CubanGT

iTrader: (3)

We have stock 99TA, no mods yet to the car, exhaust is going to be first, pretty soon, hi-flow cats and magnaflow muffler.. The car has had a rough life but still runs.. after a long awaited hibernation, the car is now running and feel confident that the major issues are out of the way for now.. until the rebuild, which will happen in the near future.

So back to why im posting, for some time now the rear end is always squeaking really bad when going over speed bumps or anything for that matter.. with what the car has been thru, the shocks in the back probably need to be replaced for sure.. but while im back there just wanted to know if there is anything else i should look at replacing to get better ride from the car..

Also what shocks are recommended?
Should i replace the rear sway bar?
Any other rear end components to consider?

Element

iTrader: (5)

All depends on your budget and what your end goal for the car is.

CubanGT

iTrader: (3)

goal, to have a street/strip setup.
Not sure on the budget yet, but buying a part here and there until i have it all is always an option..

I started looking around and priced some rear sway bars and pan hard bar kits, but besides that, is there anything else to consider back there? besides the shocks, thoses im replacing soon.

Element

iTrader: (5)

Lower control arms and LCA relocation brackets, and the torque arm bushing where it attaches to the transmission.

CubanGT

iTrader: (3)

So i have gone thru and added the following to my list of suspension parts to get.. Money is a factor at the moment, but upgrades may occur before placing the orders..

How does this sound for starters? And if anything what order should i get them in since i cant get them all at the same time..

BMR MPHR001R Panhard Bars
BMR MTCA001R Control Arms
BMR SB003R Sway Bars
Bilstein F4BE52406M2 Shocks
Hotchkis 1040G Torque Arm Bushings
BMR CAB002R Lower Control Relocation Brackets

joe77

I hope you havent ordered those parts yet, you really want to do some better research though. You do not want poly/poly ends on lca and the panhard bar. At the very least if you dont want a rod end, like the umi roto joint, bmr makes a poly/rubber combination. You do not want poly/poly parts because they stop the arch like movement of the rear end. I also would take a look at strano's hollow front sway bar as its worth the money.
Here is what I would go with, I know its more then your looking at but you can do like me and get it one part at a time. I find its best to do it right once, then have to do it again. give sam strano a call he will get you set up for your goals.
From umiperformance:
1982-2002 F-Body On-car Adjustable Control Arms- Poly/Roto-Joint- Part #2039
1982-2002 F-Body on Car Adjustable Panhard- w/ Roto-Joint- Part #2037
93-02 GM F-Body Solid 35mm Front Sway Bar- Part #: 2112
From stranoparts
Lightweight Tubular Front Sway Bar: 1-3/8 in (35mm): Part #: Hollow 35mm

For the rear go with the below from stranoparts
Lightweight Tubular Rear Sway Bar: 7/8 in. (22mm): Part #: Hollow 22mm

Im not knocking BMR, I have their lca with poly/rubber, and double adjustable panhard, but people tend to prefer the roto joint for the reduce noise and the fact that you can rebuild it. Hope this helps.

CubanGT

iTrader: (3)

I havent purchased anything.. just making the list and checking it twice before doing anything.. the rear suspension needs to be upgraded and shocks replaced.. so while back there want to do it right..

Now i dont mind paying for better parts.. but out of the list i did and what has been suggested.. am i looking at the right parts(regardless of brand at the moment) I can research brands, but do i need all the parts i listed? Panhard bars, control arms, sway bar, relocation brackets, torque arms.. etc...

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

I'm happy to help.... I don't really have enough to go on to make a recommendation based on a few posts of a few sentences each.

The squeaking can be various things, swaybar bushings--even the hatch wiggling around.

Your list isn't what I'd probably recommend. Depends how much you want it to work well on the street vs. the strip. For instance a bigger front swaybar is a street thing... The shocks you list are only for the front, what about the rear? There are various styles of control arms, each with pro's and con's. I'd not bother with a torque arm bushing, because you'll want to change the torque arm--and the new one will come with a new bushing.

CubanGT

iTrader: (3)

Any help or suggestions would be great.. the car was thru 2 floods early in its life.. its my wifes car and she is never going to sell it.. so as things go out and need replacing, im replacing with performance parts.. the rear shocks i was going to replace due to age and milage of the car.. not to mention times when the back end bottoms out over small speed bumps.. as for the list above... thats just a list of what has been suggested.. still plenty of research is needed.. but rear suspension was going to be my first area to work on..

She may never take the car down the strip herself, but i have and will along side my other 2 cars that im working on..


You mention that it may be the hatch wiggling, what can i do to rule that out as the source of the noise? just lube the latch itself? anything i should look for and tighten?
Is the sawybar bushing just a visual inspection to see if they are the source? I can always look for signs of rubbing, but at the end of the day, the rear suspension will be replaced. weather its just to do away with the sqeaking or not.. the noise is just one thing that is pushing me to replace the parts back there..

And if the above list is not the way to go, where should i start.. i cant buy it all at once, so doing them in order of importance or doing them in pairs that go together would be fine with me.. i mean i dont want to install one part then get the next and have to remove the first to install the next.. so any and all suggestions are welcome..

thank you

rabbit320

iTrader: (11)

you would be amazed at the difference koni's make, if just for the rear, more expensive but you may find you may not need other items quite yet, like sways... check out the sticky's at the top of the forum for more info on how each part works and its purpose...

Harleydude

What would you recommend for the following ideas I have?
I see you run Pro Solo and I've been kicking around the idea of running my 2000 Z28 in the stock class. Not every run but when I can (work weekends). Anyway after looking at the SCCA rules I'm already not eligible for stock because I've changed my rear swaybar bushings. STU class? Street and some Solo. My wife drives it more than me. What suspension mods would work? Too many choices.

CubanGT

iTrader: (3)

After getting some help this weekend and lifting the car up a bit and securing so it can be pushed up and down in the rear to try and pin point the noise.. seems the noise we are creating by pushing it up and down is coming from the sway bar bushings. Rear suspension will be done, but knowing where the sound is coming from is the first thing i want to fix on the car.. so would upgrading the sway bar be ok for a first upgrade in the rear?

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

I'd be happy to help you out with a setup, but it's a little involved to do by PM.... also I don't want to clutter this thread with it. Running the car in F-stock is certainly much cheaper than any other class--and it's not really competitive in STU (it'll be more expensive but never the right kind of car). ESP is the place to go if you leave stock. And right now your are only out of stock because of one very easy to change part.

Anyway--again, happy to help if you just want to give me a call.

Harleydude

Thanks Sam will do. I will give you a call soon. Didn't mean to clutter the thread.
Darrell

BOBS99SS

iTrader: (2)

Do your self a favor and call mr.strano,he will for one save you money,also he knows a lot about this stuff,yeah you wanna have a good setup but you don't wanna waste money buying things you don't need,go to his website he has a few good packages on there,