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After 75k miles, and almost 20 years, my front end is in need of a rebuild. When I hit bumps, I get too much vibration in the steering wheel than I'd like, so I plan to replace all of the front end bushings and wear items.
My current setup is Konis and springs from Strano that are about 10 years old, BMR front and rear sways.
Here's a list of what I'm getting. front end rebuild items.
Any suggestions or thoughts? I have a 20-ton hydraulic press, which should help. I'm considering going back to my factory springs with the konis to soften the ride a little bit. I guess driving my Mercedes C350 coupe every day has gotten me spoiled that a sporty handling car doesn't need to beat you up.
I don't have any input on the parts you are using to rebuild your front end however I do have some feedback on using stock springs with the koni's. I am currently running koni yellows with the stock springs on the lower perch and if I remember correctly have them maybe 4 clicks from full soft. I personally like it as it still handles well but isn't harsh, kinda feels similar to a touring sedan such as a M3 or something. I haven't ran aftermarket springs but im thinking they would be a little more harsh for daily driving,
I don't have any input on the parts you are using to rebuild your front end however I do have some feedback on using stock springs with the koni's. I am currently running koni yellows with the stock springs on the lower perch and if I remember correctly have them maybe 4 clicks from full soft. I personally like it as it still handles well but isn't harsh, kinda feels similar to a touring sedan such as a M3 or something. I haven't ran aftermarket springs but im thinking they would be a little more harsh for daily driving,
That's exactly the feedback I'm looking for. The car is just a fun cruiser, that happens to make 900hp, but I don't need a harsh spring on it. Guess I'm getting old, but I truly love how my Mercedes drives with the AMG suspension on it. It handles really well for the back-roads driving I do, but doesn't feel harsh, especially compared to the Trans Am.
Me personally, i would do new control arms and save the time. The cost is nearly the same for the bushings. Also do inner and outer tie rods. The moog problem solver bushing is a good idea though.
Me personally, i would do new control arms and save the time. The cost is nearly the same for the bushings. Also do inner and outer tie rods. The moog problem solver bushing is a good idea though.
That's the thing, I bought the hydraulic press, and I want to put in quality, better than new bushings, which is the Moog ones. I don't mind if the project takes longer, I just want a better quality ride.
So you think I should do inner tie rod ends as well? I'm going to do outers as I heard they take more of the abuse, but I might as well do the inners while I'm there.
id reach out to ridetech, maybe go with the air ride setup or the level 2 coilovers but discuss your ride quality concern and the spring rating can be taylored a bit. hypercoil supplys the spring for that kit so I think you could pick a spring rate that would be less harsh along with being able to dial in the monotube shock?
That aside I kind of get where you are coming from hahaha. Recently got my wife a cla 250 and the ride quality has made me question somethings haha.
one other thing to consider, im sure there isnt much tire on those 19's and extra rubber can help dampen some of that harshness. you going back to rubber bushings?
id reach out to ridetech, maybe go with the air ride setup or the level 2 coilovers but discuss your ride quality concern and the spring rating can be taylored a bit. hypercoil supplys the spring for that kit so I think you could pick a spring rate that would be less harsh along with being able to dial in the monotube shock?
That aside I kind of get where you are coming from hahaha. Recently got my wife a cla 250 and the ride quality has made me question somethings haha.
one other thing to consider, im sure there isnt much tire on those 19's and extra rubber can help dampen some of that harshness. you going back to rubber bushings?
Sure, the 19s don't have a large sidewall, but it's actually more than on the 18s" on the mercedes, so that's not it. I just think the spring rate is a little too high for the low quality roads here in PA, along with 20 year old rubber bushings on the front end that are done, it's led to a harsh ride, as well as a lot of vibration in the steering wheel when I hit bumps. On a smooth road, there's no vibration, so it's not an out of balance situation. I'm going with higher quality MOOG problem solver bushings wherever I can. I think with the factory springs and koni combo, and new bushings, I'll be very happy with the car.
Don't bother with the inner tie rods, just get an AC Delco rack from rockauto, it has a lifetime warranty and includes new inner tie rods. All you other choices are good though. Personally I think the stranos are fine for daily but I like a stiffer ride, personal choice. If you want more steering feedback, you can go with the Moog steering rack bushing, it's poly and will be better without being harsh.
while im not on the 19" are terrible and too big to be on f-bodies bandwagon, I wouldnt write that off entirely as a contributor. Mercedes designed their suspension with that wheel combo in mind so it would account for stiffer tire in the ride. F-bodies not so much since stock they came with a 17" in most cases so I wouldnt expect that to be a direct comparison as a control point. That said id start with replacing the bushings and see how you feel about it after that before going to hard at your coil strut setup. Never really thought about the steering rack contributing to a harsh ride but I suppose it possible? but I would think you would have some performance issues if that were the case? Then again when something is a gradual enough change we dont really notice how bad it is till its corrected. If you are doing the work yourself it would probably be worth it to just buy a rack and go on.
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Front end rebuild time. 
