going to purchase shocks and springs which ones???
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asked about this before but the replies didnt help me out much so i figured id post again. have an 02 SS want it lowered and better shocks would u go ahead and switch the shocks when lowering it or leave the stock ones? 2nd of all i was looking at the Eibach Ground Control and KYB shocks is there others springs and shocks yall would look at before purchasing?
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I bought DMS springs and put them on with a new set of decarbons. I know now that using the decarbons (new or old) was probably a mistake. I will end up going with a set of revalves from Sam soon (I'm not in a hurry because the car is rarely driven now). I also did the heater hose mod on the rear. The stance is perfect and looks great. The ride is not terrible, but is sometimes harsh and "bottoms out". With my stock setup my 12 disk CD changer almost never skipped, but now it does. With all that I have learned lately, if I had it to do over again, I would probably skip the springs and pay the $800 for the Koni's from Sam and use the lower perch in the front and do the heater hose mod in the rear. It probably wouldn't look quite as low as it does now but the ride and handling would probably be great.
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i have G2 springs with Bilsteins... I love the way the car rides and handles. Big improvement over stock. Most on this board will steer you away from using the Bilsteins with lowering springs and direct you towards Konis. But Bilsteins are much cheaper. But if price is not a concern then def. go with Konis no matter what springs. If you are looking for something in between, call Sam Strano and have him revalve a set of Bilsteins for the springs you want.
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In addition to the suggestions above, I would like to give some reasons not to consider the combination you were looking at: Ground Control w/ AGX.
The ground control system isn't needed, unless you absolutely need the advantages of a coil-over, which I listed will what most will do in another thread, plus they are a challenge to assemble sometimes, especially on Koni's. Also if not used right and you damage your shock, you can pretty much kiss the shock warranty goodbye.
AFA the KYB AGX, didn't care for the fact that it is a dual action single adjustible, which may not seem terrible, however while there is a need to adjust rebound, there is hardly any change in the unsprung weight for most driving on the tarmac (i doubt anybody goes off road rallying in an F-body), so there is no need for compression adjustment. AGX simlutaneously adjusts both compression and rebound, which is highly undesirable for almost all club or professional racers.
The ground control system isn't needed, unless you absolutely need the advantages of a coil-over, which I listed will what most will do in another thread, plus they are a challenge to assemble sometimes, especially on Koni's. Also if not used right and you damage your shock, you can pretty much kiss the shock warranty goodbye.
AFA the KYB AGX, didn't care for the fact that it is a dual action single adjustible, which may not seem terrible, however while there is a need to adjust rebound, there is hardly any change in the unsprung weight for most driving on the tarmac (i doubt anybody goes off road rallying in an F-body), so there is no need for compression adjustment. AGX simlutaneously adjusts both compression and rebound, which is highly undesirable for almost all club or professional racers.
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I ran KYB GasAJust shocks with my current setup and recently swapped the shocks for Koni SA's. Without changing ANYTHING else, the car rides and handles COMPLETELY different from before. Changing the front shocks is a pretty big pain in the rear, so if you're going to do it, do it once and do it right.
I have yet to hear of anyone who had a set of properly valved Bilsteins or Konis that was unhappy. I know there are several people on this board who are running KYB AGX shocks and are perfectly happy with them, and that's great. However, one has to ask, have they ever ridden in a car with better shocks? For some people, shocks aren't worth spending money on because they don't increase your horsepower (although good shocks can help your quarter mile times). For others, once they've ridden in a car that rides and handles well, they don't want to settle for anything less.
As for coilovers, I considered those for a while as well. For me, it came down to a simple question: Did I see myself changing the ride height often enough to make it worth it? In my case, the answer was "no". Also, once I finally got my car re-aligned with the new setup, I didn't want to do anything to throw off my alignments specs.
I dunno, that's me. Maybe you see yourself constantly tweaking your ride height and maybe KYB shocks will be "good enough" for your needs. If possible, I would look for people in your area that have different setups and ask them to let you ride along and get a feel for what's out there.
-Mike
I have yet to hear of anyone who had a set of properly valved Bilsteins or Konis that was unhappy. I know there are several people on this board who are running KYB AGX shocks and are perfectly happy with them, and that's great. However, one has to ask, have they ever ridden in a car with better shocks? For some people, shocks aren't worth spending money on because they don't increase your horsepower (although good shocks can help your quarter mile times). For others, once they've ridden in a car that rides and handles well, they don't want to settle for anything less.
As for coilovers, I considered those for a while as well. For me, it came down to a simple question: Did I see myself changing the ride height often enough to make it worth it? In my case, the answer was "no". Also, once I finally got my car re-aligned with the new setup, I didn't want to do anything to throw off my alignments specs.
I dunno, that's me. Maybe you see yourself constantly tweaking your ride height and maybe KYB shocks will be "good enough" for your needs. If possible, I would look for people in your area that have different setups and ask them to let you ride along and get a feel for what's out there.
-Mike
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Another rhetorical question I like to ask for those who just want coil-overs for the sake of bragging rights, do you know what cornerweights and wedge are and if so, what are they for?
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Originally Posted by Foxxton
Another rhetorical question I like to ask for those who just want coil-overs for the sake of bragging rights, do you know what cornerweights and wedge are and if so, what are they for?
cornerweights.... err....weights you hang on your corners?
wedge.... he was that x-wing pilot in star wars right?
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Foxxton
I just wanted strait rate springs that I could pick the spring rate and then play with the ride height. I put them on. Tried 3 or so ride heights then got it aligned. Worked good for me. do you know of any other set up to do that. Maybe we could rig up some weight jackers for the coil-overs?
Camaro
I like the ground control set up. WS6store has for 360.00. You will need to pick the spring rate. stock is 280sh. I got 400 lb/in. i ended up 3/4 lower that stock. Some people go to 500 or 600. springs keep the car off the groung. The lower you the more rate you need. Back rate should be 150 lb/in. You should get koni shocks. Hi rate springs need righer rate shocks. If you want you can get revalves Bilsteins from Sam they are less that konis. the konis take more work to put on the car with GC setup.
I just wanted strait rate springs that I could pick the spring rate and then play with the ride height. I put them on. Tried 3 or so ride heights then got it aligned. Worked good for me. do you know of any other set up to do that. Maybe we could rig up some weight jackers for the coil-overs?
Camaro
I like the ground control set up. WS6store has for 360.00. You will need to pick the spring rate. stock is 280sh. I got 400 lb/in. i ended up 3/4 lower that stock. Some people go to 500 or 600. springs keep the car off the groung. The lower you the more rate you need. Back rate should be 150 lb/in. You should get koni shocks. Hi rate springs need righer rate shocks. If you want you can get revalves Bilsteins from Sam they are less that konis. the konis take more work to put on the car with GC setup.
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And if you screw up with installing the GC CO's with the Koni's you risk voiding the warranty. Know several who did that once. The grond control system isn't that great when it comes to product support either. My choice would be better off from other manufacturers (know which ones, don't want to get into that).
Adjusting the ride heights are much less critical than cornerweighting and wedge. That's why CO's are overkill and can get a lot of people into trouble with ride height adjustment. I deal with many people with CO's (domestic and imports) that have good looking ride heights, but their cornerweights and wedge are all screwed up and they still don't know why their handling has gotten worse. That's why I advise those who suggest CO's to at least be responsible with what advice they're giving because for the intial money spent may be cheap up front, but then comes time for proper adjustments and having to swap springs that they don't have on hand, then the labour and financial costs add up quickly. This is coming from a guy that has had the GC and now has the G2 CO's.
I like CO's, however once you set them there for the street, they just sit there and won't move until you either readjust them, or remove them from the vehicle. Plain and simple, streets in many places just don't demand the duty that coil-overs will give. The problem with many is that for the time and money spent, they are overkill for the street. A good OE replacement springs have pretty good spring rates and ride heights to begin with, plus are already set with good cornerweights and wedge.
(Disclaimer: CO's or no CO's, I cannot and will not endorse any driving that exceeds or violates any legal or public safety controls.)
Adjusting the ride heights are much less critical than cornerweighting and wedge. That's why CO's are overkill and can get a lot of people into trouble with ride height adjustment. I deal with many people with CO's (domestic and imports) that have good looking ride heights, but their cornerweights and wedge are all screwed up and they still don't know why their handling has gotten worse. That's why I advise those who suggest CO's to at least be responsible with what advice they're giving because for the intial money spent may be cheap up front, but then comes time for proper adjustments and having to swap springs that they don't have on hand, then the labour and financial costs add up quickly. This is coming from a guy that has had the GC and now has the G2 CO's.
I like CO's, however once you set them there for the street, they just sit there and won't move until you either readjust them, or remove them from the vehicle. Plain and simple, streets in many places just don't demand the duty that coil-overs will give. The problem with many is that for the time and money spent, they are overkill for the street. A good OE replacement springs have pretty good spring rates and ride heights to begin with, plus are already set with good cornerweights and wedge.
(Disclaimer: CO's or no CO's, I cannot and will not endorse any driving that exceeds or violates any legal or public safety controls.)
Last edited by Foxxton; 03-17-2006 at 06:48 PM.
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Here's something that can really help:
http://www.hotrod.com/howto/113_0309_scale/
http://www.grmotorsports.com/news/01...er-weights.php
http://www.hotrod.com/howto/113_0309_scale/
http://www.grmotorsports.com/news/01...er-weights.php
Last edited by Foxxton; 03-17-2006 at 06:51 PM.