3rd Gen Suspension Eye Candy...

[Paul Huryk]

Wanted to post a pic or two of all the suspension parts that finally made their way into the shop for the GTA. The only things missing in the picture are the sway bars (still on the car), subframes (welded in), and the front control arms (still deciding which ones to get).

Should be a decent handling car when its all done...

[PolarBear]

Nah, its going to handle like crap

Nice brakes. What size rotor did you get from that guy at TGO?

What LCA's are those? Surprised you didn't go adjustable on them too

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by PolarBear

Nah, its going to handle like crap

Nice brakes. What size rotor did you get from that guy at TGO?

What LCA's are those? Surprised you didn't go adjustable on them too

Bear - I hope not - that would be a travesty.

I went with the 13" C4 HD rotor with the upgraded aluminum hubs and the FSL calipers. They swim in the wheels, which I find funny as they barely clear other 17" wheels.

Global West doesn't make adjustable RCA for these applications - wish they did... But with the Track Link and the RCA relocation brackets, pinion angle should not be an issue.

[L695speed]

Konis and are those Eibach Pro Kits? I am liking it. I went with UMI's control arms. Had a spring index, ball joints already installed, ditto for bushings. They redesigned them after taking input from people who bought the first design. You've got nearly everything I've got except, I am putting LS1 brakes on the 84 and some parts are factory upgrades.

No doubt you have the 36mm sway up front, whats your plan for the rear sway? And what is that small bar just aft of the front springs? I am not talking about the wonderbar, the one going the other way.

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by L695speed

Konis and are those Eibach Pro Kits? I am liking it. I went with UMI's control arms. Had a spring index, ball joints already installed, ditto for bushings. They redesigned them after taking input from people who bought the first design. You've got nearly everything I've got except, I am putting LS1 brakes on the 84 and some parts are factory upgrades.

No doubt you have the 36mm sway up front, whats your plan for the rear sway? And what is that small bar just aft of the front springs? I am not talking about the wonderbar, the one going the other way.

Chris,

They are actually Global West springs - 1" drop, linear 650/160lbs rate.

I will be reusing the stock 36mm bar up front - going to blast it sand paint it - along with new bushings and end links. I have the 23mm IROC bar on there now, have 2 25mm WS6 bars and am picking up a used 19mm this weekend.

The small bar you refer to is the front mount for the track link (TQ arm) - which attaches to the trans x-member.

I'm not sure which front control arms I want - supposedly global west has a new design coming out in a few weeks (and might be the first one to get them), but there are 3 or 4 other manufacturers that make quality stuff.

Tomorrow I will bolt in the rear shocks, LCAs, and panhard rod when I'm in the shop - too cold for any big projects at this point.

[L695speed]

Nice, not as stiff as the Pro Kits, but those will do nicely. As for the link, I couldn't tell if it was a separate piece. I've heard UMI, Global West, Spohn, Hotchkis, and a few others have nice pieces for these cars, as for choice, its personal preference. I already had a host of UMI parts on the car so I figured whats a few more.

You're using the LCA relocation brackets? I've been told an inch is not enough to justify worrying about the angle, but let me know how that goes. I'm not done with the 84, but if it does make a difference, I'll get some bolt in ones and then have them welded when I get the SFCs welded in. Panhard is a must, the Brackets not so much with the inch drop. At least from what I am told.

Where have you found the 25mm sways? I've been watching for them in case I decided to try one. No luck so far. Most people revert to 19, 20, 21 mm sways out back. They say anything more with the 36 front creates a snap oversteer on bumpy corners. I'm not worried about the oversteer, I like it actually. I've got a 23mm on the 84, the GTA has the stock 24. Haven't seen the snapping rear end come back to bite me. I'll stick with the 23 out back on the 84, it seems to be an unknown and may work to perfection.

If you think its cold down there you should come up here, I don't think we broke double digits today.

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by L695speed

Nice, not as stiff as the Pro Kits, but those will do nicely. As for the link, I couldn't tell if it was a separate piece. I've heard UMI, Global West, Spohn, Hotchkis, and a few others have nice pieces for these cars, as for choice, its personal preference. I already had a host of UMI parts on the car so I figured whats a few more.

You're using the LCA relocation brackets? I've been told an inch is not enough to justify worrying about the angle, but let me know how that goes. I'm not done with the 84, but if it does make a difference, I'll get some bolt in ones and then have them welded when I get the SFCs welded in. Panhard is a must, the Brackets not so much with the inch drop. At least from what I am told.

Where have you found the 25mm sways? I've been watching for them in case I decided to try one. No luck so far. Most people revert to 19, 20, 21 mm sways out back. They say anything more with the 36 front creates a snap oversteer on bumpy corners. I'm not worried about the oversteer, I like it actually. I've got a 23mm on the 84, the GTA has the stock 24. Haven't seen the snapping rear end come back to bite me. I'll stick with the 23 out back on the 84, it seems to be an unknown and may work to perfection.

If you think its cold down there you should come up here, I don't think we broke double digits today.

As the springs are linear, they should do well - not a fan of progressive rate ones after the Jamex ones I had on my IROC.

LCA brackets are not on yet - but deciding whether to do them now or later. I bought them because if I don't use them on the gTA, they will be on something else.

It was a typo - they are actually 24mm rear bars. The only 25mm ones are aftermarket - and I am hoping to have all the rear bars in case - 18mm, 21mm, 23mm, and 24mm for tuning.

I was running a 21mm on my Camaro until I swapped a 12 bolt in - with the extra weight, the car had a good amount of oversteer, so I backed it down to an 18mm, which is about perfect with the springs and heavier rear I am using.

You guys up in the sticks get all the favorable weather!

[IROCZman15]

nice setup. the ride will certainly chainge for you. for the better. enjoy


i upgraded about half of the suspension/chassis parts in my car. still got to to all control arms, sway bars, panhard bar, and various poly mounts/bushings, but i am happy from the way it was when i bougt it. (stock)

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by IROCZman15

nice setup. the ride will certainly chainge for you. for the better. enjoy


i upgraded about half of the suspension/chassis parts in my car. still got to to all control arms, sway bars, panhard bar, and various poly mounts/bushings, but i am happy from the way it was when i bougt it. (stock)

The two things that make a huge difference are subframe connectors (if you don't have them) and rear control arms/panhard rod.

I'm all for changing sway bar bushings and end links on the IROCs and WS6 cars - no reason to spend money on something no better from the aftermarket.

[L695speed]

There are 25mm factory sways...but they are notoriously hard to come by. 15th anniversary had them, and reportedly some 85 WS6 cars had them. They are out there, but doubt they're worth the effort to find one.

The Pro Kit springs I have on my cars are 714 lb fronts and 110-175 lb? rear progressive. It was awesome on the highway and corners, ride can be a lil rough, but part of that may be the Koni settings. Not sure where Matt had them set.

Eventually, if I want to change the springs, I may go with some springs similar to what you have or weight jacks. Problem I have with the weight jacks is you're cutting up the interior to use them. But for now, I like the Pro Kits. And I want to get it done first. Can always change springs later.

If you come up to the Wild Wings meet in Rockaway, you can see how the Pro Kits compare to your Iroc's springs. Provided I have the car there.

[IROCZman15]

Originally Posted by Paul Huryk

The two things that make a huge difference are subframe connectors (if you don't have them) and rear control arms/panhard rod.

I'm all for changing sway bar bushings and end links on the IROCs and WS6 cars - no reason to spend money on something no better from the aftermarket.

yea, i ised to have bolt in Alston racing ones.. then i took those out and upt in a full Weld-in S&W racing setup that has extra attachment bars and plates that mount to the sheetmetal of the body. it also incorporates an adjustable torque arm that mounts up to the transmission in a more sturdy position and a driveshaft loop too. love the S&W subframe kit. very rigid

[WayFast84]

NICE. I want to upgrade to adjustable stuff but I don't know how to adjust them.

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by WayFast84

NICE. I want to upgrade to adjustable stuff but I don't know how to adjust them.

It is easy - most adjustable suspension parts have threaded pipe and lock nuts to hold everything all tight when you hit the optimum setting.

Panhard rod - adjusts the rear wheels either to the driver's or passenger side. Very useful for lowered 3rd and 4th gens

Rear control arms - adjusts the pinion angle for traction in a straight line - can also be useful for handling applications

TQ arm - used to adjust pinion angle, usually mounted better (not on the trans) than stock and can be very useful in both handling and straight line traction

[JSPERFORMANCE]

The lower control arms do not control pinion angle on a torque arm rear suspension.. That is the sole job of the torque arm itself..

[BonzoHansen]

Originally Posted by JSPERFORMANCE

The lower control arms do not control pinion angle on a torque arm rear suspension.. That is the sole job of the torque arm itself..

LCA adjustments in these cars are just for squaring the rear, correct?

[JSPERFORMANCE]

Correct... Thrust angle adjustments and/or centering the rear wheels in the wells..

Majority of the time there is no need to adjust this part.

Most common reasons would be if the control arm mounts on the rear are bent or have been repaired incorrectly, the car itself is a little crooked from an accident, or incorrect useage of lower control arm relocation brackets. Sometimes, when going with a very large diameter rear tire the control arms may require some adjustment to provide extra clearance as well.

[Mike]

Or if lowering the car a significant amount

[JSPERFORMANCE]

Yeah, like 3" +.. At which point the relocation brackets would be necessary to correct the control arm angle anyways.

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by JSPERFORMANCE

The lower control arms do not control pinion angle on a torque arm rear suspension.. That is the sole job of the torque arm itself..

Correct, for 3rd and 4th gens, changing the RCA length does nothing for pinion angle - Josh was the first one to pick up on my intentional misinformation... The 1978 to 1987 G-Bodies can change pinion angle with control arm length as they are a 4 link and do not utilize a TQ arm (GNX is one exception). Talking to Global west about this - they don't offer adjustable LCA for f-bodies for that reason, plus the increase cost of having threaded pipe and lock nuts.

[JSPERFORMANCE]

So you were trying to mislead people?

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by JSPERFORMANCE

So you were trying to mislead people?

Josh, definitely not trying to mislead anyone - wanted to see if anyone was paying attention to the thread I started... My sense of humor gets a little out of whack when I bang my head multiple times like I did yesterday putting most of that stuff in.

Apologies to anyone who may have read my statement for fact.

[JSPERFORMANCE]

10-4

[BigAls87Z28]

C4 HD brakes are very nice! I do like the monoblock calipers you have there. The look cooler than my boring standard C4 units. Maybe once I get her back on all 4 tires, I'll look into it.

[Mike]

Originally Posted by BigAls87Z28

C4 HD brakes are very nice! I do like the monoblock calipers you have there. The look cooler than my boring standard C4 units. Maybe once I get her back on all 4 tires, I'll look into it.

[Paul Huryk]

Originally Posted by BigAls87Z28

C4 HD brakes are very nice! I do like the monoblock calipers you have there. The look cooler than my boring standard C4 units. Maybe once I get her back on all 4 tires, I'll look into it.

It's just a caliper and bracket change - calipers are relatively inexpensive.

They look cool, but they do offer 2x the brake pistons - so it should be an excellent upgrade from the 10.5" iron wonders.