FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

Nothing to report. My settings are still the same, and I'm still loving it. I may have to reduce rebound dampening in the rear by one click after my Geforce 9" goes in, but that's all I've got right now. I doubt that the lightweight STS-V spindles and two-piece rotors will require suspension adjustments, although they their effect will certainly be felt.

54inches

iTrader: (4)

Can you post your total settings and Swift springs that you are running, just as an "update" lol

NIKDSC5

iTrader: (10)

Man Fuzzy, I just want to say thank you for paving the way. You can be abrasive as hell, but its worth it. With out all the money, time, and effort you put into your car and then share the information with us all, I'm not sure what I would be doing for mods. A lot of trial and error and wasted money, I'm sure. So another thanks for that! I await the day you come on the forum and announce your modding has finished! Not sure about everyone else, but I appreciate it! You could arguably be the MVP of the V1 community.

Edit: Figured I'd give you a shout out since this morning I have been researching a bunch of different topics and mod ideas for the V and your post continually kept popping up.

54inches

iTrader: (4)

delete.....

INVIOUS

Fuzzy hate to even ask but i've been reading both threads here and cadillacowners and i must admit with everyones setup and you changing to perfection my head hurts now. but i havent been following the whole time since it started so i read it all at once. but my main question is do you have a parts list for a complete setup with spring rates etc. on your current setup? i currently have H&R springs with mighty mouse spacers which give the car a incredible low look but is absolutely horrible performance. i have swapped all cradle bushings and have BMR trail arms and supports. I want to throw away the springs and spacers and get the hotchkis sways and some adjustable links. but im honestly at a loss on where to start for my coilover kit without guess and test because i dont track my car i just want a decent draily driver that i can sling a corner when i want and it handles correctly. Hope this makes sense and dont be to harsh on me for a noobie question or two.

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

It sounds like you want a generalized, "one size fits all" recommendation that you can blindly install and enjoy. If that's what you want, I think the LG Motorsports coilover kit is the closest thing to excellent right out of the box. Were I to provide such a parts list, it's virtually guaranteed that someone will mix and match parts and blame me for the way their CTS-V handles.

I've already had people PM me to confirm my Swift spring part numbers and afterwards tell me they were going to install them on a D2/K-Sport kit. If I hadn't responded and yelled at them, they would probably be sporting a couple of crushed vertebrae right now.

I hate to say it, but this is one of those areas where you have to have to know a couple of things before I can give you worthwhile advice. If you copied the suspension off my car and threw it on a different CTS-V, it wouldn't drive the same unless the corner weights and supporting modifications (e.g. sway bars and alignment) were similar. Let me know if you have more specific questions.

54inches

iTrader: (4)

Noooooo, I have read your two threads on the topic and this is what I want.



It appears you have the info in your sig now.......

Come Awn, I thought you knew me better than that; I want the shifter back. lol

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

Again, if you try to copy my configuration, you may not like the results. My front spring rate, for instance, only produces an optimal wheel rate once you add 150-250 pounds of equipment to the nose of the car. I went ahead and installed these springs because I anticipate replacing my engine with an iron 427 LSX (+100 lbs) and an intercooled supercharger (+150 lbs).

I'm not trying to be coy or difficult. I simply don't want to recommend a generalized solution that will probably not work for everyone. If you wanted a "safe" configuration that provided moderate improvements for all users, it would be the KW Variant 3 kit with Z60-228-140 Swift springs in the rear and the Hotchkis HSS-2280 sway bar kit. The whole thing will cost you $2500 if you know where to shop.

The downside is that you'll have to tune the rear suspension yourself and you may eventually need to drop another couple hundred dollars on springs and replace the sway bars with Addco bars as your car and your needs develop.

54inches

iTrader: (4)

Ahhhhhh....I like it when you play hard to get....lol

No worries brother, I am not an internet lemming, I know what I am getting myself into and I am mechanically ept.

Your calculations seem legit and my car is a DD for now......change is the only thing that remains consistent and I am not going to crucify you for giving me advice that I asked for.

Thanks!!!!

INVIOUS

thanks and i understand it is hard to generalize such a broad subject. You mentioned knowing where to shop for KW3 kit at?? any links might i ask? Addco sway vs hotchkis.. any difference in bends or clearance that you know of? addco seems to be cheaper priced when bought individually say 1.3/8 hollow front and 1" solid rear vs hotchkis 1.1/4 front and 1" solid rear. other than size is there a main difference in bolt setups and any more adjustment given to one versus the other when using adjustable links?
I had actually been looking at the one coilover kit you didnt mention in the write up until someone ask about the swift springs on a D2 package... D2 seems to be most cheapest but with no options 550/550. so more money would be sunk in spring changes. but if you can purchase the KW3 kit swap springs and go with addco or hotchkis sways for 2500 not that bad of a difference when all things are considered.... Thanks in advance because this is coming from a guy in the 4x4 world where things get bigger and taller and hand built for suspension. whole different world i entered when it comes to performance of a powerful car.

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

Here's one of my older posts regarding getting the KW Variant 3 relatively cheaply:

http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums...ml#post3269460

I know for a fact that txautoplex will take $1875, but I think some people have offered less and had it accepted.

As I mentioned on the official CTS-V sway bar thread, the Addco 2289/2290 bars are stiffer than the Hotchkis HSS-2280 bars, but at the cost of significantly increased weight. However, the mounting hardware they provide is crap. If you end up getting a set, you'll want to get Energy Suspension bushings.brackets with Zerk grease fittings (which will cost you roughly $35), and two P/N 16810288 standoffs from Hotchkis (you may need to call them to order them).

Anyone who buys a D2/K-Sport kit is a sad sack. Single adjustable shocks are not amenable to spring rate changes, period, and the shock valving is tuned for bad spring rates. As soon as you deviate from the stock springs, you will have to decide between a bone-jarring ride (too much compression), or a bouncy/wildly uncontrolled one (too little rebound). There are a few guys that have run track events with them, but they had to resort to absurdly high spring rates to get them to work. As they say, one of the best ways to improve a bad suspension is to raise your spring rates until the suspension can't work anymore...

Shocks are one area where you get what you pay for. The KW Variant 3 costs about twice as much as the D2/K-Sport kit, but it's twice the product. The Law of Diminishing Returns doesn't kick in until you start to get into three and four-way adjustable shocks. Personally, I would've dropped an extra $1000 for a three-way adjustable version of the KW Variant 3, but they don't make one.

NIKDSC5

iTrader: (10)

There is the Fuzzy we have grown to love!

StretchASU

LOL. Good to see someone who will tell it like it is.

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

Point blank: if you spend $1000ish on something that is incorrectly configured out of the box (the KW Variant 3 also suffers from this), but cannot be adjusted when the correct parts are installed because of the inherent nature of the product, it's on you. And I feel sorry for you. Remember: I'm not assuming the moral high ground here. I can't. I'm the guy that initially said "no" to the KW Variant 3, and then wound up spending an equal amount of money on Ground Control / Eibach parts. We all do stupid stuff from time to time.

If the only way to prevent someone from falling into the same trap is to strongly remonstrate their projected upgrade path, a few hurt feelings are a small price to pay to effectively interrupt the cycle of pain. You're welcome to kick me when I'm down, too. I can take it.

AAIIIC

iTrader: (19)

Have you had a chance to tell KW's engineers how they got it wrong?

liqidvenom

iTrader: (2)

I guess that is the actual difficult thing in regards to suspension setups. No one setup works for everyone everywhere. KW makes great suspension which ( i assume since i dont own nor tracked KW setup) has been proven to work well in all phases of driving ( street, bad roads, mild track work). Some are more track focused and that gives up some street compliance and others are more geared towards to the street. And that isnt taking into account personal preference in regards to NVH/event absorption/ costs/ etc.

So it is very hard in a way to have a blanket pro/con to various setups. Best you can do it say " for me, doing this, this suspension setup works ok" then others doing what you are trying to do can follow. But no right or wrong.

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

I doubt it'd make a difference. But if you're interested in their reaction, I'll be happy to shoot them an email. If I even get a response, it'll probably be defensive, since nobody likes to be told that they're wrong. Everybody intuitively leaps to defend themselves.

Quote:

“Few of the criminals,” he suggested, “regard themselves as bad men. They are just as human as you and I. So they rationalize, they explain. They can tell you why they had to crack a safe or be quick on the trigger finger. Most of them attempt by a form of reasoning, fallacious or logical, to justify their antisocial acts even to themselves, consequently stoutly maintaining that they should never have been imprisoned at all.”

--Warden Lewis E. Lawes, Sing Sing Prison

Totally disagree. 75% of stuff in life can be quantified and objectively evaluated. The "it's all subjective" defense is simply a means by which people, who have no real basis for their position, attempt to deflect criticism that would otherwise be levied at poor reasoning or lack of judgement. The truly damning thing about this defense is that it obscures the truth and, in so doing, screws over the person who uses it.

liqidvenom

iTrader: (2)

Something that i have learned in these years in my field.

100% of what can be quantified and objectively evaluated has no relevance to what paying customers rate as good or bad. I just got out of a meeting where what engineers find perfect is a problem that is raping us in customer satisfaction.

Dmax/04V

This is where you the engineer, and I the economist disagree hehe.

54inches

iTrader: (4)

Agreed on both accounts coming from someone with 15 years in customer service......