lt1 hawk

iTrader: (2)

Gents,
I just happened upon a "sponsor" so to say. He is a fella I have know for quite some time that just found himself several million dollars richer, so now he wants to order parts for my Camaro. It is a 95 Z28 M6 with the following: cold air intake, 160 thermo, strut tower brace, LPP stainless long tubes, TD, X pipe, 2 mufflers over the back and out. The eventual goal of this car is to have around 450 RWHP with similar torque, and for it to be dialed in for road racing. I have been searching catalogs and this site, and almost everything I am finding is just for drag racing. I am only going to take this car to the track MAYBE 4 or 5 times a year, and most of the rest of the time I am going to have it as a cruiser. It could be a DD at times, but for the most part it is going to be a weekend cruiser and used to embarass a few imports. I am not looking to lower the car, I want to keep it around stock heigth, because of the TDs and 3" pipes. The car is mostly stock right now and kicks real hard to one side when I launch, and I imagine it is only going to get worse as I pile up the HP. Question is, since money is NOT AN ISSUE, what are the best parts, and what will dial in my goal the best? I am aware that you do not want the same set up as drag racing for my intentions, because your *** end will go all over the place around turns. I also want better stopping power, but I think I am going to wait till I get home (I am in Iraq right now) to order those because I am not sure what will fit.
It was also suggested that I hit up Sam Strano in here, because by all accounts, when it comes to suspension, that gentleman knows everything. A little help would be appriciated.
I am on a time limit, and I was not planning on doing my suspension so soon (he wants to start ordering parts late this week or early next week), so I haev not researched it a TON. I researched my TD system for over 4 months before I got it, and I was planning on doing the same thing with my suspension, but now I don't have that kind of time. I prefer doing things once, correctly.

JD_AMG

Yep, give Sam a call: Stranoparts.com

lt1 hawk

iTrader: (2)

any idea if he has email or frequents this site? I am in Iraq right now, and sometimes phone calls are tough...

JD_AMG

His email is on the site I posted, and he frequently posts in this section. Here is a link to his profile so you can PM him if you want:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/member.php?u=4237

Shockwave179

iTrader: (7)

If you really wanted to go baller I would go for stuff like:

-Penske coilovers
-Rod Ended PHB
-LG (G2) Aluminum Rod Ended Rear LCA's
-LG (G2) Lower Front Control Arm's if you can find them (Otherwise keep stock)
-Front Upper Control Arms with Delrin Bushings for less hassle (Global West or Spohn)
-Unbalanced Engineering De-Coupled Torque Arm
-Hotchkis 36.5mm Front Sway and probably a 21-22mm for rear
-Subframe connectors if you want them, people argue back and forth whether or not they are actually beneficial.
-LG (G2) 3 Point STB if you want it, again people argue back and forth whether or not STB's are beneficial too.
-Make sure to get longtubes/y-pipe with really good clearance if you don't have some already.
-If you feel like swapping the rear instead of using a 10 bolt, keep in mind for this kind of stuff 9 inch > 12 bolt.

As far as brakes go, you could do a porsche big red setup or buy a stoptech/wilwood kit. You will also probably want brakes ducts too. Alan Blaine (Blainefab) on FRRAX seem's to make lots of good stuff like brake ducts and a lot of other things you would want.

I know certain people are going to disagree, however I would say go over to FRRAX and browse and do some of your own research before spending a ton of money.

lt1 hawk

iTrader: (2)

I already have the long tubes, they are getting installed and welded in the next couple of weeks, they are forming into an X into TDs over the axel and out the back into truck tips. 3" piping.

Question, are the parts you are talking about more for drag racing or road racing? I was thinking a 12 bolt because I was thinking a 9 would be overkill for my goals of 400 - 450 RWHP.

Shockwave179

iTrader: (7)

Everything I listed is extreme road racing pretty much. LG used a custom 9 inch on their world challenge camaro's I believe, also if you do some reading on FRRAX most people would agree that a custom 9 inch is the way to go if money isn't an issue. To be honest I think you might be better off sticking with the 10 bolt rather than upgrade to a 12 bolt if you don't want to bother with the 9 inch.

lt1 hawk

iTrader: (2)

Just out of curiosity, why is that? I thought the 12 bolt was an upgrade and the 9 inch was just for extreme RWHP.

EchoMirage

iTrader: (3)

the 10 bolt is lighter, and more road race diffs are made for the 10 then a 12 or 9in. you dont want a locker, you dont want a spool. you want a high performance road race diff, like a torsen T2R. since youre going all out...........and somehow money is no object.......weld the axle tubes, get high strength axles, TA cover, find some high strength gears in 3.42 or 3.73, and the diff.

theres always a big debate on what diff to use. older T2Rs were good, but as of a few years ago, theyve been made differently, and are very prone to breakage. you can call eaton and specify their heavy duty road race diff. i think thats what many people have been doing.

again, go to FRRAX. theres ALOT more info there then here. also, you need to lower the car if you want it to handle better. you need to lower your center of gravity. how much so depends on what set-up you get. it also depends on how well your exhaust is tucked up. its doable.

JD_AMG

9" can be made lighter than the 12 bolts from what I understand. Another issue to discuss with Sam. I personally would keep it simple and stick with the 10 bolt.
FWIW, with my pretty simple suspension setup(konis, strano springs/swaybars, poy/poly on car adjustable panhard bar) I would be perfectly comfortable road racing and pushing the car to the limit. You don't necessarily have to go all out, and replace everything.

Somewhat misleading. You don't need to lower the car for better handling but it certainly helps. You do need better shocks however...

tpunk

iTrader: (8)

LG no longer makes parts for our cars to my knowledge. If they did then I would have a set of LG lower A arms.

To the OP, are you sure you are wanting a road course car and not an auto-x car? Auto-x is much easier to drive on the street for the most part than an all out road course car. Sam Strano is an awesome resouce for info but you may want to talk to Jason Swindle and the guys at Unbalanced Engineering as well. They have different oppinions on what to do but both are very knowlegeable. I personally tend to go with Sam. Definitely take a trip over to frrax, you will get a ton more help with this kind of stuff over there.

Shockwave179

iTrader: (7)

I'm pretty sure they still make stuff, just not as much as they used too.

tpunk

iTrader: (8)

You are correct it's just the lower A-arms they don't make anymore.

Major_Lee_Slow

iTrader: (1)

One other item I would add to the above lists: Watt's linkage from Sam. If money is no object then this is a must have item. Also consider going with the Ground Control adjustable ride height coil over/weight jacker set up. This will allow you to fine tune the cross wheel weight distribution.

Oh and check out my website under the R&D section for a complete list of parts for a good dd/autox car.

lt1 hawk

iTrader: (2)

Ok, I guess AutoX is more what I am looking for... Sorry I am kind of a newb on this part of the scene. I just got into muscle cars a couple of years ago, and the main focus at that time was all about drag racing. So some of this is a little forieng to me. But that is why I troll this and many other sites, trying to learn as much as I can.

tpunk

iTrader: (8)

In that case Sam will be the best guy to talk to by far. You won't necessarily need to spend a ton of money to get the car to handle right. All I've done is strano springs, Koni 4/3 shocks, Strano upper A-arm offset bushings, moog lca bushings, WS6 sway bars, and a T2R diff and I'm pretty happy. The shocks are where you really want to spend your money. From there it's all about dialing it in for your driving style/tastes and what you are willing to put up with as far as ride quality. You will absolutely want to keep a 10 bolt rear though if you want the car to handle right. 12 bolt and 9" rears weigh a decent amount more and will change quite a bit of the handling characteristics.

Shockwave179

iTrader: (7)

Yeah if you just want to do autocross versus hpde's then there isn't a need to spent a ton of money on some of the things I listed above.

michaelg589

iTrader: (1)

you are a very lucky person. hope nothing bad happened for your friend to get this money (like a family member dieing or some sort of accident). but that is awesome. i hope my friends would do the same for me if they were to come accross money like that.

lt1 hawk

iTrader: (2)

I talked to Sam Sr for about 45 minutes yesterday, and he tuned me into what I needed. I just need to wait for Sam Jr to get back from the races to order all the parts.
Nothing bad happened to my buddy, he just made a lot of money on real estate that someone left him years ago that he was not counting on.

iv_z28s

why not have your friend buy you a C6Z06 ??