Damn Rattles!
03-01-2011, 04:14 PM
#21
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the hatch i found a good solution:
-the side rubber bump stops on the hatch, screw them in completely
-pull back carpet in trunk by latch
-get inside the car/trunk area and while hatch is shut...
-take the three bolts on the latch mechanism that hold it/adjust it, and loosen them slightly, do not remove
-get out of the car, and push all your weight down on the hatch, this will lower the latch and the mech. as it moves all as one
- get back in and re tighten bolts
-now pop it and slam it shut - any rattle?
-some minor adjusting with the side rubber stoppers, and rattles went away
got rid of my hatch rattles and a gap i had in the rear weatherstripping
-the side rubber bump stops on the hatch, screw them in completely
-pull back carpet in trunk by latch
-get inside the car/trunk area and while hatch is shut...
-take the three bolts on the latch mechanism that hold it/adjust it, and loosen them slightly, do not remove
-get out of the car, and push all your weight down on the hatch, this will lower the latch and the mech. as it moves all as one
- get back in and re tighten bolts
-now pop it and slam it shut - any rattle?
-some minor adjusting with the side rubber stoppers, and rattles went away
got rid of my hatch rattles and a gap i had in the rear weatherstripping
03-01-2011, 04:45 PM
#23
TECH Senior Member
Although this wasn't directed at me, I had stock suspension, then just konis, then his swaybars, then his springs in that order so Ill drop my $0.02 for what its worth.
Konis on stock springs definitely rode better than stock for me, hands down. More firm than stock, much tighter feeling, but much less jarring at the same time. Hard to describe in words but it reminded me (and others have said the same) of a german sports sedan kind-of feel. Firm, planted, solid, yet not overly stiff - definitely not the "typical" GM ride quality (safe for a few cars like the CTS). The rear swaybar added a bit more harshness, and made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads, the front swaybar had no impact on ride quality for me.
The lowering springs added a bit more harshness on top of that, and like the swaybars made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads (like you can feel the suspension moving more, and the car moving more because of it). Not bothersome to me, but I could see some not liking it (although this is a performance car, not a luxury car or SUV where you may not feel the road under you).
No problem there. Stock springs, Bilstiens (or better yet Konis for even better handling) and if you want strano 35mm/22mm swaybars (or you could find a used 32mm front swaybar off a SS/WS6, get new endlinks and use that with your stock 19mm rear bar.) Certainly not going to handle like a 35/22 setup, but its better than the Z28 30mm/19mm.
Don't forget sticky tires, throw on some 17x9" (or wider) wheels for extra grip over the stock 16x8" Z28 wheels.
X2 on this ^
I had one like this and fixed it while I was replacing a dead window motor. If its the same one as mine, you need to remove the window track. Its the "wheel" that moves up and down the track, it was actually broken off but staying in place because of the pressure the window puts on it against the track. Had to drill a hole and tap it, and get a screw in there to reattach it.
Konis on stock springs definitely rode better than stock for me, hands down. More firm than stock, much tighter feeling, but much less jarring at the same time. Hard to describe in words but it reminded me (and others have said the same) of a german sports sedan kind-of feel. Firm, planted, solid, yet not overly stiff - definitely not the "typical" GM ride quality (safe for a few cars like the CTS). The rear swaybar added a bit more harshness, and made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads, the front swaybar had no impact on ride quality for me.
The lowering springs added a bit more harshness on top of that, and like the swaybars made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads (like you can feel the suspension moving more, and the car moving more because of it). Not bothersome to me, but I could see some not liking it (although this is a performance car, not a luxury car or SUV where you may not feel the road under you).
Ok thanks . I guess my dilemma is I want comfortable ride & better handling.
Don't forget sticky tires, throw on some 17x9" (or wider) wheels for extra grip over the stock 16x8" Z28 wheels.
I had one like this and fixed it while I was replacing a dead window motor. If its the same one as mine, you need to remove the window track. Its the "wheel" that moves up and down the track, it was actually broken off but staying in place because of the pressure the window puts on it against the track. Had to drill a hole and tap it, and get a screw in there to reattach it.
Last edited by JD_AMG; 03-01-2011 at 04:50 PM.
03-01-2011, 04:53 PM
#24
TECH Senior Member
03-01-2011, 07:51 PM
#25
Wow alotta information has passed on in this thread. Ive been sick and not on my computer all that much.. im not expecting my car to be build like an audi as far as lack of interior noises. i know it will be noisey and loud and harsh. but its to the point sometimes that i want to rip Everything off my dashboard to get ride of the squeaks. I went over my door skins and put 2 small screws towards the front. that helped out. i know i have afew from the hatch area. Im going to try to look over all that stuff this weekend if i can.
My cars on bmr springs with koni 4/4's. BMR antisway bars, subframe connectors, i have 275/50/18's all around with ~32 psi.. the ride isnt to bad. just the damned squeaks :\
My cars on bmr springs with koni 4/4's. BMR antisway bars, subframe connectors, i have 275/50/18's all around with ~32 psi.. the ride isnt to bad. just the damned squeaks :\
03-02-2011, 04:08 AM
#26
My friend's 2000 TA had a strange noise in the door, sounded like something rolling back and forth. We thought maybe something came loose and was rolling around on accel/decel... well one day we went to change a window motor and discovered a GOLF BALL in the door.. someone at the factory was a joker? lol nothing surprises me on these cars anymore.
03-02-2011, 02:39 PM
#29
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ah, yes the super rare golf ball doors. lucky you! was the ball at least worth a damn?
this is how i fixed my rattles and pops. I went to the ebay and ordered a clarion head unit and 2 10" subs and BAM NO MORE CREAKS AND POPS!
this is how i fixed my rattles and pops. I went to the ebay and ordered a clarion head unit and 2 10" subs and BAM NO MORE CREAKS AND POPS!
03-02-2011, 04:41 PM
#31
TECH Senior Member
Wow alotta information has passed on in this thread. Ive been sick and not on my computer all that much.. im not expecting my car to be build like an audi as far as lack of interior noises. i know it will be noisey and loud and harsh. but its to the point sometimes that i want to rip Everything off my dashboard to get ride of the squeaks. I went over my door skins and put 2 small screws towards the front. that helped out. i know i have afew from the hatch area. Im going to try to look over all that stuff this weekend if i can.
My cars on bmr springs with koni 4/4's. BMR antisway bars, subframe connectors, i have 275/50/18's all around with ~32 psi.. the ride isnt to bad. just the damned squeaks :\
My cars on bmr springs with koni 4/4's. BMR antisway bars, subframe connectors, i have 275/50/18's all around with ~32 psi.. the ride isnt to bad. just the damned squeaks :\
What size BMR swaybars do you have (they have made a bunch of combonations throughout the years, each time claiming their best for handling yet keep changing
) -If you have their 25mm rear bar ditch it for a 22mm rear bar - you will get a better ride quality and handling, 25mm is just too big of a rear bar for anything other than drag.You have 275/50/18s? Is that a typo or are you running an extra tall side wall? Are they drag radials or something?
03-02-2011, 09:12 PM
#33
What do you have the shocks set at? And you are using the "normal" upper perch of the front konis, not the lower perch correct?
What size BMR swaybars do you have (they have made a bunch of combonations throughout the years, each time claiming their best for handling yet keep changing ) -If you have their 25mm rear bar ditch it for a 22mm rear bar - you will get a better ride quality and handling, 25mm is just too big of a rear bar for anything other than drag.
You have 275/50/18s? Is that a typo or are you running an extra tall side wall? Are they drag radials or something?
What size BMR swaybars do you have (they have made a bunch of combonations throughout the years, each time claiming their best for handling yet keep changing
) -If you have their 25mm rear bar ditch it for a 22mm rear bar - you will get a better ride quality and handling, 25mm is just too big of a rear bar for anything other than drag.You have 275/50/18s? Is that a typo or are you running an extra tall side wall? Are they drag radials or something?
03-04-2011, 04:11 PM
#34
TECH Senior Member
I cant recall the sway bars offhand. and it was a type there 275/45/18. regular street tires. i have a terrible cold so im all f'ed up and cant think straight. the konis are on full soft in the front and half in the rear. useing the proper spring perch. They ride 10x better then my 175k mile stock springs and shocks. this weekend im going to go around and just hit everything and see what makes a noise lol ill put some little rubber feet inbetween everything
Have you tried adjusting the konis? I found near full soft in the front too soft, and it actually rode worse IMO. Try it at least half full stiff (should be 4 or 5 sweeps from full soft).
03-04-2011, 04:37 PM
#35
Although this wasn't directed at me, I had stock suspension, then just konis, then his swaybars, then his springs in that order so Ill drop my $0.02 for what its worth.
Konis on stock springs definitely rode better than stock for me, hands down. More firm than stock, much tighter feeling, but much less jarring at the same time. Hard to describe in words but it reminded me (and others have said the same) of a german sports sedan kind-of feel. Firm, planted, solid, yet not overly stiff - definitely not the "typical" GM ride quality (safe for a few cars like the CTS). The rear swaybar added a bit more harshness, and made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads, the front swaybar had no impact on ride quality for me.
The lowering springs added a bit more harshness on top of that, and like the swaybars made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads (like you can feel the suspension moving more, and the car moving more because of it). Not bothersome to me, but I could see some not liking it (although this is a performance car, not a luxury car or SUV where you may not feel the road under you).
No problem there. Stock springs, Bilstiens (or better yet Konis for even better handling) and if you want strano 35mm/22mm swaybars (or you could find a used 32mm front swaybar off a SS/WS6, get new endlinks and use that with your stock 19mm rear bar.) Certainly not going to handle like a 35/22 setup, but its better than the Z28 30mm/19mm.
Don't forget sticky tires, throw on some 17x9" (or wider) wheels for extra grip over the stock 16x8" Z28 wheels.
Konis on stock springs definitely rode better than stock for me, hands down. More firm than stock, much tighter feeling, but much less jarring at the same time. Hard to describe in words but it reminded me (and others have said the same) of a german sports sedan kind-of feel. Firm, planted, solid, yet not overly stiff - definitely not the "typical" GM ride quality (safe for a few cars like the CTS). The rear swaybar added a bit more harshness, and made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads, the front swaybar had no impact on ride quality for me.
The lowering springs added a bit more harshness on top of that, and like the swaybars made the car feel more "busy" on bumpy roads (like you can feel the suspension moving more, and the car moving more because of it). Not bothersome to me, but I could see some not liking it (although this is a performance car, not a luxury car or SUV where you may not feel the road under you).
No problem there. Stock springs, Bilstiens (or better yet Konis for even better handling) and if you want strano 35mm/22mm swaybars (or you could find a used 32mm front swaybar off a SS/WS6, get new endlinks and use that with your stock 19mm rear bar.) Certainly not going to handle like a 35/22 setup, but its better than the Z28 30mm/19mm.
Don't forget sticky tires, throw on some 17x9" (or wider) wheels for extra grip over the stock 16x8" Z28 wheels.
You said lowering springs make the ride harsh, not what I 'm looking for. Great, however I didn't understand the part about sway bars.
When the sway bars are on the car, would you say they make the car travel as a whole and give it the affect of "slamming down" on bumpy roads?
It turns out my factory lower control arms and bushings are bad along with trans bushing. Do these come with busings? For a stock car what do you recommend?
- Lower Control Arms- Poly/Roto-Joint Combination
- Lower Control Arms, Tubular + Adjustable + Chrome-Moly
- Lower Control Arms, Tubular + Adjustable
- Lower Control Arms, Tubular, Non-Adjustable
- Lower Control Arms, Double Adjustable w/rod-ends, Mild Steel
On Sam's website theres array of things I never heard off.
Thank you for all your insight!
03-04-2011, 05:51 PM
#36
All of the items you picked out come with bushings, the differences between those however come down TO the bushings they come with (along with some being adjustable).
If you're looking for a street car, I'd avoid rod-ends. They tend to wear and rattle after a while, and transmit the greatest amount of noise/vibration into the car. Poly bushings on the other hand transmit the least amount of noise/vibration into the car, but also don't allow the suspension to articulate as needed, which can give your car a rough ride.
The best compromise is to put a poly side on the body of the vehicle, and a spherical end on the rear. This helps keep some of the noise/vibration out of the cabin, and still allows for more articulation than the poly/poly combo. I'd recommend UMI's roto-joints for the spherical end, as they seem to be pretty quiet and allow for all the articulation you need, plus they're greasable and you're able to tighten them as they wear. If you want maximum articulation, you could go with a roto/roto combo LCA, which will still be quieter than the rod ends and will allow for full articulation.
The difference between the adjustable and the non adjustable is that the adjustable pieces allow you to move your rear fore/aft if you're trying to fit larger tires or a different rear. If these are not in the works, there's no need to buy adjustable LCA's
The last option (and the cheapest and most streetable) is to replace the bushigns on your current LCA's with the 1LE type bushings (on Sam's site, they're listed under suspension I believe). This still tightens up the rear and allows for articulation as well, plus, they're only around $60 for the set. I also believe that they're what Sam runs on his auto-x car (so it's not like they're going to hinder you too much for performance
)
Hope this helps!
If you're looking for a street car, I'd avoid rod-ends. They tend to wear and rattle after a while, and transmit the greatest amount of noise/vibration into the car. Poly bushings on the other hand transmit the least amount of noise/vibration into the car, but also don't allow the suspension to articulate as needed, which can give your car a rough ride.
The best compromise is to put a poly side on the body of the vehicle, and a spherical end on the rear. This helps keep some of the noise/vibration out of the cabin, and still allows for more articulation than the poly/poly combo. I'd recommend UMI's roto-joints for the spherical end, as they seem to be pretty quiet and allow for all the articulation you need, plus they're greasable and you're able to tighten them as they wear. If you want maximum articulation, you could go with a roto/roto combo LCA, which will still be quieter than the rod ends and will allow for full articulation.
The difference between the adjustable and the non adjustable is that the adjustable pieces allow you to move your rear fore/aft if you're trying to fit larger tires or a different rear. If these are not in the works, there's no need to buy adjustable LCA's
The last option (and the cheapest and most streetable) is to replace the bushigns on your current LCA's with the 1LE type bushings (on Sam's site, they're listed under suspension I believe). This still tightens up the rear and allows for articulation as well, plus, they're only around $60 for the set. I also believe that they're what Sam runs on his auto-x car (so it's not like they're going to hinder you too much for performance
)Hope this helps!
03-04-2011, 06:58 PM
#37
The last option (and the cheapest and most streetable) is to replace the bushigns on your current LCA's with the 1LE type bushings (on Sam's site, they're listed under suspension I believe). This still tightens up the rear and allows for articulation as well, plus, they're only around $60 for the set. I also believe that they're what Sam runs on his auto-x car (so it's not like they're going to hinder you too much for performance )
Hope this helps!
)Hope this helps!
, so heres another question. If the bushings themselves are gone, would the LCAs be floopy/ loose and replacing the bushings fix it?
03-04-2011, 07:10 PM
#38
YES!
The LCA's aren't a wear item (unless they're bent I suppose), but the bushings are. That should definitely tighten the rear up if you replace the bushings.
BTW, here they are
The LCA's aren't a wear item (unless they're bent I suppose
), but the bushings are. That should definitely tighten the rear up if you replace the bushings.BTW, here they are
03-05-2011, 07:24 AM
#40
I did springs and shocks pretty much last. If i was doing it all over again i would of done them first! any shocks over stock are a night and day difference. Especially the konis. With my friends car i suggested he do shocks first (bone stock 93) after he did that the car was completely transformed.