cedric85745

iTrader: (2)

my car is fine now
I just added Bilsteins HD on my stock 02 ta and it feels way better in turns and mountains roads, launch better, etc...
I do a few 100 plus run and was wondering what would be the best set up to achieve stability , like the car stuck on rails at that speed

would lower the car with the right revalved Bilsteins or Konis would make a huge difference for this very purpose ?

No doubt my shitty 16inch 245 tires are not suited for that either

any other parts that really help?

please let me know what you have found the most effective

thanks

Help me before I take my trip to Cali !

cedric85745

iTrader: (2)

ttt ttt

OldeSkool

good tires and a good alignment will get you started.

stiffer springs (lower) matched with the right shocks would be my next step

Then stiffer swaybars

maybe some 17 inch wheels at some point

maybe a rod end panhard bar

Cal

iTrader: (1)

I have some experiance with high speed runs (see sig.) I suggest lowering the car one inch, but have about a half inch rake (front lower than than rear) to reduce front end float. You should end up with 26 inch fenders in the front, and 26.5 inches in the rear.

Koni shocks are a good idea, and most important, speed rated tires with adequate air pressure. A tire with low air pressure will get hot and fail very quick. If you blow a tire at over 100 mph, you are toast. Get some Y or W rated tires like Michelin PS2's, and put a low air pressure warning system in the car.

16 inch wheels and 245 tires are OK, but check the load rating on the tires. Tires with a higher load rating are more reliable at high speed. 265 or 275 tires on 17x9.5 wheels are best IMO. A tire any bigger than a 275/40-17 is not needed for high speed work and will even be a disadvantage.

Wheel alignment should be set to more precision than what the factory did; zero toe and about -0.5 deg camber.

Edit:
Forgot to mention, tires that have ever had a flat repair done on them are not safe at high speed (over 95 mph.) And tires that are more than two years old are not as safe at high speeds either. It is also a good idea to use metal valve caps with rubber gaskets.

cedric85745

iTrader: (2)

thank you Oldschool and Cal
those are precise info and exactly what I was looking for
as far as lowering the car and getting other shocks like Konis,
I m goign to stick with my bilsteins hd for a while, since I just got them
I m sure proper tires in a good 275 size , with proper air in it
would make a difference
also, and I know a lot of people probably asked that before,
could you please recomend good alignment specs for this purpose, once I ll put 17inch and 275

thanks again,
Cal after those mods , do you see a big difference between stock and now going like 100mph?

thanks

cedric85745

iTrader: (2)

oh I forgot to ask, where do you get air pressure warning >?
michelin ps2, I look into them, sure they re probably expensive !!

Cal

iTrader: (1)

I think I got the SmarTire system from TireRack.com
http://www.tirerack.com/accessories/...artire_all.jsp
If you get the upgraded display, it will read out temperature as well as pressure. You can set the trip point on the pressure to anything you want; about 32 psi would be good. You will want to have close to 40 psi in the tires. I believe SmarTire is making a lot of the OEM units that will be required on all new cars next year, so they should be a good brand to go with.

See my other post above for wheel alignment specs. I didn't list Caster because it isn't real critical, as long as you have it, the more the better. Just have the alignment man set it for max caster. If they give you any crap about that, you may have to go to a race shop for a performance alignment. Normal shops usually want to set it to stock specs.

If you get the PS2's in 265's, they are much cheaper than 275's and just as good. They will even fit on 17x9 or 17x9.5 wheels. The PS2's are also cheaper than "regular" Pilot Sports. If you want to go fast, you want good rubber. You have to ask yourself, "How much is my azz worth to me?" There are better tires available than these, but these are the cheapest ones I would trust. BFG KD's would be OK too, but cost almost as much.

As far as feeling a difference at speeds over 100 mph, the Koni shocks made the most difference. These cars are designed well for high speed driving; there is one that has went 300 mph on the Bonneville Raceway (Land Speed Racing.) With a half inch rake and speed rated tires a 3rd or 4th gen fbody is stable to about 190 mph. For speeds over that about all you need to do is add balast for land speed racing, but that doesn't work for road racing so you have to do other things. The front end will start to float at 190 mph.

Another thing I should mention is safety equipment. You really should have a saftey harness and roll bar for anything over 100 mph, and a full cage for anything over 130 mph. Just because these cars can do 170 mph stock doesn't mean they come from the factory with the necessary safety gear to do that. Check the different Open Road Racing organizations for saftey guidelines.

cedric85745

iTrader: (2)

thanks a lot for your imput cal , great stuff

I m wondering about my choice in shocks, I swtich to bilsteins HDs and stil have stock shocks, the reason behind was obviously monetary and also that ,even if I would end up with a little 4 by 4 look with bigger wheesl, I didnt want to go lower because of the streets quality pavement here
anyway it seems that you recomand 17 inch with 275 good tires and good alignment ,
I m sure that will be a good start

thanks

c