to reliably measure it with any reasonable level of measuring equipment.
Norm
08-09-2009, 05:30 PM
#409
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Washington
Posts: 419
post script; new BMR rear springs, perfect amount of drop. Edelbrock adj track bar. After I bought and installed zerk firrings it slid right in. Loosened the lock nuts and turned the adjusting nut by hand until I got it centered. Very easy. Appreciate all your help guys !
10-12-2009, 06:30 PM
#410
1st Gear Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: WI
Posts: 106
Little bit of a bump here.
This is what I'm looking at getting, a Saleen suspension package from Brenspeed. Any recommendations or thoughts on this or another setup?
http://www.brenspeed.com/10-1300-a11503.html
and then this to finish off the backend, because the above setup does not come with a rear swaybar. Would there be a problem later on by doing these 2 different brands? Would there be a discrepancy with the quality of one vs another?
http://www.steeda.com/products/rear_swaybar_s197.php
Later I may get a tower brace under the hood, but right now this is what I'm getting with my next paycheck.
This is what I'm looking at getting, a Saleen suspension package from Brenspeed. Any recommendations or thoughts on this or another setup?
http://www.brenspeed.com/10-1300-a11503.html
and then this to finish off the backend, because the above setup does not come with a rear swaybar. Would there be a problem later on by doing these 2 different brands? Would there be a discrepancy with the quality of one vs another?
http://www.steeda.com/products/rear_swaybar_s197.php
Later I may get a tower brace under the hood, but right now this is what I'm getting with my next paycheck.