suspension questions

[IntegraGSR]

i own a 95 GS-R and i want to upgrade my suspension but im not sure about certain things like what exactly is the difference between a gas shock suspension and a regular spring and shock suspension. Which one is better and why? Also how does the gas shock suspension work?

 

[Chuckie Finster]

Nothing. Don't make it hard. Just think of it as the "shock" (or more correctly: "damper"). You will still use a spring to hold the weight of the car; the damper is to control oscillations of the springs which absorbs bumps of the road and weight transfer during longitude/latitude acceleration.

 

[IntegraGSR]

my budget

my budget to upgrade suspension is about $450 and i want to know what you guys think i should get with that amount

 

[Chuckie Finster]

Where do you plan to go with your car? Looking for a street machine that can handle with the best or are you just wanting to lower the car for looks?

 

[DownShift96GSR]

With your $450, i'd get a sway bar kit. You could get some Tokico Illumina shocks for about $400 off ebay. Or you could hook up your suspension with some strut tower bars. IMO, try and get your shocks AND springs at the same time and put them on together.

 

[IntegraGSR]

performance

i want to upgrade for better performance my car is lowered already, i wanna upgrade for better performance

 

[Chuckie Finster]

What kind of springs did you lower with? There's a difference between lowering springs and sport springs. What's the difference? The names are self-explanatory. Skunk2, Eibach, Ground Control, H&R, Progress and Neuspeed are great springs for the performance enthusiast. Of course performance isn't limited to those brands only. Once you have a nice set of springs, I suggest some dampers to work with the springs 'cause the stock one won't hold up to the performance driving and extra stress created by the stiffer springs. Tokico and Koni are some of the favorites. And strut bars are a big plus since they stiffen the chasis diverting loads into the suspension system instead of into messing up the balance of the car--and the extra responsiveness is a big plus as well. Anti-roll bars (aka sway bars, anti-sway bars) are also great to have as they allow the fine tuning of your car. The tuning is a great plus but that's also it's downfall. You CANNOT just bolt on a set of anti-roll bars (like the other things) and expect handling to improve. Handling balance could be sacraficed or worser yet create a dangerously oversteering car. Anti-roll bars almost always require tuning to perform at their best and by tuning I mean at the track with actual tire temperatures taken and pushed to the limits so you know where you stand.

 

[DownShift96GSR]

Chuckie are you 100% positive about those sway bars? I know people who have em and they tell me after they threw on the kit it felt like driving a brand new car.

 

[Chuckie Finster]

Yeah, it definitely would feel better. Provided that the new bars are stiffer than the previous, the effective wheel rate will increase. An increase in wheel rate makes the car feel a whole lot stiffer in the corners and experience less body roll and lean. It's not until pushed to the very limits, driving at 10/10, that a flaw may or may not become apparent. They're great to have, I love them too, but I would suggest that to make them perform at optimal, one should dial it in at the track. So that when the situation arises, whether on a decreasing radius corner or that nice canyon road, one does not get an unwelcome surprise. That is, of course, if the anti-roll bar is an adjustable one. Sorry if I'm confusing you some more. 8)

 

[XTurboAcuraX]

here i am again with another weido question. someone told me that lowering the car makes it unsafe. he said it will flip easier. i don't think this is true. what do you guys say?

 

[Scratchin]

here i am again with another weido question. someone told me that lowering the car makes it unsafe. he said it will flip easier. i don't think this is true. what do you guys say?

hmmm...
lowerin car -> higher spring rate -> stiffer chassis -> car bounces -> jump? = lost control -> boom!!
nowdays? so many spring rates in market ,buy right rate for your driving style
and get some your footwork settin (sway bars, bushings, etc...and tune it)
than I dont think you flip easier ,its not "what you got" more like "how you do"

 

[Chuckie Finster]

Kick him in the nuts. If you lower your car, as a result, the cars' center of gravity lowers as well. A lower CG means less (compared to before) weight transfer to the outside wheel. Combined with stiffer springs the car will exhibit less body roll --> more cornering power. Provided this is a double-wishbone car. In a MacPherson vehicle, lowering the car too much lowers the center of gravity but f*cks with the roll centre geometry, in turn you stick even stiffer springs to combat that then your car's not fun to drive on the street anymore. In the strut car, stick to a reasonable drop unless you plan to drive around with extremely stiff springs.