Dustroe187

I just bought a2002 ws6 trans am and it rides kinda ruff wondering what kind of suspension I should get that would be a little smoother and get better hook up

BlackScreaminMachine

iTrader: (17)

Welcome to the site.

Basically these are two different animals and you really need to decide what you want more. Also tranmission will have a big influence on this.

"Hooking Up" has much to do with suspension but also tire compound as well as race weight and drive train so again, we need to know what you have.

If you rarely go to the track or race from a stop, head over to the brake/suspension section as it's geared towards touring, auto cross, or corning, and if you really race, go over to the drag racing section. More for straight line advice.

Dustroe187

The car has a Patrickg custom cam 230/236 617 111lsa +4 advance comp cams hi-tech one-piece chromemoly pushrods 7.450 pacesetter long-tube headers tsp catted ypipe dmh electric cutout slp lid JFK plugs yank ss3600 Hayden transmission cooler tuned by Mti umi on-car adjustable panhard bar built 10 bolt rearend eaton posi unit motive 3.73s

Bottom line I won't some suspension that will make it better do go down the road tired of it beating me to death I don't race hardly at all so any sujestions would be great

Element

iTrader: (5)

Koni shocks and stock springs seems to be the pat answer for good handling and a comfortable ride at the same time. Forewarning: Konis are expensive.

Are there any other suspension mods done aside from the PHR? Normally these cars don't ride great stock, but they're not kidney-bruisers, either, unless the stock shocks are blown (which could be the case). The amount of tire sidewall is also going to play a part in ride comfort.

UMI Performance

iTrader: (77)

Hello,

And welcome to the site also!

Like Element asked do you have any other suspension modifications besides the sway bar?

Shocks will change how the car feels and give you that smoother ride and better feeling car. A good lowering spring is an options too. The Koni's are expensive but a good shock, I also recommend to consider SLP Bilstein shocks.

How do you drive this car and what is it mostly used for?

Thanks!
Ryan

Dustroe187

just a weekend car and drive it in the mountains alot i don't don't drive it hard and no there's no more mods to the suspension

BlackScreaminMachine

iTrader: (17)

Well then at this point being a auto there should not be much that needs to be done to get it to hook. A good pair of drag radials works wonders for auto cars.

But here is the issue, the more deflection you have in the suspension, the "less harsh" the ride is which is great for ride quality. Having less deflection helps with traction but your not going to get a smooth ride. There certainly is a balance.

On a scale Smooth to Harsh generally it's
<Rubber -- Poly -- Metal>

Rubber and to an extent Poly end stuff will degrade over time, poly takes longer and Metal (see rod end suspension) never degrades but then with Metal it bangs, clanks, and makes noise but is best for traction.

I would go through the car and see whats stock and it seems everything but the Pan hard rod. You can upgrade to which ever company you want, have it poly ends, and get some nice road racing/touring shocks.

I have driven a few touring suspension 4th gens and they do feel amazing compared to ones set up for 1/4 mi. But in the end I have a M6 car which needs TONS more suspension then A4 cars.

*** Edit, I wrote this before all the other post, for got to send.... but anyways there are ways for making a ride smoother, listen to Ryan @ UMI, he will give you a good guage. These are not IRS cars which are designed for the ultimate in smooth rides so you gotta live with some harshness. ***

udienow

iTrader: (18)

I will say the most ideal set-up I have seen people use and talk about is the Koni 4/4 shocks (expensive) and Strano springs. Thats what I will run once I have the money to burn. If you are not looking to lower your car and leave stock springs, I think the Bilstein shocks would suite nicely for 1/2 the price of the Konis.

Dustroe187

Thanks every one for ur answers and I know it's not going to ever drive like a cady but I had another one before this one and it was alot better this one just makes a lot of squeaking and it's way to harsh

ULTIMATEORANGESS

iTrader: (4)

as was posted konis are well worth it. not cheap but youll get your moneys worth.

JD_AMG

If this one ride noticeably rougher than a previous LS1 Fbody then there is probably something else at play here too. What tire pressure are you running, they should be set at 30psi. Also what tires are you running? Are you on stock wheels?
Are you sure the rest of the suspension is stock? What color are the front and rear shocks, and what color are the springs?

Dustroe187

Ok where's the best place to order them from and I'm new to all this so is there a certain type of konis or do I just tell them what I have and they send me what I need

TheBlueKnight

iTrader: (4)

I'm surprised your stock suspension is too harsh. I liked the ride of my Trans Am with stock suspension because it was soft and forgiving, just handled like crap. Once I changed over to Koni/Stranos the ride was a lot stiffer, made the ride more harsh over bumps, even with all shocks at their softest setting they are still much stiffer than stock decarbons, but it handles way better.

In my mind, telling you to buy Koni's would be counter productive as I feel they made my car ride harsher over bumps because the shocks and springs were stiffer, and you want the opposite of that. Do you guy's agree?

UMI Tech

Hey Dustroe. We're always listening here at UMI. If your ride is too harsh you may want to work on stiffening your anti-roll package while at the same time softening the springs. Ryan can work with you to go bigger on your bars while smoothing out your ride spring-wise. Hooking up in a straight line can be helped by slightly softer springs while the larger bars keep your car flat while cornering, the best of both worlds.



ramey

99FormulaM6r

iTrader: (2)

Anytime you increase the spring rate and decrease the amount of suspension travel you will negatively affect your ride quality, everything else being equal. I wouldn't say that my Koni's made my car more forgiving, but I would say that it does have great ride quality (along with increased stability and handling) with the stock springs.

If you're looking for increased handling AND a better ride, SLP Bilsteins might fit the bill just right (as mentioned by Ryan). They don't hold up as well to lowering (doesn't sound like a priority or even a concern to you), and don't offer adjustment, but are cheaper and seem to get better reviews for ride quality than Koni's. The Koni's however do handle great, allow you to lower on stock springs, and allow you to adjust the shocks rebound (and compression on the double adjustables).

Other things to look at would be worn bushings (replace with rubber if you're looking for ride quality, avoid poly or rod ends), tire pressures, loose suspension pieces (might cause crashing or bad noises), etc.

UMI Tech

Hey 99FormulaM6r. Class of 1994 Penn State SAE Mini Baja team!

Dustroe187

I'm just going to get it up on the lift tomorrow and take a gander and see what's on there now make sure every things good and go from there and I'm going to get a tire with a little more side wall thanks for all yalls response